Scripture and Science: A Profound Connection Revealed Through Time

"If religious scriptures have advanced scientific knowledge, why isn't there USEABLE knowledge like antibiotics, insulin, jet engines etc?"

by Doc

Firstly, we need to look at the context in which it was revealed, the state of society, and civilization at that time. These scripture (Al-Quran) are not all about science. If they were to talk about advanced science, surely the society at that time would be astonished because the level of knowledge/technology was very limited, and the world's innovation never ceased (books would never cease to be written). If so, it would show the weakness of God speaking to His creatures by revealing scriptures that are lengthy and difficult for humans to understand. But God is not like that. His scriptures are profound and comprehensive and suitable for human understanding. Because His greatness in knowledge transcends time and space, His speech/scripture is suitable for that time and also suitable for future times (for later generations) even though using the same words/text. That is one of the evidences of the greatness of the Creator. 

In the scripture (Al-Quran), Science is a topic to prove the existence of a Creator as great as God/Allah. Because humans find it difficult to believe in things they cannot see, but they tend to believe when they can see with their own eyes. So science is one of God's methodologies to communicate with His servants so that they can see the EVIDENCE.

The scriptures actually specifically explain a lot about God so that humans know who deserves to be worshipped. It provides guidance and a path about what are the true characteristics of God (Allah) that humans should dedicate worship to. There are many ways God tells about Himself in the scriptures, including explaining His attributes, stories & parables, advice and warnings about matters before and after death, including through the evidence of science/nature, which is by looking at nature & thinking, seeking who created it, which is extremely beautiful and organized from the smallest thing to the largest thing in nature.

As a small example, Surah 27, An-Naml (the Ant) verse 18 tells about the QUEEN ant ordering her subjects to enter the nest so that they are not stepped on by Prophet Solomon. You can read further article about ANT. The verse revealed 1445 years ago covers many aspects, not just scientific. Finally, in 1781 (almost 1200 years later), a biologist/zoologist named Pierre André Latreille discovered that in an ant colony, there is a female ant who serves as a queen, laying eggs and defending the survival of the colony. This scientific discovery proves the claim from the scriptures. Who told about this matter which was previously unknown to humans?