• Evidence From Torah, The Gospel And Its Evidence

• The Qur’an’s Confirming The Previous Scriptures

• Now The Qur’an To Be Followed

Al-Ma’idah Verses 44 – 50

إِنَّا أَنْزَلْنَا التَّوْرَاةَ فِيهَا هُدًى وَنُورٌ يَحْكُمُ بِهَا النَّبِيُّونَ الَّذِينَ أَسْلَمُوا لِلَّذِينَ هَادُوا وَالرَّبَّانِيُّونَ وَالْأَحْبَارُ بِمَا اسْتُحْفِظُوا مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ وَكَانُوا عَلَيْهِ شُهَدَاءَ فَلَا تَخْشَوُا النَّاسَ وَاخْشَوْنِ وَلَا تَشْتَرُوا بِآيَاتِي ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًا وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ

“Verily We sent down the Torah therein was guidance and light; with1it judged (Our) apostles who submitted themselves (to Us) for those who had Judaized, and (so used to do) the divines (the Priests of the Jews - the Rabbis), and the Scholars2(of divinity of the Jews) In accordance with what they were entrusted with the Book of God and they were witnesses thereof; therefore fear3not the people, and fear Me, and barter not away My Signs for a small price; and whoever judgeth not by what God hath sent down, those are they that are the infidels.” (5:44)

وَكَتَبْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ فِيهَا أَنَّ النَّفْسَ بِالنَّفْسِ وَالْعَيْنَ بِالْعَيْنِ وَالْأَنْفَ بِالْأَنْفِ وَالْأُذُنَ بِالْأُذُنِ وَالسِّنَّ بِالسِّنِّ وَالْجُرُوحَ قِصَاصٌ فَمَنْ تَصَدَّقَ بِهِ فَهُوَ كَفَّارَةٌ لَهُ وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ

“And We prescribed for them4(therein) that life is for life, and eye for eye, and nose for nose, and ear for ear, and tooth for tooth, and for wounds (there shall be a) reprisal; but he who remitteth it (in charity), it shall be an expiation (of his sins) for him; and whoso judgeth not by what God hath sent down, these, then are the unjust.” (5:45)

وَقَفَّيْنَا عَلَىٰ آثَارِهِمْ بِعِيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ مُصَدِّقًا لِمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ التَّوْرَاةِ وَآتَيْنَاهُ الْإِنْجِيلَ فِيهِ هُدًى وَنُورٌ وَمُصَدِّقًا لِمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ التَّوْرَاةِ وَهُدًى وَمَوْعِظَةً لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

“And We caused to follow in their footsteps, Jesus son of Mary, confirming the law (The Torah) which was before him, and We gave him5the Evangel in which was guidance and light and confirmation of what was before it of the Torah, and a guidance and an admonition for those who guard (against evil).” (5:46)

وَلْيَحْكُمْ أَهْلُ الْإِنْجِيلِ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فِيهِ وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ

“And let the people of the Evangel6judge according to what God hath sent down in it; and whoever judgeth not by what God hath sent down; these then are the transgressors7.” (5:47)

وَأَنْزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ بِالْحَقِّ مُصَدِّقًا لِمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ الْكِتَابِ وَمُهَيْمِنًا عَلَيْهِ فَاحْكُمْ بَيْنَهُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَاءَهُمْ عَمَّا جَاءَكَ مِنَ الْحَقِّ لِكُلٍّ جَعَلْنَا مِنْكُمْ شِرْعَةً وَمِنْهَاجًا وَلَوْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ لَجَعَلَكُمْ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً وَلَٰكِنْ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِي مَا آتَاكُمْ فَاسْتَبِقُوا الْخَيْرَاتِ إِلَى اللَّهِ مَرْجِعُكُمْ جَمِيعًا فَيُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ فِيهِ تَخْتَلِفُونَ

