The Incoherence of the Quran

Apologists frequently champion the Quran as an unmatched literary and linguistic miracle. Yet, this claim collapses under basic textual analysis. Far from being a clear or structurally coherent book, the Quran is notoriously jumbled. For over fourteen centuries, top Islamic commentators have struggled to untangle its chronology and context, and readers find it nearly impossible to follow without extensive external commentary.

This confusion is built into the very architecture of the book. Verses revealed during the early Meccan period are often shoved into Medinan chapters, and vice versa. A normal reader has no intrinsic way of knowing which historical context a particular line belongs to.

Worse still, a single verse might begin by discussing a specific historical event, abruptly shift in the middle to a completely different topic that occurred years later, and then inexplicably return to the original subject at the end.

A striking example of this text splicing is found in Quran 5:3. A single verse abruptly shifts back and forth across a four-year gap. Look at this verse from the Quran:

Quran 5:3:

[1st part of the verse 5:3 about the EVENT 1] Forbidden to you are carrion, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah, the strangled animal, that beaten to death, that which has fallen from a height, that which has been gored by horns, and that which has been preyed upon by wild beasts, except for that which you have slaughtered [according to Islamic law], and that which has been sacrificed on [stone] altars. And forbidden to you is fortune-telling by arrows. This is transgression.

[2nd part of the verse 5:3 which starts talking about the EVENT 2, which happened many years later after the event 1] This day have those who disbelieve despaired of your religion, so fear them not, but fear Me. This day have I perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.

[3rd part of the verse 5:3, which again starts talking about the EVENT 1] But whoever is compelled by severe hunger, neither inclining willfully to sin nor transgressing its limit, there is no sin upon him. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.

The commentators of the Quran themselves tell that:

• The First Segment (Event One): The verse begins by listing prohibited foods, such as carrion, blood, and meat dedicated to other deities. According to mainstream tradition, this part was revealed during the Pact of Hudaybiyyah in the sixth year after migration (6th Hijri).

• The Second Segment (Event Two): Suddenly, in the middle of the same verse, the topic shifts entirely. It declares, "This day have I perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you." Scholarly consensus confirms this segment was revealed four years later, during the Farewell Pilgrimage in the tenth year after migration (10th Hijri), roughly eighty-one days before Muhammad passed away. It has zero textual connection to dietary laws.

• The Third Segment (Back to Event One): Immediately after this grand theological declaration, the verse snaps back to the topic of dietary rules, offering exceptions for those driven by severe hunger.

Mainstream commentators openly acknowledge this fractured layout.

Maulana Modoodi wrote in his commentary of the Quran under this verse (link):

“According to authentic traditions, this 2nd part of the verse (about the perfection of religion) was revealed at the time of “Last Sermon” in the 10th Hijri year. But the initial part of the verse was about the Pact of Hudaybiyyah (which happened in the 6th Hijri year).

Maulana Taqi Uthmani wrote in his commentary of the Quran under this verse (link) :

Some Jews said to Umar Ibn Khattab, had this verse “This day have I perfected for you your religion” revealed upon them, then they would have taken it as a day of Eid (celebration). Upon that Umar told the Jews that they didn't know that two Eids of Muslims were combined on this day. This verse was revealed in the 10 th Hijri year at the incident of "Last Sermon" at the place of "Urfa" at the time of "Asr Prayer". There were 40 thousand companions with prophet Muhammad. And the holy prophet remained alive for 81 days after this incident.

Is there any book other than the Quran which could be so much Incoherent?

For sure, even the Bible is also incoherent in many places, but still, it is tens of times better in incoherence than the Quran and even a normal person can understand it while reading it. But this thing is not possible with the Quran, and a normal person is absolutely not able to understand it, despite the big claims of Muslims and the Quran itself that Allah made the Quran easy to understand for the people. 

Actually, the biggest miracle is how billions of Muslims could consider such an incoherent book like the Quran to be a miracle. 

Linguistic Mistake in the Quran, Indicating Its Human Origins

Quran 4:11:

يُوصِيكُمُ ٱللَّهُ فِىٓ أَوْلَٰدِكُمْ ۖ لِلذَّكَرِ مِثْلُ حَظِّ ٱلْأُنثَيَيْنِ ۚ فَإِن كُنَّ نِسَآءً فَوْقَ ٱثْنَتَيْنِ فَلَهُنَّ ثُلُثَا مَا تَرَكَ ۖ وَإِن كَانَتْ وَٰحِدَةً فَلَهَا ٱلنِّصْفُ ۚ 

Instructs you Allah concerning your children - for the male like (the) portion (of) two females. But if there are (only) women (i.e. daughters) more (than) two, then for them two thirds (of) what he left. And if (there) is (only) one, then for her (is) half. (Word by Word Translation by Corpus Quran)

Allah is incorrectly using the phrase “more than two daughters” when He actually wanted to say “two or more daughters”.

Please read the detailed article here.

It is a clear linguistic mistake, and it happened while no Allah is present in the heavens, and Muhammad was making the revelation on his own, and he was not safe from making human mistakes like these. 

All Muslim Scholars agree that two daughters will get 2/3 of the estate.

Muhammad himself distributed 2/3rd of the estate between two daughters. 

Sunan Tirmidhi, 2092:

“The wife of Sa’d bin Rabi’ came with the two daughters of Sa’d to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, these are the two daughters of Sa’d. He was killed with you on the day of Uhud, and their paternal uncle has taken all that their father left behind, and a woman is only married for her wealth.’ The Prophet (ﷺ) remained silent until the Verse of inheritance was revealed to him. Then the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) called the brother of Sa’d bin Rabi’ and said: ‘Give the two daughters of Sa’d two thirds of his wealth, and give his wife on eighth, and take what is left.’”

Grade: Sahih (Authentic) by Imam Tirmidhi and Hassan (i.e. Fair) by Al-Albani and al-Arnaut.

Tehrif (Distortion) Case:

It was such a big error, that modern Muslims Quran Translators have to make a TEHRIF (Distortion) in its translation, and change it to “two or more daughters”. For example, look at the translation of Yousuf Ali. 

(Quran 4:11) Allah (thus) directs you as regards your Children's (Inheritance): to the male, a portion equal to that of two females: if only daughters, two or more, their share is two-thirds of the inheritance; if only one, her share is a half. (Yusuf Ali, Saudi Revised Edition,1985)

And here are some other modern Quran Translators, who followed this distorted translation of “two or more daughters”. 

1. Mustafa Khattab
2. Study Quran
3. Shabbir Ahmed
4. Syed Vickar Ahamed
5. Umm Muhammad (Sahih International)
6. Abdel Haleem
7. Bilal Muhammad
8. Mohammad Shafi

Compared to these modern translators, we have other translators too, who didn't make any Tehrif in the translation, and they translated it correctly, i.e. “more than two daughters”. They are:

1. Word by Word Translation by Corpus Quran
2. Muhammad Asad
3. Literal Translation by Dr. Shahnaz Sheikh
4. Pickthal
5. Safi Kaskas
6. Wahiduddin Khan
7. Shakir
8. Laleh Bakhtiar
9. Abdul Hye
10. Kamal Omar
11. Farook Malik
12. Muhammad Sarwar
13. Taqi Usmani
14. Ahmed Ali
15. Aisha Bewley
16. Maududi

It is unfortunate that modern Muslim apologists have made dishonesty HALAL for themselves. They distort, they hide, they tell clear lies ... but the truth will still become evident.