A number of prophecies in the Koran have come true; the most famous of them is the prophecy about the Roman-Persian struggle in A.D. 614 to 622 over Jerusalem. The prophecy in the Koran is as follows: “The Romans have been defeated, in the nearer land, and they, after their defeat, will be victorious” (30:2–3). In A.D. 614, the Romans were defeated in battle by the Persians. In A.D. 627, a decisive battle took place, and the Romans gained victory over the Persians.

Then there is the prophecy about the return of the Muslims to Mecca after being exiled by the idolators: “You shall indeed enter the Inviolable Place of Worship (Mecca), if Allah will, secure, (having your hair) shaven and cut, not fearing” (48:27). This prophecy came true when Prophet Muhammad reopened Mecca for Muslims shortly before his death. (The shaving or cutting of hair mentioned in this verse is a standard ritual of pilgrimage.) The Koran also prophesies the spread of Islam, and the fate of certain characters, such as Abu Lahab, who died an idolater as prophesied.

One accurate historical account in the Koran is that of Moses and the Pharaoh. The Koran also mentions that the Pharaoh had a close friend named Haman, but that information was not available in any other source until the nineteenth century, when hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt were decoded and understood.

Prophecies aside, the Koran narrates historical accounts with precision that surprises historians and archaeologists. For example, the Koran narrates the story of Prophet Moses and the Pharaoh of Egypt: “Therefore We seized him and his hosts, and abandoned them unto the sea” (28:40). In his attempt to get to Moses and kill him and his followers, the Pharaoh followed him into the sea, where the Pharaoh drowned. These events took place nearly 1,500 years before the revelation of the Koran. Today, in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo lies the mummy of a Pharaoh that archaeologists claim had died of drowning. Using the Koran for reference, they believe it's very likely that this is the same Pharaoh that had chased Moses into the sea.