The Qur’an and Bible possess many similarities as the holy scriptures of Islam and Christianity, respectively. They consist of narratives, teachings, poetry, and rebuking. Many narratives contain the same basic events and figures. They both teach the creation of the world by a single almighty, omniscient God who commands humans to follow the morality set out for them.

Muslims believe God dictated every word of the Qur’an and that God has protected the Qur’an from any possible human mistakes. The Qur’an, therefore, is perfect in every way as God is perfect. Most Muslims believe the Qur’an is applicable to every person regardless of context. Christians believe the Bible is completely true, but in a different way. The Bible is the record of God’s revelation to the Jews and through Jesus. It is written by humans together with God through a process called Divine Inspiration.

The stories in the Qur’an often contain few details and tend to concentrate more on the moral or spiritual significance of the story. Some Muslims may turn to the Bible to give a fuller picture of the person concerned. However there are guidelines set out in the way Muslims are to understand the Bible, the primary one being that the Qur’an is always more authoritative than the Bible. Therefore, anything in the Bible that agrees with the Qur`an is accepted, and anything in the Bible that disagrees with the Qur`an is rejected. Some things in the Bible are not talked about at all in the Qur`an or in the sunnah; in regards to such passages, Muslims are instructed to neither believe nor disbelieve in them, but they are allowed to read them and pass them on if they wish to do so.

It may be argued that similarities between the two texts are only superficial in nature. Interpretations of scripture brings with it the underlying message of the text, and it is there that the interpreter will find systemic differences.

Common figures

The Qur’an and Bible have over 50 people in common, typically in the same narratives. The Qur’an identifies the prophets Job, Enoch, Imram, and Ishmael, but they are never given a story. In the Bible, all these men are identified as righteous people but not prophets — except Ishmael who is not written of favorably.

Mixed Similarities

In several cases, the Qur’an and the Bible have common events but occur in different narrations.

Saul and Gideon

In the Bible, both Gideon and Saul are military leaders of Israel between the Exodus and Exile. In the Book of Judges in the Bible, Gideon is hesitant about leading the Hebrews to battle. To demonstrate God’s power, God tells Gideon to observe when the troops reach a river and whoever drinks without his hands Gideon must send home. The Hebrews later have victory.

In the Qur’an, the same event happens to Saul on the way to meet Goliath. In the Biblical account of Saul and Goliath, Saul is also hesitant about the battle with Goliath’s army.

Haman, Pharaoh, and Xerxes

In the Bible, Haman is an adviser and builder under King Xerxes who desires to persecute the Jews. In the Qur’an, Haman is an adviser and builder under Firaun.

The structure which Firawn commands Haman to build is similar to the Tower of Babel in Genesis, unrelated to the narrative of Haman in the Bible. Both structures are made from burnt bricks for the purpose of ascending to the heavens.

Idol Calf and Samaritan

In the Bible, in Moses’ absence certain people who went out of Egypt with the Hebrews worship a golden calf saying “This is your God, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” Hundreds of years later, Samaria was founded and became the capital of the the Northern Kingdom of Israel. King Jeroboam, its first king, also made two golden calves and said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” Later, around 700 BCE, another people group occupies Samaria called the Samaritans.

The Qur’an tells the story of a calf while Moses is gone. A man called “the Samari” (Yusuf Ali) or “the Samaritan” (Arberry) is blamed for protagonizing their idolatry.

A verse in Hosea 8:5-6 contains the same content as Surah 20.97 where Hosea refers to the Jeroboam calf and the Qur’an refers to the earlier calf. Both feature a prophet speaking to the Samaritan/Samaria promising to destroy the calf.

“ Throw out your calf-idol, O Samaria! My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of purity? They are from Israel! This calf – a craftsman has made it; it is not God. It will be broken in pieces, that calf of Samaria. ”

“ (Moses) said: “Get thee gone! but thy (punishment) in this life will be that thou wilt say, ‘touch me not’; . . . Now look at thy god, of whom thou hast become a devoted worshipper: We will certainly (melt) it in a blazing fire and scatter it broadcast in the sea!”(Yusuf Ali 20:97) ”

In the Qur’an, Moses’ punishment that the Samari cannot be touched is the same as the modern Samaritan’s punishment where no Jew was allowed to touch them because of their idolatry. In his commentary, Yusuf Ali claims that the Samari is not a Samaritan.

