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Chapter 9: Does The Quran Teach Polytheism?

Polytheism is the belief in, or worship of, more than one god. Muslims accuse Christians of being polytheistic, because they believe in a Triune God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They ignore the fact that Christians believe in one true God, who is triune.  On the contrary, our study of the Quran will clearly show that it teaches polytheism. Before we mention the Quranic verses which teach polytheism, an important question should be asked and answered, and that question is:
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From Where Did We Get Our Knowledge About the True and Living God?

The answer is, from one of two sources.

First, we can imagine God with our foolish hearts and darkened minds, which is what the pagans did. This is what the Apostle Paul said concerning the pagans:

Secondly, we can know the true God by a special revelation from Him, which Christians have received in the Bible. We take God at His word and believe His revelation of Himself. God is everlasting, having no beginning; therefore He must be self-sufficient.

No one can fully comprehend God. The finite human mind cannot contain the infinite God. If we could contain God in our minds, he would no longer be God.

The great and true God is eternal, infinite, and everlasting. His attributes also must be eternal and everlasting.  He should not lose any of His attributes nor acquire new ones.  God is immutable in wisdom, in power, in holiness, in justice, in goodness, in truth.
According to the Bible, God is called Father (Malachi 2:10, John 8:41). Eternal fatherhood demands eternal sonship.  God is love (1 John 4:16) and love demands someone to be loved. God talks, hears, and sees.


Here we have many important questions concerning God that need an answer. Before God created angels and men, with whom was he talking?   Whom did He hear?   Whom did He see?   Most importantly, whom did He love?  These questions cannot be answered unless we believe in a triune God.


The only logical and perfect God must be a triune God to exercise His attributes with no need of His creation. This is the confession of every true Christian, which was expressed in the Wesmminster Confession ofl;aith, chapter 2, in the following words.

There is but one living and true God, who is infinite in being and perfection... God hath all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself; and is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creatures which he hath made... In the unity of the Godhead there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity:  God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.
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No one can fully comprehend God.


The finite human mind cannot contain the infinite God. If we could contain God in our minds, he would no longer be God.

The great and true God is eternal, infinite, and everlasting. His attributes also must be eternal and everlasting.  He should not lose any of His attributes nor acquire new ones.  God is immutable in wisdom, in power, in holiness, in justice, in goodness, in truth.
According to the Bible, God is called Father (Malachi 2:10, John 8:41). Eternal fatherhood demands eternal sonship.  God is love (1 John 4:16) and love demands someone to be loved. God talks, hears, and sees.


Here we have many important questions concerning God that need an answer. Before God created angels and men, with whom was he talking?   Whom did He hear?   Whom did He see?   Most importantly, whom did He love?

These questions cannot be answered unless we believe in a triune God.
The only logical and perfect God must be a triune God to exercise His attributes with no need of His creation. This is the confession of every true Christian, which was expressed in the Wesmminster Confession ofl;aith, chapter 2, in the following words.

There is but one living and true God, who is infinite in being and perfection... God hath all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself; and is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creatures which he hath made... In the unity of the Godhead there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity:  God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.
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The Bible Reveals A Triune God

The Old Testament uses the plural name of Deity:

Here we have to notice the two words, “I” and “us.”  For the One who says “I” says also “us.”  That indicates the oneness of the Triune God.

It is of great importance to notice that God never used the word “we” or “us” to magnify himself in the Bible.  It was not the custom of the kings of the great empires to use the word “we” to magnify themselves.
King Nebuchadnezzar, the Emperor of the great Babylonian empire, issued a decree saying, “Therefore I make a decree...” (Daniel 3:29).  King Darius issued a decree saying, “I make a decree...”  (Daniel 6:26).  So when God uses the words “we” or “us,” it is not to magnify Himself but indicate that He is a Triune God.
In the book of Numbers, there is a clear demonstration of the Triune God.  The prophet Balaam came to King Balak upon the request of the King to curse Israel.  In that story we read three verses which clearly show the Triune God.

Here, we see God the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and God the Holy Spirit in clear manifestation.
Then we read in Psalm 110:1:

Jesus asked the Pharisees concerning this passage saying:

The only right answer for this passage is the belief in the triune God.  For in this passage we see “The LORD” is God the Father and “my Lord” is God the Son.  David, by the Spirit, called Him Lord and that Spirit is the “Holy Spirit.”
Again, we read in the book of Proverbs:

Dr. Charles Bridges says in his commentary on Proverbs (pages 591, 592):

We have to realize that these passages are taken from the Old Testament, the book of the Jewish people who believe in monotheism.  Clearly, the plurality of God’s being was still consistent with the Jewish monotheistic doctrines.
We come now to the New Testament.
On the occasion of the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist, we see clearly the Triune God.

