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If I understand correctly, Islam accepts several holy books as authored by Allah. Obviously, Muslims are encouraged to read the Quran, but among these books are the Bible (or Gospel) and the Torah, and it's not clear to me whether or not Muslims are encouraged to read them too.

Question: Are Muslims encouraged to read the Bible and/or the Torah? Why or why not?

As in: Would it be worthwhile? Could reading these books lead a Muslim astray? Is there some things a Muslim should know before reading them?

On one hand, they're authored by Allah. But, at the same time, they're not treated the same way as the Quran, nor do I encounter e.g. Muslims reading or quoting from the Bible. There may also be some underlying politics involved here. It's unclear to me how to interpret this.

This question Why Muslims are not allowed to read Torah? has vague and unreferenced answers. The OP of this question How should one read the bible as a muslim? writes "...the Bible is said to be either corrupted or superseded by the Quran." The answer to this question The Bible vs The Qur'an writes "...the Qur'an is the word of God applicable today". The top answer to this question Which part of the Christian Bible is corrupted? writes "...a large chunk of the New Testament was written by Paul, whom the Qur'an doesn't recognize as a Prophet". And the answer to this question Why Islam contradicts with Quran about the authenticity of Bible? says "...the Gospel and Torah was revealed from Allah but this does not validate its current day authenticity or require us to believe in its present day content entirely."

My impression from the above linked questions is that it's either discouraged, or, at least, not strongly encouraged. Nobody seems to be arguing that it's critical for a Muslim to read these books.

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  • I've grew up in a Sunni family and reading the Bible wasn't discouraged; and I've personally read portions of both the Old & New Testament; but this is just anecdotal without scholarly backing; I see that one answer has done so, and much more usefully than my comment. Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 9:40
  • Bible is actually formed from Gospel, Torah and Psalms of prophet David( PBUH). But Bible isn’t the word of God, but Gospel, Torah, Psalms are indeed the words of God but sooner later they were corrupted, only Quran was saved from corruption( meaning that it has been protected).
    – Alex A
    Commented Nov 13, 2018 at 23:24

10 Answers 10

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Refernce(s) for prohibitting it

Those who may say that it is not allowed for Muslims to read the Torah and the Bible or any other "Holy Book" would refer to a narration which was compiled by al-Bazzar and Imam Ahmad and qualified as weak by some scholars:

It was narrated from Jaabir ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) with some written material he had got from one of the people of the Book. He read it to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and he got angry and said: Are you confused (about your religion), O son of al-Khattaab? By the One in Whose hand is my soul, I have brought it (the message of Islam) to you clear and pure. Do not ask them about anything, lest they tell you something true and you disbelieve it, or they tell you something false and you believe it. By the One in Whose hand is my soul, if Moosa were alive, he would have no option but to follow me.”.

On this basis one could prohibit reading any other holy book except the Quran as it should be enough for us and as it states that it is the most (or absolutely) correct revelation. One could also add this statement of ibn 'Abbas from sahih al-Bukhari:

"Why do you ask the people of the scripture about anything while your Book which has been revealed to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) is newer and the latest? You read it pure, undistorted and unchanged, and Allah has told you that the people of the scripture changed their scripture and distorted it, and wrote the scripture with their own hands and said, 'It is from Allah,' to sell it for a little gain. Does not the knowledge which has come to you prevent you from asking them about anything? No, by Allah, we have never seen any man from them asking you regarding what has been revealed to you!"

which goes ahead with (29:51). See also this hadith from sahih al-Bukahri which is quote saying that some of the people of the book used to translate their scripture to Muslims.

That's why scholars like ..

Al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
If the one who reads it – namely the Qur’an – will have a tenfold reward or more for each letter, according to what we mentioned in the introduction to this book, then turning away from it and towards other Books is misguidance and loss, and it is a bad deal and waste of time. (Fatwa)

But one can also say: At the time this happened our religion Islam was still not fully established, as some rules may have come later. For example many people say that the Prophet prohibited writing down or compiling his hadith which seems to be a similar case (Be aware that there are narrations showing that our Prophet even allowed it to some of his companions). So if we assume both cases are similar than it after the last revelation of the Quran it should have been allowed to cross-check the truth of Quran with other earlier revelations. Maybe it was at the beginning frowned about because there were still pagans, and people were still close to worshiping idols, so maybe they could have a fall back! This means one could say the Question is: should we understand this Prohibition for 'Omar as a general prohibition for all Muslims or was it due to the circumstances a more likely temporary prohibition?

Most scholars agree that only a well-versed with strong faith person (a scholar for instance) is allowed to read those books to be able to debate non-Muslims and establish proofs against their false teachings!

Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said (in fath al-Barry):
With regard to this matter, it is important to note that in the case of those who are not well-versed in knowledge and are lacking in faith, it is not permissible for them to read any of those books. (From the same fatwa as above)

this means for ordinary people the above prohibition applies:

An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said (in rawdat at-Talibeen):
The books of the Torah and Gospel are among the things that it is prohibited to seek benefit therein, because they changed and altered them.

