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90 THE CORÂN.

He hath ordained unto you the religion which he commanded unto Noah, and which We have revealed unto thee, and which We commanded unto Abraham, Moses, and Jesus; saying, Maintain the (true) religion, and be not at variance therein.

Islâm, as inculcated in the Corân upon Mahomet, was the same religion as that revealed to Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus; i.e., the religion of the Old and New Testament,—Judaism and Christianity.

XXIV.—SURA XLII., vv. 14, 15.

سورة الشورى

وَمَا تَفَرَّقُوا إِلَّا مِن بَعْدِ مَا جَاءهُمُ الْعِلْمُ بَغْيًا بَيْنَهُمْ وَلَوْلَا كَلِمَةٌ سَبَقَتْ مِن رَّبِّكَ إِلَى أَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى لَّقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ وَإِنَّ الَّذِينَ أُورِثُوا الْكِتَابَ مِن بَعْدِهِمْ لَفِي شَكٍّ مِّنْهُ مُرِيبٍ
فَلِذَلِكَ فَادْعُ وَاسْتَقِمْ كَمَا أُمِرْتَ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَاءهُمْ وَقُلْ آمَنتُ بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ مِن كِتَابٍ وَأُمِرْتُ لِأَعْدِلَ بَيْنَكُمُ اللَّهُ رَبُّنَا وَرَبُّكُمْ لَنَا أَعْمَالُنَا وَلَكُمْ أَعْمَالُكُمْ لَا حُجَّةَ بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَكُمُ اللَّهُ يَجْمَعُ بَيْنَنَا وَإِلَيْهِ الْمَصِيرُ

And they did not differ until after the knowledge (of Divine Revelation) came unto them, rebelliously among themselves: and unless the word had gone forth from thy Lord ( respiting them) until a fixed time, verily the matter had been decided

TESTIMONY TO THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 91

between them. And verily they that have inherited the book after them are in a perplexing doubt respecting the same. 
Wherefore invite (men unto the true faith,) and stand fast as thou hast been commanded, and follow not their desires. And say, I believe in whatever books God hath revealed, and I am commanded to decide between you: God is our Lord, and your Lord. To us will (be reckoned) our works, —to you, yours. There is no ground of dispute between us and you. God will gather us together, and to Him shall be the return.

The above passage follows close upon the preceding text (No. XXIII. ), in which mention is made of the Jewish and Christian prophets, and the one true religion.

It is here asserted that the people to whom the divine knowledge of the true religion came, i.e. the Jews and Christians, fell to variance after receiving that knowledge; that God's wrath might at once justly have destroyed them for their enmity, but that they were respited till the day of his decree; and that those who inherited the Scriptures after them, i.e. the Jews and Christians of Mahomet's time, were in doubt and perplexity regarding their true meaning. So the commentators: "Those that have inherited the book after them, and they are the Jews and Christians";

الذين أورثوا الكتاب من بعدهم وهم اليهود والنصارى
Jelalooddeen. "That is, the people of the book that were in the time of the prophet."
يعني أهل الكتاب الذين كانوا في عهد الرسول
Are in doubt regarding the same, i.e., regarding their book, not knowing its real purport, or not believing in it with a
           

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