contradiction in the Holy Quran regarding proving the goodness of the Islamic nation

 Content of the doubt:

Some sophists imagine that there is a contradiction between the Almighty’s saying:“You are the best nation produced for mankind”(Al-Imran: 110), and His saying - the Almighty -:“And thus We have made you a just community that you will be witnesses over the people”(Al-Baqarah: 143), and they ask: How can the Qur’an prove the goodness of the nation of Muhammad - may God bless him and grant him peace - and then establish its moderation among the nations?! Their aim behind this is to attack the Qur’an and claim that it is not from God.

Two ways to refute the doubt:
1) The nation of Muhammad is the best nation in the sight of God - the Almighty -, and this is what the Holy Qur’an and the Noble Prophetic Hadith have confirmed.
2) What is meant by “the moderation of the nation of Muhammad - may God bless him and grant him peace” is that it is a middle ground between the negligence of the Jews in replacing this world with the hereafter, and the excesses of the Christians in matters of religion with the monasticism they invented.

Detail:

First: The goodness of the Muhammadan nation:
The nation is: the pioneering vanguard, and the one who carries out the call among a nation of nations, meaning that it is a generation among generations with its own characteristics and features, and the nation of Muhammad - may God bless him and grant him peace - is the best of nations; they enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in God, so God - Glory be to Him - addresses the Muslims with this; to strengthen them, and to reinforce the strength of their faith and their unity in this faith, and to call others to follow the example of these believers.
Ibn Ashour says in his interpretation of this verse: His saying: “You enjoin what is right” (Al Imran: 110) is a state of the pronoun “you were”, so it indicates the reason for their being the best nation, so it follows that what was in their goodness should be imposed on them, if it was not imposed before, and to emphasize its imposition on them, if it was imposed on them before.
The verb "kana" indicates the existence of what it is attributed to in a past time, without indicating continuity or interruption. God Almighty said: "And God is Forgiving and Merciful", meaning: and He will continue to be. So the meaning of "you were the best nation" is that you were in a state of ultimate superiority over all nations, meaning you achieved this ultimate superiority by obtaining its causes and means; because they were characterized by faith and calling to Islam and establishing it in the right way, and defending against deficiency and waste, so that it was realized that when that was made their duty, and each one did what he could, then it was realized from them to do it, or the determination to comply with it appeared from them whenever an opportunity arose that required it, so it was realized that they are the best nation in general, so He informed about them with that. What is meant by "nation" is the generality of all nations, according to what is known in adding the comparative to an indefinite noun, that it is for the genus, so it indicates exhaustiveness.
His saying, “Brought forth for mankind,” bringing forth is a metaphor for creation and manifestation, and the meaning is: You were the best of nations that existed in the world of this world, and the agent of “brought forth” is knowledge, and He is God, the Creator of nations, and what is meant by “people” is all of humanity from the beginning of creation1.
The issue of the superiority of the Islamic nation over other nations did not stop at the limit of enjoining good and forbidding evil and believing in God Almighty, but rather it went beyond that, “The Islamic nation took up all that the nations with which it came into contact had in terms of science, philosophy, arts and crafts, so it revived its dead, increased its materials, collected its strays, built schools and universities for it, and the caliphs and individuals competed in acquiring its books, and they gathered to their palaces from the cornersof the earth[1][2], and they spread the essence of their knowledge in the countries of the world, with no difference between its East and West, and they accepted in their institutes students of knowledge from all nations, without distinguishing between its Muslims and Christians[3].
All these qualities have given the Islamic nation goodness over other nations that preceded it.

