Excellent and Wise Passages from the Old Testament, Seeing with the Light of Faith
The Old Testament is a holy book bestowed by Allah on Prophet Moses (pbuh). In one verse of the Qur’an, Allah reveals that He sent the Old Testament down to Earth as a
“light”: “We sent down the Torah containing guidance and light, and the prophets who had submitted themselves gave judgment by it for the Jews—as did their scholars and their rabbis—by what they had been allowed to preserve of Allah’s Book to which they were witnesses. . . .” (Surat al-Ma’ida, 44)
In Surat al-An‘am, we are told that the scripture revealed to Prophet Moses (pbuh) is a “guidance and mercy”:
“Then We gave Moses the Book, complete and perfect for him who does good, elucidating everything, and a guidance and a mercy, so that hopefully they will believe in their encounter with their Lord.” (Surat al-An‘am, 154)
The Qur’an also reveals that the book bestowed on Prophet Moses (pbuh) is “a guidance” (Surat as-Sajda, 23); “a model and a mercy” (Surat al-Ahqaf, 12), that it was revealed in order to “lead them from the darkness to the light” (Surah Ibrahim, 5); that it is “a guidance and a mercy for all of them who feared their Lord” (Surat al-A’raf, 154) and that it contains “an admonition” and “makes all things clear” (Surat al-A’raf, 145).
When the Old Testament is examined alongside the verses of the Qur’an and the hadiths of our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), it can be seen to contain a great many excellent and wise passages where many matters belonging to the true faith have been preserved. Fundamental articles of faith—such as the oneness of Allah, fear and love of Allah, obedience and submission to Him, gratitude and prayer to Allah, the joy and excitement of faith, Resurrection after death and Doomsday—are all contained, albeit in a scattered form, in the corrupted text of the modern Old Testament. One also encounters such moral virtues as justice, love, compassion and humility, as well as a number of provisions belonging to the true faith, such as not committing theft, avoiding adultery and cheating, not charging monetary interest, and not eating pork.
However, as the Qur’an also reveals, the text of the Old Testament was subsequently corrupted, with words added by human beings, and it lost its attribute of being the Divine Word. For that reason, the Old Testament in our possession today is a “corrupted text.” The changes in it and the impairments it has suffered, is described in the following verses of the Qur’an:
Some of the Jews distort the true meaning of words, saying, “We hear and disobey,” and “Listen without listening,” and “Ra’ina!”* twisting them with their tongues, disparaging the religion. If they had said, “We hear and we obey,” and “Listen,” and, “Undhurna!”* that would have been better for them and more upright. But Allah has cursed them for their disbelief. Very few of them believe. (Surat an-Nisa’, 46)
Do you [Muslims] really hope they will follow you in belief when a group of them heard Allah’s Word and then, after grasping it, knowingly distorted it? (Surat al-Baqara, 75)
But because of their breaking of their covenant, We have cursed them and made their hearts hard. They distort the true meaning of words and have forgotten a good portion of what they were reminded of. You will never cease to come upon some act of treachery on their part, except for a few of them. Yet pardon them, and overlook. Allah loves good-doers. (Surat al-Ma’ida, 13)
O Messenger! Do not be grieved by those who rush headlong into disbelief among those who say “We believe” with their tongues when their hearts contain no belief. And among the Jews are those who listen to lies, listening to other people who have not come to you, distorting words from their proper meanings, saying, “If you are given this, then take it. If you are not given it, then beware!” If Allah desires misguidance for someone, you cannot help him against Allah in any way. Those are the people whose hearts Allah does not want to purify. They will have disgrace in the Earth and in the Hereafter they will have a terrible punishment. They are people who listen to lies and consume ill-gotten gains. If they come to you, you can either judge between them or turn away from them. If you turn away from them, they cannot harm you in any way. But if you do judge, judge between them justly. Allah loves the just.” (Surat al-Ma’ida, 41-42)
In Surah Al ‘Imran, Allah asks:
“People of the Book! Why do you mix truth with falsehood and knowingly conceal the truth?” (Surah Al ‘Imran, 71) Elsewhere in the Qur’an, our Lord warns the People of Israel regarding the Old Testament:
Do not be afraid of people, be afraid of Me. And do not sell My signs for a paltry price. Those who do not judge by what Allah has sent down, such people are unbelievers. (Surat al-Ma’ida, 44)
As reported in the verses of the Qur’an, the Old Testament contains some passages compatible with the true faith, as well as significant areas of distortion.
