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conscience alone, attain to such knowledge of God as he needs, therefore God
Most Merciful has revealed Himself in a special manner; that is, He has sent His
prophets and apostles, and through them has in some measure revealed Himself and
openly proclaimed His will, His commands and His prohibitions. Whatever God
taught the prophets through inspiration, that they have written in their books,
in accordance with God's command, and they have bequeathed these books to people
of later times. These books are collected together under the name of the holy
Scriptures, and they are in use among Christians. It is true that ignorant men
say that these holy books have been corrupted and annulled; but whoever desires
proof that they are the word of God in truth, and have been preserved
unabrogated, unchanged and uncorrupted, will find the whole matter fully
demonstrated in the Balance of Truth
(ميزان
الحق).1 Thus, if he feels
any doubt or uncertainty about this most important matter, it will be dispelled,
please God, by a perusal of the work we have mentioned. In those holy Scriptures
of the prophets and apostles God's will and the law in accordance with which He
will judge2 the people who, being acquainted with that law, are bound
to obey it, are both explained. Transgression
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of this law of God is called sin, as God has clearly taught both by
conscience and in His own word.1
And transgression of God's holy will is conceived of in the mind as implying
not only man's conduct in doing what God has forbidden, but also his fault in
not fulfilling what God has commanded. Accordingly it is written in the New
Testament: 'To2 him therefore that knoweth to do good, and doeth it
not, to him it is sin.' If a man be in a condition of comfort and abundance and
see another in need and distress and do not help him, and if he give nothing to
the poor and needy, nor advice to the perplexed, nor counsel to him who has gone
astray, and, when he finds any one ready to injure or traduce or find fault with
another, do not to the utmost of his ability dissuade him from doing so, nor honour and glorify God by striving for his neighbour's safety and true
happiness, then, although in some people's opinion such a person is devoid of
sin and fault, yet in the sight of the holy and righteous God he is a sinner
like the deceitful, the dishonest, the cruel and other evil doers. And sin is
not only an action which is contrary to God's command, but everything is sinful,
which is not in accordance with God's will; and every light word, improper
language, and all false speaking, is also a sin in the judgement of God, the
holy, the just; as the Lord Jesus Christ has said: 'I3 say unto you, that every idle
word that men shall speak, they
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