- Goudarzi: I argue that the Qur’an, in its discourse on revelations, uses the term kitāb not as a label for all scriptures but as an exclusive appellation for the Torah and the Qur’an. That the Qur’an applies the term kitāb to the Mosaic and Muhammadan scriptures alone, I further argue, reflects its estimation of the Torah and the Qur’an as the only scriptures that embody consummate divine guidance on account of their comprehensive historical and legal instruction. Moreover, I show that the Qur’an ties the revelation of these two kitābs to God’s special regard for the descendants of Abraham: the Torah was sent down for the benefit of Israelites, and the Qur’an is meant primarily for the guidance of Ishmaelites. By recognizing and underlining the Qur’an’s Abrahamic exceptionalism, the dissertation recasts the significance of the Prophet Muhammad’s mission. In the qur’anic view, the mission of Muhammad does not represent the end of a universal history of dispensations so much as it constitutes the realization of the “Abrahamic dream” for Ishmaelites and thus the second major act in the drama of the Abrahamic covenant.
His summary of the main prooftexts from the Qur’an:
This chapter has highlighted ten passages that associate the term kitāb exclusively with the scriptures of Moses and Muhammad, thereby challenging the generic understanding of kitāb as “book” in qur’anic scholarship. The first text, a reflection on prophetic history from Noah to Jesus, highlights Moses alone as the recipient of al-kitāb (23:49). The second text is a brief precis of Israelite prophetic history that notes the bestowal of al-kitāb to Moses but does not make a similar statement about the unnamed messengers after him or Jesus (2:87). The third passage contains a quotation attributed to a group of jinn, who describe the Qur’an as “a kitāb sent down after Moses” (46:30). The fourth and fifth texts describe the messengers before Muhammad as having brought “the clear proofs, the writings, and the illuminating kitāb” (3:184, 35:25). Juxtaposing the singular kitāb with the plural zubur (“writings”), these two texts seem to posit a deliberate distinction between the Torah and the other pre-qur’anic scriptures. The sixth examined passage urges the Prophet’s followers to believe in “the kitāb that [God] sent down to His messenger” as well as “the kitāb that He sent down before” (4:136), thereby strongly suggesting that there is only one kitāb before the Qur’an. The last four texts do not establish that kitāb is an exclusive appellation for the Torah and the Qur’an, but nevertheless imply that there is special affinity between these two scriptures. The first passage in question describes the Mosaic kitāb as divine revelation and then characterizes the Qur’an as “a blessed kitāb” that confirms “what (alladhī) is before it” (6:91-2), a likely reference to the Torah. The second passage highlights the Prophet’s commitment to his own kitāb as well as the kitāb of Moses, presenting them as God’s foremost scriptures: “Say: bring a kitāb from God that gives better guidance than these two (ahdā minhumā), so that I may follow it, if you speak truly” (28:49). Finally, the last two texts defend the Qur’an’s divine pedigree, noting that “before it is the kitāb of Moses” (11:17, 46:12). These passages portray a scriptural landscape that is defined by the preeminence of the Torah and the Qur’an and their special relationship. There are no qur’anic texts that suggest such exclusive correspondence between the Qur’an and the Gospel or Psalms.
