Deciphering the Qur'an and Baptism in the Qur'an? Q2:138

Submitted by dhimmi no more (United States), Mar 30, 2017 at 10:20

Dr Pipes

Qur'an 2:138 says

صِبْغَةَ اللَّهِ وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ مِنْ اللَّهِ صِبْغَةً

Or Sabghatu Allah and what is better than Allah Sabghatan

The word صبغة Sabgha means

1.The primary meaning is Baptism

2. Stain

In Lisan al-Arab you will find

قال الأَزهري: وسمَّتِ النصارى غَمْسَهم أَوْلادَهم في الماء صَبْغاً
لغَمْسِهم إياهم فيه. والصَّبْغُ: الغَمْسُ. وصَبَغَ الثوبَ والشَّيْبَ

http://wiki.dorar-aliraq.net/lisan-alarab/%D8%B5%D8%A8%D8%BA

Or al-Azhari said that Christians immerse their children in water and al-Sabgh is immersion like staining a dress and the grey hair

So the primary meaning of the word al-Sabgha is Baptism and in the above Quranic verse it would only mean Baptism

However in Classical Arabic the word Baptism really means تعميد or Ta'meed But if we turn to Christian Arabic we find that the word Baptism is really معمودية or Ma'modiyya which is from the Syriac form of the word ܡܰܥܡܽܘܕܺܝܬ݂ܳܐ or Ma'modiyata

Now back to the Quranic Sabgha it is from Syriac ܡܰܨܒܽܘܥܺܝܬܳܐ or Masbu'ita or Baptism and this is indeed what Syriac speakers use for the word Baptism

So how did Baptism make it to the Qur'an? Well as usual al-Mufasereen come to the help and here is a link to al-Qurtubi

http://quran.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=221&BookID=14&Page=1

al-Qurtubi wrote

أَنَّ النَّصَارَى كَانُوا يَصْبُغُونَ أَوْلَادهمْ فِي الْمَاء , وَهُوَ الَّذِي يُسَمُّونَهُ الْمَعْمُودِيَّة

or the Christians yasboghuun or baptize their children in water and they call it al-Ma'mudiyya (baptism in Christian Arabic)

The primary meaning of the Quranic Sabghatu Allah must be the Baptism of Allah

If we turn to modern translations of Q2:138

http://corpus.quran.com/translation.jsp?chapter=2&verse=138

Muslim apologists translate the word Sabghatu as the religion or color which are wrong translations

And here is the shameful translation of Sahih International

" Sahih International: [And say, "Ours is] the religion of Allah. And who is better than Allah in [ordaining] religion? And we are worshippers of Him."

Now what could all of this mean? It makes one wonder that Luxenberg might be correct that some of the Quranic material must have been written in a Christian Syro-Arabic milieu and along the way Christian baptism becomes Allah's religion

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