Qur'an 4:171 and 5:73: 'Do not say Three' / 'God is the third of three'
c. c. 625 – c. 632
Place: medina
24.468, 39.611 · On the map
The text is attested. Griffith's Syriac-echo reading is a hypothesis.
Q 4:171 calls Jesus 'the Messiah, son of Mary, messenger of God, His word cast into Mary and a spirit from Him' and warns 'do not say Three'. Q 5:73 condemns those who say 'God is the third of three'. Griffith argues the Arabic phrase echoes the Syriac title for Christ, 'the Treble One', making it a rhetorical jab at Christian formulas rather than a misunderstanding of the Trinity.
People named here
- Jesus
- Mary
Where scholars disagree
For
- Sidney H. Griffith — 'Syriacisms in the Arabic Qur'an' (2007)
Against
- Critics note the Qur'an could have used Arabic thaluth ('trinity') and argue for straightforward polemic (e.g., the BtD 2013 paper by C. Jonn Block, found in search; not a peer-reviewed source)
Links
Text and wording
Out
Dome of the Rock inscriptions (691/2)
The Dome inscription quotes Q 4:171–172.
quoted_in
attestedIn
Qur'an 4:157–159: 'they did not kill him, nor crucify him'
4:171 follows in Sura 4: Jesus as messenger, word and spirit, 'do not say Three'.
same_sura
attestedIn
Qur'an, Sura 5 (al-Ma'ida): the Table and 'me and my mother as two gods'
5:73 ('third of three') sits in Sura 5 with 5:116.
same_sura
attested
Conflict and authority
In
Councils of Nicaea (325) and Constantinople (381): the Trinity defined
'Do not say Three' answers Trinitarian formulas.
opposed
attested
Sources
- Qur'an 4:157–159, 4:171
Quran.com. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Qur'an, Surat al-Ma'ida (5)
Quran.com. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Sidney H. Griffith, 'Syriacisms in the Arabic Qur'an: Who were those who said Allah is third of three according to al-Ma'ida 73?', in A Word Fitly Spoken (Ben-Zvi Institute 2007), 83–110
Ben-Zvi Institute (PDF hosted by almuslih.org). Accessed 2026-11-11.