197أَوَلَم يَكُن لَهُم آيَةً أَن يَعلَمَهُ عُلَماءُ بَني إِسرائيلَMuhammad AsadIs it not evidence enough for them1 that [so many] learned men from among the children of Israel have recognized this [as true]?2I.e., for those who disbelieve in the prophethood of Muhammad.Sc., "and in consequence have become Muslims": for instance, 'Abd Allah ibn Salim, Ka'b ibn Malik and other learned Jews of Medina in the lifetime of the Prophet, Ka'b al-Ahbar the Yemenite and a number of his compatriots during the reign of 'Umar, and countless others throughout the world who embraced Islam in the course of centuries. The reason why only learned Jews and not learned Christians as well are spoken of in this context lies in the fact that - contrary to the Torah, which still exists, albeit in a corrupted form - the original revelation granted to Jesus has been lost (see surah 3, note 4) and cannot, therefore, be cited in evidence of the basic identity of his teachings with those of the Qur'an.