It is clearly evident in the Quran that Mohammed understood himself as being the warner to the people of Arabia - a people who did not have a prophet of their own to relate to them the universal message about the unity of God and His claims as it had been revealed to other nations previously. Now God had sent him to speak to them in their own tongue:

"By the book that makes things clear, - We have made it a Quran in Arabic, that ye may be able to understand."
(Sura 43:3).

"Before this was the Book of Moses as a guide and a mercy; And this book confirms (it) in the Arabic tongue."
(Sura 46:12).

"Thus have We sent by inspiration to thee an Arabic Quran: That thou mayest warn the mother of cities (i.e. Mecca) and all around her." (Sura 42:7).

"Verily this is a Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds: With it came down the Spirit of Faith and Truth to thy heart and mind that thou mayest admonish (warn) in the perspicuous Arabic tongue. Without doubt it is (announced) in the mystic Books of former peoples." (Sura 26:192-196).

"An Arabic Quran have We sent down that you may understand it." (Sura 12:2).

Read also: Suras 16:103; 41:3-4, 43-44; 39:28; 20:113.

Universality for Islam and the Quran, as claimed by Muslims today, is contradicted by the Quran wherein Mohammed is seen as a warner to the Arabic speaking people, particularly Mecca. The term "Arabic Quran" obviously presupposes at least one other Quran (=reading or recitation) and not doubt refers to the Hebrew "Quran" and, if you wish, the Greek "Quran" (being the Old and New Testaments). These "Qurans" are not invalidated by an Arabic Quran, but rather confirmed. There is only one problem: an Arabic Quran was not announced in the "mystic Books of former peoples". To say the least, there is no such book available today, neither was it known at the time of Mohammed.

Another very interesting aspect is that in the pages of both the Quran and the Bible Jesus enjoys a uniqueness that elevates Him above all other prophets. We very much recommend the booklet "The Uniqueness of Jesus in the Quran and the Bible" by John Gilchrist. (See Bibliography). In it the attributes of Jesus are investigated in depth, all of which are absent in all the other prophets:

1. He was born of a virgin (Suras 19:16-34, 21:91);

2. He was sinless (faultless) (Sura 19:19) in contrast to:
   

   Adam Suras 2:36, 7:22-23
   Abraham Sura 26:82
   Moses Sura 28:15-16
   Jonah Sura 37:142
   David Sura 38:24-25
   Mohammed Suras 40:55, 47:19, 48:1-2, 33:36-38;
   and all other men;
   

3. He ascended to heaven (Suras 4:158, 3:55):
   

4. He will return to this earth to judge mankind, (Sura 43:61); and, we may add:

5. That He came with signs to prove His identity (heal the blind and lepers; raise the dead). (Sura 5:113).

Indeed, Jesus over and above His uniqueness is universal, even according to the Quran:

"We made her (Mary) and her son (Jesus) a sign for all people." (Sura 21:91).

Surely that should give all people food for thought, particularly those who believe in the message of the Quran.

None of the above can be invalidated by the statement:

"Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Apostle of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets." (Sura 33:40).

Yusuf Ali's Commentary on this verse explains it as follows:

"When a document is sealed it is complete and there can be no further addition. The holy Prophet Mohammed closed the long line of Apostles."

This is in keeping with the Islamic concept that the Quran had to replace former scriptures, because of their incompleteness and corruption and that Mohammed, being the last of the prophets, is the greatest of them all.

This interpretation is, however, contradicted by other verses:

"Say ye: 'We believe in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, and that given to Moses, and Jesus, and that given to all prophets from their Lord:

WE MAKE NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ONE AND ANOTHER OF THEM." (Sura 2:136).

"Say: 'We believe in Allah, and in what has been revealed to us and what is revealed to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, and the Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between one and another among them ..." (Sura 3:84).

It is only later in his career that Mohammed extends his call and apostleship universally (Sura 34:28).

We consequently conclude: Islamic theology that juggles Jesus into second place, or creates an image of Jesus that does not coincide with the teaching of the Gospel, or even with that of the Quran, is the result of embarrassment over the obviously different position that Jesus had in relation to the other prophets, for Jesus was not a prophet within the normally accepted meaning of the word, but the only Salvation that God ever offered to mankind. This is decidedly expressed in His very name Jesus (=salvation).

The Bible claims universality for Jesus as the only liberator from sin, if sin is properly understood (John 14:6, Acts 4:12 and many other passages). The uniqueness of the life of Jesus and the evidences in support of the divine source of the Bible provide sufficient proof for this claim. Why should any man seek help elsewhere?

Christians Ask Muslims: Table of Contents
Answering Islam Home Page