What the readings change

Among the various readings, differences in word choice affect meaning:

Majority reading is ‘āthāman. The word means “sins” or “transgressions” in Arabic but is translated by Palmer as “a penalty.”

Ibn Mas‘ūd read ‘ayāman (“days”).

Ibn Zayd and Qatāda read ‘iqāban (“penalty”).

Idolatry, killing a soul unjustly, and fornication are all major sins and transgressions. How would the consequences for these transgressions be transgressions? If one was to consider the reading of Ibn Mas‘ūd (“days”), one may deduce that it is a threat of severe days to come. The reading of Ibn Zayd and Qatāda is the clearest. Yet, it does not agree with the script (rasm) of the ‘Uthmānic codex, like that of Ibn Mas‘ūd. Thus, the reading of Ibn Mas‘ūd is the most realistic here; it is closer in meaning and more suitable to the context.

In fact, there is a vast difference in meaning among these words: days, sins, and penalty. These differences are the result of the absence of dotting in one case (majority reading vs. Ibn Mas‘ūd reading) and word choice (Ibn Zayd and Qatāda reading). These differences in the meaning of the variant readings challenge the inerrancy and immutability of the Qur’ān.

Among the various readings, ambiguity concerning the addressees affects clarity and meaning:

Majority reading is kadhabtum (“ye have called…a liar”).

Ibn Mas‘ūd, Ibn ‘Abbās, and others read kadhaba al-kāfirūn (“the misbelievers have called…a liar”).

The fuller context of this verse, starting with Q 25.70, states that the person who repents and does righteous works will be rewarded with high places (in al-Janna, or Islamic paradise). However, an ambiguity abruptly appears at the end of Q 25.77: the mention of those about whom the lord does not care, save for their prayers—but then he accuses them of calling Muhammad a liar and threatens them with suffering. To whom does kadhabtum (“ye have called…a liar”) apply? If the verse is Meccan, is this verse addressing the Quraysh idolaters?

However, as explained in the introduction of this sura, this verse is Medinan according to the opinion of Nöldeke. This opinion is supported by Ibn Hazm. Thus, the address is directed at the Companions of Muhammad who are rewarded with high places.

Question: Is it possible that the Companions of Muhammad would call him a liar and, at the same time, be rewarded with al-Janna?

Therefore, the reading of Ibn Mas‘ūd and Ibn ‘Abbās (and others who followed this reading) is clearer. Their reading, “the misbelievers have called…a liar” removes this ambiguity by identifying the rejecters as the misbelievers.

Among the various readings, different wording affects meaning and shows inconsistency:

Current Arabic Qur’ān reads (“wary”), which means “prepared.”

Abū Ja‘far and others read ḥadhirūna (“cautious”) without the alif (ā) and “the plural of ḥadhira: the one who is alert or afraid.” It is also said that it means “we fear their evil.”

Ibn Mas‘ūd and others read ḥādirūna, which means “full of fury” (according to Islamic commentator Ibn ‘Aṭīya), “the stout and strong” (according to Islamic scholar and grammarian Ibn Khālawayh), and “strong and powerful ones” (others).

The difference in meaning resulting from the different readings challenges the inerrancy of the Qur’ān and the view that its text does not change.

Question: Were the people of Pharaoh “ready,” “alert,” “scared,” “full of fury,” or “strong and powerful”?

Various readings of this verse present two issues:

Word choice

Majority reading is firqin (“part”).

‘Āṣim al-Jiḥdarī and others read filqin (“cleft”) with an l instead of an r.

The majority reading appears to be making a connection between this word and the expression farraqnā (“we divided”), which is used in Q 2.50 (“When we divided for you the sea…”). The reading of ‘Āṣim al-Jiḥdarī and those who follow his reading adhere to the expression used at the beginning of Q 26.63, or fanfalaqa (“it was cleft…”).

Unusual or foreign word

The word al-ṭūd with the final consonant d appears with the meaning “the mighty mountain.” (Palmer trans. “a mighty mountain.” ) This meaning may be derived from Q 11.42 (“And it floated on with them mid waves like mountains…” ). As no variant reading mentions this word, it may be a foreign word that was introduced to the Arabic tongue at the emergence of Islam. A similar word that is mentioned in the Qur’ān several times is al-ṭūr (ܛܘܪܐ), which means “the mountain” in the Syriac language. Arabs used the Syriac word al-ṭūr in reference to “the mountain” as well.

The presence of al-ṭūd as an orphan word in the Qur’ān gives the impression that the scribe who copied it from the original text made a mistake in copying by writing a d instead of an r. This copying error is specifically mentioned by German Orientalist Christoph Luxenberg in his book The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran, where he discusses the word al-ṭūd and its inclusion in the Qur’ān, demonstrating that it is a mistake that took place when the word was copied in Q 26.

