Does Quran 2:79 (al-Baqarah) actually say that the Bible has been changed?

This will be the first of a series of posts concerning what the Quran actually says about the Bible and whether or not the common claims of corruption are legitimate.  Let’s start with one of the most commonly quoted verses that supposedly proves that the Bible has been corrupted.

First, I would like to address the common belief that the Quran only addresses books given to the prophets and the Bible isn't directly mentioned.  The word Bible is the English pronunciation of the Greek word βιβλία, which translates into English as “book”.  In Arabic it is كتاب .  So, if the Quran refers to the Jews and Christians as having a “book” (كتاب in Arabic), then it is referring to the Bible, which is the “book” (كتاب) possessed by the Jews and Christians. 

Now, let’s look at the Quran.

Quran 2:79

Yusif Ali translation	Hafs	Ya`qub al-Hashimi	Hamzah
Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, and then say:"This is from Allah," to traffic with it for miserable price!- Woe to them for what their hands do write, and for the gain they make thereby.	‏فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ بِأَيْدِيهِمْ ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَذَا مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ثَمَنًۭا قَلِيلًۭا ۖ فَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ	‏فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ بأيديهُم ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَذَا مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ثَمَنًۭا قَلِيلًۭا ۖ فَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ أيديهُم وَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ	‏فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ بٍيَيْديهِم ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَذَا مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ثَمَنًۭا قَلِيلًۭا ۖ فَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ

We must look at this ayah and the surrounding ayat in order to see if it actually says that the Jews and Christians changed the Bible. 

First, if you look at this ayah, it does not mention changing an existing book.  Instead, it mentions writing a book and attributing it to God.  If I write a book and falsely claim that it is from God and Gabriel recited it to me, have I changed the Quran?  Are all of the copies of the Quran throughout the world now corrupted if I publish this false book?  No, of course not!!!  That would be a ridiculous claim.  And it would be no less ridiculous to make a similar claim about the Bible. 

Did Christians and/or Jews write books and falsely attribute their origin to God?  Most Christian theologians will say yes.  They reject many books such as the Gospel of Judas, the Gnostic Gospels, the Apocalypse of Peter, and so on.  They reject these books because most of the evidence indicates they were written long after the apostles died and they often contradict the writings of Moses and the other previous prophets.  No one denies that men wrote books and falsely attributed them to God.  But, this is a completely different thing from changing the existing Scriptures.

Now, let’s consider this ayah in the context of the previous ayah.

Quran 2:78-79

Yusuf Ali translation	Hafs	Ya`qub al-Hashimi	Hamzah	Abu Ja`far
And there are among them illiterates, who know not the Book, but (see therein their own) desires, and they do nothing but conjecture.	‏وَمِنْهُمْ أُمِّيُّونَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ إِلَّآ أَمَانِىَّ وَإِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا يَظُنُّونَ			‏وَمِنْهُمْ أُمِّيُّونَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ إِلَّآ أمانِىَ وَإِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا يَظُنُّونَ
Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, and then say:"This is from Allah," to traffic with it for miserable price!- Woe to them for what their hands do write, and for the gain they make thereby.	فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ بِأَيْدِيهِمْ ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَذَا مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ثَمَنًۭا قَلِيلًۭا ۖ فَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ	فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ بأيديهُم ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَذَا مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ثَمَنًۭا قَلِيلًۭا ۖ فَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ أيديهُم وَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ	فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَكْتُبُونَ ٱلْكِتَبَ بٍيَيْديهِم ثُمَّ يَقُولُونَ هَذَا مِنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ لِيَشْتَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ثَمَنًۭا قَلِيلًۭا ۖ فَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا كَتَبَتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَوَيْلٌۭ لَّهُم مِّمَّا يَكْسِبُونَ

First, we can see from this that it is talking about a small group of people within Judaism and/or Christianity.  It is not talking about the People of the Book in general.  If I got a group of Muslims to agree to change the Quran, they would only be able to change the copies of the Quran they possessed.  It would not be possible for the copies of the Quran throughout the world to be changed without the consent of all Muslims.  Likewise, a group of Jews and/or Christians could only theoretically change the copies of the Bible they possessed.

But it goes on.  It says they are “illiterates, who know not the Book, but (see therein their own) desires, and they do nothing but conjecture.”  If they know nothing of the Book but conjecture, then it seems to be talking about a group that doesn't even have a copy of the Bible in their possession.  You can’t change a book you don’t have.  You can only create a fake book and try to pass it off as real.  This only reinforces the argument I presented above.

Let’s continue to examine the context.  The Quran continues for several ayat talking about the unbelief and evil deeds committed by the Jews and Christians, which nobody denies took place. 

Then, in ayah 89 it says something very interesting.

Quran 2:89

Yusuf Ali translation	Hafs
And when there comes to them a Book from Allah, confirming what is with them,- although from of old they had prayed for victory against those without Faith,- when there comes to them that which they (should) have recognised, they refuse to believe in it but the curse of Allah is on those without Faith.	‏وَلَمَّا جَآءَهُمْ كِتَبٌۭ مِّنْ عِندِ ٱللَّهِ مُصَدِّقٌۭ لِّمَا مَعَهُمْ وَكَانُوا۟ مِن قَبْلُ يَسْتَفْتِحُونَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ فَلَمَّا جَآءَهُم مَّا عَرَفُوا۟ كَفَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ۚ فَلَعْنَةُ ٱللَّهِ عَلَى ٱلْكَفِرِينَ

The Quran says that it is a book from God “confirming what is with them”.  So, even after the events described in ayat 78-79, the Quran confirms the truth of the Bible still possessed by them.

Let’s summarize.  There were some, but not all, of the People of the Book who knew nothing but conjecture of the Bible, from which we can conclude that they probably didn't possess a copy of it.  They wrote fake Scriptures and tried to pass them off as genuinely from God.  God criticizes they unbelief and wickedness of the People of the Book and says that the Quran confirms the Bible they still possessed.

Nowhere does it actually mention changing the Bible, instead it says that the Quran confirms the Bible still possessed by the majority of them.  

Of course, there are other ayat used to try to say the Bible has been changed.  I will address those in later posts.