# Noah’s Ark: Quran vs. Bible - Shocking Differences in Stories of Islam & Christianity

- Language: en
- Published: 2026-08-26
- Canonical: https://blog.towardseternity.com/en/blog/noahs-ark-quran-vs-bible-shocking-differences-in-stories-of-islam-christianity
- Source video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61iL72uD_oM
- Channel: Towards Eternity

This is the cleaned transcript of the source video. The speech is unaltered.

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As dark clouds were covering the sky, people were screaming in desperation, searching for a place to hide. But the shelters they found weren't going to protect them from the disaster that was about to begin. On the horizon, a tremendous hurricane was approaching, piercing the darkness. The heavy downpour of rain that had brought was flooding everything, even trees and mountains couldn't resist the power of this natural disaster and disappeared under the water. But in the midst of all this chaos, a ship was floating on the water, not being affected at all by this catastrophe. It was as if an invisible hand was carefully protecting it and ensuring the safety of those on board.

This was neither a coincidence nor chance. For the almighty power who brought this flood upon the earth, had commanded His prophet to build this ark, and was now protecting it along with his passengers. This ark was the hope of the survivors and the good news of a new beginning. This was the ark of Prophet Noah. This is probably one of the most famous stories of human history, which has been the subject of many, many movies. You might think that the whole world knows this story the way you do. However, there are significant differences between the Christian and the Islamic narrative.

Today, we are going to look at this story from the perspectives of the Quran and the Bible, and compare the commonalities and differences between them. What kind of struggle did Prophet Noah face? What was the reason for such a powerful flood? How did things get to that point? How did those on the Ark survive that huge disaster? And what happened when it was all over? If you're ready, let's begin. Noah (pbuh), was born in the region called Mesopotamia. He was a respected, well known, morally upright person who had been living among his people for many years. But the society he lived in was very different from him.

It was a nation where the strong oppressed the weak, where people had reached the highest level of immorality, where evil and arrogance dominated their hearts. They were making statues of wise men from their nation who had died in the past. Then their love for them turned into worship, and eventually they forgot their actual creator. This was the nation that Noah (pbuh) was sent to as a prophet. He struggled day and night to warn them about the wrong practices that they were doing, and tried to convince them to stop them. The process leading up to the construction of his famous ark is not mentioned in the Bible. The details of this part are generally found in the Qur'an.

In the 59th verse of Surah Al-A'raf, God says, "We had certainly sent Noah to his people, and he said, 'O, my people, worship Allah. You have no deity other than Him. Indeed, I fear for you the punishment of a tremendous day.'" Noah was trying with all his might to rescue his people from the dark and corrupt state that they were in. His nation, on the other hand, sometimes responded with arrogance and sometimes plugged their ears and passed by. They accused their prophet of being deviated and tried to intimidate him with all kinds of insulting words. They insisted on holding on to their false beliefs.

"They said, 'Never leave your gods, and never leave Wadd, Suwa, Yaghuth, Yoruk and Nasr.'" They rejected Noah's invitation, thinking that he was only doing it for his personal gain. But the answer they got from Noah was quite clear. "And I do not ask you for any payment. My payment is only from the Lord of the worlds." But still they were constantly trying to discredit Noah. They were making fun of him and of those who believed in him. "They said, "Should we believe you, while you are followed by the lowest class of people?'" Despite all the transgressions of his people, he was still compassionate towards them, and wanted to protect them from the punishment that was coming their way.

However, only a handful of people believed in Noah, while others continued to be deviant and increase their persecution day by day. The situation was becoming unbearable. Over the years, he realized that no matter what he might do, his people wouldn't turn from the path of idolatry. As a last resort, he called out to his Lord and made this prayer. "He said, 'My Lord, indeed my people have denied me.

Then judge between me and them with decisive judgment, and save me and whoever is with me out of the believers.'" Prophet Noah, who struggled for his people for many years, who didn't give up on them until the last moment, who endured all the oppression and torture, was now waiting for the judgment of his Lord between him and his people. So what would be the decision of God? We will get to all that. But before we move forward, let's see how this part of the story is described in the Bible. "Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.

Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth." Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. "The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that He had made human beings on the earth, and His heart was deeply troubled." According to the Bible, the chain of events that led to God's regret started when some entities called 'Sons of God' wanted to marry human women.

"When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the Sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any one of them they chose." And with these marriages, evil multiplied on the earth and humans turned into oppressors. So the Lord said, "I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created, and with them the animals, the birds, and the creatures that move along the ground. For I regret that I have made them." In the Qur'an, there is no mention of God's regret. And in fact, can never be. Because regret is a result of weaknesses like making mistakes and not being able to foresee things.