A-Rahibani (May Allah have mercy on him) said (in matalib uwli aN-nuha): It is not permissible to study the books of the people of the Book, based on textual evidence, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) got angry when he saw ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) carrying a page of the Torah. … And they should not read books that contain both truth and falsehood, or narrate what they learn from them, because that may be detrimental to belief. (From the same fatwa as above)

So the major opinion among scholars seem discouraging reading books of other faiths and beliefs. I think it depends on the faith of the person and the intention, so one couldn't say it's generally prohibited or allowed.

For more details read the full linked fatwa and see also this fatwa in Arabic. They show that even if the majority of scholars discourage reading Bible and Torah there's a strong enough evidence contradicting their verdict. Of course the major reason that may defend their view to some extent is the fact that they say it is prohibited for the ordinary Muslim (only).

Reference for a permission

Those who may say that it is allowed for Muslims to read the Torah and the Bible or any other "Holy Book" would refer to this Hadith which was compiled by Imam Ahmad in his Musnad and abu Dawod in his sunan:

relate traditions from the children of Isra'il; there is no harm.

A longer versions can be found in sahih al-Bukhari and jami' at-Tirmdihi both on the authorithy of Abdullah ibn 'Amr.


In sahih Muslim you may find a hadith which doesn't refer to bani Israel (the children of Israel or Jews) at all and has apparently a similar wording it is one of the evidences for not allowing to take down hadith.


The (shared and displayed) statement of the hadith was interpreted as follows: It is allowed to narrate traditions of bani Israel which are in their books (without checking the narrator chains).
Al-Khattabi added that this doesn't allow to tell lies about them.
Imam Malik said: this means that it is allowed to narrate about them what is good. While itz is not allowed to tell one knows is a lie.
Imam a-Shafi'i said: it means narrate about them what you are sure that it is not a lie, and what you can tolerate of it there's no harm in narrating it. And he quoted a statement of a hadith as an evidence:

... Whatever the people of the Book tell you, do not verify them, nor falsify them ...

and there was neither a prohibition nor a permission to tell what one is absolutely certain about.
a-Tybi explained: There's no contradiction between the permission in this hadith and the prohibition in an other neither for narrating from or about nor reading in their books, because here he meant telling their stories like killing themselves for repentance. While the prohibition was about following their rulings because they have been made void by his shari'a or at the beginnings of Islam when the rulings were not settled yet, so afterwards he gave permission as the reason for the prohibition was no more given.

These statements are taken and translated (by myself) from this Arabic fatwa.

Some works that have discussed other faiths based on a deep insight of their texture and rulings

AFAIK only a few scholars wrote books and discussed other faith based on a deep insight of the rulings and theology of these religions. For example ibn Hazm the Andalusian (dhahiri scholar) in his Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Nihal الفصل في الملل والأهواء والنحل (The Separator Concerning Religions, Heresies, and Sects) and later al-Shahrastani the Persian (sunni shafi'i scholar) in his Kitāb al–Milal wa al-Nihal كتاب الملل والنحل (The Book of Sects and Creeds) these are the major works in this subject. While most Muslim scholars like al-Ghazaly have primarily discussed the false believes and thoughts of sects which have been cerated within Islam or based on Islamic traditions. Ibn Hazm of course had the opportunity to grow up in a more liberal Islamic environment in which Jews and Christians played a big role however his book also covers other religious faiths like Hindu etc.

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    not allowed for Muslims ? I strongly disagree, I am Muslim and I read little in the Bible and it was amazing. I still receive daily letter regarding the bible, why I shouldnt read in the bible ? it teach many beautiful things in different way. if somone read quraan before , he will not be misslead, on the contrary he will understand islam relegion better
    – Moudiz
    Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 12:24
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    @Moudiz if you read my answer you may find out that i question this, but most scholarly opinions i could find are discouraging it for "ordinary Muslims"!
    – Sassir
    Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 12:55
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This answer is based on two lectures I gave a few months ago on what Quran itself says about Injil and Torah.

In my lectures I went over every verse in Quran that refers to Injil, Torah, the book, the books, ... directly or indirectly. There is not even a single verse in Quran that forbids reading Injil/Torah, there is not even a single slightly negative verse in Quran about them. On the other hand Quran is full of verses that praises both of them. Quran considers itself a strengthening of those previous books and often tell the followers of Torah and Injil to go bring them and read what is in them together. It actually goes further and makes it a requirement to believe in them to be a believer. In verses 2:2-5 Quran describes the righteous and it states that one of the attributes of the righteous is believing in previous sacred books as they do in Quran. A Muslim following Quran has to believe in those previous books as he believes in Quran. In verse 2:285 Quran says that the Prophet and his believers believe in the holy books. It is also useful to contrast this with verse 2:113 where it discusses the arguments between Jews and Christians claiming that the other one has nothing from truth and then criticizes them stating that both of the read the book. This shows that Quran does not approve disrespecting and disregarding Injil and Torah. Anyone who acts like that is behaving similar to those criticized in this verse.

In verse 28:49 Quran tell the Prophet to say that "if you are honest bring me a book from God which is better in guiding from those two and I will follow it" and from the previous verse it is clear that one of those two books from God is Torah.

