some basics before we start
The Quran is considered to be the Word of Allah.
This fact is held to be sacred by Muslims. The Quran is not the word of our Beloved Prophet (PBUH), it was revealed to him and he recited it and whatever he recited was memorised and transcribed and passed on.
The Quran was revealed in stages over 23 years.
This was necessary because the Quran was revealed parallel to the life of the Beloved Prophet (PBUH) and mirrors many goings-on at the time. It provided answers to questions raised, it provided instructions, it provided jurisprudence, through it we learnt prayers, we learnt lessons.
The Quran has 114 chapters of various sizes.
The smallest chapters are only a few verses. The biggest, the Chapter of the Cow, Surah Baqarah, is 286 verses long, and 53 pages in a standard sized Quran.
The Quran has TWO main divisions - Makkah Quran and Madina Quran.
Makkah Quran - the first 13 years of Prophethood - these chapters emphasize instruction, belief, the ONE-ness of Allah, historical nations that were punished, replies to the first questions raised, orders to be patient and persevere in the face of immense persecution. Two-thirds of the Quran is Makkah Quran (Makki Quran). The verses are short, rhythmic and poetic, and chapters are smaller and fast-paced.
Madinah Quran (Madani Quran) - the last 10 years of Prophethood - these chapters mostly concern with Law, Inheritance, and directly address the Jews (e.g., the Chapter of the Cow), and the Christians (e.g., the Chapter of The Family of Imran), they contain admonitions related to events of the time (with relevance to present day, e.g., hypocrites). The verses are longer, more grammatical, detailed, less rhythmic and the chapters are longer and slow-paced. These are generalisations, and may not be always true - exceptions make the rule.
The Chapters are not arranged in any temporal or topical order. The Revelation was completed in the Year 632 AD, the last year of Prophethood and in that year, the Beloved Prophet (PBUH) and the Archangel Gabriel (PBUH) arranged the Quran verse to verse and chapter to chapter, finally establishing an order of the 114 chapters.
With this basic knowledge, we begin, Bismillah.