Authenticity of the Quran
Predictions in the Qur’an
The Holy Qur’an predicted and foretold several events with total
confidence and categorical details. Can we ascribe this precise
knowledge of the future to the knowledge of Muhammad as a person living
in the dark ages of Arabia? It is totally unrealistic to attempt to
analyse these predictions from a purely materialistic point of view. The
only justified answer to the cause of the precise accuracy of the
predictions is that it was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (S) from the
All-Knowledgeable Lord and the Master of the Universe, the past, present
and future, Allah (swt).
Please ponder over the following splendid moments of the Qur’anic
predictions:
a) The Descendants of the Prophet (S)
In Surah Kawthar, the Qur’an informs people that the descendants of
Prophet will ultimately be numerous, this despite the fact that in his
lifetime his enemies were hopeful that he would die without issue, since
all the sons of the Prophet had died in infancy, and only one of his
daughters survived.
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“To you We have granted abundance. Therefore to Your Lord turn in
prayers and sacrifice. For he who hated you, will be cut-off”. (Sura no.
108)
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Today, the descendants of the Prophet (Saadat and Ashraf) can be found
everywhere, while the progeny of Abu Jahal and Abu Sufyan, the enemies
of Prophet Muhammad (S) have become extinct. Given this, was it possible
for any other than God, that eternal reality and fixed pivot of truth,
to predict that matters would unfold in a sense completely opposed to
existing circumstances.
b) Defeat of Persian Empire
In 615 AD, Khusru Parviz of Persia attacked Byzantium (Roman) empire and
gained control of Syria, Palestine and North Africa. He ransacked
Jerusalem, set fire to the Holy Sepulcher and destroyed numerous cities.
The war ended in clear victory for fire-worshippers of Persia.
News of the defeat of Byzantine worshippers of God was received with
satisfaction by the idolaters of Mecca. This was grievous to the Muslims
and caused them much anxiety about the future course of the events. It
was then that a revelation came foretelling the renewed triumph of the
Byzantine over the Persians within few years.
These are the relevant verses of Surat Ruum in the Qur’an:
“The Romans have been defeated in a land nearby. But in the future
they will triumph over their enemies, within a period of few years. All
affairs, both earlier and later, are in the hands of God. And on the day
when the Romans triumph, the believers and the followers of Islam will
rejoice. God assists to whomsoever He wills, and He is Powerful and
Compassionate. This is the promise of God, a promise which can not be
violated, but most of the people know not”. (30:1-6).
Within less than 10 years, this Prophecy of the Qur’an was fulfilled in
the year 624 A.D. corresponding to year 2 A.H. How can we explain the
confident and categorical prediction of the victory of a defeated people
over a victorious people, in the absence of any factors pointing to the
likelihood of such an event? A realistic approach to the state of
society and the course of events would definitely have contradicted this
prophesy. The Prophet of Islam foretold a definite military victory at a
certain point in the future. How did he know it was going to
occur?
c) Conquest of Khaybar and Mecca
The Qur’an has also foretold the conquest of Mecca and the triumph of the Muslims over the polytheists as follows:
“That which God inspired in his prophet by means of a dream is true
and veracious: Without any doubt you will enter the sacred mosque (in
Mecca) in safety and security. You will shave your heads and shorten
your hairs without any fear or anxiety. God knows what you do not know.
And you will win a victory near at hand”. (48:27)
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These predictions were made at a time when no military expert or
adviser could have predicted the occurrence, given the difficult
circumstances of the Muslims and the unfavorable situation in which they
found themselves.
In the same verse (48:27), the Qur’an also mentions the future
occurrence of another historical event, namely the triumph of the Muslim
warriors at Khaybar, and their conquest of its formidable fortresses.
Hard blows had been inflicted upon the Muslims from Khaybar, but in the
end the army of Islam triumphed over the Jews, and the predictions of
the Qur’an was completely fulfilled. Can we ascribe this precise
knowledge of the future to the knowledge and speculation of the
Prophet?
d) The Final Outcome of Abu Lahab
The Qur’an also predicts with clarity the final outcome of the life of a
given individual, Abu Lahab, the obstinate enemy of Islam. It proclaims
categorically that he will refuse the religion of monotheism until the
very end of his life, and that for this reason his painful destiny will
be to enter the fire of God’s wrath.
These are the verses of the Qur’an:
“May Abu Lahab perish, and may his two hands be cut off. The
wealth he accumulated to destroy Islam has not availed him or saved him
from destruction; he will soon fall into the flaming fire of Hell”.
(111:1-3).
All historians agree that Abu Lahab closed his eyes on this world as an
unbeliever, and that he persisted in his obstinate hostility to the
prophet of Islam until the final moments of his life. The verses
revealed concerning the events mentioned above constitute a further
proof that the sacred book of Islam is from God.
e) The Return of the Prophet (S) to Mecca
Likewise, the prediction that the Prophet (S) would return to Mecca, his home, made at a time when he abandoned it for Medina because of the pressures of the polytheists, is also an indication of a higher consciousness:
“God Who made incumbent on you the recitation of the Qur’an
***will return you to your birthplace”. (28:85). ***
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All the afore-mentioned predictions of future events are inexplicable
unless they be ascribed to the source of revelation, to the infinite
knowledge of Allah (swt).
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