Miriam and Mary

In Arabic, both the names Mary and Miriam are called Maryam. While speaking about Miriam, the mother of Jesus, the Qur’an calls her the sister of Aaron and the daughter of Imran (father of Mary).

“ “O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!” (Yusuf Ali 19:28) ”

“ And Mary the daughter of ‘Imran . . . (66:12) ”

In Exodus in the Bible, Miriam is a prophetess who is the sister of Aaron and Moses and the daughter of Imram but lived a thousands years before Mary mother of Jesus. Most Muslims believe she is called a spiritual sister, not a literal sister. Some say that Mary’s father’s name was also Imram. A hadith tells a narrative when some Christians asked a Muslim about this:

“ “When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read “Sister of Harun”, (i.e. Mary), in the Qur’an, whereas Moses was born well before Jesus. When I came back to Allah’s Messenger I asked him about that, and he said: “The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostle and pious persons who had gone before them.”

In the Bible, Miriam and Mary are two different women. Miriam was sister of Moses and Aaron, while Mary (the mother of Jesus) was the daughter of Eli/Heli (Luke 3:23).

Hannah and Hannah

Further information: Hannah (Bible) and Saint Anne

In the Books of Samuel, Hannah is grateful that God gave her a son, Samuel. She dedicated him to God by letting him live with Eli the prophet and priest.

In the Qur’an, Mary’s mother is grateful to God for Mary and dedicates her to God. Mary then lives in the household of Zechariah the prophet.

In the Bible, Zechariah is also a priest. Mary’s mother has no name in the Qur’an, but in Islamic tradition, it is Hannah. In Christian tradition, Mary’s mother’s name is Anne, Greek for Hannah.

Similar narratives

The Creation and Sin of Humanity

See Genesis 2:4-4:1 and Al-Baqara 2.30-39, Al-A’raf 19-27, and Ta-Ha 115-123.

God creates the first human, a man, from the dirt and the life force proceeding from God’s mouth. God tells the man to eat any food of the garden they wish, except a single tree. God creates a woman out of the man. There is no mention of a wedding, but the two are considered married. God puts them to live in a garden of paradise. Another force tempts them to eat fruit from the tree, telling them they will become like God if they eat. They both eat. From natural consequence, they became ashamed and covered their nakedness with leaves. God questions them, reminding them that God commanded them not to eat of the tree. They respond. God puts conflict between the woman and man and between humans and the tempter. God makes the man leave the garden and the two humans populate the earth.

There are also many differences between the stories:

The Biblical Garden of Eden is on earth while the Qur’anic garden is in heaven.

Allah creates Adam by saying “Be.” The Bible says God breathes into the man “the breath of life.”

In the Bible, God tells the man to name the animals. In the Qur’an, God teaches Adam the names “of all things” and Adam repeats them.

In the Qur’an the forbidden tree is a tree of eternity or immortality. In the Bible, it is the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. There is another tree, the Tree of Life, which was not forbidden.

In the Qur’an, the tempter is Satan. The tempter is a serpent in the Bible whom many Christians identify as Satan but many Jews do not.

In the Bible, God does not command Eve to leave the Garden. However, most Christians, like all Muslims, believe God did.

In the Qur’an, God clearly warns Adam and Eve against Satan. In the Bible there is no warning. God only tells the man not to eat the fruit, not the woman. The New Testament says that the woman was deceived concerning the tree but Adam was not.

The Qur’an places blame on both the man and woman. The New Testament only blames the man for introducing sin into the world.

Cain and Abel

See Genesis 4:1-16 and al-Ma’ida 27-32. There are no contradictions between the two texts, though each contains unique material.

Adam and Eve have two sons. Each made sacrifices to God and God accepted the sacrifice of one and not the other. The scriptures do not specify why God accepts only one. Because of the rejection of his sacrifices, one murdered the other. The murderer has an interaction with God and God condemns him to suffer. The murdered son is regarded as righteous.

Noah

See Genesis 6:5-9-19 and mainly Surah 11.25-48 as well as Surahs 7.59-64, 10.71-73, 23.23-28, 26.105-121, 54.9-16, and all of 71.

Noah was a righteous man who lived among a wicked people. God decided to kill all the wicked and save the righteous. God commanded Noah to build an Ark, using God’s own instructions. Noah does so and he, a few others, and two of each species of animal, a female and a male, board the Ark. Water gushes up from the ground and rain came and flooded the earth killing all the wicked. All aboard the Ark are safe until the waters retreat.

