Refuting Islam

The Quran’s Fatal Dilemma

Why Islam Collapses Either Way

Introduction: A Challenge Islam Cannot Escape

Some criticisms of Islam are complex and require years of theological study to unpack. Others are simple, easy to understand, and devastatingly effective. Among the latter, few are as elegant, concise, and airtight as what Christian apologist David Wood famously calls the “Islamic Dilemma.”

The Islamic Dilemma is not an emotional attack, a cultural critique, or a theological opinion. It is a logical argument built entirely on:

The Quran’s own claims about the Bible.
The historical, manuscript, and archaeological record.
The law of non-contradiction — the basic principle that something cannot be both true and false at the same time.

When we put these elements together, we arrive at a conclusion that is not optional or subjective. If the premises are true — and they are — the conclusion is inescapable:

Either way you take it, Islam is false.

In this article, we will:

Lay out the dilemma in its simplest form.
Examine the Quranic verses that create it.
Compare the Bible and Quran on essential doctrines.
Demonstrate why the “corruption” escape hatch fails.
Show how manuscript evidence seals the case.
Apply formal logic to prove the conclusion.

By the end, the only thing left standing will be the dilemma itself — unshakable, unanswerable, and fatal to Islam’s truth claim.

Section 1: The Quran’s Claims About the Bible

Before we can talk about contradictions, we have to establish what the Quran actually says about the Torah and Gospel.

Contrary to popular apologetics today, the Quran does not say these books were lost, destroyed, or replaced. In fact, it says the opposite:

The Quran Affirms the Torah and Gospel Were Revealed by Allah

Surah 3:3 – “He has revealed to you the Book with truth, confirming what came before it, and He revealed the Torah and the Gospel.”
Surah 5:46 – “And We sent, following in their footsteps, Jesus... and We gave him the Gospel, in which was guidance and light... confirming the Torah that had come before it.”

The Quran Commands Jews and Christians to Follow Their Scriptures

Surah 5:47 – “Let the People of the Gospel judge by what Allah has revealed therein.”
Surah 5:68 – “Say, O People of the Scripture, you are on nothing until you uphold the Torah, the Gospel, and what has been revealed to you from your Lord.”

The Quran Claims God’s Word Cannot Be Altered

Surah 6:115 – “None can change His words.”
Surah 18:27 – “None can change His words, and you will find no refuge besides Him.”

When you combine these verses, the Quran’s position is unmistakable:

The Torah and Gospel were revealed by Allah.
They still existed in Muhammad’s time.
They were authoritative and trustworthy.
God’s word cannot be corrupted.

Section 2: The Core Doctrinal Contradictions

If the Torah and Gospel are the Word of God and cannot be changed, their content matters. And here’s where the dilemma begins to take shape: the Bible and Quran teach opposite messages on the most essential doctrines.

1. The Crucifixion

Bible: All four Gospels, the letters of Paul, and non-Christian sources (Tacitus, Josephus) confirm Jesus was crucified.
Quran: Surah 4:157 – “[They] did not kill him, nor did they crucify him — but it was made to appear so to them.”

2. The Deity of Christ

Bible: John 1:1, John 10:30, Colossians 2:9 affirm Jesus is divine.
Quran: Surah 5:72 – “They have certainly disbelieved who say, ‘Allah is the Messiah.’”

3. Salvation by Grace

Bible: Ephesians 2:8–9 – Salvation is by grace through faith, not by works.
Quran: Surah 23:102–103 – Salvation is determined by the weighing of good and bad deeds.

4. The Atonement

Bible: Hebrews 9:22 – “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”
Quran: Forgiveness is granted without any sacrificial requirement.

These are not minor interpretive differences — they are mutually exclusive truth claims. If one is true, the other must be false.

Section 3: The Dilemma Stated Formally

Here’s the dilemma in its clean, logical form:

Premises:

The Quran affirms the inspiration, preservation, and authority of the Torah and Gospel (Surah 3:3, 5:47, 6:115).
The Torah and Gospel contradict the Quran on essential doctrines.

