How can I know that the Qur'an is God's word



Is the Qur'an God's word?: How can we know that the Qur'an is God's word through reason?

By

Sary Farah

Can it be from the Arabs?

The Arabs were challenged to produce something like the Qur'an, then 10 surahs (chapters) similar to it, then one surah similar to it:

}وَإِن كُنْتُمْ فِي رَيْبٍ مِّمَّا نَزَّلْنَا عَلَى عَبْدِنَا فَأْتُواْ بِسُورَةٍ مِّن مِّثْلِهِ وَادْعُواْ شُهَدَآءَكُم مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَادِقِينَ}

{And if ye are in doubt as to what we have revealed from time to time to our servant then produce a surah like thereunto; And call your witnesses or helpers (if there are any) besides Allah if ye are truthful}. [Qur'an 2: 23]

{أَمْ يَقُولُونَ تَقَوَّلَهُ بَل لاَّ يُؤْمِنُونَ * فَلْيَأْتُواْ بِحَدِيثٍ مِّثْلِهِ إِن كَانُواْ صَادِقِينَ}

{Or do they say: "He fabricated the (message)" nay, they have no faith! Let them then produce a saying like unto it, If (it be) they speak the truth!} [Qur'an 52: 33, 34]

However, they were unable to do so. They were helpless and unable to parallel the quality of the Qur'an until our present day. The Arabs were also challenged to find contradictions and discrepancies in the Qur'an (view Qur'an 4: 82). For more than 14 centuries, they still couldn't find any contradictions.

← In addition to that, they recognized its greatness, eloquence, and influence to an extent that they called it "evident magic":

{وَإِذَا تُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُنَا بَيِّنَاتٍ قَالُواْ مَا هَـذَا إِلاَّ رَجُلٌ يُرِيدُ أَن يَصُدَّكُمْ عَمَّا كَانَ يَعْبُدُ آبَآؤُكُمْ وَقَالُواْ مَا

هَـذَآ إِلاَّ إِفْكٌ مُّفْتَرًى وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ لِلْحَقِّ لَمَّا جَآءَهُمْ إِنْ هَـذَآ إِلاَّ سِحْرٌ مُّبِينٌ}

{When our clear signs are rehearsed to them, they say, this is only a man who wishes to hinder you from the (worship) which your fathers practiced." and they say, this is only a falsehood invented!" and the unbelievers say of the truth when it comes to them, this is nothing but evident magic!"} [Qur'an 34: 43]

The Qur'an contained an eloquent, rhetoric speech that supersedes the Arabic poetry and prose of all times. Al-Waleed ibn Al-Mughira, one of the enemies of Islam at the time of the prophet (pbuh) said about the Qur'an: "By God, there is no man who is more familiar with poetry than I am: Its rhyme and rhythm. But by God, what he (Muhammad) is saying is unlike all that. By God, what he is saying is sweet and bright. Its climax is pageantry and its anticlimax is effusive. It is a zenith that is insuperable."

"والله ما مِنكُم رجلٌ أعرَفُ بالشعر مني ولا أعلمُ برَجزه وقصيده مني. والله ما يُشبِه الذي يقوله شيئاً من هذا. والله إنَّ لِقوله الذي يقولُه لحلاوة, وإنَّ عليه لطلاوة, وإنه لمُورقٌ أعلاه, مُغدِقٌ أسفلُه, وإنَّه لَيَعلو ولا يُعلى عليه."

This statement was that of a man who never became a Muslim and died in a state of denial! Pride was the obstacle, it kept him from submitting to Allah by following the guidance that was revealed to the last messenger Muhammad (pbuh).

Is it based upon previous scriptures?

← It can not be from Jews and Christians for their scriptures were in Hebrew and Aramaic and other dialects. There were no translated Torah or Gospels at that time. Nor can it be from non-Arabs, for they did not master the Arabic language:

{وَلَقَدْ نَعْلَمُ أَنَّهُمْ يَقُولُونَ إِنَّمَا يُعَلِّمُهُ بَشَرٌ لِّسَانُ الَّذِي يُلْحِدُونَ إِلَيْهِ أَعْجَمِيٌّ وَهَـذَا لِسَانٌ عَرَبِيٌّ مُّبِينٌ}

{We know indeed that they say: "it is a man that teaches him". The tongue of him they wickedly point to is notably foreign, while this (the Qur'an) is Arabic, pure and clear} [Qur'an 16: 103]

In addition to that, Muhammad (pbuh) was not accompanied by anyone who was knowledgeable in previous scriptures. He was also frequently asked by those around him, and he used to answer them without referring to anyone.