Although belief in the Hereafter is an article of faith, most references to it have been removed; and passages rejecting it have even been added: (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6; Ecclesiastes 1:4). Statements effectively slandering the prophets have been added: (Hosea 12:3; Genesis 32:28; Jeremiah 23:14; Deuteronomy 18:20, 22). And, worst of all, heretical references to our Almighty Lord—He Who is free of all imperfections and similar superstitious beliefs and accounts—have been inserted into the text (Genesis 2:2; Exodus 34:14; Genesis 5:1, Isaiah, 51:9; Psalm, 74:23; Isaiah 63:9; Jeremiah 31:9; 2 Kings 17:17-18). (Allah is beyond this.)
Even under the leadership of Prophet Moses (pbuh) there were those among the Children of Israel, to whom the Old Testament was sent down, who rebelled against him and failed to heed Allah’s commandments. This rebelliousness on the part of some Israelites is described in detail in both the Old Testament and the Qur’an. Verses in the Qur’an state:
Say: “People of the Book! Do not go to extremes in your religion, asserting other than the truth, and do not follow the whims and desires of people who were misguided previously and have misguided many others, and are far from the right way.” Those among the tribe of Israel who were unbelievers were cursed on the tongue of David and that of Jesus, son of Mary. That is because they rebelled and overstepped the limits. They would not restrain one another from any of the wrong things that they did. How evil were the things they used to do! You see many of them taking those who are unbelievers as their friends. What their lower selves have advanced for them is evil indeed, bringing Allah’s anger down upon them. They will suffer punishment timelessly, for ever. If they had believed in Allah and the Prophet and what has been sent down to him, they would not have taken them as friends. But most of them are deviators. (Surat al-Ma’ida, 77-81)
In verse 91 of Surat al-An‘am, our Lord states that the Children of Israel ignored much of the scripture sent down to Prophet Moses (pbuh):
They do not measure Allah with His true measure when they say, “Allah would not send down anything to a mere human being.” Say: “Who, then, sent down the Book which Moses brought as a light and guidance for the people?” You put it down on sheets of paper to display it while concealing much. You were taught things you did not know, neither you nor your forefathers. Say: “Allah!” Then leave them engrossed in playing their games. (Surat al-An‘am, 91)
The Old Testament describes how Prophet Moses (pbuh) believed his people would corrupt the stipulations in the Old Testament after he had gone, and felt the need to protect the book:
After Moses finished writing in a book the words of this law from beginning to end, he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord: “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you. For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call heaven and Earth to testify against them. For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall upon you because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord and provoke him to anger by what your hands have made. (Deuteronomy, 31:24-29)
It needs to be made immediately clear that the people in question, who rejected the true faith preached by Prophet Moses (pbuh) and thus chose the path of degeneration, were dishonest and self-interested individuals. However, in addition to these people, no doubt there also lived a great many devout Jews, rabbis and men of religion in Judaism, who genuinely believed in Allah and sought to serve our Lord.
Allah reveals the existence of these sincere, virtuous Jews as follows in the Qur’an:
Among the people of the Book there are some who believe in Allah and in what has been sent down to you and what was sent down to them, and who are humble before Allah. They do not sell Allah’s signs for a paltry price. Such people will have their reward with their Lord. And Allah is swift at reckoning. (Surah Al ‘Imran, 199)
In these corrupted sections of the Old Testament, the interference and influence of satan can be felt. When these are removed, what remain are those parts left undistorted by satan. This means that once these corrupted sections have been carefully eliminated, the authentic Old Testament can be obtained. (Allah best knows the truth.)
These remaining sections bring healing to the heart, and bestow light and well-being on the soul. As revealed in verse 44 of Surat al-Ma’ida, these are the parts that constitute “guidance and light.” The passages in the Old Testament you are reading are those compatible with the verses of the Qur’an and the Sunnah of our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and represent the very wisest advice.
The Absence of Belief in the Hereafter in the Old Testament Indicates that the Text is Distorted
Belief in the Hereafter is an essential article of faith. There can be no faith without belief in the Hereafter. Without an Earthly environment of testing, the good and the bad all merge into one. This, in turn, is a denial of our Lord’s purpose in creating the world as transient and with imperfections, and of His infinite justice.