“And We have sent down unto thee (O’ Our Apostle Muhammad!) the Book (the Holy Qur’an) with truth, confirming what is8before it of the Book and a guardian9over it, therefore judge between them by what God hath sent down, and follow not their (vain) desires, diverging from what hath come unto thee, of the Truth; For every one of you We appointed a law and a (clear) way; And if God had desired, He would have made you (all) a single community but that He might try you in what He hath given (to each of) you Therefore compete ye excelling one another in goodness; Unto God is the return of you all, and then He shall declare unto you that wherein ye differed10.” (5:48)

وَأَنِ احْكُمْ بَيْنَهُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَاءَهُمْ وَاحْذَرْهُمْ أَنْ يَفْتِنُوكَ عَنْ بَعْضِ مَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ فَإِنْ تَوَلَّوْا فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّمَا يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ أَنْ يُصِيبَهُمْ بِبَعْضِ ذُنُوبِهِمْ وَإِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِنَ النَّاسِ لَفَاسِقُونَ

“And (God commandeth) that thou11shouldst judge between them by what God hath sent down, and follow not their vain desires, and be cautious of them, lest they beguile thee from (any) part of what God hath sent unto thee; and if they turn back, then know thou that God desireth to afflict them for some of their sins; and verily, many of the people are transgressors.” (5:49)

أَفَحُكْمَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ يَبْغُونَ وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ مِنَ اللَّهِ حُكْمًا لِقَوْمٍ يُوقِنُونَ

“Is it (then that) the Judgment of (the times of pagan) ignorance they desire? And who (else) can be better than God to judge for a people of assured faith.” (5:50)

Commentary

Verse 44

‘Noor’, i.e., the light mentioned in this Verse means the quality of the guidance which expels the darkness of misguidance or falsehood.

‘Aslamu’ (those who submit to God’s will) i.e., it refers to the apostles raised in the Israelites, who were always attached to truth and the law given in Torah in compliance with God’s commands.

‘Rabbaniyoon’ the Jewish scholars of the religious knowledge - called the ‘Rabbis’, i.e., their learned men.

‘Ahbar’ the Doctor of the Jewish law or the pious men of the Jews.

However corrupt the Jewish scripture might have been, the Israelite apostles always delivered their judgments according to the original law of Moses which they knew. So also did, the priests according to what they had preserved in their memory. This never means that the Mosaic Law was not corrupt, but it says that the priests, the doctors of the law and the pious or the godly ones, remembered the essential things in the book. There is nothing in this Verse to testify the integrity of the scriptures in the hands of the people.

The Verse only says to establish that the doctors of the Jewish literature know that there was a mass of corrupted and unreliable stuff in the name of their scriptures out of which they selected by their veracity and critical knowledge of the Book that which was genuine of the Mosaic Law and used it disposing of the cases that were referred to them. If the books in everybody’s hands were genuine and complete, where was the necessity for the great doctors to secure certain points of it in their memory and be witness thereof? To testify the genuineness of it when it is quoted to them, it implies that though the doctors might remember the other parts and might not, but they were charged to remember certain parts which were basic and important.

‘Istahfizu’ (from ‘hifz’ i.e., to secure, to keep safe, or to memorize).

There is one important factor which deserves special notice by every sincere student of the Qur’anic knowledge that only the Jewish Doctors were charged to secure in their memory something important from their scripture, the Torah, whereas about guarding of the Holy Qur’an as the Book as a whole, it is not that the learned ones among the Muslims that were required to secure the whole of it, in their memory but a challenging protection of the whole of the Book, has been divinely undertaken.

If the responsibility had rested with men, they probably would certainly have failed to discharge it fully as did the Israelites. Last, and the Final Word of God, every word ‘of which was essential for the human race as a whole and which had to stay for all times and in all parts of the world, has been given the security by God Himself.

إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ

“We have sent down the Reminder (the Holy Qur’an) and verily We will for it be the Guardians.” (15:9)

The following parting announcement of the Holy Prophet declares as to the quarters wherein God willed His Final Word to mankind, deposited ‘for safe custody until the end of the world:

“Verily, I leave behind me Two very important things, the Book of God and my issues, my Ahl Al-Bayt, if ye be attached to these two, never, never mill ye get astray. Verily, These Two will never be separated from each other until they meet me at the cistern ‘Kauthar.”

