THE QURAN: THE WORD OF GOD?

by
Mahathir

Muslims claim that the Quran is perfect given the notion that it was dictated to Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel and represents the word of God. However, does this assertion stand the weight of scrutiny? For no word of God would be replete with contradictions.

In this article, I shall try to examine some of the contradictions contained within the Quran.

1.      How long is Allah’s day?

In Surah 32 Verse 5, we find that, “He directeth the ordinance from the heaven unto the earth; then it ascendeth unto Him in a Day, whereof the measure is a thousand years of that ye reckon” while in Surah 70 Verse 4, we find that: “(Whereby) the angels and the Spirit ascend unto Him in a Day whereof the span is fifty thousand years.”

2.      How many days did Allah take to create Heaven and Earth?

In Surah 7 Verse 54, we are presented with the following: “[y]our guardian-Lord is Allah. Who created the heavens and the earth in SIX Days....”; in Surah 10 Verse 3, “[v]erily your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and the earth in SIX Days....”; Surah 11 Verse 7 continues with, “He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in SIX days....” and Surah 25 Verse 29 confirms that, “He […] created the heavens And the earth and all that is between, in SIX days….”

However, this is in direct contradiction when you add up the length of Creation from the following: Surah 41 Verse 9, “[i]s it that ye Deny Him who created the earth in TWO days?....”, Surah 41 Verse 10, “He set on the (earth). Mountains standing firm,
high above it, and bestowed blessings on the earth, and measured therein all things to
give them nourishment in due proportion, in FOUR days...”, and Surah 41 Verse 12, “[s]o He completed them as seven firmaments in TWO days....” which equals to 8 days (2 for earth + 4 days for nourishment + 2 days for heavens)

3.      Which was created first Heaven or Earth?

Surah 2 Verse 29 declares that Allah created the earth then turned his attention to heaven, while Surah 79 Verses 27 – 30 contradicts this by saying that heaven was created before the earth.

4. Was man created from dust, clay, blood, sperm or nothing?

Surah 3 Verse 59 emphatically states that “[t]he similitude of Jesus before Allah is as that of Adam; He created him from dust, then said to him: “Be”. And he was,” while Surah 15 Verse 26 that “[w]e created man from sounding clay, from mud molded into shape,” Surah 96 Verse 2, on the other hand states that “[Allah] [c] reated man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood,” while Surah 16 Verse 4 that “He has created man from a sperm-drop; and behold this same (man) becomes an open disputer!,” and Surah 19 Verse 67 that “…[w]e created him before out of nothing?”

5.      Who brought the revelation from Allah to Muhammad?

While Surah 2 Verse 97 claims that it is the Angel Gabriel, Surah 16 Verse 102 emphatically states that it is the Holy Spirit.

6.      Was the first Muslim Muhammad,  Abraham,  Jacob or Moses?

While Surah 39 Verse 12 says that “…I [Muhammad] am commanded to be the first of those who bow to Allah in Islam,” Surah 2 Verse 132 declares that “"…this was the legacy that Abraham left to his sons, and so did Jacob; "Oh my sons! Allah hath chosen the Faith for you; then die not except in the Faith of Islam,"” which is in direct contradiction to Surah 7 Verse 143 which claims that “"[w]hen Moses came to the place appointed by Us, and his Lord addressed him, He said: "O my Lord! show (Thyself) to me, that I may look upon thee." Allah said: "[b]y no means canst thou see Me (direct); But look upon the mount; if it abide in its place, then shalt thou see Me." When his Lord manifested His glory on the Mount, He made it as dust. And Moses fell down in a swoon. When he recovered his senses he said: "[g]lory be to Thee! to Thee I turn in repentance, and I am the first to believe."”

