Home > Arguments for the Qur'an's excellence
"The Qur'an has earlier manuscripts than the Bible, preserved closer to its revelation. The Qur'an was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) starting in 610 CE, and manuscripts like the Birmingham folios date to within his lifetime or shortly after, around 632 CE—written and memorized as it came. Allah says, ‘Indeed, it is We who sent down the Reminder, and indeed, We will be its guardian' (Surah Al-Hijr, 15:9). Its text matches perfectly today.
Jesus (peace be upon him) received the Injeel—‘We gave him the Injeel, in which was guidance and light' (Surah Al-Ma'idah, 5:46)—around 30 CE, but the earliest Bible fragments, like P52, are from 125 CE or later, decades after him, and incomplete. The Qur'an says, ‘The Messiah, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger' (Surah Al-Ma'idah, 5:75). The Qur'an's early, intact records outshine the Bible's later scraps, proving Allah's word stayed true to what Jesus preached: worship Him alone."
The assertion that the Quran's manuscript evidence is superior because some fragments date slightly closer to its initial revelation is a perfect example of missing the forest for the saplings.
1. The True Measure: Proximity to the Events
The genuine strength of the Bible lies not in the date of the paper, but in the proximity of its composition to the eyewitness events it records.
2. Volume of Evidence Over Single Fragments
The opponent focuses on a few early Quranic fragments, conveniently ignoring the unprecedented wealth of Biblical evidence, which is the actual measure of textual reliability.
Christians dismiss this shallow comparison and vain bragging. The Bible's text is the most reliable historical document from antiquity because its truth is secured by the massive volume of evidence and its proximity to the historical Christ—the Living Word (John 1:1, 14)—not by a few early fragments.