Thus, the Holy Qur’an in its original, has been for ever secured with God’s own purified and the chosen ones, the Ahl Al-Bayt. This declaration of the Holy Prophet announces a very important fact that in every age until the Day of Judgment, there will certainly be someone from the seed of the Holy Prophet, possessing the Holy Qur’an in its original order and with its true interpretation. Such a divinely trusted authority can be none but one of the Holy Imams who are identified with the Holy Prophet in all his personal excellence, as his own Ahl Al-Bayt - the members of the Holy House purified by God Himself.

The concluding words of the Verse pronounce a very great verdict. It says: ‘Waman lam yahkum’ - i.e., whosoever did not judge by what God has revealed, is a disbeliever. This verdict is applicable to the people of the other scriptures viz. the Jews and the Christians, mainly the Jews as the Verse speaks of them, as well as the Muslims with reference to their acting according to the Holy Qur’an. The question arises, what could be said about those among the Muslims who neglect the clear declarations of the Holy Qur’an about the implicit and the unconditional obedience to the verdict of the Holy Prophet, to abide by it in every disputed matter:

فَلَا وَرَبِّكَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ حَتَّىٰ يُحَكِّمُوكَ فِيمَا شَجَرَ بَيْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ لَا يَجِدُوا فِي أَنْفُسِهِمْ حَرَجًا مِمَّا قَضَيْتَ وَيُسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا

“But no! By your Lord! They believe not (in reality) until they make thee a judge in that which hath become a matter of dispute among them, and then find not any straitness in their hearts as to what thou hath decided and submit with entire submission!” (4:65)

Did the Muslims ever think of consulting any of the directions issued by the Holy Prophet about the question of succession to him, when they quarrelled about the matter among themselves? Did they ever remember what the Holy Prophet had declared about the personality of Ali as one with him in flesh, blood and spirit, and of the same divine light, superior to everyone as the Gate of the City of knowledge, matchless in courage, valiant and brave to be called the ‘Lion of God,’ the Best Judge, and in relationship to the Holy Prophet as Aaron was to Moses, and as the Maula or the Guardian of the Muslims as the Holy Prophet himself was?

What is the position of those who have done this?

This passage asserts that the Torah was not entrusted to the general public to (impart permit in accordance to their discretion but to the Prophets who had submitted entirely to the will of God. The divines and the pious scholars who used to guard its theory and its practice as the witnesses bearing testimony to the truth. The same is the case with the Qur’an which was not left to the public to impart its knowledge in accordance to their discretion as desired by a group of the companions who said: ‘Hasbona Kitabullah’, i.e., sufficient for us is the book of God, the view still held by some of his adherents but the Holy Prophet joined with Qur’an his Ahl Al-Bayt as the inseparable guardians of its originality, its meanings and its practice and the exponents of its contents.

The Christians and the Jews take passages like this as the testimony of the genuineness of the Old and New Testaments against the general view of the Muslim scholars about the corruption and the distortion of their present scriptures. the criticism against the corruption or the distortion does not discard the possibility of the existence of the genuine version of these scriptures with some one of their creeds but the very existence of the several variant versions of these scriptures itself suggests the corruption and the distortion which can be compared and proved with the actual differing factors by none but the awaited Masoom of the Ahl Al-Bayt.

The existence of the scripture with the Christians and the Jews of the different sects is the best testimony in support of this view held by the Muslims for all the versions cm never be true. But this does not discard the existence of the genuine version with someone somewhere. But to verify the genuine from the corrupted one is required some infallible authority, i.e., the Holy Prophet or his declared infallible successors. Some may say what about the Holy Qur’an, but the fact is that there is no second version of the Holy Book to cause any doubt between the variant versions about the genuineness of either of them. Secondly, besides Qur’an being the Book of guidance, it was revealed as a challenging miracle with testimony to the truth of Islam being for mankind as a whole and for all times, in all places in the world.

Therefore, it is preserved from all corruption and kept within the reach of every one of the mankind as a whole to whom the challenge applies, to remain current till the end of the world. The preservation of the Qur’an in its genuine form within the reach of mankind means the preservation of all the scriptures in their genuine forms through the Qur’an to which the Verse refers. (A.P.)

