‘Fables of the Men of Old’

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There are many stories in the Qur’an that are derived from earlier religious traditions, and the pre-Islamic derivation of these stories was not unknown to many of his hearers. Some of their sneers are recorded in the Qur’an: “And when our signs are recited to them, they say, We have heard. If we wished, we could speak like this. Indeed, this is nothing but fables of the men of old.” (8:31) “We were already promised this, we and our forefathers. Indeed, this is nothing but fables of the men of old.” (23:83)

Allah responds to this charge directly in the Qur’an: “Those who disbelieve say, This is nothing but a lie that he has invented, and other people have helped him with it, so that they have produced a slander and a lie. And they say, Fables of the men of old which he has had written down so that they are dictated to him in the morning and evening. Say, he who knows the secret of the heavens and the earth has revealed it. Indeed, he is always forgiving, merciful.” (25:4-6)

The messenger’s detractors make this charge out of the hardness of their hearts: “Among them are some people who listen to you, but we have placed veils upon their hearts, so that they may not understand, and in their ears a deafness. If they saw every sign, they would not believe in them, to the point that when they come to you to argue with you, the unbelievers say, This is nothing other than fables of the men of old.” (6:25)

The Qu’ran reacts with fury to one person who made these charges: “Do not obey each feeble swearer either, detractor, spreader abroad of slanders, hinderer of the good, transgressor, evildoer, cruel, and what’s more, illegitimate. It is because he has wealth and children that when our revelations are recited to him, he says, Mere fables of the men of old. We will brand him on the nose.” (68:10-16)

The messenger steadfastly professes certainty that any fair-minded reader would find prophecies of his coming in the scriptures of the people of the book – that is, the Jews and Christians: “Those who disbelieve say, You are no messenger. Say, Allah, and whoever has knowledge of the book, is sufficient witness between me and you.” (13:43) The sincere Jews and Christians would become Muslims: “Those to whom we gave the book before it, they believe in it.” (Qur’an 28:52) Those who did not convert to Islam should be reminded that Muslims, Jews, and Christians all worship the same deity: “And do not argue with the people of the book unless it be in what is better, except with those among them who do wrong, and say, We believe in what has been revealed to us and revealed to you, our Allah and your Allah is one, and to him we are Muslims.” (29:46)

Allah even tells the messenger to consult with the Jews and Christians if he doubts the truth of what he has been receiving: “And if you are in doubt about what we reveal to you, then ask those who read the book before you. Indeed the truth from your Lord has come to you. So do not be among the waverers.” (10:94)

It was only the obstinacy of the people of the book that kept them from recognizing the veracity of the Qur’an. And ultimately that obstinacy would lead the messenger and his followers to turn fiercely against them, and proclaim their new community their superior—and, indeed, the superior of all others as well: “You are the best of people that has been raised up for mankind. You command what is right and forbid what is wrong, and you believe in Allah. And if the people of the book had believed, it would have been better for them. Some of them are believers, but most of them are rebellious.” (3:110)

The conviction that they are the “best of peoples,” and a concomitant suspicion of and contempt for the people of the book, is common among Muslims worldwide even today. Social inequalities and injustices are blamed on the infidel, and jihadists around the world assert that only strict observance of Islam can enable Muslims to continue to be “the best of peoples.”