Possibilities:

If preserved → Islam is false, because it contradicts preserved truth.
If corrupted → Islam is false, because the Quran affirms texts that no longer exist.

Conclusion:
Either way, Islam is false.

Section 4: The Muslim “Corruption” Escape Hatch — And Why It Fails

When faced with this dilemma, Muslims often retreat to the claim:

“The Bible has been corrupted.”

But this defense fails for three unavoidable reasons:

1. The Quran’s Own Words

The Quran does accuse some Jews of misrepresenting scripture (Surah 2:75, 2:79), but it never says the texts themselves were destroyed or replaced. In fact, it repeatedly commands the People of the Book to follow what they have — in the present tense, during Muhammad’s lifetime.

It’s absurd to command people to follow books that no longer exist.

2. The Preservation Claim

The Quran declares no one can change God’s words (Surah 6:115, 18:27). If the Bible was God’s word, it cannot be corrupted — unless Allah failed to protect His own revelation, which would make the Quran’s promise false.

3. Manuscript Evidence

We have manuscripts of the Bible that predate Muhammad by centuries:

Dead Sea Scrolls (200 BCE–70 CE) – Old Testament
Codex Sinaiticus (~325 CE) – Entire New Testament
Papyrus P52 (~125 CE) – Fragment of John’s Gospel

These match the content of modern Bibles. The Torah and Gospel Muhammad’s contemporaries had are the same we have today.

The “corruption” claim is a historical and textual dead end.

Section 5: Historical Confirmation of the Bible’s Integrity

The Bible’s textual integrity is one of the most well-attested facts in ancient literature.

The Old Testament was preserved with over 95% consistency from the Dead Sea Scrolls to the Masoretic Text.
The New Testament has 5,800+ Greek manuscripts, some within decades of the originals.
Variants exist, but none alter core doctrines. The message of Christ’s death, deity, and resurrection is consistent.

By contrast, the Quran:

Lacks early manuscript diversity transparency (destroyed under Uthman).
Shows textual evolution (Sana’a palimpsests).
Has variant readings in early codices.

If Islam applies its preservation standard to the Bible, the Bible passes — and the Quran’s contradictions remain.

Section 6: Why the Dilemma Is Airtight

To escape the dilemma, a Muslim would have to:

Deny the Quran affirms the Torah and Gospel → Impossible without rejecting multiple clear verses.
Prove the Bible was corrupted before Muhammad → No manuscript or historical evidence supports this.
Claim “Torah” and “Gospel” mean something other than the Bible → Special pleading with no historical basis.

Any move out of the dilemma requires contradicting either the Quran or history.

This is why the dilemma is so powerful: it is not an attack from outside Islam — it is a contradiction inside Islam.

Section 7: Formal Logic Breakdown

Let’s strip it down to pure logic.

If the Quran is true, then the Torah and Gospel are true and preserved.
The Torah and Gospel contradict the Quran.
If both are true, a contradiction exists — which is impossible.
Therefore, the Quran cannot be true.

Or:

If the Torah and Gospel are corrupted, then the Quran is wrong for affirming them.
If the Torah and Gospel are preserved, then the Quran is wrong for contradicting them.
In both scenarios, the Quran is wrong.

Section 8: The Broader Implications

The Islamic Dilemma is more than just a Christian apologetic tool — it exposes the fragility of Islam’s theological structure.

If Islam cannot reconcile its own position on prior scriptures, then:

Its claim to be a continuation of earlier revelation collapses.
Its insistence that Muhammad is foretold in earlier scripture fails.
Its exclusive truth claim loses its historical foundation.

This is not a secondary issue — it’s foundational.

Section 9: Why Muslims Struggle to Answer

In debates, Muslim apologists often:

Change definitions mid-argument.
Appeal to vague notions of “corruption” without evidence.
Attack the Bible instead of defending the Quran.

But the dilemma is not about proving Christianity. It is about Islam living up to its own claims.

Even if the Bible were false, the Quran would still fail because of its contradictory stance.

