Home > Surah 21 - The Prophets
This is a Meccan surah that addresses the skeptics of Mecca who questioned how a common man like Muhammad could be a divine messenger by inviting an inquiry into the Bible.
Surah 21:7:
And We sent not before thee other than men whom We inspired—Ask the followers of the Remembrance if ye know not!
The Quran commands skeptics to "Ask the followers of the Remembrance" for the truth about prophetic history.
It is logically impossible for God to command people to seek truth from a "corrupted" or "unreliable" source. If the Bible had been corrupted by the 7th century, asking the Christians would lead the skeptics into deception—making Allah the author of that deception. By commanding this inquiry, the Quran certifies that the People of the Book possess a functional, accurate, and reliable record.
The Quran calls the previous scriptures "The Remembrance" (Al-Dhikr).
In Surah 15:9, the Quran states:
"Lo! We, even We, reveal the Reminder (Dhikr), and lo! We verily are its Guardian."
If the Bible is called Dhikr in 21:7, it falls under the divine protection promised in 15:9. If a Muslim claims the Bible was corrupted, they are claiming Allah failed to "guard" the Dhikr, which would mean the Quran's promise of protection is empty.
The verse sets up a hierarchy where "Knowledge" resides with the Christians and Jews.
If you "ask" the Ahl al-Dhikr about the nature of God's promise, they will point to the Trinity, the Atonement, and the Cross. Since the Quran tells the skeptic "Ask them if you don't know," it is essentially sending the skeptic to a source that proves the Quran's own theological innovations are incorrect.
Surah 21:7 commands Muslims to 'Ask the People of the Remembrance' (the Christians) if you have questions about the truth of God’s messengers.
If the Bible was already corrupted at that time, why would your Book tell people to go to a corrupted source for the truth?
If you follow the command of your Quran and ask Christians, they will tell you that the 'Remembrance' teaches Jesus is the Son of God who died for our sins.
If you believe the Quran, you must trust the witness it points you to (the Christians). But if you trust our witness, you must reject the Quran because our Book contradicts it.
By telling you to ask Christians, the Quran has validated our Book. You cannot claim our Book is corrupted without calling the author of Surah 21:7 a liar."