There is disagreement among Christians and Muslims concerning whether the flood was local or global. Some Christians say the story is to teach faith in God and there may or may not have been a flood at all. The scriptures are ambiguous. There is, debatably, no geological evidence for a recent, global flood. There are several differences between the texts themselves:

The Qur’an focuses entirely on the dialogue between Noah and the wicked but Genesis mentions no dialogue.

In the Qur’an, Noah has a son who rejects him along with his mother and dies in the flood while some people outside his family are faithful and join him. Genesis counts three sons, Noah’s wife and sons’ wives who all board the Ark but no others.

Abraham Promised a Son

See Genesis 18:1-15, 22:1-20 and 11 .69-74, 15.51-56, Surah 37 102-109, and 51.24-30. There are no contradictions between the texts, though each scripture contains some minor, unique details.

Several messengers come to Abraham on their way to destroy the people of Lot. Abraham welcomes them into his tent and provides them with rich food. They then promise their host that Isaac will soon be born to Abraham’s wife, Sarah. Sarah laughs at the idea because she is far too old to bear children. The angels rebuke her, telling her that by God’s will she can bear a son. A conversation ensues in which Abraham admits he wished God to have mercy on the people of Lot.

In another narrative, Abraham receives communication from God to sacrifice his son. Abraham agrees to this and begins the sacrifice. Before he can do so, God tells him to stop and gives him a replacement sacrifice. Abraham is honored for his faithfulness to God. There are several differences:

In Genesis, the sacrificial son is clearly Isaac, but the Qur’an is ambiguous. By tradition, Muslims believe the sacrificial son is Ishmael and that this event happens before Isaac’s birth.

God seems to speak directly to Abraham in Genesis but through a vision in the Qur’an.

In the Qur’an, Abraham tells his son that he will sacrifice him. In Genesis, Abraham avoids telling Isaac saying “God will provide the sacrifice.”

Lot and Sodom and Gomorrah

See Genesis 19:1-26 . The story is told in full in Surah 15.57-77 and repeated in Surahs 11.74-83, 7.80-84, 26.160-174, 27.54-58, 29.28-35, 37.133-138, 51.31-37, and 54.36-39.

After visiting Abraham, several angels go to the city in which Lot is a foreigner. They tell him God will soon destroy the city because of the wickedness of the people. The people see the angels and approach them for sex. Lot offers his daughters in their place but they are rescued first. The angels tell Lot and his family to flee by night and to not look back. God destroyed the people with a shower of stone from the sky. Lot’s wife is killed by God. There are several differences between the Qur’an and Bible:

In the Qur’an, Lot is a prophet. In Genesis (Genesis 19:1-29), Lot is seated at the city gate, the place where people sought advice from the elders. Lot acts righteously in inviting the two angels to spend the night with him, rather than spend it outside in the city square. In the New Testament, (2 Peter 2:7,8) Peter the Apostle, describes Lot as a righteous man who was daily tormented by the lawless deeds he saw in Sodom.

In Genesis, Lot’s wife leaves with Lot but turns around briefly and God turns her into a pillar of salt. In the Qur’an, she never leaves the city.

in Genesis, Abraham pleads for God to have mercy. He convinces God to spare Sodom if just ten righteous men can be found there, which cannot be found. In the Qur’an, God tells Abraham not to ask for mercy on them.

Joseph

The narratives of Joseph can be found in Genesis 37-50 and in the Qur’an 12.4-102.

Joseph has a vision of eleven stars and the sun and the moon all bowing to him which he shares with his family. His brothers become jealous that their father prefers Joseph over them. The brothers form a plot to kill Joseph, but one brother convinces them not to kill him but throw him down a well while they are alone. They do so. They lie to their father, covering Joseph’s clothing in blood and say that a wild animal attacked him. A caravan come near by the well, they find Joseph, and later they sell him to wealthy egyptian merchant.

Joseph grew up in the house of the Egyptian. When Joseph is a grown man, the wife of his master tries to seduce him. Joseph resists and runs away. The wife lies to her husband, saying that Joseph tried to rape her. At this point the two stories differ. Joseph’s master imprisons him.

In prison, Joseph meets two men. One has a dream of making wine and the other dreams of carrying a stack of breads that birds are eating. Joseph tells the first that he will serve the Pharaoh again and the second will be executed. Both things happen. Later, Pharaoh has a dream: seven fats cows are eaten by seven lean cows and seven fruitful ears of corn and seven withered ears. The man whom Pharaoh saved remembered Joseph and told Pharaoh. Pharaoh asks for Joseph’s help and Joseph tells him the meaning of his dream: Egypt will have seven years of good crops followed by seven years of famine and the famine will be worse than the abundance. Pharaoh rewarded Joseph by giving him charge over the store houses.