Verse 45

Ignorant of the scriptures which was in their own hands, the Christians in particular criticise the law of retribution laid down in this Verse. A few Verses of Exodus and Leviticus are quoted below to show whether such a law was not made current by God through their own scriptures:

1. Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them.

2. If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing.

3. If he came in by himself he shall go out by himself if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him.

4. If his master have given him a wife, and she have borne him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master’s and he shall go out by himself.

5. And if the servant shall plainly say, 1 love my master, my wife, and my children; I mill not go out free:

6. Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.

7. And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, She shall not go out as the men servants do.

8. If she please not her master, who hath bethrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed; to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.

9. And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.

10. If he take him another wife; her food, her raiment, and her duly of marriage, shall he not diminish.

11. And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money.

12. He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.

13. And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into hand then I will appoint thee a place with her, he shall flee.

14. But if man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him mills guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die.

15. And he that smiteth his father, or his mother shall he surely put to death.

16. And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.

17. And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.

18. And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:

19. If he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.

20. And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished.

21. Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.

22. If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determined.

23. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life.

24. Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

25. Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

26. And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye’s sake.

27. And if he smite out his man-servant’s tooth, or his maid-servant’s tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth’s sake.

28. If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit.

29. But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner shall be put to death.

30. If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.

31. Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.

32. If the ox shall push a man-servant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

33. And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein.

34. The owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall he his.

35. And if one man’s ox hurt another’s, that he die; then they shall kill the live ox, and. divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide.

36. Or if it be known that the ox hath used to push in lime past, and his owner hath not kept him in; he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.

Exodus 21/1-36.

1. If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.

2. If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.

3. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution: if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.

4. If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep, he shall restore double.

5. If a man shall cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man’s field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his vineyard, shall he make restitution.

6. If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.

7. If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double.

8. If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods.

9. For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.

10. If a man deliver unto his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it:

11. Then shall an oath of the LORD be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods; and the owner of it shall not make it good.

12. And if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof.

13. If it be torn in pieces, then let him bring it for witness, and he shall not make good that which was torn.

14. And if a man borrow aught of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof being not with it, he shall surely make it good.

15. But if the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good; if it be an hired thing, it came for his hire.

16. And if a man entice a maid that is not bethrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely endow her to be his wife.

17. If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.

18. Thou shall not suffer a witch to live.

19. Whosoever Heth with a beast shall surely be put to death.

20. He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed.

21. Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppose him; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

22. Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.

23. If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all to me, I will surely hear their cry ;

24. And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

Exodus 22/1-24.

13. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

14. Bring for him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him.

15. And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin.

16. And he that blasphemeth the name of the LORD, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be put to death.

17. And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death.

18. And he that killeth beast shall make it good, beast for beast.

19. And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him.

20. Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again.

21. And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death.

22. Ye shall have one manner of lam, as well for the stranger, as for one of your own country: for I am the LORD your God.

23. And Moses spake to the children of Israel, that they should bring for him that had cursed out of the camp, and stone him with stones. And the children of Israel did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Leviticus 24/13-223.

Jesus says: -

“Think not that I have come to destroy the Law (the Mosaic Law, the Torah) or the prophets. I am not come to destroy but to fulfil.” Math 5/17.

To be faithful in following Jesus, the Christians ought to have followed the Laws given above and it is a matter for the readers to see how the Islamic Law is in the fulfilment of the laws in the ancient scriptures, with further improvement perfecting them.

The Christians proudly refer to the unnatural submission to aggression suggested by the book of their church, which is practicable for none in the world even to the Christians themselves. How many of the Christians turn their other cheek when one of their’s is smitten, and how many of the Christians give away their shirts when their cloak is taken away from them? Where was Bible when Rome, the city of Vatican, where lives the Pope himself, committed unprovoked aggression against Abyssinians, another Christian people, ill-armed and unprotected, adherents of the same Church, and killed the poor souls and destroyed their country? The Christian powers of the world, fighting each other and warring against the other weaker nations of the world, are they not Christian? Under the doctrine of the unnatural and impracticable submission, can any Christian resist theft or murder or can any Christian power have the right to have any police or military force to maintain law and order to protect itself against aggression?

