By the Messiah, and the psalms by Dáúd.
A summary of all these four is the Koran,
Which Muhammed has composed,
The sense and the text of which is a wonder.
When the eloquent men of Arabia united
Breathe enchantment into the sounds of words,
They become weak, defective, and vile
Altogether, in comparison with the shortest Súrah.”[523]
As the book of God contains divine words, it is ancient, and the letters and sounds are new; the novelty of an old meaning is like a dress.