During the famine, Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt to buy food, but one brother was left with their father. Joseph recognized them but they did not recognize Joseph. He demanded that they return with the missing brother. The brothers return home and find that Joseph had hidden in their packs more than they paid for. They asked their father to return with the missing brother. Reluctantly, their father allows this.

They return and Joseph reveals himself to his brothers.

In the Bible, the missing brother is Benjamin, Joseph’s only full blood brother. The others are half-brothers.

Moses

In the Bible, the narratives of Moses are in Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The narratives here are mostly in Exodus 1-14 and 32. In the Qur’an, the Moses narratives are in the following passages: 2.49-61, 7.103-160, 10.75-93, 17.101-104, 20.9-97, 26.10-66, 27.7-14, 28.3-46, 40.23-30, 43.46-55, 44.17-31, and 79.15-25.

Pharaoh is slaying the young male children of the Israelites. Moses’ mother casts Moses as an infant into a small ark and God protects him. Moses is found by the household of Pharaoh and they adopt him. Moses’ sister, Miriam, had follows Moses. She recommends that his mother nurse him. When Moses is an adult, he sees and Egyptian fighting with an Israelite. Moses intercedes and kills the Egyptian. The next day Moses sees the Israelites whom he saved. “Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” he asks. Pharaoh tries to have Moses killed and Moses flees. He goes to a watering place in Midian. He meets some sisters and waters their herd. When the women’s father learns of Moses, he invites him to stay and gives him one daughter to marry.

In Midian, Moses saw a fire and approached it. God spoke to him, telling him first to remove his shoes. God says that he has chosen Moses. God says to throw down his staff and take out his arm as signs. His staff turns to a serpent and then returns to the form of a staff. His arm becomes white but he is not sick. God commands him to go to Pharaoh and deliver God’s message. Moses says that he cannot speak well. God gives Aaron, his brother, to help Moses.

God sent Moses to the court of Pharaoh. Pharaoh refused to listen to Moses, so Moses threw down his staff and it became a serpent. Then he put out his hand and it turned sickly white. Pharaoh’s magicians performed a magic feat also but the feat is swallowed by Moses’ serpent. God made the food supply to suffer. God also send locust, frogs, blood, and death. God sent at least nine signs to Pharaoh. Each time the Egyptians agreed to let the Hebrews leave, God stopped the plague but they broke their word. God charges Moses to lead the Israelites across a sea. Moses strikes the sea with his staff and the sea becomes dry. When Pharaoh’s army pursues them but the water returns and they are crushed.

Moses leaves the Hebrews for forty nights and puts his brother Aaron in charge over the people. On a mountain, God gives Moses a revelation of precepts for Israel to follow. God makes tablets with writing on them which Moses carries back to Israel. Moses asks to see God. The people see the fire and lightning and the mountain and are afraid. While Moses is gone, the Israelites demand to worship an idol. They use the gold of their ornament to construct a golden calf whom they say is the god who rescued them from Egypt. Aaron does not stop them. Moses returns and chastises them and Aaron and many are killed for the act. God sends down manna and quail to eat but the Hebrews are still rebellious against God, complaining about the food. Moses asked God for water and God answered him. Moses struck a stone with his staff and water came forth. The Israelites are divided into twelve tribes.

God gives the Israelites bountiful land, but this occurs at different times in the two scriptures. Besides that and the many additional details in the Torah, there are other differences:

In the Bible, Moses’ message is to free the Israelites from slavery under Pharaoh. In the Qur’an, Moses initially focuses on Pharaoh to convert toward one God. Pharaoh assumed himself as god and was worshiped by Egyptians.

The Biblical Moses is reluctant to become a prophet and makes excuses. He eventually agrees and Aaron speaks and performs miracles at first until Moses is ready and takes over. In Quran, Aaron was made God’s messenger on Moses request to back him up in the difficult task. Moses asked God to give him human support from Family, then ask for Aaron (his brother) praising Aaron by saying that he (Aaron) is better speaker than him (Moses).

The Qur’anic sorcerers repent after seeing Moses’ signs and submit to God at the anger of Pharaoh.

