11
Hūd
Hūd
Hūd is the second in a series of six sūrahs whose opening verses include the letters alif, lām, and rāʾ, and which speak of the Book. As is clear from its content and message, this sūrah was revealed after Sūrah 10 and thus belongs to the earlier Makkan period (JJ), with the possible exception of vv. 12, 17, and 114, which are said by many commentators to have been revealed in Madinah (JJ). However, the context of v. 12 clearly situates it in the Makkan period, at the height of the Makkan idolaters’ opposition to the Prophet’s mission.
Concerning this sūrah and several others (i.e., Sūrahs 56, 77, 78, and 81), the Prophet is reported to have said, “Hūd and her sisters have turned my hair gray.” The sūrah begins with the Prophet’s call to the Makkan idolaters to worship the one true God (v. 2), promising them punishment if they turn away from this call (v. 3). It also seeks to address certain difficulties the Prophet encountered with the Makkans during the earlier phases of his prophetic mission, such as their concealed animosity toward him (v. 5), their rejection of the Resurrection (v. 7), their outrageous demands that he demonstrate the veracity of his message (v. 12), and their accusations that the Quran was fabricated (v. 13).
The sūrah then transitions to a long section (vv. 25–99) that recounts the stories of the prophets Noah (vv. 25–48), Hūd (vv. 50–60, from which the sūrah derives its title), Ṣāliḥ (vv. 61–68), Abraham (vv. 69–76), Lot (vv. 77–83), Shuʿayb (vv. 84–95), and Moses (vv. 96–99). This section has many parallels with 7:59–136, serving here to console the Prophet in the environment of the Makkan idolaters’ growing hostility toward him and the believers. It demonstrates to the Prophet the manner in which the previous prophets also faced great trials in delivering their message to their people and describes how, in the end, they overcame their opponents with the Help of God. Thus at the end of the sūrah, the Prophet is told that these stories have been related to make his heart firm (v. 120), pointing to one of the main effects of the sacred history recounted in the Quran. The remaining verses in the sūrah encourage the Prophet and the believers, among other matters, to persist in the prescribed prayers (v. 114), be patient (v. 115), and trust in God (v. 123).
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
¡ Alif. Lām. Rā. A Book whose signs have been determined, then expounded, from the Presence of One Wise, Aware. * “Worship none but God. Truly I am a warner from Him, and a bearer of glad tidings. + And seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance. He will grant you goodly enjoyment for a term appointed and give His Bounty unto everyone possessed of merit. But if you turn away, then truly I fear for you the punishment of a great Day. J Unto God is your return, and He is Powerful over all things.” Z Behold! They fold up their breasts to hide from Him. Behold! When they cover themselves with their garments, He knows that which they hide and that which they disclose. Truly He knows what lies within breasts. j There is no creature that crawls upon the earth but that its provision lies with God. And He knows its dwelling place and its repository. All is in a clear Book. z He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six days, while His Throne was upon the water, that He may try you as to which of you is most virtuous in deed. Yet if thou sayest, “Truly you shall be resurrected after death,” the disbelievers will surely say, “This is naught but manifest sorcery!” { And if We grant them reprieve from the punishment for a limited time, they will surely say, “What holds it back?” Behold! On the day when it comes upon them, it shall not be turned away from them, and that which they used to mock will beset them. | And if We cause man to taste Mercy from Us, and then withdraw it from him, verily he is despondent, ungrateful. Ċ And if We cause him to taste some favor after adversity has befallen him, he will surely say, “The evils have gone from me.” Verily he is exultant, boastful, Ě save those who are patient and perform righteous deeds; it is they for whom there shall be forgiveness and a great reward. Ī Perchance thou mightest omit some of that which We have revealed unto thee, and thy breast might be constrained because they say, “Why has no treasure been sent down upon him, or an angel not come with him?” Thou art only a warner, and God is Guardian over all things. ĺ Or do they say, “He has fabricated it”? Say, “Then bring ten sūrahs like it, fabricated, and call upon whomsoever you can apart from God, if you are truthful.” Ŋ But if they answer thee not, then know that it has been sent down with God’s Knowledge and that there is no god but He. So are you submitters? Ś Whosoever desires the life of this world and its adornment, We shall pay them in full for their deeds therein, and therein they will not be deprived. Ū They are those for whom there shall be naught in the Hereafter but the Fire. Whatsoever they had wrought therein shall come to naught, and vain was that which they used to do. ź So what of the one who stands upon a clear proof from his Lord, and for whom it is recited by a witness from Him? And before it there was the Book of Moses, a guide and a mercy. It is they who believe in it. And whosoever disbelieves in it from among the parties, the Fire is their tryst. So be not in doubt concerning it. Verily it is the truth from thy Lord, but most of mankind believe not. Ɗ And who does greater wrong than one who fabricates a lie against God? It is they who