Koran vs Bible (for those who have read both)

[MCA]

I am once again trying to seek God. I grew up Christian and lost my faith in college. I'm going through some really tough times in my life right now, depression and no again sorrow of my unbelief. I am listening to an audio Bible book of John as we speak. As i listen, i want these words to feel as valid and true as possible.

My question is, how do the words of the bible prevail over the koran? I am asking this because i have never read the koran in fear that it would lead me away from the Christ i want to attain. I am asking this strange question because i feel like if i read the koran one day, it might make me realize how special the bible is. Its a very broad question and im sure can be discussed very deeply. But from your own experiences, what about the Bible was more sound than the koran. I dont even know how mohamed spoke. I know close to nothing about the koran except for that they mention giants like the bible and that they believe mohamed was the final prophet etc. And they believe Jesus is isa or something rather. I also know that the Bible had better and more sensible miracles. I.e, each miracle performed was for a good reason. These are just only things ive heard. I almost want to read it, just to find a better appreciation for the bible.

 

[-V-]

The Quran actually contradicts itself and instructs people to follow the Bible.

 

[2PhiloVoid]

I am once again trying to seek God. I grew up Christian and lost my faith in college. I'm going through some really tough times in my life right now, depression and no again sorrow of my unbelief. I am listening to an audio Bible book of John as we speak. As i listen, i want these words to feel as valid and true as possible.

My question is, how do the words of the bible prevail over the koran? I am asking this because i have never read the koran in fear that it would lead me away from the Christ i want to attain. I am asking this strange question because i feel like if i read the koran one day, it might make me realize how special the bible is. Its a very broad question and im sure can be discussed very deeply. But from your own experiences, what about the Bible was more sound than the koran. I dont even know how mohamed spoke. I know close to nothing about the koran except for that they mention giants like the bible and that they believe mohamed was the final prophet etc. And they believe Jesus is isa or something rather. I also know that the Bible had better and more sensible miracles. I.e, each miracle performed was for a good reason. These are just only things ive heard. I almost want to read it, just to find a better appreciation for the bible.

Hi MCA,

Basically, the Bible is composed of an abundance of narratives and other literature types that are arranged and structured as 'history,' or for those portions that seem less so, they at least imply a firm historical backdrop/setting.

The Qu'ran, on the other hand, seems to me to be no more than a large collection of 'sayings,' hardly any of which are arranged or represented within the same historical backdrop even though they refer to many of the same biblical figures from Adam to Jesus. So, the Qu'ran seems--to me anyway--like just a collection of proverbs and prophetic denunciations.

Plus, the Qu'ran denies the divinity of Jesus; it denies as well His death and resurrection, and it associates the promises given by God to Abraham with a social identity through Ishmael rather than through Isaac.

In sum, the Bible appears more coherent to me theologically, philosophically, and historically than does the Qu'ran.

Yes, I've read the Qu'ran cover to cover, as well as the Bible cover to cover, so I'm at least minimally qualified to make the brief critique that I've given above.

Peace,
2PhiloVoid

 

[redleghunter]

I am once again trying to seek God. I grew up Christian and lost my faith in college. I'm going through some really tough times in my life right now, depression and no again sorrow of my unbelief. I am listening to an audio Bible book of John as we speak. As i listen, i want these words to feel as valid and true as possible.

Off to a good start by listening (try reading too) to the Bible especially the Gospel according to John. I would then venture into Acts and then Romans. A good study Bible may be of some help too as you get to difficult passages. Various free Bible sites have free commentaries and I can help with some good selections if you would like.

My question is, how do the words of the bible prevail over the koran? I am asking this because i have never read the koran in fear that it would lead me away from the Christ i want to attain.

If you are truly seeking Christ, then forget the Koran. You won't find Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in the Koran, so IMO you would be wasting your time. I've read most of the Koran and it is like a poorly written Old Testament.

 

[alsughasoughaiuyfygh]

.

 

[Strathos]

The Koran also cribs from Jewish and the early Christian writings, many of them heretical.

 

[dzheremi]

The Qur'an is arranged (sorta) by length, so it doesn't form a coherent narrative.