In Quran, Pharaoh didn’t repent but try to deceive Moses and God by saying that now he believes in one God, God of Moses and Aaron (while drowning). But all knowing God didn’t accept this because He knew that Pharaoh is lying again.

In the Bible, Moses first goes to Pharaoh without showing any signs.

In Exodus, Aaron helps make the golden calf. In Quran, Aaron himself was a messenger of God and was representing Moses in his absences. He opposed that idea with all his might and warned the Israelites that God will be angry with them.

Pharaoh drowns in Exodus. In Quran, Pharaoh drowned as well and Allah said in Qur’an that He kept pharaoh’s body as an example for generations to come (or made an example for coming generations)

See also Aaron, Islamic view of Aaron, and Islamic view of Pharaoh.

Destruction of Korah

The story of the destruction of Korah appears in Numbers 16:1-50 in the Torah and in Al-Qisas 76-82. Korah was an Israelite living during the time of Moses. Because of his wickedness, God caused him to die by opening the ground and swallowing him and his home. In the Qur’an, Korah is simply a rich man who is too arrogant. In the Torah, he leads a minor rebellion against Moses. God also kills the others who rebel with him and their homes.

Saul, David, and Goliath

The story appears in 1 Samuel 8-12 and 17:1-58 and in Surah 2 246-248 and Surah 2 249-251.

A prophet of Israel appoints Saul as king after the Israelites petition the prophet for a king. At least a few people are not happy with Samuel’s choice. Saul is going into battle with his army and is unsure about his victory. David kills Goliath, a significant warrior in the opposing army. In the Bible, Goliath is the champion of the Philistine army. In the Qur’an, he is the leader. The account also bears similarity to when Gideon led an army. See Mixed Similarties.

The Queen of Sheba

The story appears in 1 Kings 10:1-13 and 2 Chronicles 9: 1-13 and in verses Surah 27 20-44. The two stories have almost nothing in common. In each, the Queen of Sheba comes to visit Solomon and is impressed by his wisdom and riches. In the Bible, the visit is only diplomatic. In the Qur’an, Solomon wants her to become a Muslim and she does.

Jonah and the whale

The story of Jonah and the whale appears in the whole of the book of Jonah in the Bible. It appears three times in the Qur’an: in verses 139-148 of Sura 37: as Saffat (Those Ranged In Ranks), verses 87-88 of Sura 21: al-Anbiya’ (The Prophets) and verses 48-50 of Sura 68: al-Qalam (The Pen) /Nun. It is mentioned in verse 98 of Sura 10: Yunus (Jonah) and verse 86 of Sura 6: al-An’am (The Cattle).

Zechariah and John

The story of Zechariah is told in the Gospel of Luke 1:5-80 and Luke 3:1-22 and in the Qur’an 19.2-15. Zechariah and his wife reached an old age without bearing children. God spoke to Zechariah and told him his wife would conceive, despite her barrenness, and his name would be John. As a sign that this would happen, God struck Zechariah mute until John was born though he communicated using signs. John became a great and righteous prophet and came to confirm God’s Word. Both accounts mention John’s death.

The two accounts never directly disagree, but each have unique elements: In the Bible Zechariah is a priest. God speaks to him on Yom Kippur in the Holy of Holies. He doubts that God will act and his muteness is a sign and punishment. Muslims regard Zechariah as a prophet and therefore would never doubt God. John 1 specifies that God’s Word is Jesus, while the Qur’an does not say.

Mary

Mary’s story is told in the Gospel of Luke 1:26-37, 2:1-21, and Qur’an 19.16-35. Mary was visited an angel. She is afraid but the angel assures her he is from God. He promises her that God will grant her a son, even though she is a virgin. The conception happens because God’s Spirit enters her. Before the birth she leaves her home where she has birth.

In Luke, Mary is engaged to Joseph but the Qur’an never mentions any man. In the Qur’an, men have a conversation with Mary accusing her of fornication. In the Bible, no such conversation happens but Joseph knows that people are thinking this.

Jesus

Jesus takes up the whole of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) in the Bible. He appears several times in the Qur’an: in verses 35-59 of Sura 3: al-Imran (The Family of Imran), verses 156-158 of Sura 4: an Nisa’ (The Women), verses 109-120 of Sura 5: al-Ma’idah (The Repast), verses 16-35 of Sura 19: Maryam (Mary), verse 50 of Sura 23: al-Mu’minun (The Believers) verses 57-65 of Sura 43: az-Zukhruf (The Gold Adornments) and in verses 6 and 14 of Sura 61: as-Saff (The Battle Array). Reference is made to him several more times.