7. Does Allah forgive or not forgive those who worship false gods? 

Surah 4 Verse 153 portrays Allah as a forgiving God who will forgive non-believers (“[t]he people of the Book ask thee to cause a book to descend to them from heaven: Indeed they asked Moses for an even greater (miracle), for they said: "Show us Allah in public," but they were dazed for their presumption, with thunder and lightning. Yet they worshipped the calf even after clear signs had come to them; even so we forgave them; and gave Moses manifest proofs of authority,”) while Surah 4 Verse 48 depicts an unforgiving God who “…forgiveth not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgiveth anything else, to whom He pleaseth; to set up partners with Allah is to devise a sin Most heinous indeed,”  

8.      Who takes the soul after death?

Sometimes Prophet Mohammed states that the Angel of Death takes the souls after death as per Surah 32 Verse 11, “[t]he angel of death, put in charge of you will take your souls then shall ye be brought back to your Lord,” while at another time he says that there are angels who take the souls at the time of death as per Surah 47 Verse 27, “[b]ut how will it be when the angels take their souls at death, and smite their faces and their backs?”  while at yet another time Prophet Mohammed declares that that it is in fact Allah who takes the souls as per Surah 39 Verse 42, “[i]t is Allah that takes the souls of men at death; and those that die not He takes during their sleep....”

9.      How many gardens are there in Paradise?

Surah 41 Verse 30 declares that there is only one garden in Paradise while Surah 18 Verse 31, Surah 22 Verse 23, Surah 25 Verse 33 and Surah 78 Verse 32 contradicts this by saying that there are many gardens in Paradise.

10.  How many groups will there be at the last judgment?

While Surah 56 Verse 7 says that there will be three distinct groups of people at the Last Judgment, Surah 90 Verses 18 – 19 and Surah 99 Verses 6 – 8 states that there will be two distinct groups at the Last Judgment.

11.  Has some passages in the Quran been abrogated ?

Surah 6 Verse 34 implies that the Quran is perfect and can never be abrogated
(“[t]here is none to alter the decisions of Allah”). This is reinforced by Surah 6 Verse 115, which claims that “[p]erfected is the Word of thy Lord in truth and justice. There is naught that can change His words.” This is further reinforced by Surah 10 Verse 64 (“[t]here is no changing the Words of Allah”) and by Surah 18 verse 27 “[a]nd recite that which hath been revealed unto thee of the Scripture of thy Lord. There is none who can change His words,” which is direct contradiction with Surah 2 Verse 106
(“[s]uch of Our revelations as We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, we bring (in place) one better or the like thereof. Knowest thou not that Allah is Able to do all things?”) and Surah 16 Verse 101 (“[and when We put a revelation in place of (another) revelation, - and Allah knoweth best what He revealeth - they say: Lo! thou art but inventing. Most of them know not), which seems to imply that some passages of the Quran has been abrogated.

12.  This brings us to the last and final point; which is unique to Islam; this being the concept of progressive revelation: which is the rationale that Muslims provide for the abrogation of verses found in the Quran.

We find in Surah 2 Verse 106, the following verse: “None of Our revelations do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar: Knowest thou not that Allah Hath power over all things?”

This is a concept that is foreign to most major religions throughout the world; for most religions believe that God is Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient. How can an all Knowing God change his mind?

Muslims attempt to explain this aberration in logic through the concept of progressive revelation.

Hence, this brings us to the most crucial and pertinent consideration of the flaw in Islam; which constitutes the crux of the problem with the religion: i.e. the abrogation of the peaceful verses in the Quran that preaches peace and tolerance during the early stages of Islam when Prophet Muhammad had a relatively small following given the fact that the religion was struggling for acceptance in what was a predominantly Christian state and Prophet Muhammad had no choice but to live in peace and harmony with the Jews, and the Verses of the Sword, which came during the period in Medina, when the religion was in the ascendency and Prophet Muhammad had a large following and was afflicted with the megalomaniac need to spread his religion by the sword and when the peaceful verse in the Quran was abrogated by the Verses of the Sword that preaches violence and hatred against non-believers.

So, I pose to you this question regarding the authenticity of a document claimed to be dictated to Prophet Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel and is supposedly the Word of God:

a. How can there be so many contradictions within a document that is supposed to represent the Word of God, and

b. How can God abrogate peaceful verses that espouse the virtues of living in peace and harmony with your neighbors with violent verses preaching hate and war with non-believers?