Also see verses 5:44-50 and 5:65-70. Quran speaks extremely highly of both Injil and Torah and considers them full of light and guidance. There is no warning in Quran against reading them so it is natural for anyone who believes in Quran to seek the light and guidance that is in Torah and Injil as well.

Some Muslims disregard these verses from Quran by using the excuses that they are altered. This argument doesn't hold face when one looks clearly: Quran is not talking about some historical book that didn't exist at the time of the Prophet but Torah and Injil as it existed during the Prophet's time and we have very strong historical documents to show that Torah and Injil as we have it today is the same as what was present at the time of the Prophet.


As I understand, anyone telling you that you should shun Injil and Torah is telling something against Quran's teachings. This is a widespread major divergence from the teachings of Quran as we can see from the starting and ending verses of second Sura. Both Injil and Torah are sacred books from God and anyone who is seeking God should naturally be interested in hearing what is said in them. This attitude is part of the sickness that befall on Judaism and Christianity and I think it comes from a form of communal selfishness and pride and a feeling of superiority based on group association (not good deeds!) and these things are strongly frowned upon in Quran.

In verses 23:51-54 we have

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلرُّسُلُ كُلُوا۟ مِنَ ٱلطَّيِّبَـٰتِ وَٱعْمَلُوا۟ صَـٰلِحًا ۖ إِنِّى بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ عَلِيمٌۭ * وَإِنَّ هَـٰذِهِۦٓ أُمَّتُكُمْ أُمَّةًۭ وَ‌ٰحِدَةًۭ وَأَنَا۠ رَبُّكُمْ فَٱتَّقُونِ * فَتَقَطَّعُوٓا۟ أَمْرَهُم بَيْنَهُمْ زُبُرًۭا ۖ كُلُّ حِزْبٍۭ بِمَا لَدَيْهِمْ فَرِحُونَ * فَذَرْهُمْ فِى غَمْرَتِهِمْ حَتَّىٰ حِينٍ

O Prophets, eat from clean foods and do good deeds, truly I am full-aware of what you do. And this nation of yours is a single nation and I am your Lord so be mindful of me. But [their followers] divided their affairs between them to pieces, each group rejoices [among themselves] because of what is with them [from the book and ignores the rest]. So leave them in their confused ignorance until the time [of judgement].

And in verses 5:47-48 we have

وَلْيَحْكُمْ أَهْلُ ٱلْإِنجِيلِ بِمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ فِيهِ ۚ وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْفَـٰسِقُونَ * وَأَنزَلْنَآ إِلَيْكَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ بِٱلْحَقِّ مُصَدِّقًۭا لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ وَمُهَيْمِنًا عَلَيْهِ ۖ فَٱحْكُم بَيْنَهُم بِمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ ۖ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَآءَهُمْ عَمَّا جَآءَكَ مِنَ ٱلْحَقِّ ۚ لِكُلٍّۢ جَعَلْنَا مِنكُمْ شِرْعَةًۭ وَمِنْهَاجًۭا ۚ وَلَوْ شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ لَجَعَلَكُمْ أُمَّةًۭ وَ‌ٰحِدَةًۭ وَلَـٰكِن لِّيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِى مَآ ءَاتَىٰكُمْ ۖ فَٱسْتَبِقُوا۟ ٱلْخَيْرَ‌ٰتِ ۚ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ مَرْجِعُكُمْ جَمِيعًۭا فَيُنَبِّئُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمْ فِيهِ تَخْتَلِفُونَ

And the followers of Injil must judge [among themselves] according to what God has sent in it, and whoever does not judge according to what God has sent thus surely they are rebels [against God]. And we sent to you the book rightfully, confirmation to what is in their hands from the book and strengthening on it. Judge among them according to what God has sent and do not follow their desires whereof the right [action] has arrived to you. To each [group of you] we set a law and a light. And if God wanted he could make you all one nation [without disputes] but [he did not do so] to test you in what you are given [from the book]. So speed towards good deeds, towards God is the return of you all thus he will inform you what you were disputing in.

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    To the down voter: my answer might not conform to your believes and may not please you but what is in it is easily verifiable by checking the Quran's verses, so I would suggest that you read Quran if you believe in it. Let me know if you find a mistake in my answer and I will correct it.
    – Kaveh
    Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 4:46
  • Even if I do agree with your statement about Torah and Injil, Quran doesn't refer to the actual Torah or Injil. As for this Quran is in first place addressing those who changed it like legacy.quran.com/2/75 and legacy.quran.com/2/78-79
    – Sassir
    Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 4:54
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    @Sassir, as I have written in my answer, there are many verses in Quran that refers to what was present at the time of the Prophet, not some historical books that did not exist at his time anymore and what we have right now is what was present at the time of the Prophet. The excuse to forbid reading them because they are altered does not hold ground. Quran doesn't refer to what present at the time of Prophet as "altered Injil" and "altered Torah" or "false Injil" and "false Torah", it refers to them as "Injil" and "Torah" so these verses do apply to them.
    – Kaveh
    Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 4:57
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    E.g. verse 5:93: "... Tell [them]: go bring Torah and read it ...". This is clearly referring to what was present at the time of the Prophet. Or in verse 5:47, it tells Christians to judge according to Injil, clearly this refers to what Christians had at the time. The phrase "لما بین یدیه" in verse 5:48 which Quran states to be confirming and strengthening means "what is available".
    – Kaveh
    Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 5:13
  • I know but this is used as an evidence for allowing people of the book to be judged based on their shari'a in a Muslim country! Note that I've updated my answer and added a reference for the opposite view!
    – Sassir
    Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 5:38
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If I understand correctly, Islam accepts several holy books as authored by Allah. Obviously, Muslims are encouraged to read the Quran, but among these books are the Bible (or Gospel) and the Torah, and it's not clear to me whether or not Muslims are encouraged to read them too.

