Rebuttal to Akbarally Meherally : LIES AND DECEPTION: A LOOK AT MEHERALLY'S CRITIQUE OF SILAS' "MUHAMMAD AND THE BIBLE" [Part 2]

The Injeel/Gospel bestowed on Jesus Christ

In the Qur'an (5: 46), it is recorded that Allah (S.W.T.) had Himself bestowed "The Injeel / Gospel" on Jesus,

the son of Mary (peace be upon him), and therein was the Guidance and the Light and the confirmation of the

Taurat that came earlier and admonition for those who fear Allah. It is very important to

differentiate between "The Gospel" bestowed on Jesus by Allah and "The Gospels" according to the Four Apostles of Jesus that are included in The Bible under The New Testament. The first one is "The Gospel (Good News) of God"

preached by Jesus Christ himself. The second one is "The

Good News of Jesus" written by the four Apostles. Understanding

of this fundamental difference is equally important for the Muslims as well as the

Christians, as such I have written a separate article on this subject. I strongly suggest

you to visit http://www.mostmerciful.com/kofgg.htm. The article goes at length explaining what the Qur'an has attested as "The Injeel / Gospel". In the

Gospel according to Mark (1: 14), the apostle confirms that Jesus, after his stay of forty

days in the wilderness; "came to Galilee,

proclaiming the good news of God". Jesus spoke of "the Kingdom of God". Jesus asked

the people to "believe in The Gospel /Injeel (good news)" that he was preaching to them.

Let the people of the Gospel judge by what Allah hath REVEALED THEREIN.

If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are (no better than)

those who rebel. S. 5:47

Khadija then accompanied him to her cousin Waraqa bin Naufal bin Asad bin 'Abdul 'Uzza,

who, during the Pre-Islamic Period became a Christian and used to write the writing with

Hebrew letters. He would write from THE GOSPEL in Hebrew as much AS ALLAH

WISHED HIM TO WRITE ... (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 1, Number 3)

... Khadija then took him to Waraqa bin Naufil, the son of Khadija's paternal uncle.

Waraqa had been converted to Christianity in the Pre-lslamic Period and used to write

Arabic and write of THE GOSPEL in Arabic as much AS ALLAH WISHED

HIM TO WRITE ... (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 478)

Ziyad b. Labid said: The Prophet mentioned a matter, saying, "that will be at the

time when knowledge departs." I asked, "How can knowledge depart when we

recite the Qur'an and teach it to our children and they will teach it to their children up till

the Day of Resurrection?" He replied, "I am astonished at you, Ziyad. I thought

you were the most learned man in Medina. Do not these Jews and Christians READ THE

TORAH AND THE INJIL without knowing a thing about their contents?" Ahmad

and Ibn Majah transmitted it, Tirmidhi transmitted something similar from him, as did Darimi from

Abu Umama.

"Muhammad is the messenger of Allah; and those who are with him are strong against

Unbelievers, (but) compassionate amongst each other. Thou wilt see them bow and prostrate

themselves (in prayer), seeking Grace from Allah and (His) Good Pleasure. On their

faces are their marks, (being) the traces of their prostration. This is their similitude

IN THE TAURAT; and their similitude IN THE GOSPEL IS: like a seed which sends forth

its blade, then makes it strong; it then becomes thick, and it stands on its own stem,

(filling) the sowers with wonder and delight. As a result, it fills the Unbelievers

with rage at them. Allah has promised those among them who believe and do righteous

deeds forgiveness, and a great Reward." S. 48:29

... The similitude in the Gospel is about how the good seed is sown and grown

gradually, even beyond the expectation of the sower: "the seed should spring

and grow up, he knoweth not how; for the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the

blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the earth"; MARK, iv 27-28 ...

