Pada zaman Nabi ﷺ, teks Al-Qur'an dipelihara dalam ingatan dan juga ditulis pada batu-batu leper, kayu, dan tulang.

During the time of the Prophet (saw), the text of the Qur‟an was preserved in memory and also inscripted on flat stones, wood, and bones.

Al-Qur'an dahulu diturunkan kepada Rasulullah ﷺ dan baginda biasa memerintahkan orang ramai untuk menghafaznya dan menulisnya di atas kepingan kulit, kertas, tulang bahu (scapula), pelepah tamar, tulang, batang daun kurma dan sebagainya. Apabila ayat-ayat diturunkan, baginda biasa memberi arahan agar ia diletakkan di tempat yang sepatutnya dalam Surah (bab). Maka baginda biasa berkata: letakkan ayat ini dalam Surah sekian-sekian selepas ayat sekian-sekian. Lalu mereka meletakkannya di tempat yang sepatutnya dalam Surah. Diriwayatkan daripada Uthman (ra) bahawa beliau berkata, "Ayat-ayat dahulu diturunkan kepada Nabi ﷺ, lalu baginda berkata: 'Letakkan ayat-ayat ini dalam Surah yang menyebut perkara sekian-sekian.'" (Ibn Majah & Abu Dawud)

The Qur‟an used to be revealed to the Messenger of Allah (saw) and he used to instruct people to memorise it and write it down on pieces of leather, paper, scapula, palm risp, bones, leaf stalks of date palm etc. When the Ayat were revealed he used to give the order that they be placed in their proper place in the Surah (chapter). Thus, he used to say put this Ayah in such and such Surah after such and such Ayah. So they used to put them in their proper place in the Surah. It has been narrated by Uthman (ra) that he said, “The Ayat used to be revealed to the Prophet (saw) and so he used to say: “Put these Ayat in the Surah which mentions such and such thing.” (Ibn Majah & Abu Dawud)

Begitulah ia dilakukan sehingga seluruh al-Qur'an diwahyukan dan Allah (SWT) mencabut nyawa baginda ﷺ selepas wahyu al-Qur'an selesai. Oleh itu, susunan ayat bagi setiap surah dalam bentuk seperti yang ada sekarang dalam naskhah (Mushaf) hari ini telah ditetapkan melalui wahyu (tawqeefan) daripada Nabi ﷺ yang disampaikan kepada baginda ﷺ oleh Jibril daripada Allah (SWT). Menurut susunan ini, umat menyampaikan al-Qur'an daripada Nabi ﷺ dan tiada perselisihan mengenainya. Susunan ayat dalam surah-surah adalah dalam bentuk yang sama seperti yang kita lihat hari ini.

It was done in this manner until the whole Qur‟an was revealed and Allah (swt) took his (saw) soul after the revelation of the Qur‟an was complete. That is why the arrangement of the verses of every Surah in the form as it is in now in the present script (Mushaf) was determined by the revelation (Tawqeefan) from the Prophet (saw) transmitted to him (saw) by Jibreel from Allah (swt). According to this arrangement the Ummah transmitted the Qur‟an from the Prophet (saw) and there is no dispute about this. The order of the verses within the chapters (Surahs) was in the same form as we see today.

Mengenai susunan sebahagian surah-surah, ia disusun mengikut ijtihad para Sahabat (semoga Allah meredai mereka).

As for the arrangement of some of the chapters (Surahs) they were put together according to the Ijtihad of Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them).

