Surah Al-Rûm 30:3

غُلِبَتِ الرُّوم فِي أَدْنَى الْأَرْضِ وَهُم مِّن بَعْدِ غَلَبِهِمْ سَيَغْلِبُونَ ُ

30:2-3 It is the defeat of the Romans that is alluded to in this verse and their subsequent victory is prophesied. Ghulibat غُلِبَتِ in its passive voice means defeated. The date of the revelation of this verse is the period when the Persian took Jerusalem in 614 A.D. and penetrated deep into the Byzantine territories. “The Byzantines have been defeated” غُلِبَتِ الرُّومُ. This prophecy was followed by another prophecy: “They after their defeat shall overpower.” In 622 A.D., in accordance with the prophecy of this verse, the Byzantines succeeded in defeating the Persians at Issus and subsequently drove Persians out of Asia Minor: in 624 A.D., the Persian armies were completely routed. In 625 A.D., the ninth year after the Hijrah, the Romans not only gained a signal victory over the Persians but also carried the war into Persian territory and despoiled the city of Medayon.

When this verse was revealed, Abû Bakr(rz) asserted in a public gathering that the Romans would overcome the Persians, but ‘Ubayy bin Khalf, an enemy of Islam, denied this; to show the confidence the Companions had in the prophecy, a hundred camels were wagered. The fulfilment of this prophecy is universally acknowledged, but some biased writers object on the Arabic vowel marks of the word Ghulibat. It is true that the vowel points on the consonants were not written in the early version of the Holy Qur’ân, but the Arabs of the time of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) knew how to pronounce a word correctly. Irrespective of what vowel marks one adds to for a correct word and no matter whether one pronounces the word ghuleba غُلِب or ghalaba غَلَب-in active or passive form—the meaning will not change.

Arabic can be written without vowel points, but not spoken without vowels. The prophecy in question, like the rest of the Qur’ân, was proclaimed verbally with the correct pronunciation. Its prophecies were not put in sealed boxes to be opened after the event. It was the Holy Prophets habit that after receiving a revelation he proclaimed it at once. The purpose of this prophecy was to encourage the despondent Muslims and warn the opponents of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) that they, like their Persian friends, would soon be defeated. This happened at Badr soon after.