will be brought before their Lord, and the witnesses will say, “These are the ones who lied against their Lord.” Behold! The curse of God is upon the wrongdoers, ƚ those who turn from the way of God and seek to make it crooked, and who disbelieve in the Hereafter. Ȋ Such as these cannot thwart [aught] on earth, and they have no protector apart from God. For them the punishment will be multiplied. They were not able to hear; neither did they see. ! They are those who have lost their souls, and that which they used to fabricate has forsaken them. " There is no doubt that in the Hereafter they shall be the greatest losers. # Truly those who believe and perform righteous deeds and are humble before their Lord, it is they who are the inhabitants of the Garden; they shall abide therein. $ The parable of these two groups is that of one blind and deaf, and one hearing and seeing. Are they equal when compared? Will you not remember? % Indeed, We sent Noah unto his people, “Truly I am unto you a clear warner, & that you might worship none but God. Truly I fear for you the punishment of a painful day.” ' But the notables among his people who disbelieved said, “We see you as naught but a human being like us, and we see none who follow you, save the lowliest among us, as is clear to see. Nor do we see that you have any merit over us; nay, we think that you are liars.” ( He said, “O my people! What think you: if I stand upon a clear proof from my Lord, and He has granted me Mercy from Himself, and you are blind to it. Shall we force it upon you, though you are unwilling? ) O my people! I ask not of you any wealth in return for it; my reward lies only with God. And I shall not drive away those who believe; truly they shall meet their Lord. But I see that you are an ignorant people. Ð O my people! Who would help me against God, were I to drive them away? Will you not remember? Ñ I say not unto you that with me are the treasuries of God; nor do I know the Unseen. And I say not that I am an angel; nor do I say of those who are despicable in your eyes, ‘God will not give them any good’—God knows best what is in their souls—for then I would indeed be among the wrongdoers.” Ò They said, “O Noah! You have disputed with us, and have prolonged the disputation; so bring upon us that wherewith you have threatened us, if you are among the truthful.” Ó He said, “God alone shall bring it to you, if He will, and you cannot thwart [it]. Ô And my sincere advice will not benefit you, much as I desire to advise you, if God desires to cause you to err. He is your Lord, and unto Him shall you be returned.” Õ Or do they say, “He has fabricated it”? Say, “If I fabricated it, then my guilt is upon me; but I am quit of that which you commit.” Ö And it was revealed unto Noah, “None of thy people shall believe, save those who had already believed. So be not distressed by that which they used to do. × Build the Ark before Our Eyes and by Our Revelation. And address Me not concerning those who did wrong; surely they shall be drowned.” Ø And he was building the Ark, and whenever notables among his people passed by him, they would scoff at him. He said, “If you scoff at us, surely we shall scoff at you, just as you scoff. Ù For soon you shall know upon whom there comes a punishment that disgraces him and upon whom there falls a punishment enduring.” @ Till when Our Command came, and the oven gushed forth, We said, “Carry on board two of every kind, and thy family—save the one against whom the Word has already gone forth—and those who believe.” And none believed along with him, save a few. A He said, “Embark upon it. In the Name of God be its coursing and its mooring. Truly my Lord is Forgiving, Merciful.” B And it sailed with them upon waves like mountains. And Noah called out to his son, who remained aloof, “O my son! Embark with us, and be not with the disbelievers.” C He said, “I shall take refuge on a mountain; it will protect me from the water.” He said, “There is no protector on this day from the Command of God, save for the one upon whom He has Mercy.” And the waves came between them, and he was among the drowned. D And it was said, “O earth! Swallow your water! And O sky! Hold back!” And the water was made to recede, and the command was carried out, and it settled on [Mount] Jūdī. And it was said, “Away with the wrongdoing people!” E And Noah called out to his Lord and said, “O my Lord! Truly my son is from my family. Thy Promise is indeed true, and Thou art the most just of judges.” F He said, “O Noah! Truly he is not from thy family; surely such conduct was not righteous. So question Me not concerning that whereof thou hast no knowledge; truly I exhort thee, lest thou be among the ignorant.” G He said, “My Lord! Truly I seek refuge in Thee from questioning Thee concerning that whereof I have no knowledge. If thou dost not forgive me and have Mercy upon me, I shall be among the losers.” H It was said, “O Noah! Disembark with peace from Us, and blessings upon thee and upon the communities that [will arise] from those with thee, and communities for whom We shall grant enjoyment. Then a painful punishment from Us shall befall them.” I These are among the accounts of the Unseen that We reveal unto thee. Thou knewest not of them, neither thou nor thy people, beforehand. So be patient. Truly the end belongs to the reverent. P And unto ʿĀd, their brother Hūd. He said, “O my people! Worship God! You have no god other than Him. You are naught but fabricators. Q O my people! I ask not of you any reward for it. My reward lies only with the One Who originated me. Do