Background: Mathematics is the basic universal truth and language of cosmos, so numerical patterns, inherent to naturally occurring perfect formations, are similarly evident within the Quran due to its divine authorship. A sacred text believed to be divine is expected to exhibit inherent proofs that can be verified to validate its accuracy, of which the mathematical proof can be the most unambiguous. The unique textual integrity of the Quran, which is meticulously preserved through oral and written traditions in a specific order, renders it exceptionally suitable for numerical analysis. However, these methods have been proposed subjectively and lack objective statistical testing. Methods: This study is the first to use robust statistical tests to examine the numerical patterns in the Quran by converting each letter to an MS Excel cell. The frequency of 19-letter verses in the Quran, analyzing a dataset of 6236 verses (with letter counts ranging from 3--551). Among other numerical patterns, we found an outlier of 168 verses with 19 letters in our scatter plot analysis, leading us to question whether this could be random. The chi-square goodness-of-fit test and the Poisson test were both applied. Results: An expected frequency of 70, from the empirical distribution, was compared with the observed frequency of 168. With a chi-square test statistic of 138.76 (df = 1, p < 0.001) and a Poisson test Z score of 11.71 (p ≈ 0, using a normal approximation), both tests yielded highly significant results. The strong rejection of the null hypothesis by both tests proves the statistically significant frequency of 19-letter verses (168 instances), which is highly improbable owing to chance. Quranic verses show a nonrandom distribution of letter counts, suggesting underlying structural or symbolic meaning and prompting further research into the numerical patterns within sacred texts. The number 19, as mentioned in Quran 74:30--31, serves as a divine test to distinguish believers from disbelievers, affirming the Quran's divine origin and refuting the hypothesis that it is merely human words (74:25) while strengthening the faith of the People of the Book and true believers. The hypothesis that Prophet Muhammad’s or his companions intentionally designed the Quran’s 19-letter verse frequency over 23 years is implausible owing to their lack of mathematical expertise, focus on oral preservation, absence of historical significance for 19, and inconsistent numerical patterns across Quranic metrics. Conclusion: The probability of the Quran being created by a human is approximately 1:1.73 × 10³¹, an event comparable to locating a single grain of sugar within a mountain-sized pile, confirming its divine authorship.
Hashim et al. (Sun,) studied this question.