The Qur’an An Abiding Wonder
Divine Arrangement
~ 143 ~
action as well. Muslims are free to interpret the text,
but not to alter it. One must fully grasp this point
that the punishment meted out to other peoples of
the Book for altering the
wordings
of the divine text
will be meted out to Muslims for altering the
meaning
of the text. Herein lies the gauge of the
Muslims. If by their self-styled interpretations they
change the meaning of the sacred text, they cannot
be spared divine punishment by the mere fact of not
having changed the actual words. It is because the
test of man lies in his sphere of power. Now,
forbidden to change the words of the Qur’an,
Muslims can change only its meaning. So it will be
on this very point that they will be taken to task.