Not necessarily. The Injil is recognized to be authored by God but there is disagreement on what the Injil is. Paul's letters, Revelation, the letters of James and Peter, etc... all attribute divine names and attributes to 'Isa (Jesus) and the Holy Spirit. This directly contradicts the Qu'ran where it says that Jesus was mere prophet and other Unitarian aspects in Islam. For this reason and others, you'll find some Dawahish who say that the New Testament is not the Injil. The wikipedia page for Injil explains "Muslims reject that Jesus or any other person wrote the Injil, instead crediting its authorship to God. Many Muslim scholars believe that the Gospel has undergone alteration, that the words and the meaning of the words have been distorted, with some passages suppressed and others added."

The Qu'ran mentions that people had the Injil at the time of Mohammad and we have full copies of the New Testament even centuries beforehand (for this, scholars like Shabir Ally believe that the Injil is embedded in the New Testament and one merely discards anything that doesn't line up with the Qu'ran).

As in: Would it be worthwhile? Could reading these books lead a Muslim astray? Is there some things a Muslim should know before reading them?

As a Christian I would say so but a Muslim may disagree. (I'm reading a transliteration of the Qu'ran presently fyi.) The Qu'ran diverges greatly from the Old & New Testament. For example, in Islam it is believed that prophets are infallible. In Christianity, Jesus is the only sinless one. In the Old Testament Abraham, Moses, Jonah, Isaiah, David, and others sin. God rebukes and corrects them. These are key elements in many of the stories and you're left saying the lengthy events are untrue and without merit from an Islamic perspective.

When you come to the New Testament, the theme changes and you hit parts like Romans that says "righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

So I'd suggest reading them because the Qu'ran diverges so much from them but a Muslim may recommend not reading them due to that same reason.

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    Muslim-y. The adjectival form of Muslim is Islamic.
    – TRiG
    Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 16:44
  • "For example, in Islam it is believed that prophets are infallible." Wait, is this true? I've seen people claim that even Prophet Mohammad is fallible (except in conveying the message of God through the Quran). Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 0:00
  • @RebeccaJ.Stones The concept is called Ismah but is more apparent in Shia Islam than Sunni. For Dawahists like Joshua Evans, they do use the occurrences of Old Testament prophets sinning as a reason to reject the Torah. Example: youtube.com/…
    – Lan
    Commented Aug 12, 2016 at 13:05
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In short NO.

(Quran 61:6) And ˹remember˺ when Jesus, son of Mary, said, “O children of Israel! I am truly Allah’s messenger to you, confirming the Torah which came before me, and giving good news of a messenger after me whose name will be Aḥmad.” Yet when the Prophet came to them with clear proofs, they said, “This is pure magic.”

(Quran 5:14) O People of the Book! Now Our Messenger has come to you, revealing much of what you have hidden of the Scriptures and disregarding much. There certainly has come to you from Allah a light and a clear Book

(Quran 5:48) "We have revealed to you ˹O Prophet˺ this Book with the truth, as a confirmation of previous Scriptures and a supreme authority on them . So judge between them by what Allah has revealed, and do not follow their desires over the truth that has come to you .............."

On none of Christian site and portals you will ever find 5:15 because it clearly states that many verse from gospels are hidden (by now even likely lost) and 5:48 that Quran has overruled everything that was revealed before thus making Injeel and Torah obsolete.

Quran 57:27 "....... We sent after them Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the Injeel......"

  1. Thus Injeel refers only to original gospel revealed to Jesus. Note: No word Bible is mentioned contrary to exact word Torah being used
  2. Bible is collection of Old testament (Christian translation of Torah and not actual Torah, has very key differences in meanings), 4 canonical Gospels, Epistles like Hebrews, Revelation, Corinthians etc which are not Gospels and Acts of the Apostles again not Gospel or word of God.
  3. So INJEEL is NOT BIBLE .
  4. Unlike synoptic gospels, Gospels of John was written very late. The most earliest prediction is around (90-130 AD) . By analysis we can understand that if it was indeed John the Apostle, he would have been easily around 90-100 year old when writing it. Saying that he is the author is doubtful or that words of such an old man are accurate is also doubtful.
  5. Coming to the synoptic Gospels, we definitely know that these gospels are NARRATIONS of life and lesson of Jesus. NOT exact WORDS bestowed on Jesus.