In this scene we have:

Ibn Katheir cited Ibn Abbas who said, “The Holy Spirit is the Greatest Name with which Jesus was able to raise the dead.”  Ibn Katheir cited also Al Zamakhshari who said, “The Holy Spirit here means the Spirit of Jesus Himself” (Ibn Katheir, Volume 1, pages 117, 118).
The triune God is the God revealed in the Bible.
This profound mystery of the Godhead is summed up in the word of Dr. Boardman, the great theologian.

The Father is all the fullness of the Godhead invisible.

The son is all the fullness of the Godhead manifested.

The Holy Spirit is all the fullness of the Godhead acting immediately upon the creature.

The Quran declares that God is visible and invisible, and seated Him on a throne.

God is invisible.  The apostle Paul says that He is:

But God became visible in the person of Jesus Christ.  The apostle Paul says:

Why is it difficult for Muslims to believe that Jesus Christ is the incarnated Son of God when the Quran has incarnated God in many of its verses?

1. The Quran gave God a face

2. The Quran gave God a hand

3. The Quran gave God an eye

When the Quran mentions Moses’ mother, it says:

4. The Quran seated God on the throne

The Quran gave Allah a face, a hand, and an eye, and seated Him on the throne.  This is incarnation, however, Muslims may say this is allegorical.
Such expressions in the Quran, where it is said that God has a face, a hand, and an eye are to be understood only in the sense that those human expressions are used in order to bring the infinite within the comprehension of the finite.  The conclusion is that incarnation is necessary for human beings to comprehend at least a glimpse of the Divine.
Christians accept the Biblical revelation concerning the nature of God and the incarnation of Jesus, the eternal Son of God.  It is the only source for knowing the true God - the Triune God.
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The Bible Reveals A Supreme God

God is the supreme Being, no one is above Him.  No one associated with Him  In the Book of Hebrews we read:

Every time God swears in the Bible, He swears by Himself because no one is greater than Him.  In the Book of Genesis, He said to Abraham:

In the book of Isaiah, He said:

In the Book of Jeremiah, He said:

The true and supreme God could not swear by someone else, let alone anything else.  So He swore by Himself.  Christians are not polytheists by the Muslims are.  The Quran puts Allah in a lesser position than His creation since He swore by many things other than Himself.  This is polytheism which the Muslims call “shirk” in Arabic.
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The Quran Reveals That Allah Is Lower Than His Creation

Allah swore in the Quran twenty-four times, by the Quran, the angels, the winds, the mount, the star, the pen, the moon, the night, the dawn, the day of resurrection, the sky, the day of judgment, the men and odd numbers, the sun, the earth, the soul, the creation of male and female, the fig, the olive, the city of Makkah.  Are these things greater than Allah that He would swear by them?  What is the value of the pen, the sun, the moon, the fig or the olive compared to Allah?
Suppose that you are called as a witness in court, and instead putting your hand on the Bible or the Quran and saying that you will tell the truth and nothing but the truth, you say, “Your honor, I swear by the fig, the olive, the pen, and the star to tell the truth.”  Will the judge accept your testimony?
For the Quran to declare that Allah swore by things He had created is to teach heresy and clear polytheism.

1. Allah swore by the Quran five times

2.  Allah swore by different ranks of angels or probably men

3. Allah swore by the winds

4. Allah swore by the mount, the inscribed book the kaaba, and the ocean

5. Allah swore by the star

6. Allah swore by the pen

7. Allah swore by the moon, the night, and the dawn

8. Allah swore by the Resurrection Day and the self-reproaching soul

9. Allah swore by the sky, the Day of ;Judgment, and by the one that witnesses

10. Allah swore again by the sky

11. Allah swore by the dawn, the ten nights, by the even and odd, and by the night

12. Allah swore by the city (Makkah)

13. Allah swore by the sun, the moon, the day, the night, the firmament, the earth, and the soul.

14. Allah swore by the night, the day, and the creation of male and female

15. Allah swore by the morning light, and by the night

Ahmad Abdelwahab city Muhammad’s biographers wrote in his book, Prophecy and Prophets, the following:

Could you imagine the Prophet Muhammad thinking of committing suicide?  At that time Allah swore to Muhammad “by the glorious morning light, and by the night that He had not forsaken him, nor was He displeased with him.”