(Ali, The Holy Qur'an - Meaning and Translation, p. 1400, n. 4917; bold and capital emphasis mine)

"Among the things which have reached me about what Jesus the Son of Mary stated

in the Gospel which he received from God for the followers of the Gospel, in applying a term

to describe the apostle of God, is the following. It is extracted FROM WHAT JOHN THE

APOSTLE SET DOWN FOR THEM WHEN HE WROTE THE GOSPEL FOR THEM FROM THE

TESTAMENT OF JESUS SON OF MARY: He that hateth me hateth the Lord. And

if I had not done in their presence works which none other before me did, they had not sin:

but from now they are puffed up with pride and think that they will overcome me and also

the Lord. But the word that is in the law must be fulfilled, 'They hated me without a cause'

(i.e. without reason). But when the Comforter has come whom God will send to you from

the Lord's presence, and the spirit of truth which will have gone forth from the Lord's

presence he (shall bear) witness of me and ye also, because ye have been with me from

the beginning. I have spoken unto you about this that ye should not be in doubt.

"The Munahhemana (God bless and preserve him!) in Syriac is Muhammad;

in Greek he is the paraclete." (Ishaq, Life Of Muhammad, trans. Alfred Guillaume, pp. 103-104; bold and capital emphasis ours)

According to Hisham (b. Muhammad al-Kalbi) - one of his colleagues - Amr b.

Abi al-Miqdam - Amr b. Ikrimah: We spent the morning of the day on which

Husayn was killed in Medina. One of our mawali told us,

"Yesterday I heard a voice calling out:

O men who have rashly killed Husayn, do expect torture and chastisement. All

the people of heaven, prophets, angels, and tribes prosecute you. You have been

cursed by the tongue of the son of David, and of Moses, AND OF THE

BRINGER OF THE GOSPELS."

According to Hisham (b. Muhammad al-Kalbi) - Umar b. Hazum al-Kalbi

said that his father had heard that voice. (The History of Tabari, The Caliphate of Yazid B. Mu-Awiyah, trans. I. K. A. Howard [State University of New York Press], Volume 19, pp. 178-179)

Ahmad ibn 'Abd Allah ibn Salam [also] said:

I have translated the beginning of this book, and the Torah, THE GOSPELS,

and THE BOOKS OF THE PROPHETS and disciples from Hebrew,

Greek, and Sabian, which are the languages of the people of each book, in

Arabic, letter for letter ... (Abu 'l-Faraj Muhammad ibn Ishaq al-Nadim, The Fihrist - A 10th Century AD Survey of Islamic Culture, edited and translated by Bayard Dodge [Great Books of the Islamic World, Inc., Columbia University Press, 1970], p. 42; bold and capital emphasis ours)

"At a very early date it appears that the four Gospels were united in one collection.

They must have been brought together very soon after the writing of the Gospel according

to John. This fourfold collection was known originally as The Gospel

singular, not The Gospels in the plural; there was only one Gospel, narrated

in four records, distinguished as according to Matthew, according

to Mark, and so on.

About A.D. 115 Ignatius, bishop, of Antioch, refers to The Gospel as an

authoritative writing, and as he knew more than one of the four Gospels

it may well be that by The Gospel sans phrase he means the fourfold

collection which went by that name."

(Bruce, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? [Intervarsity Press; Downers Grove Il., rpt. 1992], p. 23; bold emphasis ours)

"By the time of Irenaeus, who, though, a native of Asia Minor, was bishop

of Lyons in Gaul about A.D. 180, the idea of a fourfold Gospel had become so axiomatic

in the Church at large that he can refer to it as an established and recognized fact as

obvious as the four cardinal points or the four winds:

For as there are four quarters of the world in which we live, and four universal

winds, and as the Church is dispersed over all the earth, and the gospel is the pillar and

base of the Church and the breath of life, so it is natural that it should have four pillars,

breathing immortality from every quarter and kindling the life of men anew.

Whence it is manifest that the Word, the architect of all things, who sits upon the

cherubim and holds all things together, having been made manifested to men, have

given us THE GOSPEL in fourfold form, but held together by one Spirit."