For instance, (Matthew 2:11) And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:2) Saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

Clearly these are narrations or words of general public and NOT WORDS OF JESUS. So no way canonical Gospels can be treated as holy words.

It is very likely possible that FEW verses from Injeel have been quoted in canonical Gospels through oral traditions meaning that the canonical Gospels do partly have actual verses from Injeel (Original Gospel) along with misinterpreted verses and the narration. There were many Jewish-Christian sects which rejected the canonical Gospels and Bible altogether and carried their own Gospels like Ebionites, Nazarenes which could have had carried not entirely but more such actual verses from Injeel.

No wonder even now that there are Unitarian Christians who are able to find proof from these Gospels to say that Jesus was human Messiah and not Son of God thus rejecting Trinity. But of course due to the basic nature of canonical gospel as being written by followers rather then Jesus there are still many errors which even the Unitarians accept despite rejecting Trinity.

Many NT scholars doubt that the John may not be Apostle John instead some other person named John, in fact some theories suggest that Gospel of John was collected from multiple different Johns and was penned down into a single Gospel.

To conclude, Bible barely has any of words bestowed on Jesus by Allah and is regarded mostly as human literature. So choosing between books one written by supposed Apostles and Christ enthusiasts, the other sure and exact words bestowed on Prophet of God. It is obvious that reading Quran is encouraged even by logical point of view.

Christians believe it to be truth, so Muslim Missionaries do read and quote the verse during their study and work in search of these few actual verses that have remained.

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Does the Quran tell us to read the Bible?

There is no verse saying that a Muslim has to read the Bible.

In fact, it was not even possible, neither to Muhammad ﷺ nor to his companions, to read the Bible; yet many people were not able to read at all, and if so, they would have had difficulties reading Aramaic or Hebrew because there was no Arabic Bible translation available in this time. It would thus not make sense to say that a Muslim must read the Bible.

One aspect which made it favourable to the Arabs was actually that the Quran was in their language

12:2

We have revealed it an Arabic Quran, so that you may understand.

(Digression: Of course, this was not the reason for «engaging» a prophet sending down the Quran; a Bible translation would have done it. The reason was that there was quite a lot to clarify about the messages and the Messengers.

41:45

We gave Moses the Book, but disputes arose concerning it. Were it not for a prior decree from your Lord, judgment would have been pronounced between them. But they are in perplexing doubt concerning it.

A major dispute was about Jesus ﷺ, between the Jews who completely rejected him and the Christians who partly believed that he was God or a Half-God. The Quran says that he was the Messiah and a messenger of God, not less, but aösp not more. A second important point was that the Torah states that those are the commandments to the people of Israel, so that it was not clear whether non-Jewish Christians should follow them. The Quran gives a set of rules that clearly apply to all believers.)

Does the Quran tell to accept the Bible?

There are many other passages in the Quran:

2:285

The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, as did the believers. They all have believed in God, and His angels, and His scriptures, and His messengers: “We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” And they say, “We hear and we obey. Your forgiveness, our Lord. To you is the destiny.”

2:87

We gave Moses the Scripture, and sent a succession of messengers after him. And We gave Jesus son of Mary the clear proofs, and We supported him with the Holy Spirit. Is it that whenever a messenger comes to you with anything your souls do not desire, you grew arrogant, calling some impostors, and killing others?

4:163-166

We have inspired you (Muhammad), as We had inspired Noah and the prophets after him. And We inspired Abraham, and Ishmael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the Patriarchs, and Jesus, and Job, and Jonah, and *Aaron, > and Solomon. And We gave David the Psalms. Some messengers We have already told you about, while some messengers We have not told you about. And God spoke to Moses directly. Messengers delivering good news, and bringing warnings; so that people may have no excuse before God after the coming of the messengers. God is Powerful and Wise. But God bears witness to what He revealed to you. He revealed it with His knowledge. And the angels bear witness. Though God is a sufficient witness.

57:25-27

We sent Our messengers with the clear proofs, and We sent down with them the Book and the Balance, that humanity may uphold justice. And We sent down iron, in which is violent force, and benefits for humanity. That God may know who supports Him and His messengers invisibly. God is Strong and Powerful. We sent Noah and Abraham, and established in their line **Prophethood and the Scripture. Some of them are guided, but many of them are sinners. Then We sent in their wake Our messengers, and followed up with Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel, and instilled in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy.

5:44-48

We have revealed the Torah, wherein is guidance and light. The submissive prophets ruled the Jews according to it, so did the rabbis and the scholars, as they were required to protect God’s Book, and were witnesses to it. So do not fear people, but fear Me. And do not sell My revelations for a cheap price. Those who do not rule according to what God revealed are the unbelievers. And We wrote for them in it: a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a nose for a nose, an ear for an ear, a tooth for a tooth, and an equal wound for a wound; but whoever forgoes it in charity, it will serve as atonement for him. Those who do not rule according to what God revealed are the evildoers. In their footsteps, We sent **Jesus son of Mary, fulfilling the Torah that preceded him; and We gave him the Gospel, wherein is guidance and light, and confirming the Torah that preceded him, and guidance and counsel for the righteous. So let the people of the Gospel rule according to what God revealed in it. Those who do not rule according to what God revealed are the sinners. And We revealed to you the Book, with truth, confirming the Scripture that preceded it, and a guardian over it. So judge between them according to what God revealed, and do not follow their desires if they differ from the truth that has come to you. For each of you We have assigned a law and a method. Had God willed, He could have made you a single nation, but He tests you through what He has given you. So compete in righteousness. To God is your return, all of you; then He will inform you of what you had disputed.