you not understand? R O my people! Seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance. He will send the sky upon you with abundant rain, and add strength to your strength. And turn not away, guilty.” S They said, “O Hūd! You have not brought us a clear proof, and we shall not forsake our gods on your word, for we are not believers in you. T We say only that one of our gods has smitten you with evil.” He said, “I call God as witness—and you be witness—that I am quit of that which you ascribe as partners U apart from Him. So scheme against me then, all together, and grant me no respite. V Truly I trust in God, my Lord and your Lord. There is no creature that crawls, but that He holds it by its forelock. Truly my Lord is upon a straight path. W But if you turn away, [know that] I have delivered unto you the message wherewith I have been sent by Him. My Lord will cause you to be succeeded by a people other than yourselves, and you harm Him not in the least. Truly my Lord is Watcher over all things.” X And when Our Command came, We saved Hūd and those who believed with him through a Mercy from Us; and We saved them from a grave punishment. Y That was ʿĀd. They rejected the signs of their Lord, disobeyed the messengers, and followed the command of every stubborn tyrant. ` And they were pursued by a curse in this world, and [shall be] on the Day of Resurrection. Behold! Truly ʿĀd disbelieved in their Lord. Behold! Away with ʿĀd, the people of Hūd! a And to Thamūd, their brother Ṣāliḥ. He said, “O my people! Worship God! You have no god other than Him. He brought you forth from the earth and settled you therein. So seek forgiveness from Him; then turn unto Him in repentance. Truly my Lord is Nigh, Responsive.” b They said, “O Ṣāliḥ! You were a source of hope among us before this. Do you forbid us to worship that which our fathers worshipped, while we remain in grave doubt about that to which you call us?” c He said, “O my people! What think you: if I stand up on a clear proof from my Lord, and He has granted me Mercy from Himself, then who can help me against God, were I to disobey Him? For you would increase me in naught but loss. d O my people! This she-camel of God is a sign unto you. Leave her to graze freely on God’s earth, and cause her no harm, lest you be seized by a punishment nigh.” e But they hamstrung her. So he said, “Enjoy yourselves in your abode for three days—that is a promise that will not be belied.” f So when Our Command came, We saved Ṣāliḥ and those who believed with him, through a Mercy from Us, and from the disgrace of that day. Truly thy Lord, He is the Strong, the Mighty. g The Cry seized those who did wrong, and morning found them lying lifeless in their abode, h as though they had never dwelt there. Behold! Truly Thamūd disbelieved in their Lord. Behold! Away with Thamūd! i And indeed Our messengers came to Abraham with glad tidings. They said, “Peace.” “Peace,” he said, and he hastened to bring them a roasted calf. p Then when he saw that their hands reached not toward it, he conceived a fear of them. They said, “Fear not. Verily we have been sent unto the people of Lot.” q And his wife was standing there and she laughed. Then We gave her glad tidings of Isaac, and after Isaac, of Jacob. r She said, “Oh, woe unto me! Shall I bear a child when I am an old woman, and this husband of mine is an old man? That would surely be an astounding thing.” s They said, “Do you marvel at the Command of God? The Mercy of God and His Blessings be upon you, O People of the House! Truly He is Praised, Glorious.” t So when the awe had left Abraham and glad tidings had come unto him, he pleaded with Us concerning the people of Lot. u Truly Abraham was clement, tenderhearted, penitent. v “O Abraham! Turn away from this. Truly the Command of thy Lord has come, and surely a punishment that cannot be repelled comes upon them.” w When Our messengers came to Lot, he was distressed on their account, and felt himself powerless concerning them. And he said, “This is a terrible day!” x And his people came hurrying toward him, while earlier they had been committing evil deeds. He said, “O my people! These are my daughters; they are purer for you. So reverence God, and disgrace me not with regard to my guests. Is there not among you a man of sound judgment?” y They said, “Certainly you know that we have no right to your daughters, and surely you know that which we desire.” À He said, “Would that I had the strength [to resist] you, or could seek refuge in some mighty support!” Á They said, “O Lot! We are the envoys of thy Lord. They shall not reach thee. So set out with thy family during the night, and let none of you turn around, save thy wife; surely that which befalls them shall befall her. Indeed, the morning shall be their tryst. Is not the morning nigh?” Â So when Our Command came, We made its uppermost to be its lowermost, and We rained down upon them stones of baked clay, one upon another, Ã marked by thy Lord; and they are never far from the wrongdoers. Ä And unto Midian, their brother Shuʿayb. He said, “O my people! Worship God! You have no god other than Him. Diminish not the measure and the balance. Truly I see you faring well, but I fear for you the punishment of an all-encompassing Day. Å O my people! Observe fully the measure and the balance with justice and diminish not people’s goods, and behave not wickedly upon the earth, working corruption. Æ The remnant from God is better for you, if you are believers, and I am not a keeper over you.” Ç They said, “O Shuʿayb! Does your manner of praying require that we