Can it be fabricated by Muhammad?

← It can not be from Muhammad (peace be upon him) for all the Arabs around him knew him for 40 years before the revelation and they knew that he was illiterate. Moreover, they never experienced lying and wickedness from him, and they called him the truthful and the trustworthy (الصادق الأمين) nor did they experience production of poetry from his side. In addition to that, they heard the Qur'an which mentions that he was illiterate. Had the Qur'an been contradictory with reality, knowing that thousands of his contemporaries heard these statements about his illiteracy and unfamiliarity with reading and writing any scripture… they would've rejected the Qur'an and the messenger:

{... فَآمِنُواْ بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ النَّبِيِّ الأُمِّيِّ الَّذِي يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَكَلِمَاتِهِ وَاتَّبِعُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ}

{So believe in Allah and his messenger. The unlettered prophet, who believeth in Allah and his words: follow him that (so) ye may be guided} [Qur'an 7: 158]

{وَمَا كُنتَ تَتْلُو مِن قَبْلِهِ مِن كِتَابٍ وَلاَ تَخُطُّهُ بِيَمِينِكَ إِذاً لاَّرْتَابَ الْمُبْطِلُونَ}

يقول الشيخ عبد الرحمن السعدي (رحمه الله) في تفسيره لهذه الآية: "ومما يدلُّ على صحته، أنه جاء به هذا النبي الأمين، الذي عَرفَ قومُه صدقَه، وأمانتَه، ومدخلَه ومخرجَه، وسائرَ أحواله، وهو لا يكتُبُ بيده خطاً، بل ولا يقرأُ خطاً مكتوباً. فإتيانُه به في هذه الحال، من أظهرِ البينات القاطعة، التي لا تقبلُ الارتيابَ، أنَّه من عند اللهِ العزيز الحميد"

{And thou wast not (able) to recite a book before this (book came), nor art thou (able) to transcribe it with thy right hand: in that case, indeed, would the talkers of vanities have doubted} [Qur'an 29: 48]

Sheikh Abdurrahman Assa'di (may the mercy of Allah be upon his soul) said in his interpretation on this verse: "And one of the indicatives of its (meaning the Qur'an) authenticity, is that it was conveyed by the illiterate prophet who was known by his people for his truthfulness and trustworthiness. They also knew his whereabouts, and all of his affairs. They knew with certainty that he never wrote and never read. Therefore, this form of revelation is evidently from Allah the Almighty"

Supporting arguments

In addition to all that was mentioned, it cannot be produced by Muhammad (peace be upon him) because of the many verses containing scientific facts that were recently discovered and unknown to humanity during his time.

After reading verses on embryonic development in the Qur'an, Dr. E. Marshall Johnson is Professor Emeritus of Anatomy and Developmental Biology at Thomas Jefferson University stated: “The Qur'an describes not only the development of external form, but emphasizes also the internal stages, the stages inside the embryo, of its creation and development, emphasizing major events recognized by contemporary science.” He also said: “As a scientist, I can only deal with things which I can specifically see.  I can understand embryology and developmental biology.  I can understand the words that are translated to me from the Qur'an.  As I gave the example before, if I were to transpose myself into that era, knowing what I knew today and describing things, I could not describe the things which were described.  I see no evidence for the fact to refute the concept that this individual, Muhammad, had to be developing this information from some place.  So I see nothing here in conflict with the concept that divine intervention was involved.”

The Qur'an also includes historical facts concerning the past, present and prophecies about the future. This includes the stories of previous prophets, such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. In addition to prophecies, such as the prophecy about the Romans who were defeated by the Persians. The Qur'an stated that they shall be victorious over them years later and that at the same time, Muslims shall win over Arab polytheists [Qur'an surat Ar-rum 30, verses 2-4]) This prophecy was fulfilled during Muhammad's (pbuh) life, and both Romans and Muslims won over Persians and Arab polytheists.

Finally, after eliminating all possible alternative sources, it is reasonable to believe that the Qur'an can only be from Allah, the one and only God.

❖ Also Read: The sources of the Qur’an, IIPH, available in some UAE book stores.

Feel free to contact me at saryfarah@

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