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The Quran Answers False Assessments of the Quran: The Speculation About Noah's Flood

Contents
  1. Introduction
  2. Prejudice, Ulterior Motives and Lack of Sincerity
  3. Confusing Intricate (Mutashabih) Verses With Perspicuous (Muhkam) Ones
  4. Lack of Expertise in Qur'anic Interpretation Techniques
  5. Insufficient Knowledge of Arabic
  6. The Absence of God-Given Wisdom and Understanding
  7. Lack of Thinking
  8. Arrogance and Superiority
  9. Trying to Interpret the Qur'an with Old Traditions
  10. Inability to Understand the Scientific Qur'anic Verses
  11. Trying to Interpret the Qur'an According to the Flawed Values of the Established Order
  12. Wine-drinking in Heaven
  13. Another Incorrect Interpretation on the Subject of Wine
  14. The Claim that "Pork Produced Under the Strict Hygienic Surroundings of Today May Be Consumed"
  15. Seeing the Anecdotes in the Qur'an as Fables
  16. The Assumption That the Qur'an is a Copy or Imitation of Other Holy Books
  17. Incompatibilities and Differences
  18. The Misinterpretation of the Term "We," Which God Uses in Reference to Himself
  19. Failing to Understand the Examples Given in the Qur'an
  20. Failing to Understand the Repetitions in the Qur'an
  21. Failing to Understand the Style of the Qur'an
  22. The Subject of Creation in Six Days
  23. The Speculation About Noah's Flood
  24. Conclusion

The subject of Noah's flood is one of many that the deniers are unable to rationalize, and so oppose. People who deny that it ever happened argue that it was technically impossible for a worldwide flood to have occurred. They go on to say that since the Qur'an relates such an event, it cannot be the word of God.

Nonetheless, such claims are not valid in the case of the holy Qur'an, given that it is the only holy book revealed by God that has stayed unaltered. Moreover, the mention of the Flood in the Qur'an is handled very differently when compared to the Torah and other cultures.

In the altered Torah, the flood is stated to have been universal and to have covered the whole world. The Qur'an, on the other hand, makes no reference to the flood being universal. In fact, just the opposite is true, as the verses explain that the flood was not worldwide but regional, and that only the nation denying the Prophet Noah was punished.

The Prophet Noah was sent to his own nation only, just as Prophet Hud was sent to the people of 'Ad (Surah Hud: 50), and the Prophet Salih was sent to the Thamud (Surah Hud: 61) and the flood destroyed only his people.

We sent Noah to his people:

'I am a clear warner to you. Worship none but God. I fear for you the punishment of a painful day.'

Surah Hud: 25-26

Those who were destroyed were those who denied and insisted on opposing the revelations of the Prophet Noah. The Qur'anic verses that deal with that subject leave no room for any argument:

But they denied him so We rescued him and those with him in the Ark. And We drowned the people who denied Our Signs. They were a blind people. (Surat alA'raf: 64) So We rescued him and those with him by mercy from Us, and We cut off the last remnant of those who denied Our Signs and were not believers. (Surat al-A'raf: 72)

We can see the Qur'an states that only the people of the Prophet Noah were destroyed, and not the whole world. When the Qur'anic verses are so obvious, to argue that the flood of Noah mentioned in the Qur'an was universal has no other aim than to confuse and trick the uninformed.

The fact that the logical deficiencies and superstitions that exist in the altered, story and myth-filled Torah and the Gospel do not exist in the Qur'an, but that corrected and factual versions do, is yet another piece of evidence that it was sent by God.

It is not possible for the Qur'an to refer to the flood as a universal event for yet another reason; God states that a nation will not perish unless it has been sent a messenger. Destruction will take place if the people in question have been sent a messenger to warn and guide them, but they reject him. This is related in Surat al-Qasas:

Your Lord would never destroy any cities without first sending to the chief of them a Messenger to recite Our Signs to them. We would never destroy any cities unless their inhabitants were wrongdoers. (Surat alQasas: 59) Yet another verse states: "Whoever is guided is only guided to his own good. Whoever is misguided is only misguided to his detriment. No burden-bearer can bear another's burden. We never punish until We have sent a Messenger." (Surat al-Isra': 15)

As can be deduced from the above verses, it is against the laws of God to destroy a nation before sending it a messenger. The Prophet Noah was only sent to his people to remind them. For this reason, God destroyed only the Prophet Noah's people, and not the other nations that had yet to receive messengers.

The other subject of debate regarding the flood is whether the waters rose high enough to cover all the peaks and mountains in the region. The Qur'an maintains that the ship rested on the "Judi" after the flood. The term "Judi" is taken to indicate a particular mountain, but in Arabic it actually means "A high point or place". So we can make out from the Qur'an that the flood did not swallow the whole world and all the mountains, as the altered Torah tells us, but rather covered a particular region.

Moreover, archaeological excavations carried out in the regions thought to have been affected by the flood have revealed that it was not a universal event covering the whole world, but instead a regional catastrophe that covered a wide section of Mesopotamia. (For more information, see Perished Nations by Harun Yahya)