This goodness of the Islamic nation is not only proven by the Holy Quran, but the hadiths of the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - also prove this goodness, including what he said - may God bless him and grant him peace -: “I have been given four things that were not given to any of the prophets of God: I have been given the keys to the earth, I have been named Ahmad, the earth has been made pure for me, and my nation has been made the best of nations” [4] . He - may God bless him and grant him peace - also said: “You will complete seventy nations, and you are the best of them and the most honored by God - the Almighty -” [5] [6] . After that; the goodness of the Islamic nation over other nations is a goodness proven by the Quran and the Sunnah, and there is no room for doubt about the validity of its proof for this nation. Second: The approach of the nation of Muhammad - may God bless him and grant him peace - is a middle way between excess and negligence in religion: What is meant by the word “middle” in describing the nation of the Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - is that Islam - as called for by all previous messages - came in the message of the Seal of the Prophets complete in relation to the calls that preceded it, and dominant over them, with what he revealed of the complete, lasting and undistorted Sharia in the Noble Qur’an. In this general meaning of the dominance of the Noble Qur’an with the perfection of its call, Sharia, explanation and proof, God Almighty says: “It is He who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to manifest it over all religion” (As-Saff: 9), and He says: “And We have sent down to you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming what came before it of the Scripture and as a criterion” (Al-Ma’idah: 48), and God Almighty says, addressing the People of the Book: “O People of the Book, do not exceed limits in your religion or say about God except the truth” (An-Nisa’: 171). This is why the meaning of “the middle” is associated with the description of the nation of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), which carried this clear light in the Holy Quran in the last of Allah’s messages. This middle is a perfection that was achieved for the nation of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), when Allah made it (through what He revealed to it) a “middle” between two extremes of extremism and excess in religion. The People of the Book, the Jews and Christians, went to extremes in two contradictory directions, while Islam came as a middle ground between them in the call of the Holy Quran, in the example of the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and in the awareness of this nation that believed in Allah and acted upon what was revealed to it through His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). As for the extremism and extremism of the Jews, it was represented - and still is - in their selling the Hereafter for the sake of this world, and Allah the Almighty mentioned this in His saying: “And you will find them the most greedy of people for life - even more than those who associate others with Allah. One of them would like to live a thousand years” (Al-Baqarah: 96). And about their corruption on earth, God Almighty says: “Whenever they kindle a fire for war, God extinguishes it. And they strive to cause corruption on earth. And God does not love corrupters (64)” (Al-Ma’idah). As for the extremism in religion on the part of the Christians, it was represented - by a number of them - in selling the world for the sake of the Hereafter, and that is through monasticism, which was not revealed by a heavenly religion. This monasticism may turn into the opposite, calling for selling the Hereafter for the world - as happened often in Europe - and in that, God Almighty says: “O you who have believed, indeed many of the rabbis and monks devour the wealth of people unjustly and avert [people] from the way of God” (At-Tawbah: 34). And God Almighty also says about the exaggeration of some of these and those to what is worse: “They have taken their rabbis and their monks as lords besides God, and [also] the Messiah, the son of Mary. And they were commanded not except to worship One God. There is no god except Him. Exalted is He above what they associate with Him” (31) (At-Tawbah).








