7.4. Noah

7.4. Noah

Noah follows Adam in the line of the prophets mentioned in the Qur’an. The most important event that took place during the time of Noah is the Flood. The following comments on ‘the Flood’ are from Dr. Maurice Bucaille’s book, The Bible The Qur’an and Science.

The Qur’an gives a general version which is different from that contained in the Bible and does not give rise to any criticisms from a historical point of view […] It does not provide a continuous narration of the Flood. Numerous Suras talk of the punishment inflicted upon Noah’s people. The most complete account of this is in Sura 11, verses 25 to 49. Sura 71 which bears Noah’s name, describes above all Noah’s preaching, as do verses 105 to 115, Sura 26. Before going into the actual course taken by the events, we must consider the Flood as described in the Qur’an by relating it to the general context of punishment God inflicted on communities guilty of gravely infringing His commandments. […] Whereas the Bible describes a universal Flood intended to punish ungodly humanity as a whole, the Qur’an, in contrast, mentions several punishments inflicted on certain specifically defined communities.4