Divine justice—when the good are separated from the evil and everyone receives his or her just deserts—will take place in the Hereafter. The life of this world is a transitory place of testing. Nobody will be accompanied by the things of this world. Allah will manifest His justice in the Hereafter, and nobody will “be wronged by even the smallest speck” (Surat al-‘Isra, 71).
This is a provision of Allah’s justice. It is incompatible with the divine nature of Allah for anyone to engage in all kinds of immorality in this world and then not be duly rewarded in the Hereafter when the life of this world comes to an end. The faithful have an absolute belief in the Hereafter and until the final moments of their lives in this world strive in hope and fear to win Allah’s approval and protection from His chastisement.
Allah refers to believers’ faith in the Hereafter in the Qur’an:
. . . those who believe in the Unseen and establish prayer and spend from what We have provided for them; those who believe in what has been sent down to you and what was sent down before you, and are certain about the Hereafter. They are the people guided by their Lord. They are the ones who have success. (Surat al-Baqara, 3-5)
In the Qur’an, Allah also states that honest Jews also believe in the Hereafter:
They are not all the same. There is a community among the People of the Book who are upright. They recite Allah’s signs throughout the night, and they prostrate. They believe in Allah and the Last Day, and enjoin the right and forbid the wrong, and compete in doing good. They are among the righteous. You will not be denied the reward for any good thing you do. Allah knows those who fear [and respect] Allah.” (Surah Al ‘Imran, 113-115)
References to the unbelievers being set apart from believers and to the existence of the Hereafter, when the frauds and those who truly believed in Allah will be revealed, appear in the Qur’an and also in the original forms of the Old Testament and the New Testament when they were first sent from the presence of our Lord. This fact is set out in verse 111 of Surat at-Tawba:
Allah has bought from the believers their selves and their wealth in return for the Garden. They fight in the way of Allah and they kill and are killed. It is a promise binding on Him in the Gospel, the Torah and the Qur’an and who is truer to his contract. (Surat at-Tawba, 111)
Hundreds of verses in the Qur’an contain information about the life of the Hereafter and Doomsday, while the Old Testament contains practically no passages concerning that Afterlife—a fundamental article of faith. For that reason, some Jewish sects believe that there is no Hereafter at all. Those few references to the Hereafter in the Old Testament can only be understood when considered together with the verses of the Qur’an.
Therefore, one of the main indications that the Old Testament has not been preserved in its complete and original form is the removal of belief in the Hereafter and its replacement with heretical passages to the effect the world will continue forever, but that life ends with death. (Ecclesiastes, 9:5-6; Ecclesiastes, 1:4)
Those who make such additions, who alter those passages that are inconsistent with their own worldly ambitions, are deceivers devoid of true belief. These distorted sections are most probably the result of initiatives by the atheists of the time and intended to justify their own immorality and worldly desires. Indeed, there are several references in the Old Testament to “false” prophets, who are shown to have uttered falsehoods in the name of Allah:
“Both prophet and priest are godless; even in my temple I find their wickedness," declares the Lord . . . Among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen something horrible: They commit adultery and live a lie. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from his wickedness. . . . Therefore, this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets: “. . . from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has spread throughout the land.” This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. They keep saying to those who despise Me, “The Lord says: You will have peace.” And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts they say, “No harm will come to you.” . . . I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied… “I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies in my name. . . How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions of their own minds? “Therefore,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words supposedly from Me. Yes,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’…” “…I did not send or appoint them. They do not benefit these people in the least,” declares the Lord. . . . But you must not mention ‘the oracle of the Lord’ again, because every man's own word becomes his oracle. . . . You distort the words of . . . the Lord Almighty, our God.” (Jeremiah, 23:11-36)
These false religious figures mentioned in the Old Testament who lie in the name of Allah say that nothing will happen to them in return for their deeds against Him. This is one of the lies spoken by those who utter falsehoods in the name of Allah in order, in their view, to do away with belief in the Hereafter.
The Qur’an has been sent down as a scripture that rectifies all these deficiencies in the Old Testament, confirms the true statements within it, and sets out and eliminates the errors contained in the Old Testament.
Subjects that had become incomprehensible before have now been fully illuminated, and all heretical beliefs that were subsequently added have been purged away. Therefore, those parts of the Old Testament that are compatible with and confirmed by the Qur’an, are those belonging to the original, divine Old Testament—as Allah makes clear in the following verses:
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