forsake that which our fathers worshipped, or that we should not do as we will with our wealth? Surely you are a man of forbearance and sound judgment.” È He said, “O my people! What think you: if I stand upon a clear proof from my Lord, and He has provided me with goodly provision from Himself? I desire not to do behind your backs that which I forbid you. I desire naught but to set matters aright so far as I am able; but my success lies with God alone. In Him do I trust and unto Him do I turn. É O my people! Let not your dissension with me lead you into sin, such that there should befall you that which befell the people of Noah, or the people of Hūd, or the people of Ṣāliḥ; and the people of Lot are not far from you! Ґ And seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance. Truly my Lord is Merciful, Loving.” ґ They said, “O Shuʿayb! We do not comprehend much of what you say, and verily we consider you to be weak among us. And were it not for your clan, we would surely stone you, for you have no power over us.” Ғ He said, “O my people! Is my clan mightier over you than God? Yet, you would put Him behind you with disregard. Surely my Lord encompasses whatsoever you do. ғ O my people! Act according to your position; I, too, am acting. Soon you shall know upon whom there comes a punishment that disgraces him, and who is a liar. So keep watch! I, too, am among you watching.” Ҕ And when Our Command came, We saved Shuʿayb and those who believed with him, through a Mercy from Us. And the Cry seized those who did wrong, and morning found them lying lifeless in their abode, ҕ as though they had never dwelt there. Behold! Away with Midian, just as Thamūd was done away! Җ And indeed We sent Moses with Our signs and a manifest authority җ unto Pharaoh and his notables. But they followed the command of Pharaoh, and the command of Pharaoh was not sound. Ҙ He shall go before his people on the Day of Resurrection and lead them to the Fire. Evil indeed is the watering place to which they are led! ҙ And they were pursued in this [world] by a curse, and [shall be] on the Day of Resurrection. Evil indeed is the gift that will be offered them! Ā These are among the stories We have recounted unto thee of the towns. Among them are some that remain and some that have been mown down. ā We wronged them not, but they wronged themselves. And their gods whom they called upon apart from God did not avail them in the least when the Command of thy Lord came, and they increased them in naught but ruin. Ă Such is the seizing of thy Lord when He seizes the towns while they are doing wrong. Surely His seizing is painful, severe. ă Truly in that is a sign for those who fear the punishment of the Hereafter. That is a Day on which mankind shall be gathered together, and that is a Day that shall be witnessed. Ą And We delay it not, save for a limited term. ą On the Day it comes, no soul shall speak save by His Leave. Among them shall be the wretched and the felicitous. Ć As for those who are wretched, they shall be in the Fire, wherein there shall be for them groaning and wailing, ć abiding therein for so long as the heavens and the earth endure, save as thy Lord wills. Surely thy Lord does whatsoever He wills. Ĉ And as for those who are felicitous, they shall be in the Garden, abiding therein for so long as the heavens and the earth endure, save as thy Lord wills—a gift unfailing. ĉ So be not in doubt concerning that which these [people] worship; they worship only as their fathers worshipped before. We shall surely give them their share, undiminished. Đ Indeed, We gave unto Moses the Book; then difference arose regarding it. And were it not for a Word that had preceded from thy Lord, judgment would have been rendered between them. Yet, truly they are confounded by doubt regarding it. đ Surely for each, thy Lord shall pay them in full for their deeds. Truly He is Aware of what they do. Ē So be steadfast, as thou hast been commanded—and those who turn in repentance along with you—and be not rebellious. Truly He sees whatsoever you do. ē And incline not toward the wrongdoers, lest the Fire should touch you—and you will have no protector apart from God. Thereafter you will not be helped. Ĕ And perform the prayer at the two ends of the day and in the early hours of the night. Truly good deeds remove those that are evil. This is a reminder for those who remember. ĕ And be thou patient. Truly God neglects not the reward of the virtuous. Ė So why were there not among the generations before you those possessing merit, who would forbid corruption upon the earth, other than a few of those whom We saved among them? Those who did wrong pursued the luxuries they had been given, and they were guilty. ė And thy Lord would never destroy the towns unjustly, while their people were reforming. Ę And had thy Lord willed, He would have made mankind one community. But they cease not to differ, ę save those upon whom thy Lord has Mercy—and for this He created them. And the Word of thy Lord is fulfilled: “I shall surely fill Hell with jinn and men all together!” Ġ All that We recount unto thee of the stories of the messengers is that whereby We make firm thine heart. And herein there has come unto thee the Truth, and an exhortation and a reminder for the believers. ġ And say unto those who believe not, “Act according to your position; we, too, are acting. Ģ And wait! We, too, are waiting.” ģ Unto God belongs the Unseen in the heavens and on the earth, and unto Him are all matters returned. So worship Him, and trust in Him. And thy Lord is not heedless of that which you do.
