Does the Qur'an replace the Bible?

from the old testament

• The Bible presents itself as God’s complete and authoritative eternal, sufficient, and trustworthy revelation to humanity (Deuteronomy 4:2; Psalm 119:89).
• God gave the Torah, the Prophets, and the Psalms as His authoritative revelation for His people (Deuteronomy 4:2). These writings were complete for their intended purpose and pointed forward to the coming Messiah (Psalm 22:1-31; Isaiah 53:1-12). Any claim that a later book replaces them contradicts God’s command to preserve and obey His Word (Deuteronomy 12:32).

from the new testament

• The New Testament makes clear that salvation and truth come through Jesus Christ, who fulfills God’s promises (John 14:6; Hebrews 1:1-2).
• Scripture repeatedly warns against adding to or taking away from God’s Word (Revelation 22:18-19).
• Jesus affirmed the enduring authority of Scripture (Matthew 5:17-18).
• The apostles emphasized that God’s revelation in Christ is sufficient for salvation and guidance (2 Peter 1:3-4; Acts 17:11; 2 Timothy 3:16). They warned that teachings contrary to God’s Word should be rejected (Galatians 1:8-9).

implications for today

Muslims teach that the Qur'an is their holy book and that anything in contradiction to the Qur'an must be wrong or corrupted, including the Bible. However, this does not mean the Qur'an teaches that it was provided to replace the Bible. In fact, the Qur'an often speaks very highly of the Bible and its messengers.

Sura 2:87 in the Qur'an speaks of the books written by Moses, stating, "We gave Moses the Book and followed him up with a succession of messengers." Additional revelation from Allah did not replace the Torah; the Torah was affirmed as being from Allah.

Sura 3:3 teaches, "It is He Who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the criterion (of judgment between right and wrong)." According to the Qur'an, Allah sent the Law and the Gospels. Therefore, even the Qur'an does not replace the Bible. For Muslims, the Qur'an is considered the final revelation of Allah through the angel Gabriel to Muhammad the prophet.

Muslims do not need to fear the Bible or deny its important role in history.

Muslims should ask themselves, "Can Allah's words be replaced?" The Qur'an teaches they cannot: "Rejected were the messengers before thee: with patience and constancy they bore their rejection and their wrongs, until Our aid did reach them: there is none that can alter the words (and decrees) of Allah. Already hast thou received some account of those messengers" (Sura 6:34). The Qur'an teaches that Allah revealed the Law and Gospels (Sura 3:3). In that case, Muslims should view the Qur'an as additional revelation rather than a replacement for the Bible.

This is very important, because it shows that Muslims should study the Bible, not reject it. The Gospel of John, in particular, was written to help make known the teachings of Jesus (Isa), named as one of the many prophets in the Qur'an. A Muslim can freely read these teachings and discuss them with others to help understand God's will for his or her life. Those who do may realize there the truth about who Jesus really is — the Son of God, not a mere prophet—-and how a person can have eternal life (John 3:16) and assurance of paradise (1 John 5:13).