And since the concept of God in Islam is perfect, such flawed characteristics can never be attributed to Him. Finally, after a long wait, God's command has come. So what was that command? God addressed Noah, saying, "No one will believe from your people except those who have already believed." So do not be distressed by what they have been doing, and construct the ship under our observation and our inspiration. And do not address me concerning those who have wronged. Indeed, they are to be drowned." In the Bible, however, God commanded Noah in the following way. "So make yourself an ark of cypress wood. Make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. This is how you are to build it.

The ark is to be 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. And after giving more and more details about the ship, according to the Bible, God said, "I'm going to bring flood waters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark, you and your sons, and your wife, and your son's wives with you." According to the Christian narrative, the only human beings to board the ark were Noah's family. But in the Islamic narrative, although their numbers were few, all the believers would get on board.

But not all of his family would be allowed to be on the Ark, which would cause Noah one of the greatest pains of his life. Noah (pbuh) started to build the ark upon the order he received from God. When the idol worshipers saw him building an ark, they started mocking him. They were saying things like, "You stopped being a prophet and became a carpenter?" "You're building an ark in the middle of a dry land." "How will you make it sail?" Indeed, there was no sea where Noah was building the ark. So how was the ship really going to move? Noah didn't pay attention to any of these things, and focused on doing what God had commanded him to do.

He knew very well that his master, the infinitely powerful, is able to do everything. And that He would never go back on His promise. So he continued the construction. "So it was until when our command came and water gushed up out of the earth, we said, 'Load upon it, meaning the ship, of each creature two mates and your family, except those about whom the word, i.e. the decree, has already been passed. And include whoever has believed.' But none had believed with him except a few." In order to maintain life where the ship was going to land, he was ordered to take on board a pair of each living creature. A similar command is found in the Bible too, but with an interesting difference.

This command is described in two separate passages, but the numbers of the pairs of creatures are different from each other. "You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you." In the seventh chapter, however, the command is given like this. Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate. And one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate. And also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth." In the first passage, one pair of creatures. In the second passage, seven pairs of creatures.

Noah did exactly what he was commanded by his Lord. And now the time had finally come. To signal the coming of the flood, God made the water gush out of the earth. At the time, Noah was 600 years old, according to the Bible. But according to the Qur'an until that point, he had stayed among his people for 950 years. The Bible says it was the 17th day of the second month of that year. Along with Noah (pbuh), the believers and the animals in pairs boarded the ark. Then dark clouds began to appear in the sky, bringing an incredibly heavy rain. As the water started to rise, the ship that had been standing on land slowly began to rise too.

Noah's nation, who refused to believe in him and gave him a very hard time during his entire mission, realized in shock that it was time to pay the awful price for what they had done. They began to look for a place to escape, but it was all in vain. As if the sky had been pierced, the waters were heavily pouring down and the springs of the earth were gushing forth. God was sending this enormous flood on a nation that had persecuted his prophet for years. A nation that hadn't changed their minds about their denial for such a long time. This would become a story to be told as an example to future generations. According to the Bible, all of Noah's sons were on the ship.

But the Qur'an says one of his sons didn't board the ark, because he didn't believe in Noah. In the Qur'an, he is not mentioned by name, but the account between him and Noah is described like this. "And so the ark sailed with them through waves like mountains. And Noah called out to his son, who was apart from them. 'O, my dear son, come aboard with us, and do not be with the disbelievers.' But he said, 'I will take refuge on a mountain to protect me from the water.' Noah said, 'There is no protector today from the decree of Allah, except for whom He gives mercy.' And the waves came between them, and he was among the drowned." Imagine a father in that situation.

And he doesn't just say, "My son." He says, "My dear son." He shows extra love and compassion towards him. On top of all the hardships he had gone through, he now witnesses this behavior from his son and then sees him drowning. Imagine how devastating it might be for Noah. As the storm in the skies was getting stronger and stronger, the vessel of survival for the people on board was able to resist the mountainous waves by the grace of Allah. As the leader of the ark that is full of believers, Noah continued to fulfill his duty despite the ongoing storms. The flood lasted for days. Each day they spent on the ship's rocking deck tested the patience of the believers.

Although they were physically and spiritually exhausted during this long wait, their faith gave them the strength to endure and carry on. Finally, the sky brightened up and the great fury of the flood calmed down. Allah placed the ark safely on the peak of a mountain. In the Qur'an, this moment is described as, "And it was said, 'O Earth, swallow your water. And O sky, withhold your rain.' And the water subsided, and the matter was accomplished, and it came to rest on the mountain of Judiyy. And it was said, 'Away with the wrongdoing people.'" And what the Bible says about that is, "The water receded steadily from the Earth.

At the end of the 150 days, the water had gone down, and on the 17th day of the seventh month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat." But did this flood cover the entire earth, or did it affect only a certain area? While the Bible clearly states that it covered the entire earth, the Qur'an left it ambiguous. Among the scholars of tafsir of the Qur'an, some have interpreted that to be a general flood on the earth, and others have said that it was a regional event. But when what we are talking about is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and one of His greatest miracles, it makes no difference how much area was affected.

