BELIEF IN REVEALED BOOKS
• Human beings are the servants of Allah and need guidance to carry out their various duties and responsibilities.
• This guidance is mentioned in Books revealed to various Prophets.
• So for this guidance Muslims are required to believe in the Books.
• Allah says in the Holy Book:
• “Those who believe in the revelation sent down to you (Mohammad) and in what was sent before you…” [2:4]
• There were several revealed books but only four out of them are famous”
1. The Holy Quran, revealed to the Holy Prophet (pbuh).
2. Injil or the Gospels was revealed to Isa. The Christians failed to act upon it; they distorted it and introduced the doctrine (policy) of trinity and redemption through crucification; although Isa clearly told his followers that Allah was his and their Lord. According to the Quran Injil confirms the Torah.
3. Zubur or Psalms, revealed to David.
4. Torah was revealed to Moses for the guidance of Bani Israel. It contained Allah’s command, warning and mercy. The original book was changed. Its followers distorted the words of Allah. Allah says, ‘’they change the words from their (right) places and forget a good part of the message that was sent.’’(5:13)
5. The Qur’an also mentions the Suhuf of Ibrahim.
• Books were also revealed to other messengers, who were sent at different times among different nations having different languages.
• Their teachings were in the language they spoke and they were for the guidance of that particular community.
• The teachings contained were, the Uniqueness and Oneness of Allah, the concept of reward and punishment for one’s deeds in the life after death.
• All the heavenly books were from Allah and whatever Allah said in them is to be believed in. However due to changes and alternations, their originality and purity has been brought into question.
• The preservation of the Holy Scriptures was the duty of their respective followers.
• The basic purpose of these books was the acknowledgment of the Oneness of Allah.
• These books made it clear to the people that they should believe in the prophets of their times.
• If anyone failed to do so, their faith in Allah would not merit any rewards.
• These books also testified that all the Prophets were truthful and they should not differentiate among them.
• Each Prophet (pbuh), after all, was sent by Allah with guidance, and the primary message of each was the same.
• These books also reformed the wrong beliefs of people concerning Allah’s Essence, His Messengers, books, and the life after death and acts of worship.
• Instead of preserving the scriptures in their memories and on tablets, they distorted them. The outcome is that these scriptures cannot be relied upon to be the same as when they were sent down.
• Since Islam is based on the Quran, and the Qur’an is Allah’s last book, Allah took the responsibility of preserving whatever is contained in it.
• The following holy verse testifies this, “We have sent down the Quran Ourself and We Ourself will guard it…” (15:9)
• It is the living miracle of the Quran that no one ever produced even a verse like that of the Quran.
• The Qur’an, unlike the other divine books which were meant for a particular community, is a guide book for all communities for all times to come.
• The Qur’an is a universal book, sent to the entire mankind for all ages.
MARKING SCHEME
• These contain God’s will and guidance for humankind.
• They were given from God to humans by a succession of prophetic
• Messengers.
• They include the Suhuf, the Tawrat, the Zubur, the Injil and the Qur’an.
• (1 mark for two or more of these, 2 marks for four or more)
• Each was meant for a particular community,
• Except the Qur’an which was meant for the whole world.