Among the various readings, different wording produces different meanings:

Majority reading is ’āzlafnā (“we drew near”) and means “we drew near and ‘the others’ are Moses and his companions—meaning, we brought them together and drew them near for deliverance.” (Sale’s translation is closer to the Arabic: “And we drew thither [then] the others.”)

Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Abū Ḥaywa read zalafnā (“we moved forward”) without the first alif.

’Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b, Ibn ‘Abbās, Ibn Mas‘ūd, al-Ḍaḥḥāk, and others read ’āzlaqnā (“we made their feet slip”), which means the feet of Pharaoh and his people, making them perish.

The majority reading, along with the reading of al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Abū Ḥaywa, indicates that “the others” are Moses and his companions. The reading of ’Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b and those who also read the word ’āzlaqnā indicate that “the others” are Pharaoh and his people. The verse that shortly follows, Q 26.66, also indicates that “the others” are Pharaoh and his people: “then we drowned the others.”

Question: Are “the others” in Q 26.64 about Moses and his companions or Pharaoh and his people?

Among the various readings, different wording produces different meanings:

Majority reading is yasma‘ūnakum (“they hear you”), meaning “do they hear your supplications?”

Qatāda read yusmi‘ūnakum (“they make you hear”), meaning “do they make you hear the response to your supplications?”

Questions: (1) Who hears who? (2) Do the idols hear the supplications of the people of Abraham? (3) Or do the people of Abraham hear the response to their supplications?

See the comment on the readings of al-’āykati and laykati (“the Grove”) in Q 15.78, Qur’ān Dilemma 2: 219.

Among the various readings, different wording produces different meanings:

Majority reading faya’tiyahum (“it shall come to them”) in the masculine form and refers to hellfire’s torment.

Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī read fata’tiyahum (“it shall come to them”) in the feminine form and refers to the Day of Resurrection (Final Hour).

Codex of ’Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b reads wa yarawhu (“and they behold it”).

In the codex of ’Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b, the expression “and they behold it” is a continuation to what preceded it in Q 26.201: “until they see the grievous woe! ”

The meaning of this verse changes with the various readings. What is the nature of the “it” that will come to the sinners (Q 26.200)? Is it hellfire’s torment or the Day of Resurrection?

Among the various readings, differences in word choice demonstrate a lack of unity in the Qur’ānic text:

Current Arabic Qur’ān reads al-shayāṭīnu (“the devils”), the plural of shaitan (“satan”).

Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Ibn al-Samayfa‘ read al-shayyāṭūn (“the scorched ones”) with emphasis on the y, an exaggeration of the verb shāṭa (“to scorch”); its singular form is shayyāṭ (“the scorched one”). Arab lexicographer Ibn Manžūr explains that the word al-shayyāṭūn and its derivatives mean “being burned.”

In his justification for both readings, Islamic commentator Abū Ḥayyān explains that the Arabs may choose to say shayyāṭīn and shayyāṭūn, just like they do with other words, such as Phalasṭīn and Phalasṭūn (in reference to Palestine). Arabic linguists and grammarians al-Farrā’, al-Naḥḥās, and others consider the reading by al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Ibn al-Samayfa‘ to be incorrect.

However, another grammarian and scholar of Hadith Literature, al-Nadr Ibn Shamīl, dismisses their objection, stating that “they [al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Ibn al-Samayfa‘] would not have read it as such unless they had heard it.” The reading by al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Ibn al-Samayfa‘ carries both meanings—“the devils” and “the scorched ones”—meaning, that the devils would be bombarded with stars when they attempt to eavesdrop at the high levels. The reason for scorching is explained in Q 67.5: “And we have adorned the lower heaven with lamps; and set them to pelt the devils with; and we have prepared for them the torment of the blaze!”

Regardless of whether the reading by al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī and Ibn al-Samayfa‘ agrees with the context of the verse, it does not agree with the ‘Uthmānic rasm. Does that mean that the early readers had the freedom to choose their own vocabulary?

Among the various readings, different word choices challenge the unity of the Qur’ānic text:

Majority reading is ayya munqalabin yanqalibūna (“what a turn they shall be turned”), meaning “to what place of returning they will return.”

Ibn ‘Abbās read ayya munfalitin yanfalitūna (“what escape they would escape”), meaning “those who oppressed were coveting to escape the torment of Allah, but they shall know that there is no form of escape available to them.”

Despite the difference in meaning between the two readings, they both lead to the same destiny of eternal punishment and torment. However, what is remarkable is that the two readings show different dotted letters, suggesting that both readings came after dotting was added to the Qur’ān’s text, and mean that these readings occurred during a later stage of the Qur’ān’s compilation.