(Ibid., p. 24; bold and capital emphasis ours)

Narrated 'Aisha:
... Waraqa was the son of her paternal uncle, i.e., her father's brother, who

during the Pre-Islamic Period became a Christian and used to write the Arabic writing

and used to write of the GOSPELS in Arabic as much as Allah wished him

to write... (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 87, Number 111)

Narrated 'Aisha:
The Prophet returned to Khadija while his heart was beating rapidly. She took him

to Waraqa bin Naufal who was a Christian convert and used to read

the GOSPELS in Arabic... (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 55, Number 605)

The Book given to David

In the Qur'an (17: 55), it is revealed that Allah (S.W.T.) had Himself given "The Zabur" (The Psalms) to

Prophet David (peace be upon him). In the Old Testament of the Bible, there are Five Books

of Psalms comprising of 150 Psalms. Out of these 150, a total of 73 Psalms are ascribed to

Prophet David; 51 to anonymous writers, 12 to Asaph or his descendants; 9 to the sons of

Korah (temple assistants); 2 to King Solomon and one each to Heman, Ethan (a musician) and

Prophet Moses.

"And if they deny thee, even so did they deny MESSENGERS who were

before thee, who came with miracles and with the PSALMS (Zuburi) and

with the Scripture giving light." S. 3:184

"Without doubt it is (announced) in the revealed Books (Zubur) of former peoples." S. 26:196

And if they reject thee, so did their predecessors, to whom came THEIR MESSENGERS

with Clear Signs, PSALMS (Zuburi), and the Book illuminating. S. 35:25

"Are your Unbelievers, (O Quraish), better than they? Or have ye an immunity

in the Sacred Books (Zubur)?" S. 54:43

The Books sent to the earlier Prophets

The Glorious Qur'an reveals:

Say ye: "We believe in Allah and the revelation

given to us and to Abraham, Ismai'l, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes and that given to Moses

and Jesus and that given to (all) Prophets from their Lord we make no difference between

one and another of them and we bow to Allah (in Islam)." 2: 136

Translation by Abdullah Yusuf Ali

In the Bible there are no books written by or ascribed to the prophets
Abraham (Ibrahim), Ishmael (Isma'il), Isaac (Is-haq) and/or Jacob (Ya'qub).

IS THE "THE TRUTH" OR "ANOTHER DECEIT" BY SILAS?

In his article under the rebuttal, Silas writes the following:

Many Muslims today say the Bible is corrupted. But there is nothing in the Quran that supports this. There is not one

word in the Quran that teaches that the Scriptures of the Jews and Christians have been

perverted by man. Instead, the opposite is true. The Quran

supports the Bible.

Isn't it interesting that the Muslims' Quran has nothing to say about the corruption of the Scriptures of the largest religion on earth?

READ THE QUR'ANIC VERSES AND YOU BE THE JUDGE...

Allah did aforetime take a Covenant from the Children

of Israel and We appointed twelve captains among them and Allah said: "I am with you:

if ye (but) establish regular prayers practice regular charity believe in My apostles

honor and assist them and loan to Allah a beautiful loan verily I will wipe out from you

your evils and admit you to gardens with rivers flowing beneath; but if any of you after

this resisteth faith he hath truly wandered from the path of rectitude." 5: 12

But because of their breach of their Covenant We cursed them

and made their hearts grow hard: they change the words from

their (right) places and forget a good part of the Message that was sent them nor wilt thou cease to find them barring a few

ever bent on (new) deceits: but forgive them and overlook

(their misdeeds): for Allah loveth those who are kind. Glorious Qur'an 5: 13

Translation by Yusuf Ali

If changing of "the words from their (right) places" within "the

corruption of the Scriptures" what is it???