Imam Ahmad dan para penyusun Sunan telah meriwayatkan sebuah hadis daripada Ibn 'Abbas yang telah diisytiharkan sahih oleh Ibn Hibban dan al-Hakim. Mereka meriwayatkan bahawa Ibn Abbas (ra) bertanya kepada Uthman (ra) mengapa beliau meletakkan Surah Al-Bara'ah (At-Taubah) selepas Surah Al-Anfal, padahal ia tergolong dalam al-Mathani (surah-surah yang kurang daripada 100 ayat) dan Al-Bara'ah tergolong dalam al-Mi'un (surah yang mengandungi kira-kira 100 ayat). Ibn Abbas berkata, "Kamu telah menggabungkan keduanya dan kamu tidak menulis di antara keduanya بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ 'Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim', dan kamu telah meletakkannya di antara tujuh surah yang panjang (at-Tiwal)." Maka Uthman berkata, "Sering kali sesuatu surah diturunkan kepada Rasulullah ﷺ yang mengandungi beberapa ayat. Apabila sesuatu diturunkan kepadanya, iaitu ayat-ayat daripadanya, baginda memanggil seseorang daripada kalangan mereka yang menulis untuk baginda dan bersabda: 'Letakkan ayat-ayat ini dalam surah yang di dalamnya disebut begini dan begini.' Surah Al-Anfal termasuk antara surah yang pertama diturunkan di Madinah, dan Al-Bara'ah pula diturunkan di akhir Al-Qur'an. Kisah keduanya menyerupai antara satu sama lain, maka aku menyangka bahawa Al-Anfal itu sebahagian daripada Al-Bara'ah. Rasulullah ﷺ wafat dan baginda tidak menjelaskan kepada kami sama ada Al-Anfal itu sebahagian daripada Al-Bara'ah." Diriwayatkan juga oleh Sa'id bin Jubair daripada Ibn Abbas yang berkata: "Nabi ﷺ tidak mengetahui penghujung sesebuah surah sehinggalah بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ 'Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim' diturunkan." Dalam riwayat lain: "Apabila Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim diturunkan, mereka mengetahui bahawa surah itu telah berakhir." Ini menunjukkan bahawa susunan ayat dalam setiap surah ditentukan melalui wahyu (tawqifiyyan). Oleh kerana Nabi ﷺ tidak menjelaskan persoalan Al-Bara'ah, Uthman (ra) menggabungkannya dengan Al-Anfal berdasarkan ijtihadnya sendiri. Penulis kitab al-Iqna' meriwayatkan bahawa Bismillah (singkatan bagi Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim) bagi Al-Bara'ah terdapat dalam Mushaf Ibn Mas'ud. Telah diriwayatkan bahawa para Sahabah pernah menyimpan salinan-salinan yang susunan surahnya berbeza, walaupun tidak ada perbezaan dalam susunan ayat. Maka Mushaf Ibn Mas'ud disusun dengan cara yang berbeza daripada Mushaf 'Uthman dari segi susunan surah. Ia bermula dengan Al-Fatihah, kemudian Al-Baqarah, Al-Nisa' dan Aal-'Imran. Berbeza dengan Mushaf 'Uthmani yang susunannya ialah Al-Fatihah, Al-Baqarah, Aal-'Imran, kemudian barulah Al-Nisa'. Tidak satu pun daripada mereka disusun mengikut urutan turunnya wahyu. Dikatakan bahawa Mushaf 'Ali disusun mengikut urutan turunnya wahyu, bermula dengan Iqra', kemudian Al-Muddaththir, Nun wal-qalam, Al-Muzzammil, Tabbat, Al-Takwir, Sabbih, dan terus begitu hingga akhir surah-surah Makkiyyah, kemudian barulah surah-surah Madaniyyah.

Imam Ahmad and the Sunan compilers have reported a hadith by Ibn 'Abbas which has been declared sound by Ibn Hibban and al-Hakim, they narrated that Ibn Abbas (ra) asked Uthman (ra) as to why he put Surah Al-Bara‟ah (At-Tawba) after Surah Al-Anfal when it is from the Mathani (Surahs with less than 100 Ayahs) and Al-Bara'ah is from the Mi'un (consisting of about 100 Ayahs). Ibn Abbas said, “You have put them together them and you did not write between the line بِسْمِ اللَّوِ الرَّحَْْنِ الرَّحِيمِ 'Bism‟illah ar-rahman ar-rahim” and you have placed them among the seven long (Tiwal) Surahs. So Uthman said, “Often a Surah would be revealed to the Messenger of Allah (saw) that would have a number of verses. When something was revealed to him – i.e. verses from it - he used to call someone from among those who used to write for him and say: „Place these Ayah in the Surah, in which this and this is mentioned. Surah Al-Anfal was one of the first to be revealed in Madinah and Al-Bara'ah was at the end of the Qur‟an. Their narrative used to resemble each other so I thought Anfal was part of Bara‟ah.” The Messenger of Allah (saw) died and he did not clarify to us if Al-Anfal was part of Al-Bara'ah. Thus, it has been narrated by Sa'eed b. Jubayr from Ibn 'Abbas who said that: “The Prophet (saw) did not know the ending of a Surah until 'Bism‟illah ar-rahman a-rahim' was revealed.” In another narration: “When Bism‟illah ar-rahman ar-rahim was revealed they knew that the Surah had come to an end.” This indicates that the verse order in every Surah was determined by revelation (Tawqifiyyan). And since the Prophet (saw) did not elucidate the issue of al-Bara'ah, Uthman (ra) added it to al-Anfal according to his own Ijtihad. The author of al-Iqna' reported that the Bism‟illah (abbr. for Bism‟illah ar-rahman ar-rahim) for al-Bara'ah is present in the Mushaf (collection) of Ibn Mas'ud. It has been reported that the Sahabah used to keep copies whose arrangement of Surahs was different though there were no differences in the verse arrangement. So the Mushaf of Ibn Mas'ud was compiled in a manner different to the Mushaf of Uthman in terms of the arrangement of the Surahs. It began with Al-Fatiha, then Al-Baqarah, Al-Nisa and Aal-Imran. Contrary to the Uthmani Mushaf whose arrangement is al-Fatiha, al-Baqarah, Aal-Imran and then Al-Nisa. None of them were compiled according to the order of revelation. It is said that the Mushaf of 'Ali was according to the order of revelation, it began with Iqra', then Al-Muddaththir, Nun wal qalam, Al-Muzzammil, Tabbat, Al-Takweer, Sabbih, it went on in this manner to the end of the Makkan Surahs and then to the Madinan Surahs.