In the meaning of moderation and goodness entrusted to this Muhammadan nation, Professor Muhammad Farid Wajdi says: “Today we come from these lofty ideals with His - the Almighty - saying: “And thus We have made you a just community that you will be witnesses over the people and the Messenger will be a witness over you” (Al-Baqarah: 143), and we interpret this verse: The Almighty’s saying: “And thus” is an indication of the meaning of the previous verse, which is His - the Almighty - saying: “The foolish among the people will say: What has turned them away from their Qiblah which they used to face? Say: To God belongs the East and the West. He guides whom He wills to a straight path (142)” (Al-Baqarah), He called them “fools” [7] because they belittled their minds by imitation and by turning away from contemplation and investigation, so they objected to the first Muslims in changing their Qiblah to the Sacred House after it had been to the Holy House, and in this objection they were characterized by foolishness because they did not understand that directing the face is only to God and not to a place, “And to God belongs the East and the West, so wherever you turn, there is a face Allah (Al-Baqarah: 115); because the Most High is not confined to a place, so he considered neglect of this fact foolishness; so the meaning of the verse that we are on the path to is: Just as we have guided you in the affairs of your religion and your world to the straight path, we have made you a middle nation, that is, good and moderate. The root of the word “middle” is the name of the place whose sides are equal, borrowed for praiseworthy qualities because they fall between the two extremes of excess and deficiency. We have only made you thus in order to convey to you [8] a great global mission, which is that you be witnesses over the people in their shortcomings and extremism, and the Messenger be a witness over you.
Then this global mission entrusted to this nation [9] makes it inclined [10] to excel in every virtue, and the first to be adorned with every noble trait. This explains what is known about this nation in terms of its broad-mindedness in dealing with those who disagree, and its open-armedness in protecting the weak, which had an effect in spreading its religion and reviving its language, which neither massive armies nor propaganda based on the most severe terrorist means can achieve. It was one of the things that astonished historians that a nation whose unity of tribes had not been broken for more than a quarter of a century would triumph and turn into a conquering nation, and attack two nations that had absolute power over the earth, and wipe out the existence of one of them, and break the resolve of the other. What is even more astonishing and bewildering is that it preserved the conquests it had achieved for centuries, and raised it from its level of culture and knowledge by many degrees” [11] . This meaning is also enriched and enriched by the virtue of Sheikh Muhammad al-Ghazali, who explains the effects of moderation, as he says: They said long ago: Virtue is the middle between two vices, and whether this saying is true or not, the truth is lost between excess and deficiency, and people suffer greatly from extreme extremism and cold neglect. When Islam appeared, the Jews were known for their eagerness for life, their strong love of money, and their seeking it through usury and other forms of ill-gotten gains, and that the Christians saw piety in monasticism, asceticism, and contempt for money, to the point that it was said in their books: For a camel to enter the eye of the water. The tailor [12] is closer than the rich to entering the kingdom of heaven! Islam came and rejected both paths, and considered money a means to what comes after it. The Prophet - may God bless him and grant him peace - said: “This money is green and sweet, and what a good companion the Muslim is to the one who gives from it to the poor, the orphan, and the wayfarer, or as the Messenger of God - may God bless him and grant him peace - said. And whoever takes it unjustly is like the one who eats and is never satisfied, and he will be a witness against him on the Day of Resurrection . ” [13]



 Strictness and cruelty were noticeable in the teachings of the Jews, as if piety was a punishment set aside [14] for every sin, and as if pleasing God could only be achieved through dry duties and well-woven appearances. Then Jesus - peace be upon him - came to talk about tender hearts and weak humanity in need of God’s forgiveness, and they said: He left a woman who was led away accused of sin, and he said to the Jews: Whoever among you is without sin, let him come forward and stone her!
Islam came and rejected worship coupled with arrogance [15] and haughtiness over people, and made repentance easy for every sinner [16] , and ordered that it be covered up and overlooked, and approved punishment for whoever brags about his crime and harms society by insisting on it, that is, it rejected arrogant obedience, and had mercy on the remorseful disobedience, and sought humble and gentle reform. Ali ibn Abi Talib said: Shall I not tell you about the true jurist?! The jurist who does not make people despair of God’s mercy, and does not permit a person to disobey God [17] .
Islam is a moderate religion that orders the nation to adhere to the straight path, and warns it against deviating to the right and to the left. Moderation is a virtue that is evident in Islam’s social and economic directives. For example, in the relationship between men and women, Islam refuses for women to be confined to the home or preyed upon, and refuses for men to treat them like jailers or hunters. The home is the incubator in which women raise and educate the new generation on the teachings and principles of religion. The home is not a prison, as some of our prevailing traditions understand it, nor a temporary meeting place for parents and children, as Europe has come to understand, where families are a form without a subject. Society in general has a share of women’s lives. She learns, teaches, receives treatment, orders, forbids, and pledges allegiance. She may participate in the army in some medical services, and she may fight if necessary to defend herself and her nation. She should be an expert in the religious and civil affairs of her nation. There are those who refuse all or some of this for women, at a time when Western women have gone to extremes in disgraceful lengths in assimilation outside the home, and all of this is against her original message. If we were to adhere to the moderation of Islam, that would be more pleasing to God, happier for the nation, and purer for both sexes.
As for the economic aspect, Islam has recognized the right to individual ownership, but it has curbed [18] its excesses with restrictions on what is permissible and what is forbidden, and has limited its extremities with the rights of the weak and the tired. Thus, it has guaranteed abundant production, because incentives are present, and has preserved the group from disintegration, because the exhortation to mercy has left no gap unfilled, and peoples have been saved from infidel communism and unjust capitalism. Muslims are supposed to learn these facts from their Prophet, understand them and apply them, for Allah will ask them about the guidance they received: Did they benefit from it and did it benefit the people ? [19] Conclusion: The Muhammadan nation is the best nation brought forth for mankind; this is because it is the nation that enjoined what is right and forbade what is wrong and believed in Allah - the Almighty - and this is what the verses of the Holy Qur’an and the hadiths of the Prophet - may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him - emphasized. This goodness is not absolute goodness without any restrictions or conditions, but rather it is linked to its previous conditions - enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong and believing in Allah - if one of these conditions is not met, the nation loses its goodness.



