Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Latter-day Saint
William E. McLellin and the Qur’an’s “Challenge Verses”

William E. McLellin and the Qur’an’s “Challenge Verses”

Last updated on: March 15, 2020 at 11:17 pm by Dan Peterson

William E. McLellin and the Qur’an’s “Challenge Verses” 2020-03-15T23:17:21-06:00 Dan Peterson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The home of the John Johnson family in Hiram, Ohio, which, for a few months, served effectively as the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photo)

I offer, for your unlikely but possible interest, a passage from Michael Bonner, Jihad in Islamic History: Doctrines and Practice (Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2006):

How were people expected to know that these words of Revelation were indeed of divine origin? One answer to the question was that the Prophet Muhammad, through whom the words came into the world, was a trustworthy man whose life and behavior conformed to established patterns of monotheist prophecy. The books of sira [biography] and maghazi [specifically military biography, literally “raids” or “campaigns”] provided what one needed to know about this exemplary life and behavior. Then what if someone wished to put Muhammad’s credentials as a prophet to the test? In that case, one proof came in the Quran itself (the famous “challenge verses”): doubters were challenged to produce Arabic words of similar quality and beauty; their failure to do this confirmed the authenticity of both the Messenger and the Message. (36-37)

Here are some of those “challenge verses”:

And if you are in doubt about what We have sent down upon Our Servant [Muhammad], then produce a surah the like thereof and call upon your witnesses other than Allah, if you should be truthful. But if you do not — and you will never be able to — then fear the Fire, whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the disbelievers. (Qur’an 2:23-24)

Or do they say [about the Prophet], “He invented it?” Say, “Then bring forth a surah like it and call upon [for assistance] whomever you can besides Allah, if you should be truthful.” (Qur’an 10:38)

Or do they say, “He invented it”? Say, “Then bring ten surahs like it that have been invented and call upon [for assistance] whomever you can besides Allah, if you should be truthful.” (Qur’an 11:13)

Say, “If mankind and the jinn gathered in order to produce the like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like of it, even if they were assistants to each other.” (Qur’an 17:88)

Then let them produce a statement like it, if they should be truthful. (Qur’an 52:34)

There is an obvious parallel in Latter-day Saint history:

Shortly before publication of the Book of Commandments (the forerunner of the Doctrine and Covenants), some members of the Church evidently criticized the wording of some of Joseph Smith’s revelations. After all, Joseph was very poorly educated and quite unsophisticated.

The revelation now known as Doctrine and Covenants 67 was given through Joseph Smith, at Hiram, Ohio, early in November 1831:

And now I, the Lord, give unto you a testimony of the truth of these commandments which are lying before you. Your eyes have been upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and his language you have known, and his imperfections you have known; and you have sought in your hearts knowledge that you might express beyond his language; this you also know. Now, seek ye out of the Book of Commandments, even the least that is among them, and appoint him that is the most wise among you; or, if there be any among you that shall make one like unto it, then ye are justified in saying that ye do not know that they are true; but if ye cannot make one like unto it, ye are under condemnation if ye do not bear record that they are true. (Doctrine and Covenants 67:4-8)

The critics selected William E. McLellin, a schoolteacher with a very sharp mind (also a future apostle and, alas, a future apostate), to take up the challenge. It appears, though, that McLellin failed to produce a convincing text, and the controversy soon died away.

The story is briefly treated, by the way, on pages 142-143 of Saints: The Standard of Truth: 1815-1846, the still relatively new official history of the Church.

Posted from Bountiful, Utah

Uncategorized

Doctrine and Covenants

Previous Post

March 15, 2020

Geology and Third Nephi (17): “Thick Darkness” (Part Two)

Next Post

March 15, 2020 Two thoughts on heaven

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 March 2014 August 2013 February 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What queen visited Solomon to test his wisdom?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Queen of Tyre Queen of Sheba Queen of Egypt Queen Esther