The Qur’an contains little narratives from Jesus’ life, but does include many brief descriptions in common with the Bible:

Made the dead to live

Is the Messiah (the Christ)

Had disciples

His disciples were successful over disbelievers

Healed the blind and lepers

Filled with the Holy Spirit

Jesus is God’s Word

Some hold the view in which the Bible states that Jesus is part of the Trinity (the doctrine that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one God), but the Qur’an rejects it; according to the Qu’ran, Jesus and Mary did not ask to be worshipped and Jesus asked people to worship God. Also, according to the Qu’ran, God “has no partners” and believing that God took physical form is in of itself a sin.

Similar doctrine

God

God (Allah in the Qur’an, YHWH in the Bible) is the only creator of all things whose power and wisdom cannot be matched. Unlike Eastern religions, God has a personhood with a consciousness. God demands humans to be moral. Acting morally and immorally both have great consequences.

Monotheism

The Qur’an and Bible strongly agree that only One God exists and should be worshiped. In both books, idolatry is the greatest sin. Both Abraham in the Qur’an and Jeremiah in the Bible argue the logic of not worshiping a speechless idol whom a human creates, as the creator or someone with wisdom.

In the New Testament, Jesus declares that he and God (the Father) are one, and whoever has seen him, has seen God. He tells the people that “before Abraham is, I am.” In Torah, when Moses asks God what his name is, God replies “I am.” Jesus is condemned to die for blasphemy, for having used the words “I am” (Matthew 26:63-68, Luke 22:66-71, John 8:23-27, John 8:57-59), and is handed over to the Roman governor Pilate to be crucified for the crime of declaring himself to be a king or a God — the title belonged to the Roman Emperor (John 19:6-16).

Fatalism

Both books have had controversy regarding elements of fatalism within them, the worldview that God determines everything and no real choice exists. The argument follows that if God knows everything that will happen, then the future is already determined and humans can only follow the predetermined route.

This is argued against by Apologetics that the future is not predetermined, and God is compared to one looking at a timeline of history, the present, and the future all at once: He already knows what happens, but yet it is not decided. Also, in traditional Islam, for a human to make a decision was for her to have power (albeit limited) over the future, which is idolatry. However, if humans have no choice about their actions, it is strange for God to punish or reward them for only bending to God’s power. Some believe that although all is already determined, humans still have a free will to choose their paths. Humans have free will, as opposed to angels, who do not (according to some views) and who were made only to do Gods commands. Others believe that all beings, including angels, have free will, and one-third of the angels have chosen to follow Lucifer, the fallen angel, also known as the Devil or Satan.

Ethics

Honesty and faithfulness are valued while idolatry and murder are condemned. Prayer and fasting are pivotal.

The ethics of the Qur’an are more similar to the ethics of the Torah than the New Testament. Both recommend pilgrimage to the holy city. Both condemn eating pork and some other foods. Adultery is severely punished. The Scriptures should be read or recited regularly. Prayers should be said facing Jerusalem, though the Qur’an later changed to face Mecca. Most of Islam’s regulations are contained in the hadith.

The New Testament is considered more lax (by some) in regard to actions but far stricter in regard to motivation and inward feelings. Jesus raises the standard, by saying that whoever lusts sexually in his heart is guilty of adultery, and whoever hates someone is guilty of murder. Jesus emphasizes forgiveness over punishment, as when he tells the people who brought him a woman caught in adultery that the one of them who is without sin should throw the first stone to kill her. When the men feel guilty and leave one by one, Jesus asks the woman whether anyone has condemned her. She answers that no one has. Jesus tells her that neither does he condemn her and to go and sin no more.

Torah

The Qur’an identifies the Torah as a revelation from God to Moses. The Torah is the set of the first five books of the Bible. The Qur’an does not identify exactly what the Torah is. The New Testament calls them the Torah of Moses, though the Torah itself does not give an author. According to the Qur’an and New Testament, the Gospel confirms the Torah.

Word

Both scriptures have a high veneration of the God’s word, God’s revelation to humankind. The Qur’an identifies the Islamic Holy Books as the word of God; Muslims believe they were dictated by God. The Bible calls Jesus the Word of God because he is the full manifestation of God and the voice of God on earth. The Qur’an also calls Jesus God’s Word.

Angels

Angels are God’s supernatural agents who carry his messages. Gabriel is named in both books.