Who is this Allah, who swore by the glorious morning light, and by the night?  How could anyone believe in a promise based on this oath?

16. Allah swore by the fig, the olive, Mount Sinai, and the city of Makkah

17. Allah swore by the steed, which, according to the commentators of the Quran, might be camels, war-horses, or spiritual forces

18. Allah swore by time through the ages

Doesn’t the association of Allah, the almighty and supreme God, with these objects and creatures represent polytheism?

Muhammad positioned himself as a counselor with Allah, when he forced Zainab, daughter of Gahsh, to marry Zaid, Muhammad’s adopted son.  When Zainab refused Muhammad’s proposal, the Quran declares that this proposal was the decision of Allah and Muhammad.

The Bible declares that God does not accept any human counseling:

For Muhammad to associate himself as a counselor with Allah is clearly polytheism.
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The Quran Positioned Mohammed As The Center Of Praise In Heaven, And On Earth

The literal translation of this verse is:

If Allah in heaven is praying on the prophet, the question is, to whom is Allah praying?  Why do Muslims doubt the deity of Jesus Christ because He prayed when He was on the cross:

If the Muslim accepts the Biblical revelation of God, and believes that God is a Triune God, if he understands that the one who was incarnated in the person of Jesus Christ is God the Son, and that Jesus took the form of a servant, came in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.  (Philippians 2:7,8 NKJ), then he would know that Jesus, as a servant, cried out to God.  ”My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Charles Haddon Spurgeon commented on that verse saying:

Nevertheless, the first word Christ uttered while on the cross was:

Then he committed his human spirit to the Father, saying:

He was always the Son calling His Father.  In addition, He offered that prayer, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?” to demonstrate that He was the one whom the prophet David spoke about in Psalm 22.  All the prophecies in that Psalm were fulfilled to the letter when Christ died.

We have to see in Christ's prayer Jesus as the Son of man, praying to God the Father, and in that hour of darkness, God is still the God Christ reveals.

But in the Quran Allah, who is absolute, prays to himself on the prophet.  The Muslims accept that.  They should not question Christ's deity because of his prayer on the cross.  More importantly, if Allah and his angels in heaven are praying on the prophet, and on earth Muslims are praying on the prophet, then Mohammed is the center of worship in heaven and on earth.  This is also the conclusion arrived at by some intellectual Muslims.

The daily Egyptian Newspaper, Alwafd,  (September 9, 1992), recorded the following question sent to Sheik Hassan Mamoun, one of the prominent clerics in Egypt:

What is your judgment concerning prayer on Mohammed, the messenger of Allah, doesn't that mean worshipping him?

Muslims never mention the name of Mohammed without saying peace be upon him or in Arabic Salla Allaho Alihe Wasalaam or Alihe Alsalaato Wasalaam which means “Allah's prayer and salutation on him.”

Look at any Islamic inscribed sign, and you will read the name “Allah” at the same level of the name “Mohammed.”

Muhmoud Al-Saadani, the well known Egyptian journalist, wrote a critical article in the August 9, 1996 issue of Almussawar, Egyptian weekly magazine, in which he said:

On the memorial birthday of the Messenger [Mohammed] I listened to the Friday  message on an Arabic television.  The speaker was a young man.. he said while  shedding tears over the decline of Muslims in this age...  the only cause for the  Muslims’ demise in this age is that they do not glorify the master of creatures,  Mohammed Ibn Abdullah, as they should glorify this glorious Messenger, who is  the beginning and the  last of all creation...  the early Muslims used to glorify the  Prophet to the point of drinking his urine...

Some Christians think that the God of Islam is the same God revealed to Jews and Christians in the Bible.  When they talk about Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, they call the three major religions the monotheistic religions.  The Quran declares to the Jews and the Christians:

In fact, the Allah of Islam is not the same God as the God of the Christians and the Jews revealed in the Bible.

Clearly, the Quran and Islamic traditions fall short of monotheism and in fact teach polytheism by their representation of Allah swearing by lesser creatures and objects, and by raising the level of created things to that of Allah as well as associating the praise and superiority of Mohammed with that of Allah.
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