Muslims believe Christians have changed the Bible to fit their beliefs. One person left this comment on the Isa and Islam website: “The Bible is the Book of God but it’s not in its original state now. Every church has its own version and many versions have contradictions with each other. If the Bible was still in its original state there would not be contradictions in it.”
Why Translate the Bible?
All Muslims believe that the original Quran was given in Arabic. Muslims study Arabic so they can read the Quran. But since most Muslims don’t know Arabic well, the Quran is translated into many languages.
There are at least seven English translations of the Quran (Sahih International, Pickthall, Yusuf Ali, Shakir, M. Sarwar, Mohsin Khan, and Arberry). Each of those translations have minor differences. Are all of the English translations wrong? Which one is correct?
Christians also want to understand God’s revelation. God’s Holy Book was originally written in Hebrew and Greek. Most Christians can’t read those languages. The Bible is translated so that people can read it in their own language. Since 1526 and Tyndale’s translation of the New Testament, there have been about 900 English translations of the Bible.
Careful Translation from Ancient Manuscripts
The Bible is always translated by a group of Hebrew and Greek scholars. The translation is based on the most ancient copies of the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts.
The Hebrew text used for translation dates back to the 1st century BC (Dead Sea Scrolls). The main Greek manuscript is based on several texts dating back to the 4th century.
The Dead Sea Scrolls are manuscripts of the Old Testament that pre-date the life of Isa Al-Masih. Fragments of the New Testament Greek text have been found dating back to the 1st century AD.
All Languages Change Over Time
As society changes, so does its language. As language changes, new translations of the Bible are needed. For example, many people find it hard to read and understand the 1611 King James Version of the Bible. Most English speakers do not understand the English language that was used during that time period.
There are many examples of this. One is in Romans 3:25: “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God” (KJV). Most English speakers don’t understand the words “propitiation” or “remission.” Although they were common in 1611 they are not common now.
The NLT (New Living Translation) is translated as: “God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past.”
As you can see, it is much easier to understand the second translation. It uses words we are more familiar with, whereas the King James Translation uses out-dated words.
Why Should You Read the Bible?
Everyone n
eeds an updated translation of the Bible in his own language. God, the Creator, wants everyone to know Him. But this is only possible if the Bible is translated into different languages, and then translated again when there are language changes.
You might wonder why you, as a Muslim, should read the Holy Bible. As Christians, we would tell you to read it because this is the way that God has chosen to reveal Himself to the world.
The Quran itself states that all of the revelations the prophets gave were true, including those to Ibrahim, Jacob, and Jesus (Qs. 2:136). Qs. 5:46 says, “We made Jesus, son of Mary, follow in the footsteps (of earlier prophets), and confirm what existed in the Torah in his time. We sent him the Gospel containing guidance and light, as a confirmation of the Torah (Law).”
If Jesus came to confirm the Law, then the Law must be true. Therefore all Christians and Muslims should read the Bible to know what the Law and the Prophets say.
The Quran also makes it plain that the Bible is, “. . . a guidance and admonition to those who fear Allah” (Qs 5:46).
Do You Want to Have a Better Understanding of God?
The only way a person can fully understand God is through reading the Holy Bible. Only the Holy Bible tells how a person can have a relationship with the one true God.
We encourage you to discover more about having a personal, intimate relationship with God.
[We invite you to visit us at https://www.isaandislam.com/way-of-salvation to learn more about God’s gift of Salvation. God loves you and waits to hear from you. Isa clearly said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (Injil, John 14:6) For a deeper understanding of Isa we suggest you subscribe to “Isa, Islam, and Al-Fatiha” at this link.]
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Yusuf Ali, Darri Abadi, Marmidhuk Pictkhall, and others are translations of the Quran. So which one is the Quran? The Quran is written in Arabic. The basic standard rules for the Quran is to have it in Arabic and side by side with local language for whom the Qur’an is translated. That’s the Quran and its translations.
