Āyah, Revelation, and Covenant

Why Qur’an 2:106 Does Not Teach Abrogation

This article deliberately avoids later theological doctrines and reads the Qur’an on its own terms, seeking internal coherence rather than retroactive harmonization.

1) The Problem Framed

A common claim is that Qur’an 2:106 and 16:101 prove that God abrogates earlier divine law and, by extension, silently annuls previous covenants. If this reading were correct, it would force the Qur’an into contradiction with its own explicit affirmations elsewhere—especially in Surah al-Mā’idah (5), where Jews and Christians are instructed to judge by their own scriptures.

This article argues that such a contradiction is unnecessary. The Qur’an itself becomes coherent once we distinguish the process of revelation from the completion of a covenant.

2) What Is an Āyah?

An āyah (آية) in Qur’anic usage primarily means a sign—something that points beyond itself. Signs can be cosmic (e.g., the moon and its phases), historical, rhetorical, or textual. Importantly:

A sign is within a larger whole.
A sign indicates meaning; it is not automatically a finalized law.

Just as the moon’s phases are signs within the moon’s cycle, āyāt are signs within the unfolding of revelation.

3) Revelation as a Process, Covenant as a Completion

The Qur’an draws a clear line between:

Revelation in stages (a process), and
A covenant (ʿahd) once established (a completed state).

The Qur’an is explicit about covenants:

2:80 — “Have you taken a covenant from Allah? Then Allah will never break His covenant.”
16:95 — “Do not sell the covenant of Allah for a small price.”

A covenant may be broken by people, but it is not revoked by God unless the text explicitly says so. No such revocation is ever stated for the Torah or the Gospel.

4) Reading 2:106 and 16:101 Carefully

The Texts

2:106 — “Whatever āyah We replace or cause to be forgotten, We bring one better than it or similar to it.”
16:101 — “When We replace one āyah with another—and Allah knows best what He reveals in stages—they say: ‘You are a forger.’”

Key Observations

The term used is āyah, not law (ḥukm), not sharīʿa, not covenant.
16:101 explicitly ties substitution to staged revelation (mā yunazzil).
The accusation addressed is fabrication, not covenantal betrayal or cancellation of prior covenants.

These verses explain why changes in expression occur during revelation, not why completed covenants are canceled.

5) Surah al-Ḥajj 22:52–53: The Missing Link

Surah al-Ḥajj provides an interpretive key:

Interference occurs during recitation.
Something alien may be introduced.
Allah nullifies what is not from Him and then confirms His āyāt.

This describes purification and stabilization of revelation, not abrogation of divine covenants. Allah removes what does not belong and strengthens what does.

6) Why Surah 5 Rules Out Covenant Abrogation

Surah al-Mā’idah repeatedly presupposes the continued validity of prior covenants:

5:43 — “Why do they come to you for judgment when they have the Torah, in which is Allah’s judgment for them?”
5:44 — Jews are to judge by the Torah.
5:47 — Christians are to judge by the Gospel.
5:66 — Blessing is conditioned on upholding Torah and Gospel.

If 2:106 meant blanket legal abrogation across covenants, these statements would be incoherent. The Qur’an would be criticizing people for not using laws that no longer apply—which makes no sense.

7) Internal Consistency Without Dogma

The reading that keeps the Qur’an internally consistent is:

Āyah substitution refers to refinement within revelation before it is sealed.
Covenants, once established, are not silently annulled.
The Qur’an addresses all mankind in proclamation and warning, while preserving covenantal plurality.

This removes the need for later doctrines designed to force a single flattened legal system onto all communities.

8) Conclusion

Qur’an 2:106 and 16:101 do not teach universal legal abrogation. They describe how revelation is clarified, corrected, and stabilized during its delivery.

Reading them as canceling earlier divine covenants forces the Qur’an into contradiction with its own explicit statements—especially in Surah 5—where those covenants are still treated as binding.

Substitution of āyāt explains the refinement of revelation, not the revocation of covenants.

TL;DR

Āyah = sign within revelation, not automatically a law.
Substitution happens during revelation, not after covenants are complete.
Allah explicitly states He does not break His covenants (2:80; 16:95).
Surah 5 presupposes Torah and Gospel as still operative (5:43–44; 5:47; 5:66).
Therefore, 2:106 ≠ doctrine of abrogation.

Light