5:68

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

10:94-95

If you are in doubt about what We revealed to you, ask those who read the Scripture before you. The truth has come to you from your Lord, so do not be of those who doubt. And do not be of those who deny God’s revelations, lest you become one of the losers.

The Quran clearly and explicitly confirms large parts of the Bible and, with the last quoted sentence, the Quran states that we should not deny God's revelations:

The Quran tells us to accept the Bible.

As today, almost anyone can read a Bible edition in his language, there is no hinderance to do so.

To note: Some books of the Tanakh are not mentioned, and any quote to Paul whose epistles are also part of the Christian Bible is missing in the Quran. There is no interdiction to read them, too but it should be done knowing that they are not considered prophetic speech.

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According to Quran, Muslims must believe in all the Divine books, and in all the prophets: آمَنَ الرَّسُولُ بِمَا أُنْزِلَ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ رَبِّهِ وَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ كُلٌّ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ وَ مَلَائِكَتِهِ وَ كُتُبِهِ وَ رُسُلِهِ لَا نُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَحَدٍ مِنْ رُسُلِهِ ... [2:285] which is translated into The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and [so have] the believers. All of them have believed in Allah and His angels and His books and His messengers ....

But how? Is Bible a Divine book? Once I used to talk with some Christians, asking them about Enjil, and they said they have never heard about it, and that maybe we actually mean to say "Gospels". But Gospels are not divine, they are considered to be teachings of Jesus the Christ PBUH in the language of some of his companions PBUH. There is a Hadeeth from Imam Ridha PBUH in a debate with a Christian scholar, wherein Imam PBUH explained why Christians gatherings in Churches happen on Sundays instead of Saturday which was the day for Jews at those early times (and now). To make it short, after Jesus PBUH was risen up to the Heavens, Enjil (which like Turah and Dhabur was revealed as a single written book, and not like Quran which was revealed to the vocal level) was also lost, and his companions told people to gather every Sonday in a place to teach them what they knew of the book and what Jesus PBUH taught them. This became a tradition then after. According to Christian people, there were lots of Gospels, which at some point, were decided to be burned for only four books to be kept. Now there is also (at least) a fifth one called Barnabas' Gospel, which I have read personally due to advise of some great Shia scholars and its has very small deviation from the teachings of Islam, but is not considered very authenticate by most of the Christians. Barnabas was also among the companions of Jesus the Christ PBUH. What about the other Gospels? While discussing things with the Christians it appeared to me that If only Paul's advertising God in a flesh (i.e. Trinitarian) is put aside, the Christians will become true Unitarian. Interesting enough, (saint) Paul is considered the greatest enemy of Jesus PBUH at the prophet's time even by the Christians, who then (self-expressively) introduced himself a regretful repented person after Jesus PBUH, and deviated the Christians by withstanding in front of Saint Peter (شمعون صفا) which was the true successor of Jesus PBUH according to our Islamic teachings. Now Christians accept from Paul, a symbol of hypocrisy, and are sorry for Saint Peter not accepting from him, if I have got it right.

What about Torah? Torah had also an amazing story. Once, I personally conducted a research to some extent about how it has failed over the time, but couldn't find a hint in our Islamic teaching about the book being corrupted on its own. Even e.g. Torah was lost for a long time and another prophet Uzair PBUH (a story of him is in Quran) brought it back again to Jews, so that the book was left intact at least for centuries after Moses PBUH. I also had some conservation with some Jews and they had reasons for their book to have remained intact. Also Quran accuse the Jews not for corrupting their Divine book, but for misinterpretting the notions in their book.

فَبِمَا نَقْضِهِمْ مِيثَاقَهُمْ لَعَنَّاهُمْ وَ جَعَلْنَا قُلُوبَهُمْ قَاسِيَةً يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَوَاضِعِهِ وَ نَسُوا حَظًّا مِمَّا ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ وَ لَا تَزَالُ تَطَّلِعُ عَلَيٰ خَائِنَةٍ مِنْهُمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِنْهُمْ ... [5:13]

So for their breaking of the covenant We cursed them and made their hearts hard. They distort words from their [proper] usages and have forgotten a portion of that of which they were reminded. And you will still observe deceit among them, except a few of them ...