But because of their breach of their covenant, We cursed them, and made their hearts

grow hard: they change the words from their (right) places and forget a good part of the

message that was sent them, nor wilt thou cease to find them BARRING A FEW-

ever bent on (new) deceits: but forgive them, and overlook (their misdeeds): for Allah

loveth those who are kind. From those, too, who call themselves Christians, We did take a

covenant, but they forgot a good part of the message that was sent them: so We stirred up

enmity and hatred between the one and the other, to the Day of Judgment. And soon will

Allah show them what it is they have done. O people of the Book! There hath come to you

our Messenger, revealing to you much that ye used to HIDE in the Book, and passing

over much (that is now unnecessary): There hath come to you from Allah a (new) light

and a perspicuous Book,- S. 5:13-15

"But why do they come to thee for decision, WHEN THEY HAVE THEIR OWN TORAH

BEFORE THEM? - therein is the (plain) command of Allah; yet even after that, they would

turn away. For they are not (really) People of Faith. It was We who revealed the Torah (to

Moses): therein was guidance and light. By its standard have been judged the Jews, by the

prophets who bowed (as in Islm) to Allah's will, by the rabbis and the doctors of law:

for to them was entrusted the protection of Allah's book, and they were witnesses thereto:

therefore fear not men, but fear Me, and sell not My signs for a miserable price. If any

do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are unbelievers. We

ordained therein for them: Life for life, eye for eye, nose or nose, ear for ear,

tooth for tooth, and wounds equal for equal. But if any one remits the retaliation

by way of charity, it is an act of atonement for himself. And if any fail to judge by

(the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are wrong-doers. And in their footsteps

We sent Jesus the son of Mary, CONFIRMING THE TORAH THAT CAME BEFORE HIM:

We sent him the Gospel: therein was guidance and light, AND CONFIRMATION OF

THE TORAH THAT HAD COME BEFORE HIM: a guidance and an admonition to

those who fear Allah. Let the people of the Gospel judge by what Allah hath revealed therein.

If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are (no better than)

those who rebel." S. 5:46-47

"<'Isa, son of Maryam, confirming the Tawrah that had come before him,>

meaning, he believed in it AND RULED BY IT ...

<and confirmation of the Tawrah that had come before it,> meaning, HE

ADHERED TO THE TAWRAH, except for the few instances that clarified the truth

where the Children of Israel differed. Allah states in another Ayah that 'Isa said to the

Children of Israel, ... <... and to make lawful to you part of what was forbidden to you.>

So the scholars say that the Injil abrogated some of the rulings of the Tawrah ..."

(Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Abridged, Volume 3, Parts 6, 7 & 8, Surat An-Nisa, Verse 148, Abridged by a group of scholars under the supervision of Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri [Darussalam Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh, Houston, New York, Lahore; January 2000, first edition], pp. 193-194; bold and capital emphasis ours)

Mujahid, Ash-Sha'bi, Al-Hassan, Qatadah and Ar-Rabi' bin Anas said that,

<who distort the Book with their tongues.>

means, "They alter (Allah's Words)."

Al-Bukhari reported that Ibn 'Abbas said that the Ayah means they alter and add although

none among Allah's creation CAN REMOVE THE WORDS OF ALLAH FROM HIS BOOKS, THEY ALTER AND

DISTORT THEIR APPARENT MEANINGS. Wahb bin Munabbih said, "The Tawrah and Injil

REMAIN AS ALLAH REVEALED THEM, AND NO LETTER IN THEM WAS REMOVED. However, the people

misguide others by addition and false interpretation, relying on books that they wrote

themselves." Then,

<they say: "This is from Allah," but it is not from Allah;>

As for Allah's books, THEY ARE STILL PRESERVED AND CANNOT BE CHANGED." Ibn

Abi Hatim recorded this statement ... (Tafsir Ibn Kathir Abridged, Volume 2, Parts 3, 4 & 5, Surat Al-Baqarah, Verse 253, to Surat An-Nisa, verse 147 [Darussalam Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh, Houston, New York, Lahore; First Edition: March 2000], p. 196; bold and capital emphasis ours)

We certainly gave the Book to Mosesbut differences arose therein: had it not

been that a Word had gone forth before from thy Lord the matter would have been decided

between them: but they are in suspicious doubt concerning it. Glorious Qur'an 11: 110