A lot of its so-called brilliance or eloquence relies on its recitation (in other words, how it sounds when it is recited, since of course the people reciting it or hearing it recited generally can't follow it without at least some help, since it is written in very archaic Arabic which is not anyone's first language, even in the case of Arabs, and so of course even less so for Indonesians, Persians, Indians, etc). The recitation style follows the preexisting modes (maqamat) common to Arabic music and recited poetry, though, and these were cribbed from the preexisting non-Muslim people of the Middle East anyway. Hence the Syriac musical scales (present as early as the 4th century if not before -- see the Beth Gazo; cf. the Arabic maqamat system, which does not appear to have been written down prior to the 14th century; even the earlier rules for recited poetry cannot be traced back with certainty to any time before the 10th century), which are important to the chanting of Syriac (Christian) hymns, match the Arabic, though they of course have different names. Here they are with their Arabic names, though in Syriac they are apparently known as Kinto, not Maqam.

Bible recitation (though from some of the comments, this is a reading of the modern Neo-Aramaic translation, not the Syriac/Peshitta...I don't know either, so I can't say; the same principles of recitation are at work either way, though):

Qur'an recitation:

Not terribly far apart, right? So the "argument from brilliance" really doesn't work once you realize where the 'brilliance' comes from (from the adoption of what other people were already doing...people the Qur'an calls "the worst of creatures" in 9:86).

And you might say "So what...chanted verses in related languages like Arabic and Neo-Aramaic sound similar. How's that supposed to mean anything?" Here's the thing, though: the Qur'an doesn't really have a whole lot of other arguments for itself than that, to be honest. It openly challenges people to produce something like it (2:23) if they doubt its authenticity as the 'word of God', but that's in a context where Islamic historiography flatly ignores that Islam and the Qur'an itself both have histories, and did not fall out of the sky as they are today. To get a sense of how this affects arguments concerning Islam and the Qur'an, you can consider something as simple as how the early Islamic sources treat the pre-Islamic times, which are called in Arabic "al-Jahiliyya", or "the time of ignorance".

Well, apparently not so ignorant that the Qur'an itself wouldn't crib stories from preexisting Jewish lore:

And also preexisting Christian writings, such as the apocryphal Syriac Infancy Gospel, which appears in the Qur'an (19:29-34) with all of its distinctly Christian theology expunged, and Islamic theology in its place.

The other arguments for the Qur'an seem to rely on its confirming what came before it (3:3), which it transparently does not do. It does not seem that Muhammad or his earlier followers knew that it does not do that, though -- or if they did, they just didn't care. But the point is that when you read in the Qur'an that "those who are the closest to us are those who say 'We are Christians'" (cf. 5:82; I'm paraphrasing, because I don't actually care to read the Qur'an any more than is absolutely necessary; it is very boring and tedious), you also see that the reason for that is because we (Christians) have priests and monks and these are not proud. That is true, but what does it have to do with what we believe? The Qur'an gets that all wrong, because with the possible exception of the Torah (which was apparently physically present before Muhammad at various times, according to some hadith, e.g., Sunan Abu Dawud, Book 38, Number 4434), it doesn't seem that Muhammad ever had direct access to any of the scriptures he apparently just assumed his 'revelations' would confirm, and hence be confirmed by.

Once you know even the tiniest bit of history, it becomes very clear what the Qur'an and hence Islam are (a rehash of preexisting things, retooled for a largely pagan and distinctly Arab milieu, and not terribly convincing outside of that -- or inside of that, if you're dealing with Christian Arabs), and with that very clear what they also are not.

 

[aiki]

My question is, how do the words of the bible prevail over the koran? I am asking this because i have never read the koran in fear that it would lead me away from the Christ i want to attain.

You can't attain Christ, you can only receive him.

How is the Bible superior to the Q'uran? In every way. In its formation, and themes, historicity, and teachings it is far, far above the Q'uran.

I am asking this strange question because i feel like if i read the koran one day, it might make me realize how special the bible is.

This is like saying, "If I poke out my eyes, I might realize how special sight is." Not a good strategy for obvious reasons. The Bible isn't special only in comparison to other religious texts. It is special because it is the one, true revelation of the God of the universe. If this isn't evident to you simply by reading it, studying the Q'uran isn't going to help you any more than loving your wife is helped by cheating on her with another woman.

