Quran corrects 6 scientific errors in the bible – Claim 1

This is the second post in a series where I exchange arguments about the Quran with Nadir Ahmed. The introduction can be found here.

Nadir’s arguments can be found in full here.

“Mustard Seed in the Quran and Bible”

(Kingdom of God) It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Mark 4:30-32


³¹ He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. ³² Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, Matthew 13:31


But science confirms us that the Mustard seed is NOT the smallest seed:

The Quran takes the same mustard seed analogy found in the Bible, however it omits the scientific error:

Sahih International: And We place the scales of justice for the Day of Resurrection, so no soul will be treated unjustly at all. And if there is [even] the weight of a mustard seed, We will bring it forth. And sufficient are We as accountant. 21.47

Notice mustard seed being the smallest seed is not found!

This alternative text is not a correction. The Bible talks about the size of a mustard seed, the Quran talks about the weight of a mustard seed. It’s using the same object (a mustard seed) in a slightly different metaphor to emphasise something one would usually consider insignificant.

Conclusion

The bible is 100% incorrect, the Quran is neither correct nor incorrect because it doesn’t attach a statement of truth to the subject that can be tested. Talking about the same object in a similar way is not the same as writing the same text with an error corrected.

There is nothing remarkable, let along miraculous.

If the alleged all-knowing author of the Quran wanted to correct a scientific error in the Bible then a good candidate would have been the way the Bible repeatedly talks about people’s hearts as if they are the seat of human intelligence.

In fact, historically people did actually believe the heart was the source of our thoughts.

“In ancient Egypt, from the late Middle Kingdom onwards, in preparation for mummification, the brain was regularly removed, for it was the heart that was assumed to be the seat of intelligence” – Wikipedia

This was a commonly held misconception of reality that is prevalent throughout the bible, it would have been very simple for the author of the Quran to change “heart” for “head” whenever talking about knowing things or concealing thoughts.

“Their hearts are in confusion” Quran 23.63

“So have not they travelled in the land, and is for them hearts to reason with” Quran 22.46

“Every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil” Bible: Genesis 6.5

“Why reason ye these things in your hearts” Bible: Mark 2.8

Hearts cannot reason, they cannot be confused, they cannot imagine or reason. Both the Bible and the Quran reiterate errors that were commonly believed at the time. If the author of either of these books was all-knowing, it must have decided to deliberately author a book that looked like it was written by a person with all the scientific ignorance of the time.

If one is willing to see errors in the religious books of others, they must be willing to hold their own religious books to the same high standards. In the introduction I said

Nadir claims the Quran corrects the errors of the Bible and contains no errors itself. However, in this one example alone the Quran shows it does in fact repeat errors of the Bible, and a commonly held misguided belief at that. It is therefore every bit as fallible and man-made as the Bible.