This thematic node gathers 1 instance of the use of this verse in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
Text of the verse as cited
And We have certainly conveyed the Word to them… Indeed, before it we were Muslims… Those will be given their reward twice
Reader’s answer
Question
How does Muhammad Shahrur employ al-Qasas 51–54 to distinguish Islam from faith, and what does the reward twice mean in his reading?
Shahrur uses these verses to argue that some People of the Book were “Muslims” before they believed in the Qur’an and the Muhammadan message; they then combined prior Islam with subsequent faith. He therefore interprets “their reward twice” as the reward of Islam and the reward of faith. This is his own particular exegetical reading: the cited text establishes that he explicitly advances it, but does not provide, within this passage, an independent proof conclusively establishing that the two rewards refer specifically to these two levels.
Shahrur cites al-Qasas 51–54 in his discussion of the difference between “Muslims” and “believers.” He understands the People of the Book’s statement, “Indeed, before it we were Muslims,” to mean that Islam existed among them before belief in the Muhammadan message. Shahrur explains the phrase “they will be given their reward twice” by saying: “that is, once for Islam and once for faith.” He uses this understanding to establish that Muhammad’s followers may be described as “Muslim believers.”
Citation and location
The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought — p. 11.
Limits of the reading
- The sole citation establishes the attribution of this interpretation to Shahrur, not its exegetical validity or the verse’s exclusivity to him.
- The excerpt does not demonstrate an independent elaboration of the meaning of “twice” beyond Shahrur’s own assertion; this meaning should therefore be presented as a Shahrurian reading, not as a settled lexical indication.
- No broader claim concerning rulings on the People of the Book or the conditions of their salvation should be inferred from this passage alone, since the citation does not discuss those implications.
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Brief reading
For Shahrur, these verses support the distinction between the level of Islam and the level of faith, while recognizing two rewards for the People of the Book upon believing in the Muhammadan message.
Themes
- Faith-related
- Methodological
Related concepts
- Islam and faith: 2
- People of the Book: 1
- Reward: 1
Place in the conceptual network
It is connected to the construction of the distinction between the religious foundation and subsequent faith.
Role of the verse in the argument
- Support: 1
Instances of use
- The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought, p. 11: He makes it evidence for distinguishing the level of Islam from the level of faith, and for the People of the Book having two rewards upon believing in the Muhammadan message alongside their prior foundation in Islam.
- Concept: Islam and faith
- Function of the verse here: Support
- Textual citation: “And he said of the People of the Book: {And We have certainly conveyed the Word to them…} (al-Qasas 51–54), that is, once for Islam and once for faith.”
Related books
This page is presented within the general atlas-building methodology.