Semua ini menunjukkan bahawa susunan surah berkaitan dengan sebahagian surah telah disusun mengikut ijtihad para Sahabat. Oleh itu, mengekalkan susunan surah dalam bacaan tidak diwajibkan, sama ada dalam membaca al-Qur'an (Tilawah), dalam solat (Salah), dalam pengajian atau dalam pengajaran, sebagaimana dibuktikan dengan fakta bahawa Nabi ﷺ membaca Surah al-Nisa sebelum Aal-Imran dalam solat malam baginda. Adapun apa yang dilaporkan tentang larangan membaca al-Qur'an secara terbalik, yang dimaksudkan ialah ayat dalam satu surah tidak boleh dibaca secara terbalik, bukan bacaan surah-surah secara terbalik susunannya.

All of this indicates that the Surah arrangement in relation to some Surahs were arranged according to the Ijtihad of the Sahabah. That is why maintaining the arrangement of Surahs in recitation in not obligatory whether in reciting the Qur‟an (Tilaawah), in the prayer (Salah), in a lesson or in teaching, as evidenced by the fact that the Prophet (saw) read Surah al-Nisa before Aal-Imran in his night prayer. As for what has been reported about the prohibition of reciting the Qur‟an in reverse order, what was intended was that an Ayah in one Surah should not be read in reverse, not the recitation of Surahs in reverse order.

Malaikat Jibril biasa membacakan kepada Rasulullah ﷺ setiap tahun semua yang telah diwahyukan dari al-Qur'an. Dan pada tahun wafatnya Rasulullah ﷺ, Jibril membacakan keseluruhan al-Qur'an kepada Rasulullah ﷺ sebanyak dua kali. Hadis ini diriwayatkan oleh Aisyah (ra.) daripada Fatimah (ra) bahawa:

The angel Jibreel used to read once every year all of what had been revealed to the Messenger (saw) from the Qur‟an. And in the year in which the Messenger of Allah (saw) died Jibreel recited the whole of the Qur‟an twice to the Messenger (saw). It has been narrated by Aisha (ra.) on the authority of Fatimah (ra) that:

Nabi ﷺ telah menyampaikan kepada saya bahawa: „Jibril biasa membacakan al-Quran kepada saya setiap tahun.‟" (Bukhari)

“The Prophet (saw) confided in me that: „Jibreel used to read the Qur‟an to me every year.‟” (Bukhari)

Diriwayatkan juga daripada Abu Hurayrah bahawa beliau berkata:

It has also been narrated by Abu Hurayra that he said:

"Jibril biasa membentangkan Al-Qur'an kepada Nabi ﷺ setahun sekali, tetapi pada tahun baginda wafat, dia membentangkannya kepada baginda dua kali." (Bukhari)

“Jibreel used to present the Qur‟an to the Prophet once a year, but he presented it twice to him in the year he died.” (Bukhari)

Pembentangan Al-Qur'an oleh Jibril kepada Rasulullah ﷺ setiap tahun bermaksud bahawa beliau membentangkan susunan ayat-ayatnya berhubung dengan ayat-ayat yang lain dan susunan ayat-ayatnya dalam surah masing-masing, kerana membentangkan kitab bermaksud membentangkan kalimat-kalimatnya, lafaz-lafaznya dan susunannya.

Jibreel's presentation of the Qur‟an to the Messenger (saw) every year means that he presented the arrangement of its verses in relation to other verses and the arrangement of its verses in their respective chapters because presenting the book means to present its sentences, words and arrangement.

Terdapat juga hadith-hadith lain yang secara jelas menyebut tentang susunan ayat-ayat. Hadith-hadith tersebut menyatakan hubungan ayat-ayat antara satu sama lain dan susunan ayat dalam surah masing-masing, "Letakkanlah ayat-ayat ini dalam surah sekian selepas ayat sekian." "Letakkanlah ayat-ayat itu dalam surah yang menyebut perkara sekian." Sesebuah surah akan berakhir dan surah lain akan bermula sebagaimana yang ditetapkan oleh Allah melalui Jibril. Semua ini dengan jelas menunjukkan bahawa susunan ayat dalam surah-surahnya serta bentuk surah-surah dari segi bilangan ayat dan kedudukannya, semuanya ditentukan secara tawqifi oleh Allah (SWT). Umat telah memindahkannya dalam bentuk ini daripada Nabi ﷺ, dan itu dibuktikan dengan tawatur (riwayat yang mutawatir).