Commentary
¡ Alif. Lām. Rā. A Book whose signs have been determined, then expounded, from the Presence of One Wise, Aware.
1 The Arabic letters alif, lām, and rāʾ (which also appear in 10:1; 12:1; 13:1; 14:1; 15:1) are among the separated letters (al-muqaṭṭaʿāt) found at the beginning of twenty-nine sūrahs, whose ultimate meaning, most commentators attest, is known only to God; see 2:1c. That the Quran’s signs are determined signifies that the Quran is clear and unambiguous in meaning (Q); see also 3:7c for a fuller discussion of this concept. Determined can also convey the idea that there are no contradictions in the Quran (Bḍ, Q); see also 4:82. For God’s expounding the signs, see 6:55c; 7:174c; 41:3c.
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* “Worship none but God. Truly I am a warner from Him, and a bearer of glad tidings.
2 The Quran’s verses are determined and expounded, so that God may command people to worship only Him (R). This is one of several passages that refer to the Prophet as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner (5:19; 7:188; 10:2; 17:105; 25:56; 33:45; 34:28; 35:24; 48:8). In other verses these functions are attributed to all prophets (2:213; 4:165c; 6:48; 17:105c; 18:56).
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+ And seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance. He will grant you goodly enjoyment for a term appointed and give His Bounty unto everyone possessed of merit. But if you turn away, then truly I fear for you the punishment of a great Day.
3 The shunning of idols is a form of seeking forgiveness from God for the sin of ascribing partners to Him, whereas the act of devoting oneself exclusively to Him implies a form of repentance (Bḍ, JJ, Z). This verse is usually interpreted to mean that there can be no forgiveness from God unless the servant actually repents unto Him (R). For the notion of repentance in the Quran, see 110:3c. For the conditions for valid repentance, see 66:8c.
By goodly enjoyment is meant sustenance and blessings in this world (JJ, Kl); alternately, it can refer to the life of faith, in which believers place their hope in God and are content with His Decree, whereas disbelievers can only take joy in the good things of this world (Kl); see also 4:104: If you are suffering, verily they suffer even as you suffer, while you hope from God that for which they cannot hope. A term appointed refers to death (JJ, Kl), and the receiving of God’s Bounty by everyone possessed of merit refers to the bestowal of rewards in the Hereafter upon those who acted righteously in this world (JJ, Kl), the bounties they receive in the Garden being commensurate with the merit of their acts of obedience (Z); see also 8:4: For them are ranks in the sight of their Lord, and forgiveness and a generous provision. The punishment of a great Day refers to the chastisement of the Day of Resurrection (Z), but, applied to the Makkans in particular, it refers also to days on which they met with great defeat, such as the day of the Battle of Badr (Kl).
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J Unto God is your return, and He is Powerful over all things.”
4 For verses that speak of the return to God in similar fashion, see 3:55; 5:48, 105; 6:60, 164; 10:4, 23; 29:8; 31:15; 39:7.
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Z Behold! They fold up their breasts to hide from Him. Behold! When they cover themselves with their garments, He knows that which they hide and that which they disclose. Truly He knows what lies within breasts.
