The Qur’an in context : a Christian exploration

364 Pages·2016·4.825 MB·English

by  Anderson, Mark Robert

The
Qur’an
in C O N T E X T
A CHRISTIAN
EXPLORATION
Mark Robert Anderson
InterVarsity Press
P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515-1426
ivpress.com
[email protected]
©2016 by Mark Robert Anderson
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from InterVarsity Press.
InterVarsity Press® is the book-publishing division of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA®, a movement of students and
faculty active on campus at hundreds of universities, colleges and schools of nursing in the United States of America, and a
member movement of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. For information about local and regional activities,
visit intervarsity.org.
Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the
Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights
reserved.
Cover design: David Fassett
Interior design: Daniel van Loon
Images: FransDekkers/iStockphoto
ISBN 978-0-8308-9343-0 (digital)
ISBN 978-0-8308-5142-3 (print)
To the memory of
Charles J. Adams
1924–2011
and
Harvie M. Conn
1933–1999
without whose inspiration and guidance
this book would not have been written

Truth has no special time of its own.
Its hour is now, always, and indeed then most truly
when it seems most unsuitable to actual circumstances.
Albert Schweitzer
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing
there is a field. I’ll meet you there.
Jalal al-Din Rumi

Contents
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xv
Maps: The Late Antique Middle East xvii
Early Manuscript xix
1 Approaching the Qur’an 1
Part I Qur’anic Context
2 Muhammad and the Origins of Islam 15
3 Coming to Terms with Muhammad’s World 27
4 Reading the Qur’an in Its Muhammadan Context 35
Part II Qur’anic Worldview
5 God’s Immanence and Transcendence 53
6 God’s Justice and Mercy 71
7 Adam in Stereoscopic Vision 83
8 Measuring Adam’s Fall 97
9 Divine Reprieve 113
10 Sin and Salvation in a World of Us Against Them 119
11 Prophets, Scriptures, Revelation 141
12 Qur’anic Spirituality’s Devotional and Social Dimensions 163
13 Qur’anic Spirituality’s Political Dimension 183
Part III Qur’anic Jesus
14 Jesus’ Origins and Person 207
15 Jesus’ Words and Works 223
16 Jesus’ Death and Beyond 239
17 Jesus’ Community and Scripture 257
Part IV Christian Response
18 An Arabic Qur’an for the Arab People 281
19 Could the Qur’an Be the Bible’s Sequel? 289
20 The Bible and the Qur’an: So Close, Yet So Far 305
Glossary 325
Author Index 329
Subject Index 331
Scripture Index 337
Praise for The Qur’an in Context 341
About the Author 342
More Titles from InterVarsity 343
Academic Textbook Selector 344