Conclusion: A No-Win Scenario for Islam

The Quran’s affirmation of the Torah and Gospel, combined with their undeniable contradiction of Islamic doctrine, creates a theological trap that Islam cannot escape.

If the Bible is preserved → Islam contradicts God’s previous revelation.
If the Bible is corrupted → The Quran is wrong for affirming it.

Either way, the Quran — and therefore Islam — is false.

The beauty of this argument is its simplicity. Anyone can understand it. And once understood, it cannot be unlearned.

The Islamic Dilemma stands as an unmovable object in the path of Islam’s truth claims — and it is built entirely from Islam’s own book.

Disclaimer

This post critiques Islam as an ideology, doctrine, and historical system — not Muslims as individuals. Every human deserves respect; beliefs do not.

The Quran’s Fatal Dilemma: Why Islam Collapses on Its Own Words

Part 1 – The Core Argument: How the Quran Affirms the Torah and Gospel

Deep textual analysis of Surah 3:3, 5:47, 6:115, 18:27.
The historical Islamic claim that earlier scriptures were part of Allah’s revelation chain.
Early tafsir confirming preservation and authority of the Bible in Muhammad’s time.
How the Quran repeatedly commands Jews and Christians to follow their own scriptures.
Why this foundational affirmation is the bedrock for the rest of the dilemma.

Part 2 – Historical Evidence for the Preservation of the Bible

Overview of manuscript evidence: Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint, Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Vaticanus, Peshitta, etc.
How textual criticism works — and why the Torah and Gospel have overwhelming manuscript attestation.
Comparison with early Quranic manuscript transmission.
Refutation of the “lost Injeel” claim with historical and forensic data.

Part 3 – The Doctrinal Clash: Bible vs. Quran

Crucifixion accounts — why all four Gospels affirm it, and why the Quran denies it (Surah 4:157).
The deity of Christ — biblical testimony vs. Quranic denial.
The atonement — salvation through Christ vs. Islamic works-based salvation.
How these differences are not “minor interpretations” but mutually exclusive truth claims.

Part 4 – The Quran’s Silence on a “Corruption Event”

No verse in the Quran describing when, where, or how the Torah and Gospel were corrupted.
Contradictions in later Islamic claims about textual corruption.
The shift from “misinterpretation” (tahrif al-ma‘na) to “textual corruption” (tahrif al-lafz) centuries later.
How Muslim apologists invent retroactive explanations unsupported by their own scripture.

Part 5 – The Preservation Paradox: God’s Word Cannot Be Changed

Quranic statements on divine preservation (6:115, 18:27, 15:9).
Logical contradiction: If God’s word can’t be changed, then Torah & Gospel must still be valid.
Islamic attempts to limit these verses to the Quran only — and why that fails contextually.
What this means for the doctrine of divine revelation in Islam.

Part 6 – Historical Islam vs. the Quran’s Commands

Muhammad’s interactions with Jews and Christians in Medina.
Early Muslim reliance on Jewish and Christian texts for stories and laws.
Tafsir and hadith where Muhammad judged according to the Torah.
Why early Islamic practice undermines the corruption claim.

Part 7 – Islamic Apologetic Evasions and Their Collapse

“The Bible was changed after Muhammad” — refutation with manuscript dating.
“Only the original autographs were inspired” — self-defeating because no Quranic autographs exist either.
“The Injeel was a separate book” — historical non-existence of such a text.
Why every major apologetic route leads to the same logical dead end.

Part 8 – The Self-Destruction of Islam’s Revelation Chain

Islam’s official stance: Torah, Zabur, Injil, Quran — one chain of revelation.
What happens if you break one link.
Why rejecting 75% of God’s prior revelations invalidates the remaining 25%.
The difference between doctrinal continuity in Christianity vs. the Quran’s discontinuity.

Part 9 – Formal Logical Refutation of Islam’s Core Claim

Full syllogistic breakdown of the Islamic Dilemma.
How to present it in debates (step-by-step).
Anticipating counter-arguments and neutralizing them.
Why, from a purely logical perspective, Islam collapses under its own text.