I dont even know how mohamed spoke.

How did Muhammed speak? Like a nutball. You might want to do some research into the "Satanic verses." Muhammed was a pedophile, a bloodthirsty killer, and appeared to be psychologically unhinged at times. Do you really want to hear about God from such an awful person?

 

[crossnote]

My question is, how do the words of the bible prevail over the koran?

The Hero of the Bible rose from the dead.
The hero of the Koran is ...well dead.

 

[1watchman]

In such questions as here, I think salvation of the soul must come first, and the primary issue must be such as: 1} Is there a God?; 2} Has God spoken to mankind?; 3} In this dispensation (age -administrations of God) how is He speaking?; 4} Is the Creator-God interested in confusing man, or is He rather speaking in love and giving Him His immutable Word to know what He has done from the beginning, is doing, and expects of man?; 5} Does the Book of God give a picture of how all relevant things for the world, man's course to this day, an unfolding of history exactly as foretold, show all things to the present that man NEEDS to know?; 6} Does the Book show how the stain of sin became upon man, and how only one way it can be removed?; 7} Now, does the salvation and restoration of created man show in the Book how the only Savior MUST be God in the form of man, and He alone showed His deity, is essential to take upon Himself our sins, cleanse us, and offer eternal life and mercy to those who receive this One and the great salvation; and seals and indwells the faithful one who trusts Him alone?.

I don't see this in any of the various religions men have developed in the world for their convenience, and is only in what God has given for us to know in His Word ---the Holy Bible. No doubt there is more that is not included here, but this should suffice to stop looking at every religion in the world to find something better than what God has provided us.

 

[ViaCrucis]

I am once again trying to seek God. I grew up Christian and lost my faith in college. I'm going through some really tough times in my life right now, depression and no again sorrow of my unbelief. I am listening to an audio Bible book of John as we speak. As i listen, i want these words to feel as valid and true as possible.

My question is, how do the words of the bible prevail over the koran? I am asking this because i have never read the koran in fear that it would lead me away from the Christ i want to attain. I am asking this strange question because i feel like if i read the koran one day, it might make me realize how special the bible is. Its a very broad question and im sure can be discussed very deeply. But from your own experiences, what about the Bible was more sound than the koran. I dont even know how mohamed spoke. I know close to nothing about the koran except for that they mention giants like the bible and that they believe mohamed was the final prophet etc. And they believe Jesus is isa or something rather. I also know that the Bible had better and more sensible miracles. I.e, each miracle performed was for a good reason. These are just only things ive heard. I almost want to read it, just to find a better appreciation for the bible.

Fundamentally the Christian relationship to the Bible and the Muslim relationship to the Qur'an are very, very different. Because the Bible isn't, as it were, the Christian Qur'an. In Christianity we say "The Word became flesh", in Islam, the Word is text. That's a fundamental difference here: in Christianity God's Revelation isn't a text, it's a Person--Jesus Christ; in Islam God's Revelation is a book, it's the Qur'an.

That alone makes it very difficult to try and make comparison between the two. Also, how we use our respective scripture texts is different. According to Islam the Qur'an was dictated to Muhammad as the direct word of God, which was then later written down by his followers. In Christianity the Bible is a collection of many different books which received down through the centuries in the Church as those works which we hear and read to encounter the Word of God (Jesus Christ). The Bible, therefore, is about Jesus; it is the written word, confession, and reception of Christ and our faith in Him through the Gospel preached in and by the Church.

The question, fundamentally, can't be resolved by trying to figure out which holy texts prevail over the other; from a Christian vantage point the question boils down to something far more important, and that's the question Jesus posed to His disciples in the 16th chapter of Matthew, "Who do you say I am?". Peter's response, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God" is the Christian answer to that question.

If Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, then Christianity is true and Islam isn't.
If Jesus isn't, then Christianity is false. That leaves open the possibility of Islam being true.

Because ultimately, in Christianity, Jesus is always the center. Jesus is what matters. Our entire religion is about Him and centered around Him. If He is, indeed, the Christ and Son of God--then the Christian confession is true. If He isn't; then Christianity is an entirely false religion.

-CryptoLutheran