Because for God, who has infinite power, it is equally easy to do both. What we should be focusing on are the messages that are given in the story. The events after the ark landed on the mountain are described in the Bible like this. "Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in His heart, 'Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood.

And never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done.'" If you remember in Chapter Six of the Book of Genesis, it was told that God regretted having created the human beings, and therefore decided to destroy them. And here in Chapter Eight, it seems like God decided to bring the flood in a moment of anger. When it was all over, He was calmed down by a nice smell and realized that what He had done was wrong. Feeling regret, acting impulsively in anger, making mistakes. How can such things be thought about God? Another surprising Biblical narrative is in chapter Nine, which says, "Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard.

When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders. Then they walked in backward and covered their father's naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked." To summarize what's going on here, when one of Noah's sons, Ham, tells his brothers to do something about their father's situation, they come and cover their father with a garment. But then something very shocking happens. Let's continue.

When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said, "Cursed be Canaan, the lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers." He also said, "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem. May Canaan be the slave of Shem. May God extend Japheth's territory. May Japheth live in the tents of Shem. And may Canaan be the slave of Japheth." First of all, I want you to notice how inappropriate it is to accept things like drinking alcohol and becoming naked after getting drunk about a prophet of God.

The second thing is, in this passage, it is apparently Ham who made the so-called mistake of telling his brothers, which is not really a mistake because it results in covering an embarrassing scene for his father. But strangely, the cursing is not directed at Ham, but rather at his son Canaan, who had nothing to do with the incident. It doesn't make sense that a prophet who is supposed to be a role model of justice would do such a thing. Or that God would want to show this act as a good example in His revelation to humanity. But the worst part of it is the events that we witnessed in the Middle Ages related to this curse.

Pay attention to the words, "Cursed be Canaan." "May Canaan be the slave of Shem." "May Canaan be the slave of Japheth." From the 15th century onwards, a belief spread that this curse is the cause of having Black skin. This Biblical passage was even used to justify the enslavement of Black Africans. It sounds very hard to believe, but it's a historical fact. Gomes Eannes de Azurara, a Portuguese historian, wrote that the Enchained Africans he had seen were in such a wretched state "Because of the curse which, after the deluge, meaning the great flood, Noah laid upon Ham...

that his race should be subject to all the other races of the world." Even reading these things makes me feel uncomfortable. Or Alexander Crummell, who was an African American pastor and an academic who was educated at Cambridge University, wrote in 1862, "Almost universal opinion in the Christian world held that the sufferings and the slavery of the black race were the consequence of the curse of Noah. Obviously, it is not directly mentioned in the Biblical text that black skin color is because of this curse. And Christian clergy of today argue that this is a completely wrong interpretation, and we certainly cannot judge a religion based on the mistakes made by its followers.

But the crucial point is what the religious text actually contains. Here we are talking about the great prophet, Prophet Noah, who gave such a sincere and serious struggle for his nation. But what is described in the Bible about him is something that can never be expected of him. Islam, on the other hand, does not accept this kind of narrative or description for any prophet, nor can Islam accept the idea that God would send this kind of revelation to humanity. A revelation that contains contradictions and inappropriate attributions. Remember the number of pairs of animals to be taken on the ark. In the book of Genesis, two different numbers were given. It's a contradiction.

How can God make mistakes when sending revelation? Or some of the statements made about God in the Biblical version of the story. God is portrayed as someone who regretted that He wasn't able to foresee certain things, or someone who couldn't control His anger, and after calming down, became regretful for what He had done. These descriptions can never be valid or appropriate for God. Because He is free from all imperfections. But when we look at the Qur'an, we see that the story is told in an ideal way. Free from any contradictions or inappropriate attributions. It has described Allah in a perfect way, in a way that befits His glory.

So in light of all this, wouldn't it be right to say that by sending the Qur'an, God has corrected the inaccurate narratives in the previous scriptures, such as we saw in this story, and told them in the most accurate way? Or can we not say that by sending the Qur'an, God has cleansed the Bible of the false beliefs that have been mixed into it over the centuries? The same Qur'an also corrected the false beliefs about Jesus that had been introduced to Christianity, and declared that he was not a deity, but rather one of the greatest prophets sent by Allah. We are all traveling in a certain direction on this enormous ship called the Earth, and our sea is this vast space.

Throughout history, thousands of prophets like Noah have captained the people on this ship, and Jesus was also one of those captains. They all tried to guide people to the truth. But when the pure faith that Jesus originally brought was corrupted, this ship was handed over to its last captain. In light of all these comparisons, don't you also think that this final captain is Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), and the compass is the Holy Qur'an?