Page 60 - World Religions I - Islam

o "I have only created Jinns and men, that they may serve Me." - Al-Zariyat (The Winnowing Winds) 51:56
• Allah sent prophets and messengers to proclaim the truth to mankind. The Bible says that God the Father sent
His Son to be the truth (John 14:6).
o "We sent down the (Qur'an) in Truth, and in Truth has it descended: and We sent thee but to give glad
tidings and to warn (sinners)." - Al-Isra' (The Night Journey) 17:105
• Allah loves those who do good and love him.
Compare this to what the Bible teaches about God when it teaches that He hates sin (Proverbs 6:16-19; Jeremiah
4:4; Romans 1:18) but loves sinners (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). The Qur'an twice refers to Allah as "All-loving" (Surahs
11:90 and 85:14), specifically in relation to his compassion and mercy towards the penitent. Aside from the two
above passages, there is not a single passage in the Qur'an that indicates that Allah loves any portion of mankind.
"All-loving" appears to be nothing more than a divine name that describes God's mercy on those who repent and
practice Islam, as opposed to being a personal characteristic.
o "And spend of your substance in the cause of Allah, and make not your own hands contribute to (your)
destruction; but do good; for Allah loveth those who do good." - Al-Baqarah (The Cow) 2:195
o "Say: 'Obey Allah and His Messenger'. But if they turn back, Allah loveth not those who reject Faith. " - Al-
Imran (The Family of Imran) 3:32
• Allah hates sinners and unbelievers.
o "Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah loveth not
transgressors." - Al- Baqarah (The Cow) 2:190
o "Surely (as for) those who disbelieve and act unjustly Allah will not forgive them nor guide them to a
path except the path of hell, to abide in it for ever, and this is easy to Allah." - An- Nisa' (Women) 4:168-169
o "Allah loveth not those who do wrong." - Al-Imran (the Family of Imran) 3:57a
• Allah is omniscient and fully aware of everything that happens in the universe, including private thoughts and
feelings. The Qur'anic teaching of abrogation calls into question the omniscience of God. See Appendix G:
Abrogation in the Qur'an.
o "In whatever business thou mayest be, and whatever portion thou mayest be reciting from the Qur'an,
and whatever deed ye (mankind) may be doing, We are witnesses thereof when ye are deeply engrossed
therein. Nor is hidden from thy Lord (so much as) the weight of an atom on the earth or in heaven. And
not the least and not the greatest of these things but are recorded in a clear record." - Yunus (Jonah)
10:61
• There are traditionally 99 names (or attributes) by which Muslims regard Allah and which are described in the
Qur'an and the Sunnah, each of which evoke a distinct attribute of God.
o "Allah! there is no god but He! To Him belong the most Beautiful Names." - Ta-Ha 20:8
o "The most beautiful names belong to Allah. So call on him by them, but shun such men as use profanity
in his names; for what they do, they will soon be requited." - Al-Araf (The Heights) 7:180
o "Allah's Apostle said, 'Allah has ninety-nine Names, one- hundred less one; and he who memorized them all
by heart will enter Paradise.'"4
o While the Hadith lists Allah's names, there is no enumeration of them.
 The exact list is not agreed upon, and the Names of God (as adjectives, word constructs, or
otherwise) exceed 99 in the Qur'an and Sunnah.
 The most famous and frequent names mentioned in the Qur'an (aside from Allah) are Ar-
Rahman (The Gracious) and Ar-Raheem (The Merciful).

Angels
Belief in angels is fundamental to the faith of Islam.
• The Arabic word for angel is malaak ("messenger"; plural malaakah), similar to its counterparts in Hebrew (malakh)
and Greek (angelos).
• The Qur'an suggests that angels do not possess free will and worship Allah in total obedience.
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