Islam being a practical religion, every law it presents is natural and practical.

Verse 46

Verification, i.e., testifying to the validity of, or corroborating with the basic doctrines of the faith as the Unity of God, justice in practical life, truthfulness of all the apostles of God and the prophecies about the advent of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, Last of the Apostles from God or the Final Warner.

The concluding words of the Verse verify the fact that every heavenly scripture was a guidance only to the pious - as has been said of the Holy Qur’an 2:2.

The conformation is about the original Torah revealed to Moses and not the version of it which is in the hands of the Jews. The same is true of the conformation of the other previous scriptures by Qur’an as in Verse 5:47. (A.P.)

Verse 47

The concluding words reiterate the essential condition for a true believer that he must judge every matter according to the revealed Word of God12.

In the three successive Verses 5:44, 5:45, 5:47, the Qur’an has termed those who do not act in accordance to what God has revealed, as ‘Kafir’ - infidel in Verse 5:44 as ‘Dhalim’ - unjust in Verse 5:45 and as ‘Fasiq’ - transgressor in Verse 5:47.

The variety in terms refers to the various evil aspects of not following the divine order in ruling and judging which amounts to the denial of God’s sovereignty. Some commentators are inclined to resort to the application of these terms to the people of the Book, other than the Muslims but there is no justification for such a restriction as the terms are applicable to any authority - Muslims or non-Muslims - which does not submit to the Absolute sovereignty. (A.P.)

Verse 48

‘Le kullin Ja’alna minkum’ prescribing of a law and a way, i.e., religion or a practical walk of life for everyone, refers to the law and the method of a disciplined life given to different nations, in different parts of the world, in different times to suit their respective needs before the revelation of the universal and the final code, the Holy Qur’an, which fulfils the needs of all people in all ages, in every part of the world. This speaks of the universality of Islam recognizing the apostles of God raised among the various peoples, in different times and places13.

Of all the creation of God, man alone has been gifted with discretionary powers of choosing the best way for him. Man has been given this exclusive distinction to give him the chance of developing the wonderful faculties endowed in him. If man, like any other creature has been subject to any fixed instincts, he could never have been able to manifest the unique qualities which have been endowed in him. In this lies the test of a human soul, whether he resorts to rise high or chooses to go down.

From Verse 5:42 to 5:48 the Muslim jurists infer:

(1) The recognition of Qur’an, the validity of the Old and New Testaments for their respective adherence in the matter of jurisprudence.

(2) If the people of the Book refer their disputes to the Muslim authority for settlement the authority has the option to judge in accordance with the requirements of their Laws or the Islamic Law or refrain from judgment referring them to their own jurists. (A.P.)

Verse 49 & 50

This passage was quoted by the Holy Lady Fatimah in her speech arguing against the ruling authority which deprived her of her legitimate rights of her inheritance from her father the Holy Prophet from one side and rejecting her evidence in support of her other claim to what the Holy Prophet had gifted to her, and against the wrong course which the ruling authority had adopted against her in discarding the legal requirements of her being in the position of the disputed property.

The ruling party had treated her as a plaintiff while she was actually the defendant and it was on the party to produce evidence and she was asked to produce it and when she did it, it was rejected without giving any valid reason for it. (A.P.)

• 1. In accordance.
• 2. The god-fearing pious scholars, the divines of the Jews.
• 3. Warning against deviating from the judging - not in accordance with the divine revelation owing to fear or greed.
• 4. The Jews.
• 5. To Jews.
• 6. The Christians.
• 7. Refer to Verses 10:47; 35:24; 2:213; 13:7.
• 8. The truth in the scriptures revealed prior to the Qur’an.
• 9. Refer to Verse 5:44, This term has been used exclusively for Qur’an and not for any other Scripture - this is the distinctive aspect of the Qur’an.
• 10. Refer to Verse 2:148.
• 11. The Prophet addressed for the people.
• 12. See note on Verse 5:44.
• 13. Refer to Verse 10:47; 13:7, 35:24.