The Qur’an’s own supreme test for itself is the following: “Do they not consider the Qur’an (with care)? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy.” (Qur’an 4:82) Interestingly one of the areas where it most spectacularly fails this test is when it comes of the eternal destiny of humanity. Here are some examples:
What will unbelievers eat in hell?
In a rather delicious irony, the menu of hell provides us with one of many opportunities to prove a contradiction in the Qur’an. Let’s look at what Allah has in store for unbelievers:
Quran 69:36 describes the Day of Judgment and states that those sent to hell on that day will get “No food (laysa lahum taʿāmun illā) except from the discharge of wounds” (i.e., pus).
Yet in Qur’an 88:6, we see residents of hell who will get “No food (laysa lahum taʿāmun illā) except Dhari’, a thorny poisonous plant.
The verses above clearly contradict each other. To complicate matters further, Qur’an 37:66 tells us that hell’s residents will eat from the “Tree of Zaqqum” thus introducing another menu item and yet another contradiction.
Will intercession be possible on the Day of Judgment?
Some unbelievers confronted with Muhammad’s stern message seemed to have thought that they could escape Allah’s judgment by getting someone to pray (intercede) for them on the Day of Judgment.
‘Don’t even think about it’, says Allah in the Qur’an. Intercession simply will not work: And guard (yourselves) against a day when no soul will in aught avail another, nor will compensation be accepted from it, nor will intercession be of use to it; nor will they be helped. (Qur’an 2:123) So Allah makes it perfectly clear: No intercession will get you out of the tight (hot) spot you are in. The Arabic (lā tanfaʿu l-shafāʿatu) literally means ‘not will benefit the intercession’.
But wait, what’s this? “On that day no intercession availeth save (that of) him unto whom the Beneficent hath given leave and whose word He accepteth.” (Qur’an 20:109) Here, Allah begins the same way “lā tanfaʿu l-shafāʿatu” (not will benefit the intercession). Then he leaves the possibility open that the intercession of someone to whom he gave permission will help, thus clearly contradicting Qur’an 2:132.
Can idolatry (shirk) be forgiven?
The most serious sin in Islam is shirk or the associating of ‘partners’ with Allah. The Qur’an makes clear that those who practice this sin cannot be forgiven. See for example:
Qur’an 4:48: “Allah forgiveth not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgiveth anything else, to whom He pleaseth; to set up partners with Allah is to devise a sin Most heinous indeed.”
Qur’an 4:116: “Allah forgiveth not (The sin of) joining other gods with Him; but He forgiveth whom He pleaseth other sins than this: one who joins other gods with Allah, Hath strayed far, far away (from the right).”
These are very strong statements indicating that those who engage in shirk simply cannot be forgiven by Allah. Except that there are other texts saying exactly the opposite:
The fourth chapter of the Qur’an describes the behavior of the Israelites in the desert who worshipped the Golden Calf. It is hard to imagine a more clear-cut case of shirk. The Israelites were committing the unforgivable sin. Allah’s verdict: “…even so I forgave them.” (Qur’an 4:153) This directly contradicts the verses above.
Qur’an 39:53 contains a further contradiction. It reads, “Say: O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls. Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” Note that shirk is not excluded from ‘all sins’, so the message of this passage is exactly the opposite of the verses above, namely that shirk can indeed be forgiven.
Is Heaven for all theists or only for Muslims?
Qur’an 2:62 seems to leave open the possibility that those who believe in God (without subscribing to Islam) will be rewarded by Allah: “Verily. Those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians, and Sabians, whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day and do righteous good deeds shall have their reward with their Lord, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.” This is, however, flatly contradicted by Qur’an 3:85 “If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to Allah), never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter He will be in the ranks of those who have lost (All spiritual good).”
If I go to hell who is to blame: Allah or me?
Allah tells humanity that some of us have been created for hell. Not only does this turn the supposedly merciful Allah into a monster, but it also provides the context for yet another contradiction. Here is the relevant verse: “And We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind. They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Those are like livestock; rather, they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless.” (Qur’an 7:179)
The Qur’an also goes on to say that no one can believe without the permission of Allah: “And if thy Lord willed, all who are in the earth would have believed together. Wouldst thou (Muhammad) compel men until they are believers? It is not for any soul to believe save by the permission of Allah. He hath set uncleanness upon those who have no sense.” (Qur’an 100:99-100) Yet we see that many people die without believing in Islam. Presumably, this means that permission to believe was withheld by Allah. The following conclusion is inescapable if the Qur’an is to be believed: Allah keeps some people from believing in him. This is further confirmed by Qur’an 6:25 where Allah speaks about placing veils over the hearts of the unbelievers, so they cannot believe and Qur’an 16:93 where Allah proudly boasts about leading certain people astray.
Despite all this, Allah tells those who are sent to hell that they have only themselves to blame: “It is they who have lost their own souls, that will not believe.” (Qur’an 6:12) This is a massive and troubling contradiction. It is like me clamping your car at a parking meter, so you cannot move it and then I fine you for going over the time limit. Only Allah’s condemnation of those whom he himself prevented from believing is supposed to be on an eternal scale.
The contradictions of the Qur’an in the areas of judgment and punishment are numerous, and those presented above are just a representative sample. All of this in a book that claims to contain not even a single contradiction!
For a much fuller discussion of Islam’s truth-claims, please see my book ‘Questioning Islam - Tough Question and Honest Answers About the Muslim Religion’
Kind regards,
Peter
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