5 This verse is said to have been revealed about a certain al-Akhnas ibn Sharīq, who was very eloquent and spoke in a manner that appealed to the Prophet, but who inwardly harbored feelings of hatred and animosity toward him (Q, W). Some say that this verse pertains more generally to the Makkan idolaters’ attitude toward the Prophet and the believers (Q), while others see it only as a reference to their particular concealed hatred and enmity toward him (Kl). They cover themselves with their garments denotes their aversion to hearing the Quran; that is, they put their “garments” over their heads so that they do not have to “hear” the Quran’s recitation (Kl, Z); see also 71:7: Truly whenever I call them, that Thou mayest forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, cover themselves with their garments, persist, and wax most arrogant. For God as encompassing and being aware of even the most inward dimensions of human beings, see 3:119, 154; 5:7; 8:43; 29:10; 31:23; 35:38; 39:7; 42:24; 57:6; 64:4; 67:13.
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j There is no creature that crawls upon the earth but that its provision lies with God. And He knows its dwelling place and its repository. All is in a clear Book.
6 Lies with God can also be read as “is an obligation upon God,” which causes some commentators to note that, although God is the source of all provision for created beings, He is not “obligated” to provide for them, for such “necessity” or “obligation” would be interpreted as contradicting the supremacy of His Will and Power (Q). Its dwelling place is understood as a reference to the father’s loins, and its repository to the mother’s womb (Kl). Alternately, the former can refer to the mother’s womb and the latter to where one eventually finds oneself in this world (Su); see also 6:98c.
That all realities are in a clear Book is also stated elsewhere in the Quran (cf. 6:59; 10:61; 27:74–75; 34:3). A clear book is understood here to be a reference to the Preserved Tablet (see 85:22c; JJ, N, R) or to God’s Knowledge (R); cf. 5:15; 12:1; 26:2; 27:1; 28:2; 43:2; 44.
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z He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six days, while His Throne was upon the water, that He may try you as to which of you is most virtuous in deed. Yet if thou sayest, “Truly you shall be resurrected after death,” the disbelievers will surely say, “This is naught but manifest sorcery!”
7 For the creation of the heavens and the earth in six days, see 7:54c. Quranic references to the six days of creation (cf. 7:54; 10:3; 25:59; 32:4; 50:38; 57:4) are often followed by the statement that God then mounted the Throne (10:3; 25:59; 32:4). Since the verse implies that God’s Throne was upon the water (cf. Genesis 1:2) while the creation of the heavens and the earth was taking place, al-Rāzī notes that upon here does not indicate physical space, since God’s Throne could not be physically on the water if the heavens and the earth had not yet come into being. Thus, one possible meaning of His Throne was upon the water could be to indicate the manner in which the heavens came about without any physical support below them (R), similar to what is expressed in 13:2: God it is Who raised the heavens without pillars that you see, then mounted the Throne.
On people being tried in this life in order to make manifest who among them is most virtuous in deed, see 18:7. See also 67:2, which states that God created death and life that He may try you as to which of you is most virtuous in deed, suggesting that trials are an inherent part of the human condition. The trials one encounters in life are not unjust, for God tasks no soul beyond its capacity (2:286; see also 2:234; 6:52; 7:42; 23:26), but rather are a necessary part of one’s journey in this life; when met with the correct response, they can only help strengthen one spiritually, improve one’s character, and increase one’s love for God and trust in Him. From this perspective, trials are a Blessing and a Mercy from God. For the meaning of which of you is most virtuous in deed, see 67:2c.
In many places throughout the Quran the disbelievers reject God’s signs and the message brought to them by the prophets as manifest sorcery, as in 34:43: Those who disbelieve say to the Truth when it comes to them, “This is naught but manifest sorcery”; see also 5:110; 6:7; 10:2, 76; 20:57; 21:3; 27:13; 28:36; 34:43; 37:15; 43:30; 46:7; 54:2; 61:6; 74:24. For the common objection by the disbelievers to the Quranic doctrine of bodily resurrection, see also 13:5; 17:49, 98; 23:35, 82–83; 27:67; 36:78; 37:16–17, 53; 50:3; 56:47–48; 79:11.
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{ And if We grant them reprieve from the punishment for a limited time, they will surely say, “What holds it back?” Behold! On the day when it comes upon them, it shall not be turned away from them, and that which they used to mock will beset them.
8 Concerning the punishment promised to the Makkan idolaters in this world or in the Hereafter (Aj), they asked the question What holds it back? out of derision (Aj) and as an attempt to demonstrate its falsehood (Ṭ). In the end, what they used to mock will beset them, which is to say that the punishment they were seeking to hasten through their derisive comments (Sh, Z) will become a reality and descend upon them (Ṭ). The notion that people’s mockery of the truth will eventually rebound upon them is found throughout the Quran; see 6:10; 16:34; 21:41; 39:48; 40:83; 45:33; 46:26.
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| And if We cause man to taste Mercy from Us, and then withdraw it from him, verily he is despondent, ungrateful.