This is also happening in Islam, as any scripture requires an ultimate interpreter which can judge who understand the message right, and who is misusing the same saying for its own (wrong) benefits. There are several verses in Quran and several Hadeeth about this issue, and that's why there is one book Quran among Muslims which is the same in Saudi-Arabia, Iran, Yemen, Egypt, and all over the globe, but with several different understanding from it. Here I only grab your attention to some verses and Ahadeeth about the issue:

وَ مَا أَنْزَلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ إِلَّا لِتُبَيِّنَ لَهُمُ الَّذِي اخْتَلَفُوا فِيهِ وَ هُدًي وَ رَحْمَةً لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ [16:64]

And We have not revealed to you the Book, [O Muhammad], except for you to make clear to them that wherein they have differed and as guidance and mercy for a people who believe

هُوَ الَّذِي أَنْزَلَ عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ مِنْهُ آيَاتٌ مُحْكَمَاتٌ هُنَّ أُمُّ الْكِتَابِ وَ أُخَرُ مُتَشَابِهَاتٌ فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ زَيْغٌ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ مَا تَشَابَهَ مِنْهُ ابْتِغَاءَ الْفِتْنَةِ وَ ابْتِغَاءَ تَأْوِيلِهِ وَ مَا يَعْلَمُ تَأْوِيلَهُ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَ الرَّاسِخُونَ فِي الْعِلْمِ يَقُولُونَ آمَنَّا بِهِ كُلٌّ مِنْ عِنْدِ رَبِّنَا وَ مَا يَذَّكَّرُ إِلَّا أُولُوا الْأَلْبَابِ [3:7]

It is He who has sent down to you, [O Muhammad], the Book; in it are verses [that are] precise - they are the foundation of the Book - and others unspecific. As for those in whose hearts is deviation [from truth], they will follow that of it which is unspecific, seeking discord and seeking an interpretation [suitable to them]. And no one knows its [true] interpretation except Allah, and those firm in knowledge; [they] say, 'We believe in it. All [of it] is from our Lord.' And no one will be reminded except those of understanding.

قال رسول الله صلی‌الله‌علیه‌وآله: ...إِنِّی تَارِکٌ فِیکمْ أَمْرَینِ إِنْ أَخَذْتُمْ بِهِمَا لَنْ تَضِلُّوا: کِتَابَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ وَ أَهْلَ بَیتِی عِتْرَتِی. أَیُّهَا النَّاسُ اسْمَعُوا وَ قَدْ بَلَّغْتُ إِنَّکُمْ سَتَرِدُونَ عَلَیَّ الْحَوْضَ فَأَسْأَلُکُمْ عَمَّا فَعَلْتُمْ فِی الثَّقَلَیْنِ، وَ الثَّقَلَانِ کِتَابُ اللَّهِ جَلَّ ذِکْرُهُ وَ أَهْلُ بَیتِی فَلَا تَسْبِقُوهُمْ فَتَهْلِکُوا وَ لَاتُعَلِّمُوهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ أَعْلَمُ مِنْکُم

The Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him and his family, said: ...I am leaving with you two matters, which if you follow them you will never go astray: The Book of God Almighty and My Household. O people, listen, and I have been informed that you will return to the Fountain (Al-Kawthar), so I will ask you about what you did regarding the Thaqalayn, and the Thaqalayn is the Book of God, glory be to Him And my household, do not outpace them or you will be destroyed, and do not teach them, for they are more knowledgeable than you.

The latter Hadeeth is more-or-less repeated several times in Shia and Sunni authenticate books with sometimes small differences. So that the slogan "حَسْبُنا کِتابَ الله" (that is, The Book of God is sufficient for us) which was used in the beginning of the history of Islam, was indeed opposing both Quran and Hadeeth. And Jews suffered from the same corruptions. Allah AWJ hold a mountain over the head of a group of selected Israelite and they were asked to say the truth, but they preferred to break their covenant.

وَ إِذْ أَخَذْنَا مِيثَاقَكُمْ وَ رَفَعْنَا فَوْقَكُمُ الطُّورَ خُذُوا مَا آتَيْنَاكُمْ بِقُوَّةٍ وَ اذْكُرُوا مَا فِيهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

And [recall] when We took your covenant, [O Children of Israel, to abide by the Torah] and We raised over you the mount, [saying], 'Take what We have given you with determination and remember what is in it that perhaps you may become righteous.'

وَ إِذْ أَخَذْنَا مِيثَاقَكُمْ وَ رَفَعْنَا فَوْقَكُمُ الطُّورَ خُذُوا مَا آتَيْنَاكُمْ بِقُوَّةٍ وَ اسْمَعُوا، قَالُوا سَمِعْنَا وَ عَصَيْنَا! وَ أُشْرِبُوا فِي قُلُوبِهِمُ الْعِجْلَ بِكُفْرِهِمْ، قُلْ بِئْسَمَا يَأْمُرُكُمْ بِهِ إِيمَانُكُمْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ

And [recall] when We took your covenant and raised over you the mount, [saying], 'Take what We have given you with determination and listen.' They said [instead], 'We hear and disobey.' And their hearts absorbed [the worship of] the calf because of their disbelief. Say, 'How wretched is that which your faith enjoins upon you, if you should be believers.'

they followed their desires except a small group of them, and so did Muslims at the early Islamic era. There is a Hadeeth about it from the holy prophet PBUHH:

