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

How the Early Muslim Community Ignored, Rewrote, and Contradicted Its Own Scripture

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Introduction: The Problem No Muslim Historian Wants to Touch

The Quran presents itself not merely as a book of guidance, but as the final, preserved, unchangeable Word of God. Over and over, it instructs its followers to obey its commands and to uphold divine truth without compromise. It claims to confirm earlier revelations (Torah, Zabur, Injil), not to replace them with fabrications.

Yet when we move from theory (what the Quran says) to history (what Muslims actually did), a disturbing picture emerges:

• Early Muslim rulers ignored Quranic commands when politically inconvenient.

• Major theological positions were invented centuries later without textual basis in the Quran.

• Key commands that the Quran gives were actively violated by the earliest Muslim leaders — sometimes within just a few years of Muhammad’s death.

This is not simply “Muslims falling short” in piety. It is structural disobedience at the core of Islam’s historical foundation. And that raises an inescapable question:

If Islam’s earliest and closest followers — those who knew Muhammad personally — could not or would not obey the Quran’s clear commands, what does that say about the authenticity of the religion itself?

In this deep dive, we will examine six major categories where historical Islam and the Quran are irreconcilably at odds.

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1. The Quran’s Command to Uphold the Torah and Gospel — Ignored

What the Quran Says

• “He has sent down upon you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. And He revealed the Torah and the Gospel.” (Surah 3:3)

• “And let the People of the Gospel judge by what Allah has revealed therein. And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed — then it is they who are the defiantly disobedient.” (Surah 5:47)

The Quran commands not only Muslims but specifically the People of the Book to live by the Torah and Gospel — and it affirms that these texts were divinely revealed.

What Happened in History

Within just a few decades of Muhammad’s death, Islamic authorities began forbidding Christians and Jews under Muslim rule from freely following their own scriptures.

The so-called “Covenant of Umar” (7th century) laid out humiliating restrictions on Jews and Christians, effectively criminalizing full adherence to their own faiths. Far from telling them to “judge by the Gospel,” the Umayyad and Abbasid rulers taxed, marginalized, and restricted their worship.

Key Contradiction:
The Quran commands respect and affirmation of previous scriptures. Early Islamic law sought to replace, silence, and dominate them.

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2. The Quran’s Command Against Compulsion — Overturned

What the Quran Says

• “There is no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clear from error.” (Surah 2:256)

This is often quoted by modern Muslim apologists as proof of Islam’s tolerance.

What Happened in History

Historical records show that conversion by force and threat was a regular part of Islamic expansion:

• During the Ridda Wars (632–633), Abu Bakr waged war on Arab tribes who left Islam after Muhammad’s death — killing thousands for apostasy.

• The Umayyad conquests in North Africa, Spain, and Persia were often accompanied by ultimatums: convert, pay jizya, or face the sword.

By the late 7th century, the principle of no compulsion in religion had been replaced by the system of dhimma — a legalized form of second-class citizenship for non-Muslims that used taxation and legal restrictions to pressure conversion.

Key Contradiction:
The Quran prohibits compulsion. Early Islamic policy institutionalized it.

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3. The Quran’s Command for One Unified Quran — Contradicted by History

What the Quran Says

• “Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur'an, and indeed, We will be its guardian.” (Surah 15:9)

Muslims interpret this as meaning that the Quran has always been a single, unified, unchanged text.

What Happened in History

By the reign of Caliph Uthman (644–656), there were multiple conflicting versions of the Quran in circulation. Islamic sources themselves (e.g., al-Tabari, al-Suyuti, Ibn Abi Dawud) admit that:

• Verses had been lost when memorisers died in battle.

• Regional codices differed.

• Uthman ordered all other versions burned and enforced his own standardized recension.

This directly contradicts the idea that the Quran was perfectly preserved and unified from the start. If Allah had truly “guarded” it, no political intervention would have been needed to fix textual chaos.

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4. The Quran’s Command to Follow Muhammad’s Example — Made Impossible

What the Quran Says

• “Indeed in the Messenger of Allah you have an excellent example to follow.” (Surah 33:21)

• “Obey Allah and obey the Messenger.” (Surah 4:59)

The Quran commands Muslims to obey and emulate Muhammad.

What Happened in History

The Quran itself does not contain the full details of Muhammad’s actions or sayings. As a result, later Muslim rulers depended on Hadith collections to fill the gap.

Here’s the problem:

• The major Hadith collections (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, etc.) were compiled over 200 years after Muhammad’s death.

• Many Hadiths were politically motivated fabrications designed to justify the ruling elite’s policies.

Thus, the “obedience” the Quran commands was filtered through centuries of political and theological manipulation — a reality that undermines the claim that Muslims today can truly follow the authentic Muhammad.

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5. The Quran’s Ban on Killing Believers — Violated Almost Immediately

What the Quran Says

• “It is not for a believer to kill a believer except by mistake.” (Surah 4:92)

What Happened in History

The first major civil war in Islam, the First Fitna (656–661), saw Muslim armies slaughtering each other by the tens of thousands:

• The Battle of the Camel (656) — over 10,000 Muslims killed.

• The Battle of Siffin (657) — thousands more dead.

• Assassinations of three of the first four caliphs.

From the Ridda Wars to the Umayyad-Abbasid rivalry, Muslim-on-Muslim killing became a defining feature of early Islamic politics — in direct violation of the Quran’s prohibition.

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6. The Quran’s Endorsement of Jews and Christians as “People of the Book” — Later Reversed

What the Quran Says

• “Indeed, those who believed and those who were Jews or Christians — those [among them] who believed in Allah and the Last Day and did righteousness — will have their reward with their Lord.” (Surah 2:62)

This early verse offers a seemingly inclusive vision of salvation for Jews and Christians.

What Happened in History

Later Islamic rulings — and even later Quranic verses (e.g., Surah 9:29) — imposed military and financial subjugation on Jews and Christians, branding them as enemies unless they paid jizya and accepted second-class status.

Historically, this shift from inclusion to exclusion reflects a political, not theological development: as Islam’s power grew, tolerance gave way to dominance.

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Conclusion: The Quran Commands One Thing, History Shows Another

The Quran’s own commands — to preserve earlier scriptures, avoid compulsion, maintain one perfect Quran, follow Muhammad, avoid killing believers, and honor the People of the Book — were systematically ignored, reinterpreted, or outright violated in the earliest period of Islamic history.

This leaves us with only two possibilities:

1. The Quran is divine, but Allah failed to ensure its followers obeyed it — undermining the claim of perfect guidance.

2. The Quran is not divine at all — and its early history reflects the political struggles of men, not the revelation of God.

Either way, the historical record destroys the narrative of Islam as the perfect, preserved, and faithfully practiced religion of God.