· The meaning of moderation that the Islamic nation was described with means: moderation in all matters of this world and the hereafter. There is no neglect of religion for the sake of this world as the Jews did, or excess in it at the expense of this world as the Christians did. This moderation is what made the Islamic nation a supervisor and a dominator over other nations. This is what appears clearly in the legislation and teachings of Islam: social - such as the relationship between men and women - and economic - such as individual ownership and social duties on the owner of money - etc. So what contradiction do they imagine?!

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[1] . Al-Aknaf: plural of Kanf, which is the side of something, and its shadow.
[2] . Al-Jil of any thing: most of it.
[3] . From the landmarks of Islam, Muhammad Farid Wajdi, Dar Al-Masryah Al-Lubnaniyyah, Cairo, 1st ed., 1414 AH/1994 AD, p. 79.
[4] . Authentic: It was narrated by Ahmad in his Musnad, Musnad of the Ten Promised Paradise, Musnad of Ali ibn Abi Talib - may Allah be pleased with him - (1361), and by Al-Bayhaqi in Al-Sunan Al-Kubra, Book of Purification, Chapter on the Evidence that the Good Ground is Dust (965), and it was authenticated by Al-Albani in Al-Silsilah Al-Saheehah (3939).
[5] . Hasan: It was narrated by Ibn Majah in his Sunan, Book of Asceticism, Chapter on the Description of the Nation of Muhammad - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - (4288), and by Al-Tirmidhi in his Sunan, Book of Interpretation of the Qur’an, Chapter on Surat Al Imran (3001).
[6] . Muhammad - may Allah bless him and grant him peace - is the best of mankind and his nation is the best of nations, Omar Ahmad Muhammad, Islamic Heritage Library, Cairo, 1st ed., 1419 AH/1998 CE, pp. 127, 128, with some modifications.
[7] . Fools : plural of foolish, he is the one who wastes his money on things that are not appropriate, and foolish: the ignorant.
[8] . Nasdi : we offer.
[9] . Al-Mukhwala : the given.
[10] . Niza’ah : the aspiring.
[11] . From the Landmarks of Islam, Muhammad Farid Wajdi, Dar Al-Masryah Al-Lubnaniyyah, Cairo, 1st ed., 1414 AH/1994 AD, p. 81 and following.
[12] . Eye of the needle : the eye of the needle.
[13] . Narrated by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih, Book of Zakat, Chapter on Charity to Orphans (1396), and in other places, and by Muslim in his Sahih, Book of Zakat, Chapter on Fear of What Comes from the Blossom of the World (2470), and the wording is his.
[14] . Al-Marsad: the path of observation and surveillance.
[15] . Arrogance: lack of goodness.
[16] . Stumble : slip.
[17] . Narrated by Abu Khaithama in the Book of Knowledge (143), and Ibn Abd al-Barr in Jami’ Bayan al-Ilm wa Fadluhu, Chapter on Who Deserves to Be Called a Jurist or Scholar (958).
[18] . To restrain: to pull an animal with a bridle.
[19] . One Hundred Questions about Islam, Muhammad al-Ghazali, Nahdet Misr, Cairo, 2nd ed., 2004, pp. 94: 97, with some modifications.