Ċ And if We cause him to taste some favor after adversity has befallen him, he will surely say, “The evils have gone from me.” Verily he is exultant, boastful,
9–10 When the blessings God has conferred upon people are taken away from them by God, they despair, thereby engendering ingratitude for God’s Blessings. This is because they do not have a sufficient amount of hope in God, lack reliance upon Him, and are impatient (Aj). Cf. 22:11: And among mankind some worship God upon a brink: if good befalls him, he is content thereby, but if a trial befalls him, he is turned over upon his face; see also 89:15–16; cf. 17:83; 41:49. Al-Rāzī says that believers should know that these blessings have come to them from God’s Bounty, so their disappearance should not cause them to despair (R). Some commentaries mention a ḥadīth qudsī in conjunction with this verse that states, “I am as My servant thinks of Me. So let him think well of Me.” This ḥadīth means that believers must harbor a positive view of God’s Acts, or, as al-Rāzī puts it, in such circumstances they should say to themselves, “After this, perhaps God will return these blessings to me [and they will be] more perfect, beautiful, and excellent than they were [before].”
When people are then restored to some favor from God, they say, the evils, namely, the afflictions (JJ), have gone from me, which is to say they will not thank God for removing the difficulties and will not consider the possibility that these new blessings can also be taken away from them (JJ). Such people are thus exultant, boastful, but deluded (Bḍ), rejoicing over these blessings while forgetting to be grateful to God for them (Q). See also 39:49: And when harm befalls man, he calls upon Us. Then, when We confer upon him a Blessing from Us, he says, “I was only given it because of knowledge.” Nay, it is a trial, but most of them know not; cf. 10:12; 30:33; 39:8c; see also 39:49c.
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Ě save those who are patient and perform righteous deeds; it is they for whom there shall be forgiveness and a great reward.
11 Save those who are patient refers to times of hardship, and perform righteous deeds to times when blessings are received (JJ). In a report attributed by some to the Prophet and others to Ibn Masʿūd (d. 31/652), it is said that faith is composed of two parts: patience accounts for one half, and gratitude for the other (al-Ghazzālī, Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn [Beirut, 1997], 4:316). With respect to the virtue of patience in particular, Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī is reported to have said, “Patience is the key to success.” In this world, a great reward for patience can also be understood to be that God will be with those who are patient, as 2:153 asserts, Truly God is with the patient.
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Ī Perchance thou mightest omit some of that which We have revealed unto thee, and thy breast might be constrained because they say, “Why has no treasure been sent down upon him, or an angel not come with him?” Thou art only a warner, and God is Guardian over all things.
12 According to 10:15, the Makkan idolaters asked the Prophet to alter the Quran in certain respects so that it would be more acceptable to them; more specifically, they requested that the Quran not include any kind of condemnation of their gods (R). The Prophet insisted, however, that he did not have a role in its authorship; see 10:15c. They also asked him to turn the mountain in Makkah into gold to prove that he was a messenger or to bring forth angels to bear witness to the truth of his prophethood (R). As he was unable to meet such demands, the Makkans called him a liar and mocked him, which grieved him. In reciting the Quran to them, his breast was thus constrained (Z).
Perchance thou mightest omit some of that which We have revealed unto thee speaks to this situation and indicates that the Prophet would either continue to bring the Quran that was being revealed to him and face their curses and insults or omit some of it; the latter, however, is considered impossible for a prophet, since in Islamic belief one of the mandatory aspects of prophethood is conveying the message exactly as it was revealed (R). Thus, perchance, which translates laʿalla, functions as a rhetorical device intended not to express true uncertainty that the Prophet might omit some of the Quran in order to appease the Makkan idolaters or to avoid their curses, but to emphasize the importance of his faithfully conveying all that was revealed to him (R); on laʿalla, see also 2:21c.
The Prophet is also reminded here again that he is only a warner (see also 13:7; 27:92; 34:46; 35:23; 38:65–66; 79:45) and that God is Guardian over all things (cf. 6:102; 39:62), meaning that guidance or misguidance is not in the hands of the Messenger, but ultimately in the Hands of God alone (Kl).
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ĺ Or do they say, “He has fabricated it”? Say, “Then bring ten sūrahs like it, fabricated, and call upon whomsoever you can apart from God, if you are truthful.”
Ŋ But if they answer thee not, then know that it has been sent down with God’s Knowledge and that there is no god but He. So are you submitters?
