The Qur'an, like the Bible, is one of the most important and influential books in the history of the world. As the sacred text of Muslims, nearly one fifth of the world's population, the Qur'an is continually read and recited around the globe, figuring in Muslims' prayers throughout the day. But the Qur'an is not merely like the Bible in its importance as a sacred text; the relationship is quite a bit closer. The text of the Qur'an draws on elements from Jewish, Christian, and pre-Islamic Arabian religious traditions, joining them in a framework that is strongly and decidedly Biblical. One might go so far as to say that a background knowledge of the Bible is essential for a proper understanding of the Qur'an. That this is so is not surprising or odd; it is merely a consequence of the Biblical framework of the Prophet Muhammad's mission.

According to Islamic doctrine, the Qur'an is made up of a series of divine revelations delivered by the angel Gabriel to the Prophet Muhammad over a period of 23 years (ca. 610-622 C.E.) and compiled roughly twenty years after his death. In terms of size, the Qur'an is about 4/5 of the New Testament. It contains 114 chapters, or surahs, which are divided up into about 6,500 verses, or ayahs. The chapters are organized in roughly descending order of length, with the exception of the first surah: the longest surah is the second surah, Surat al-Baqarah ("the Surah of the Cow") with 286 verses; the shortest surahs are grouped at the end of the Qur'an. The surahs of the Qur'an vary widely in length. The shortest, Surat al-Kawthar ("Abundance") (Q 108) and Surat al-Nasr ("Victory") (Q 110) are merely three verses long. With one exception, the surahs of the Qur'an are each preceded by the heading b'ismi Llahi r-Rahmani r'r-Rahim "In the name of God, the Merciful and Compassionate." The exception is the ninth surah, Surat al-Bara'ah ("The Ultimatum"). Various reasons have been proposed for this; one of the most widelyrepeated is that the phrase is omitted because this surah was a threat of war against the pagan Meccans, and the phrase would be something like a salutation, inappropriate for such a stern document. [Continued (with Exercises) in 5 PDF Files Listed Below]

3 - The Qur'an Unit Complete [267k download]
3.1 - The Qur'an Unit Part 1 [77k download]
3.2 - The Qur'an Unit Part 2 [14k download]
3.3 - The Qur'an Unit Part 3 [142k download]
3.4 - The Qur'an Unit Part 4 [65k download]
3.5 - The Qur'an Unit Part 5 [76k download]