The Holy Bible, Douay Version has 73 books inside, but the Kings James Version only has 66 books inside, because they did not believe the other seven books were the Word of God. Simple thought knows what the real question is, what is the real difference between Bible versions?
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Maizir,
The biblical text can be traced back almost two thousand years. The text is in the original languages of Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek. The purpose of translating is to make the Bible readable for everyone in every nation. Many people find it increasingly difficult to understand the ancient texts because society changes from generation to generation. The real difference between the versions are language. However, this does not change the real meaning of the words. The translated versions will be tested again. For more information about the Bible, please go to: https://www.isaandislam.com/The-Bible/should-muslims-trust-the-bible.html.
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Jeremiah 8:8 says “How can you say,”we are wise and we have the law of the Lord,” when behold, the lying pen of the scribes have handled it falsely.”
The Bible says Christians and Jews should not claim they have God’s law because the scribes have corrupted it.
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Muslim,
If you go further contextually, you would see how God instructed Prophet Jeremiah to write the scroll over and over again after the written scrolls were burnt by the King Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 36:1-7, 20-32). Jeremiah received revelation from God and he was able to restore the Torah to its true form at the direct orders of God. Why do you think that God can’t do it if He’s able to reveal His words to Jeremiah?
Also, in other part of the book of Jeremiah, “Say to them, ‘This is what the LORD says: If you do not listen to me and follow my Law, which I have set before you, and if you do not listen to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I have sent to you again and again (though you have not listened) then I will make this house like Shiloh and this city an object of cursing among all the nations of the earth” (Jeremiah 26:4-6). So, the Scrolls were still there and the Torah wasn’t corrupted.
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“In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord ‘Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now'” (Jeremiah 36:1-2).
According to these, Jeremiah was supposed to write series of prophecies concerning different nations, which should serve as a warning to those nations. He did not rewrite the Law which had been corrupted by pen (Jeremiah 26:4-6) does not prove anything, the Bible is simply inconsistent and it has unknowingly told its followers to follow corrupted laws. Again, this corruption occurred by use of the pen, so the corruption was textual.
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Muslim,
Indeed, there was not corrupted Torah. Jeremiah was called to prophecy over His people. “I will pronounce my judgments on my people because of their wickedness in forsaking me, in burning incense to other gods and in worshiping what their hands have made” (Jeremiah 1:16). He was told by God to reveal the sins of the people and explain the reason for the impending disaster (destruction by the Babylonian army and captivity).
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This is an update to the corruption of the bible, from Wikipedia:
”….in 2006 one 4th century Sahidic papyrus manuscript (Bodleian MS. Copt.e.150(P) came to light that may end at 20:31.[6] One side of this single-leaf fragment consists of John 20:30-31 with a large space under it, having no subscription.”
The article discusses how an important 4th century manuscript omits John 21. Slowly, major portions of the bible are being cast into doubt.
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Muslim,
Very few legitimate biblical scholars would agree with this. Even if we were to take out that portion of the Bible, the message of the Bible would still be the same, and that is that Jesus came to earth to be our sacrifice so we can have a relationship with God.
Eventhough that if the Bible was doubted, yet the Living God will keep His words as He proclaimed. “For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished” (Injil, Matthew 5:18).
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For every dear Muslim friend, these are the facts:
The following earliest manuscripts predate the Holy Quran by 250 years: Codex Siniaticus 350AD & Codex Vaticanus 300AD. These are the oldest two complete Bibles in the original Greek language.
They have been translated carefully in any modern language, they are available everywhere today and accessible in the internet.
The exact same scriptures had been available in the hands of the Jews and Christians for hundreds of years at the time of Mohammed (pbuh) as the Holy Quran confirms:
Surah Al – Baqarah 2:41 (Sahih International):
“And believe in what I have sent down confirming that which is already with you, and be not the first to disbelieve in it. And do not exchange My signs for a small price, and fear only Me.”
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It’s true. The present Bible is translated from the earliest manuscripts as you mentioned in your comment. Everyone shouldn’t doubt the Bible. The Bible consists of God’s Word through revelation through His chosen people. Thank you.