Commentaries #1613 and # 1614 by translator Yusuf Ali to 11: 110:
# 1613 Cf. x. 19. Previous revelations are not to be denied or dishonoured because those who nominally go by them have corrupted and deprived them of

spiritual value by their vain controversies and disputes. It was possible to settle

such disputes under the flag, as it were, of the old Revelations, but Allah's Plan was to

revive and rejuvenate His Message through Islam, amongst a newer and younger people,

unhampered by the burden of age long prejudices.
# 1614 Cf. xi. 62. There is always in human affairs the conflict between the old and

the new, -the worn-out system of our ancestors, and the fresh living spring of Allah's

inspiration fitting in with new times and new surroundings. The advocates of the former

look upon this latter not only with intellectual doubt but with moral suspicion, as did

the People of the Book upon Islam, with its fresh outlook and vigorous realistic way of

looking at things.

"... It was possible to settle such disputes under the flag, as it were,

OF THE OLD REVELATIONS ..."

The Ark of the Covenant

The so called Fifth Book of Moses - Deuteronomy, records that Prophet Moses made an Ark

of acacia wood and cut two tablets of stone like the ones he had received on the mountain,

while God spoke to him. As God had commanded him to do, Moses put these two tablets

containing the Original Message from God into the Ark (see Deut. 10: 1-5). Later, the

contents of the original Ark were transferred and sealed into another Ark of wood and gold

made by Bezalel of the tribe of Judah. This Ark served as a holy archive for the safe

keeping of the sacred testimonies, reminders and messages. It also contained a golden jar

having the manna and the rod of high priest Aaron. Before Moses died, he gave a copy of

the "Book of Law" to the Levitical priests with instructions to place that copy

not within the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, but place it beside the sacred Ark. Moses

added;
"...let it remain there as a witness against you. For I know

well how rebellious and stubborn you are. If you already have been so rebellious towards

the Lord while I am still alive among you, how much more after my death!"

(Deut. 31: 26-28).
This Ark of the Covenant was brought by King David to Jerusalem. Today, the researchers

like Mike Sanders believe that the Ark was probably destroyed by Ramesses III. The

original Message of God that was bestowed upon Moses and written by Moses himself and

placed by him in the Ark is no where to be found.

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God

with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments

that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about

them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when

you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write

them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. When the LORD your God

brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you -

a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, houses filled with all kinds of good

things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did

not plant-then when you eat and are satisfied, be careful that you do not forget the LORD,

who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery." Deuteronomy 6:4-12

"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your

hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them

when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you

get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, so that your

days and the days of your children may be many in the land that the LORD swore to give

your forefathers, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth. Deuteronomy 11:18-21

"When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a

scroll A COPY OF THIS LAW, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. It is

to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere

the LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees and

not consider himself better than his brothers and turn from the law to the right or to the

left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel."

Deuteronomy 17:18-20

"Then Joshua built on Mount Ebal an altar to the LORD, the God of Israel, as Moses

the servant of the LORD had commanded the Israelites. He built it according to what is

written in the Book of the Law of Moses-an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron

tool had been used. On it they offered to the LORD burnt offerings and sacrificed

fellowship offerings. There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua copied on stones

the law of Moses, which he had written. All Israel, aliens and citizens alike, with

their elders, officials and judges, were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant

of the LORD , facing those who carried it-the priests, who were Levites. Half of the

people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses

the servant of the LORD had formerly commanded when he gave instructions to bless the

people of Israel. Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law-the blessings and the

curses-just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that

Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel,

including the women and children, and the aliens who lived among them. Joshua 8:30-35

"Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant

of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. You have fulfilled

the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing upon us great disaster.

Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem.

JUST AS IT IS WRITTEN IN THE LAW OF MOSES, all this disaster has come upon

us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving

attention to your truth." Daniel 9:11b-13

"They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving

the meaning so that the people could understand what was being read ... On the second

day ... they gathered around Ezra the scribe to give attention to the words of the Law.

They found written in the Law, which the LORD had commanded through

Moses, that Day after day, from the first day to the last, Ezra read from the

Book of the Law of God" Nehemiah 8:13-14,18