88 THE CORÂN.

The Jewish and Christian Prophets and Scriptures are evidently meant.

 XIX—SURA XXXV., v. 31.

سورة فاطر

وَا لَّذِي أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ مِنَ الْكِتَابِ هُوَ الْحَقُّ مُصَدِّقًا لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ بِعِبَادِهِ لَخَبِيرٌ بَصِيرٌ

And that which We have revealed unto thee is the truth, attesting that which precedeth it.

"Attesting that which precedeth it;"—i.e., the Sacred Scriptures before revealed. Thus Jelalooddeen, تقدمه من الكتاب  and Baidhâwi, لما تقدمه من الكثب المساوية

To attest and confirm the preceding Scriptures, is here again mentioned as the descriptive feature of Mahomet's revelation. 

 XX—SURA XIX., v. 11.[12]

سورة مريم

يَا يَحْيَى خُذِ الْكِتَابَ بِقُوَّةٍ وَآتَيْنَاهُ الْحُكْمَ صَبِيًّا

Oh John! take the book with power; and We gave him wisdom while a child.

God (who is here the speaker) directs John the Baptist to take the Book, i.e. the Book of the Jewish Scriptures ("The Tourât,"—Jelalooddeen and Baidhâwi) with power;—an acknowledgment that the Jewish Scriptures existed in the time of John and Jesus, genuine and uncorrupted.

TESTIMONY TO THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 89
XXI.—SURA XIX., v. 28, 29 [29-30].

سورة مريم

فَأَشَارَتْ إِلَيْهِ قَالُوا كَيْفَ نُكَلِّمُ مَن كَانَ فِي الْمَهْدِ صَبِيًّا
قَالَ إِنِّي عَبْدُ اللَّهِ آتَانِيَ الْكِتَابَ وَجَعَلَنِي نَبِيًّا

And she (Mary) pointed to him (the infant Jesus:) they said, —How shall we speak with a child in the cradle? (The infant Jesus) said, —verily I am the servant of God; he hath given me the book (i.e. the Gospel), and made me a prophet.

There is not much in this passage, excepting the mention of the divine origin of the Gospel.

 XXII.—SURA XLII., v. 1 [-3].

سورة الشورى

حم عسق
كذلك يوحى إليك وإلى الذين من قبلك
الله العزيز الحكيم

Thus doth God, the glorious and the wise, communicate inspiration unto thee, as he did unto those that preceded thee.

As to the style and mode of inspiration, the Corân is here put in the same category with the Revelations to former prophets. The Jewish and Christian Scriptures, being revealed in the same way as the Corân, the Mussulman is bound to render to them a similar reverence.

 XXIII.—SURA XLII., v. 12 [13].

سورة الشورى

شَرَعَ لَكُم مِّنَ الدِّينِ مَا وَصَّى بِهِ نُوحًا وَالَّذِي أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ وَمَا وَصَّيْنَا بِهِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَمُوسَى وَعِيسَى أَنْ أَقِيمُوا الدِّينَ وَلَا تَتَفَرَّقُوا فِيهِ كَبُرَ عَلَى الْمُشْرِكِينَ مَا تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَيْهِ اللَّهُ يَجْتَبِي إِلَيْهِ مَن يَشَاء وَيَهْدِي إِلَيْهِ مَن يُنِيبُ