فقد ثبت في الحديث الصحيح أن النبي صلى الله عليه و آله قال: افترقت اليهود على إحدى وسبعين فرقة، وافترقت النصارى على اثنتين وسبعين فرقة، وستفترق هذه الأمة على ثلاث وسبعين فرقة كلها في النار إلا واحدة

It has been proven in the authentic hadith that the Prophet, may God bless him and his household, said: The Jews split into seventy-one sects, and the Christians split into seventy-two sects, and this nation will split into seventy-three sects, all of whom will be in Hell except one.

and we already know all Muslims follow a single intact book, Quran. So that, for a people to deviate from the truth, it is not always required for their book of instructions to be lost, or be changed with bad intentions, but they can always misuse their book, like Jews that said سَمِعْنَا وَ عَصَيْنَا. Apparently, Jew have some books beside Torah which they obey much and many of their corrupted beliefs are due to those books, written trough centuries by their Rabbis.

And what about Dhabur of the prophet David PBUH? There is a book in Old Testimonials which is considered to be from David PBUH, but there are doubts around it, and I have not conducted any research in this regard, so only a hint for you to do so ...

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"E.g. verse 5:93: "... Tell [them]: go bring Torah and read it ...". This is clearly referring to what was present at the time of the Prophet......" Kaveh Aug 12 at 5:13

This was commanded because the Prophet peace be upon him knew that the text in their Torah at the time for this particular ruling was still intact and not changed. I will link some YouTube videos from Dr Jamal Badawi, Dr Shabir Ally and Ahmed Deedat shortly.

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  • Then refers to the Jews in this Verse!
    – Medi1Saif
    Commented Oct 29, 2016 at 7:33
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I’m no scholar Islamic standards just a revert well versed in the Bible.

Honestly I recommend reading Genesis- Deuteronomy. So that the ummah can have a better understanding of passages that refer to it. There are many ayahs that refer to the scriptures but if you’ve never read them how can you truly understand the reference? You’d miss the nuisance that shows how similar the commands given in the Torah are similar to the Quran, how the prophets stories are similar and some in the Quran offers the rest of the story (I.e. Abraham).

I recommend reading the prophets writings because much of the understanding regarding the messiah is found in them. There are prophets in the Quran who have whole books about them in the Old Testament (Daniel, Jonah, David & Solomon). There’s an unnamed prophet in surah Al Baqarah that has 2 books about him (the prophets who anointed David is Samuel).

I recommend reading the gospel as Jesus taught it so reading Luke and Mark (those who investigated and reported what they confirmed). Because the gospel in its base form without Pauline theology influences is beautiful and aligns with the Quran. A lot of times people don’t pay attention that when people would say he’s the son of God, Jesus would respond that’s what you say but when they said he’s the messiah, he would affirm that he was.

When learning these and reading the prophets writings, I understood why Jews rejected Christians and why it can be said with confidence that Jesus teachings were hijacked to accommodate a particular agenda.

But subhanallah God always prevails and thus we have the Quran to set things straight. Yet we need perspective of the things mentioned in the Quran which will also help us to relate and guide new reverts, to help them understand this isn’t a whole new faith, it’s really a course correction and expansion of the same faith they’d always had.

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  • The question is asking about what Islam says, it is not asking what Kris Bush recommends. Answers should be based on references to scripture or discussion of experts and not based on your personal opinion. Most Muslims have not even read or properly understood the Quran and Ahadith and encouraging them to read the bible is likely to misguide them. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ himself and the vast majority of the Sahaba never read the bible.
    – UmH
    Commented Sep 25 at 5:21
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It would help in your walk in Islam if you were knowledgeable of other religions. This will help you in conversing with those of other faiths. You can discuss the merits of Islam and how it relates to their religious views and perhaps get them to change their faith or visit your Mosque with you. The teachings of Jews, Christians, Muslims, and Wicca are much different from each other. For instance, knowing that Satanists don't actually worship Satan will help you see them as more like Athists. Only through the understanding of others will you be able to convince them to follow the correct path.

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Say, "O People of the Scripture, you are [standing] on nothing until you uphold [the law of] the Torah, the Gospel, and what has been revealed to you from your Lord." And that which has been revealed to you from your Lord will surely increase many of them in transgression and disbelief. So do not grieve over the disbelieving people. ~ Al-Maidah:68

In Al-Quran itself, this ayah told to uphold the law from the abovementioned books. To uphold it one must study.

اللَّهُ نَزَّلَ أَحْسَنَ الْحَدِيثِ كِتَابًا

Allah has sent down the best statement: a consistent Book wherein is reiteration ~ Az-Zumar:23

which statement you have as a guide (in yourself) instead of this holy words

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  • The verse is addressed to the People of the Scripture and not to the Muslims. It is not necessary for Muslims to study the previous books because the Quran itself contains what is relevant in terms of belief and law from the Torah and the Gospel. I am not aware of any instance where the Prophet instructed the Muslims to study the Torah and the Gospel.
    – UmH
    Commented Sep 25 at 5:39

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