This question is perhaps the most frequently asked question in Islamic-Christian dialogues. How can we trust books that are thousands of years old? Were the Gospels really distorted, as is said?
First: What does “distortion” mean?
Let’s start by defining the meaning. When Muslims talk about distorting the Bible, there are two different understandings:
- Verbal distortion: The original text was lost, and people wrote new, completely different texts.
- Moral distortion: The original text exists, but people’s understanding of it differed or they misinterpreted it.
Christians believe that God preserved His Word, and that distortion, if it occurs, is of the second type: misunderstanding and interpretation, not changing the texts themselves.
Second: What does the Qur’an say about the Bible?
The Qur’an speaks about the Gospel in very beautiful words. He describes it as “guidance and light” (Al-Ma’idah 46). It commands the followers of the Qur’an to believe in what was revealed to them and in what was revealed to those before them (Al-Baqarah 4). He says about the word of God: “There is no one who can change His words” (Al-An’am 34).
These instruments indicate that the Book that the People of the Book had at the time of the revelation of the Qur’an was respected and believed in. The Qur’an did not say that this book was distorted, but rather called on its people to judge according to what it contains (Al-Ma’idah 47).
Third: Do we have ancient manuscripts?
This is the most important physical evidence. We have thousands of Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, some dating back to the second century AD, only a few decades after they were originally written.
For comparison:
| Text | The time between the original and the oldest manuscript |
|---|---|
| Homer’s Iliad | About 400 years old |
| Aristotle’s writings | About 1400 years old |
| New Testament | Only about 25-50 years old! |
The oldest portion of the Gospel of John (known as P52) dates from around 125-150 AD, and the Gospel was written in the late first century. This means that the time interval is very short.
Fourth: The large number of manuscripts
The number of Greek New Testament manuscripts exceeds 5,500. In addition to thousands of ancient translations (Latin, Syriac, and Coptic), and thousands of quotations from the Church Fathers. If all the manuscripts were lost, we could completely reconstruct the New Testament from the quotations of the Church Fathers alone!
This huge number allows scholars to compare manuscripts and find out the original text with very high accuracy.
Fifth: Differences between manuscripts
Yes, there are differences between manuscripts. But 99% of them are minor differences such as:
- Spelling errors (such as spelling a name differently)
- Advance or delay words
- Difference in verb form
There is not a single difference that affects any fundamental Christian doctrine. All the major doctrines (the divinity of Christ, the resurrection, the Trinity, salvation by faith) are supported by thousands of agreed manuscripts.
Sixth: What about the different Gospels?
Some say: “You have four Gospels, and this is evidence of distortion!”
The truth is that the existence of four Gospels is not evidence of distortion, but rather evidence of richness. Four eyewitnesses (or disciples of eyewitnesses) tell one story from different angles.
As if four people saw one incident and wrote about it. Each one will focus on different aspects, but the basic story is the same. Matthew focused on prophecies, Mark on quick events, Luke on human details, and John on the theological aspect.
Seventh: Testimony of non-Christian scholars
Many textual critics (even non-Christian scholars) assert that the text of the New Testament has reached us with a high degree of accuracy. Sir Frederick Kenyon, former director of the British Museum, says:
“Reliance on the text of the New Testament is stronger than reliance on any other ancient book. It can no longer be doubted that we have the essence of the New Testament writings as they were written.”
Eighth: What about contradictions?
Some people think that there are contradictions in the Bible. Most of them are due to:
- Not understanding the context
- Ignoring that the writer is speaking from a different angle
- Confusing different numbers for the same incident
For example: How many blind people are there in Jericho? Matthew speaks of two, Mark and Luke speak of one. Why? Because Mark chose to focus on the main character (Bartimaeus), while Matthew mentioned the full number. This is not a contradiction, but a different writing style.
Ninth: What about the verses that are thought to have been added?
There are some verses that are not found in the oldest manuscripts (such as the long end of Mark’s Gospel, or the story of the adulterous woman in John). Scholars know this and mention it in footnotes. but:
- These verses do not establish a new doctrine
- Its absence in some manuscripts does not mean that the entire Bible is distorted
- Even if we delete it, the Christian doctrine remains complete from many other verses
Conclusion for thought
The Gospel that is in our hands today is the same Gospel that existed at the time of the revelation of the Qur’an. The differences between the manuscripts are very small and do not affect the essence. Material and historical evidence supports our confidence that the text we read is reliable.
As Christ said: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35).
Whoever wants to search for the truth will find light and guidance in the Gospel, as described in the Qur’an itself.