The Accusation of the Bible’s Corruption
A. Emergence of the Accusation:
1. The accusation of the Bible’s corruption became especially prominent after the Prophet’s migration to Yathrib (now known as Medina)—that is, in the Medinan Qur’anic chapters—following the death of Waraqah ibn Nawfal. The accusation further developed during the third Islamic century (9th century AD), particularly with the commencement of Islamic scholarly works that aimed to interpret the Qur’an.
2. The accusation of Bible corruption appeared in various Islamic writings during the Middle Ages, such as:
1. “Guidance for Those Who Are Perplexed in Response to the Jews and Christians”
(Hidāyat al-Ḥayārā fī Ajwibat al-Yahūd wa al-Naṣārā)
by Imam Shams ad-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (d. 751 AH / 1350 AD), who is often considered a harsh critic of Christian doctrine.
2. The writings of Aḥmad ibn Idrīs ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Abū al-ʿAbbās, known as Shihāb ad-Dīn al-Qarāfī, especially his book:
“Distinguished Responses to Shameless Questions”
(Al-Ajwibah al-Fākhirah ʿan al-Asʾilah al-Fājirah)
(al-Qarāfī died in 684 AH / 1285 AD).
3. “The Separator Between Religions, Heresies, and Sects”
(Al-Fiṣal bayna al-Milal wa al-Ahwāʾ wa al-Niḥal)
by Abū Muḥammad Ibn Ḥazm (d. 456 AH / 1064 AD).
4. “Healing the Thirsty: On What Has Occurred in the Torah and Gospel of Alteration”
(Shifā’ al-Ghalīl fī Bayān mā Waqaʿa fī al-Tawrāh wa al-Injīl min al-Tabdīl)
by Imam al-Juwaynī.
5. “Religions and Sects” (Al-Milal wa al-Niḥal) by al-Shahrastānī.
6. “The Beautiful Statement in Refuting Those Who Altered the Gospel”
(Al-Qawl al-Jamīl fī al-Radd ʿalā man Ghayyara al-Injīl)
by Imam al-Ghazālī, known as “the Proof of Islam.”
Other writers who contributed similar works include: al-Bīrūnī, al-Masʿūdī, al-Ashʿarī, al-Ṭabarī, al-Yaʿqūbī, and Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Salām, who translated the Torah and the Gospel for Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd. Also, al-Khazrajī, Abū al-Qāsim al-Qays, and others wrote in the same vein.
3. Islamic writings against the Bible reached their peak in the late 19th and 20th centuries. Dozens—if not hundreds—of Islamic books were published claiming the Bible had been altered. Here, I mention just four of the most influential authors in this field:
1. Sheikh Rahmatullah al-Hindi in his extensive work:
“Izhar al-Haqq” (The Truth Revealed).
2. Imam Muhammad Abū Zahrah in his book:
“Lectures on Christianity” (Muḥāḍarāt fī al-Naṣrāniyyah).
3. Dr. Ahmad Shalaby in his book:
“Christianity” (Al-Masīḥiyyah).
4. The many writings of Sheikh Ahmed Deedat, known for his polemical works.
5. “The Sharp Sword of the Defender of the Faith” (Al-Sayf al-Ḥamīdī al-Ṣaqīl), another book contributing to the charge of Bible corruption.
