Hadith narrators and collectors misunderstood this verse and tried to support their misunderstanding by the fabrication of a hadith reporting that Muhammed split the Moon by pointing at it with his finger. Some narrators did not stop there and claimed that half of the Moon fell in the backyard of Ali, Muhammed's son-in-law. The believers of this hadith are silent to the critical questions about the event. Why didn't populations of other countries witness this incredible event? If there were such an astronomical event, many people from China to Africa would have noticed and recorded it. Besides, this traditional interpretation contradicts the Quran, which specifically limits the signs given to Muhammed to be the signs contained in the Quran alone (29:50). The splitting of the Moon was fulfilled when Apollo 11 landed on the Moon and astronauts took some rocks from the Moon back to earth in July 1969. The word shaqqa, which we translated as "split," does not necessarily mean splitting in half (see 80:26; 50:44). When this event was happening, Dr. Rashad Khalifa was uploading the Quran to his computer in St. Louis. Splitting the surface of the Moon was the start of his work, which led to the historical discovery of the miraculous mathematical system based on code 19, prophesied in chapter 74, which happened in 1974. Thus, the following verse relates to this discovery. See 74:1; 27:82; 38:1; 40:28; 46:10; 72:28.

The verse also may be read differently and understood as, "They denied and followed their wishful thinking. Indeed, every affair will find its right place."

The allegory of locusts for resurrection is interesting, since some locusts lay their eggs in the forests and appear years later simultaneously. For instance, in the North-eastern region of the US, Periodical Cicadas emerge in big populations after years of dormancy underground sustaining themselves on tree roots. For some broods, the period is 13 years and for others, 17. After years of disappearance, they emerge all together with a cacophony of songs, testifying a similitude of resurrection for those who appreciate God's signs in nature. I discussed this and many other scientific signs and prophecies of the Quran, in my first book, "Kuran En Büyük Mucize" (Quran, the Greatest Miracle), co-authored with Ahmad Deedat, a very popular book in Turkey in 1983-1987. “In sum, locusts resurface from under the soil, after a long period, all together, in big crowds. Similarly, humans too will resurface from under the soil, after a long period, all together, in big crowds. Of course, in similes the comparandum and comparatum will have some differences. For instance, locusts are dormant under the soil, while human body disintegrates.” (Kuran En Büyük Mucize, Ahmet Deedat and Edip Yuksel, Inkılab, Istanbul, 12th Edition, 1986, p.146). Though this book is now out of print and was not translated to English, a recently published book by the Quran Studies Group led by my friend Caner Taslaman, PhD, presents the scientific aspect of the Quran under the title, Kuran Hiç Tükenmeyen Mucize, which is translated into English under the title, "The Quran: Unchallengeable Miracle" See: 4:82.

The flood was limited to the region of Dead Sea, with Noah's community, and the ark was a small watercraft carrying Noah's animals from his farm. Storytellers exaggerated the event to a worldwide flood. Many Christians who believe those stories have been looking for the remnants of Noah's ark on top of mountains, wrong mountains, in vain. See 11:44.

Despite the repetitious assertion of the Quran that it is easy to understand, those who traded it with the teachings of Hadith and Sunna claim otherwise, which turns it into a self-fulfilling prophecy (6:25; 17:46; 18:57). Also, see 25:30.

See 6:110.

For the Quranic meaning and prophetic implication of the word saqar, see 74:26.