Sign 2 of 12 · Land and water · Qur'an 18:109
If the sea were ink
Three faiths, one image of the inexhaustible.
Signs · If the sea were ink
“Say: if the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would run dry before the words of my Lord ran out, even if We brought another like it” (18:109, our rendering; see also 31:27).
The science. The ocean holds about 1.3 billion cubic kilometres of water.
Three faiths. The Talmud has the same picture: “Even if all the seas were ink, and the reeds quills, and the heavens parchment…” (Shabbat 11a). John's Gospel ends with it: if everything were written down, “the world itself wouldn't have room for the books” (John 21:25, WEB).
Pause and ponder
Look again. What else have you looked past?
Wonder, not proof: we never say a verse “predicted” science. Why not? · Science: Earth science · Index entry C11