There are also other Ahadith which explicitly mention the arrangment of verses. They state the verses in relation to each other and the arrangment of verses in their respective chapters, “Place these verses in such and such Surah after such and such Ayah.” “Place those verses in that Surah that mentioned such and such thing.” A Surah would end and another Surah would begin as decreed by Allah through Jibreel. All of this definitely indicates that the arrangement of verses in their chapters and the form of the Surahs in terms of the number of verses and their places, all of that is determined (Tawqifi) by Allah (swt). The Ummah transmitted it in this form from the Prophet (saw) and that is proven by Tawaatur (recurrent reports).

Diriwayatkan daripada Ummul Mukminin, Aisyah (ra), bahawa seorang lelaki dari Iraq datang kepadanya lalu bertanya, "Apakah jenis kain kafan yang paling baik?" Aisyah berkata, "Semoga Allah merahmatimu! Apa bezanya?" Lelaki itu berkata, "Wahai Ummul Mukminin! Tunjukkanlah kepadaku (salinan) Al-Qur'an kamu." Aisyah bertanya, "Mengapa?" Lelaki itu berkata, "Untuk menghimpun dan menyusun Al-Qur'an mengikutnya, kerana orang ramai membacanya dengan surah-surahnya tidak mengikut susunan yang betul." Aisyah berkata:

It was narrated by the mother of the believers, Aisha (ra), that a person from Iraq came to her and asked, “What type of shroud is the best?” Aisha said, “May Allah be merciful to you! What does it matter?” He said, “O mother of the believers! Show me (the copy of) your Qur‟an.” She said, “Why?" He said, “In order to compile and arrange the Qur‟an according to it, for people recite it with its Surahs not in proper order.” 'Aisha said:

“Apa beza bahagian mana yang kamu baca dahulu? Ketahuilah bahawa perkara pertama yang diturunkan daripadanya ialah sebuah surah daripada Al-Mufassal, dan di dalamnya disebut tentang Syurga dan Neraka. Apabila orang ramai memeluk Islam, barulah diturunkan ayat-ayat mengenai perkara yang halal dan haram. Jika yang pertama diturunkan ialah: 'Jangan minum minuman yang memabukkan', nescaya orang ramai akan berkata, 'Kami tidak sekali-kali akan meninggalkan minuman yang memabukkan', dan jika diturunkan, 'Jangan melakukan persetubuhan haram', mereka akan berkata, 'Kami tidak sekali-kali akan meninggalkan persetubuhan haram'. Ketika aku masih seorang gadis kecil yang suka bermain, ayat berikut diturunkan di Makkah kepada Muhammad ﷺ: “Bahkan hari kiamat itulah masa yang dijanjikan kepada mereka (untuk pembalasan sepenuhnya), dan hari kiamat itu lebih dahsyat dan lebih pahit.” (TMQ Al-Qamar: 46)

“What does it matter which part of it you read first? Know that the first thing that was revealed thereof was a Surah from Al-Mufassal, and in it was mentioned Paradise and the Fire. When the people embraced Islam, the verses regarding legal and illegal things were revealed. If the first thing to be revealed was: 'Do not drink alcoholic drinks.' people would have said, 'We will never leave alcoholic drinks,' and if there had been revealed, 'Do not commit illegal sexual intercourse, 'they would have said, 'We will never give up illegal sexual intercourse.' While I was a young girl of playing age, the following verse was revealed in Makkah to Muhammad: “Nay! But the Hour is their appointed time (for their full recompense), and the Hour will be more grievous and more bitter.” (TMQ Al-Qamar: 46)

"Surah Al-Baqarah dan Surah An-Nisa' diturunkan ketika aku bersama beliau." Lalu 'Aisyah mengeluarkan salinan Al-Qur'an untuk lelaki itu dan mendiktekan kepadanya ayat-ayat surah-surah tersebut. Hadis ini menunjukkan bahawa surah-surah Al-Qur'an belum disusun mengikut urutan. Bersama dengan apa yang telah disebutkan sebelum ini mengenai susunan yang berbeza dalam Mushaf-mushaf para Sahabat, menjadi jelas bahawa susunan surah-surah itu adalah berdasarkan ijtihad para Sahabat.

Surah Al-Baqara and Surah al-Nisa were revealed while I was with him.” Then 'Aisha took out the copy of the Qur‟an for the man and dictated to him the verses of the Surahs. This hadith shows that the chapters of the Qur‟an had not been put together in order. Together with what was mentioned earlier about the different arrangements in the Mushaf‟s of various Sahabah it becomes clear that the arrangement of the Surahs was according to the Ijtihad of the Sahabah.