Critiquing Islam 2.0

The Corruption of the Bible: A Modern Islamic Myth?

This analysis shows a major contradiction between early Islamic scholars and modern Muslim claims about the corruption of the Torah and Injil.

✔ The Qur'an never states that the Torah or Gospel were textually corrupted.
✔ Early Islamic scholars (Ibn Abbas, Tabari, Razi, Ibn Taymiyyah) denied textual corruption.
✔ The idea of textual corruption (tahrif bil-lafz) only became mainstream due to Ibn Hazm (11th century AD).

1. The Qur’an Declares the Word of Allah Cannot Be Changed

The Qur'an itself refutes the idea that God's previous scriptures were corrupted:

Surah 6:115

"And the word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and justice. None can change His words. And He is the Hearing, the Knowing."

Surah 18:27

"Recite what has been revealed to you of the Book of your Lord. None can alter His words, and you will find no refuge besides Him."

✔ If no one can change Allah’s words, then the Torah and Injil could not have been corrupted.

2. Early Islamic Scholars Denied Textual Corruption of the Bible

Ibn Abbas (Companion of Muhammad, "Father of Tafsir")

"There is no man who could corrupt a single word of what proceeded from God so that the Jews and Christians could corrupt only by misrepresenting the meaning of the words of God."
(Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Commentary on Surah 2:75)

✔ Ibn Abbas confirms that the only corruption was misinterpretation, not textual corruption.

Tabari (9th-10th Century, Founder of Tafsir)

"The charge against the Jews and Christians was not that they altered the texts, but that they did not understand them properly."
(Tafsir Al-Tabari, Commentary on Surah 2:75)

✔ Tabari, one of Islam's greatest commentators, never accused Jews and Christians of corrupting the text of their scriptures.

Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (12th Century, Major Theologian and Tafsir Scholar)

"The alteration of the words, in other words the accusation that there would be a changing of the written text, is impossible."
(Tafsir al-Kabir, Commentary on Surah 2:75)

✔ Razi argued that Allah’s words were preserved, and no one could corrupt them.

Ibn Taymiyyah (13th-14th Century, Influential Scholar)

"The scriptures that were entrusted to the People of the Book were true copies in the time of Muhammad, and they remained true copies after his time."
(Ibn Taymiyyah, Al-Jawab Al-Sahih, Vol. 2)

✔ Ibn Taymiyyah confirms that the Torah and Injil remained unchanged after Muhammad's time.

3. The False Doctrine of Corruption Began with Ibn Hazm

Who Was Ibn Hazm?

✔ A Muslim scholar from 11th-century Spain.
✔ The first major figure to claim that the text of the Bible was corrupted.
✔ Wrote in response to Christian polemics proving contradictions in the Qur’an.

"Because of the contradictions in the Qur'an regarding the Bible, Ibn Hazm chose to reject the authenticity of the Bible altogether."
(Dr. Saeed Abdullah, Professor of Islamic Studies)

✔ This was a defensive move—not based on Qur’anic evidence, but to protect Islam from Christian arguments.
✔ Before Ibn Hazm, no major Islamic scholar claimed the Bible was corrupted.

4. The Qur'an Commands Jews and Christians to Follow Their Scriptures

If the Torah and Injil were corrupted, why does the Qur'an command Jews and Christians to follow them?

Surah 5:47

"Let the People of the Gospel judge by what Allah has revealed therein."

✔ If the Gospel was corrupted, this command would make no sense.

Surah 5:68

"Say, O People of the Book, you are on nothing until you uphold the Torah and the Gospel and what has been revealed to you from your Lord."

✔ This verse confirms that Jews and Christians still had valid scriptures at the time of Muhammad.

5. Historical Manuscripts Prove the Torah and Gospel Were Not Corrupted

We have thousands of manuscripts of the Bible from before Muhammad’s time:

✔ Dead Sea Scrolls (250 BC - 50 AD) – Torah manuscripts identical to today’s Torah.
✔ Codex Sinaiticus (4th century AD) – A complete Gospel manuscript before Islam.
✔ Codex Vaticanus (4th century AD) – Another full New Testament manuscript.

➡ These manuscripts prove that the Torah and Injil in Muhammad’s time were the same as today.

6. Islam’s Contradiction: If the Bible Is Corrupt, The Qur'an Is False

✔ The Qur'an confirms the Torah and Injil multiple times.
✔ If they were corrupted before Islam, then the Qur'an is wrong for affirming them.
✔ If they were corrupted after Islam, then Muslims must still accept the Bible today, since Muhammad affirmed it in his time.

➡ Either way, Islam’s claim that the Torah and Injil were lost or corrupted is false.

Logical Conclusion

✔ The Qur'an says the Torah and Injil were valid during Muhammad’s time.
✔ Early Muslim scholars denied textual corruption.
✔ The doctrine of textual corruption only began with Ibn Hazm in the 11th century.
✔ We have ancient manuscripts proving the Torah and Injil were preserved.

➡ If Muslims accept the Qur'an, they must accept the Torah and Injil.
➡ If they reject the Torah and Injil, they reject the Qur'an itself.