13–14 For the Makkan idolaters’ claim that the Prophet fabricated the Quran, see 10:38c; 32:2; 46:8. The challenge to them to produce ten sūrahs like it if they are truthful is to say that if they do not believe in the Quran’s inimitability and believe that they can produce the equivalent, either the whole of it or in part, then they should attempt to do so, for if their claim that the Prophet has fabricated the Quran is true—that is, if the Quran is not from God—then it would be possible for it to be reproducible by human beings. If, however, they cannot do so, then this would prove that it is from God; for similar challenges to produce something like the Quran, see 2:23; 10:38; 17:88.
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Ś Whosoever desires the life of this world and its adornment, We shall pay them in full for their deeds therein, and therein they will not be deprived.
Ū They are those for whom there shall be naught in the Hereafter but the Fire. Whatsoever they had wrought therein shall come to naught, and vain was that which they used to do.
15–16 Desiring the life of this world and its adornment can in a sense apply to both believers and disbelievers alike, since there are lawful means of enjoying worldly life, but it is understood here to refer to those who desire this life only and deny the reality of the Hereafter (R); this interpretation resembles the message of 42:20: Whosoever desires the harvest of the Hereafter, We shall increase for him his harvest. And whosoever desires the harvest of this world, We shall give him some thereof, but he will have no share in the Hereafter. Some understand We shall pay them in full for their deeds therein to mean that God will bestow upon believers the reward for their actions directed toward righteous ends even in this world, in the sense that God would “hasten” their reward in this world without decreasing it in the Hereafter (Q). One interpretation given by some commentators is that v. 15 was revealed about certain believers during the time of the Prophet who were given to religious ostentation in their actions (see also 107:6; Aj). For the manner in which actions with the wrong intentions are rendered null in the Hereafter, see 3:22c. Some mention in this connection the famous ḥadīth, “Verily actions are [judged] according to [their] intentions” (Q).
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ź So what of the one who stands upon a clear proof from his Lord, and for whom it is recited by a witness from Him? And before it there was the Book of Moses, a guide and a mercy. It is they who believe in it. And whosoever disbelieves in it from among the parties, the Fire is their tryst. So be not in doubt concerning it. Verily it is the truth from thy Lord, but most of mankind believe not.
17 One who stands upon a clear proof from his Lord is a reference to the Prophet, and they who believe in it to the believers (Kl). A witness from Him refers to either the Quran, Gabriel, or another angel. According to some commentators, it refers to ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, who is reported to have said that different verses were revealed in connection with different members of the Quraysh, and this verse was revealed with regard to him (Q). The witness is sometimes described as “the tongue of the Messenger of God” (Q). For the Book of Moses, namely, the Torah, see 11:110–11c. That most of mankind believe not is repeated in 13:1 and 40:59; here, however, some interpret most of mankind to refer specifically to the majority of the people of Makkah at the time of the Prophet (JJ).
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Ɗ And who does greater wrong than one who fabricates a lie against God? It is they who will be brought before their Lord, and the witnesses will say, “These are the ones who lied against their Lord.” Behold! The curse of God is upon the wrongdoers,
ƚ those who turn from the way of God and seek to make it crooked, and who disbelieve in the Hereafter.
18–19 By those who fabricate a lie against God is meant those who disbelieve in God and His message (Ṭ); cf. 3:94; 6:21, 93, 144; 7:37; 10:17; 18:15; 29:68. That they will be brought before their Lord refers to their being called to account for their actions on the Day of Judgment (Q). The witnesses is a reference to the angels responsible for recording the deeds of human beings (Q; see 43:80c; 50:17–18; 80:15–16; 82:10; 86:4), and to the prophets (Kl). That the curse of God is upon the wrongdoers means they are distanced or exiled from His Mercy (see also 7:44c). In seeking to make the way leading to God crooked, they attempt to distort or alter the way in such a manner that it is no longer the straight path (see 1:6 and commentary), which God has established and enjoined human beings to follow; see also the commentary on 7:45, an almost identical verse.
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Ȋ Such as these cannot thwart [aught] on earth, and they have no protector apart from God. For them the punishment will be multiplied. They were not able to hear; neither did they see.
! They are those who have lost their souls, and that which they used to fabricate has forsaken them.
" There is no doubt that in the Hereafter they shall be the greatest losers.
20–22 These cannot thwart [aught] on earth means that the disbelievers will not be able to prevent God’s punishing them in this life if He wishes to do so (Z); cf. 8:59; 9:2–3; 24:57; 29:22; 35:44; 42:31; 46:32; 72:12. That God is the only Protector for human beings is a common Quranic refrain (cf. 2:107, 120; 4:123, 173; 9:74, 116; 29:22; 33:18, 65; 42:31; 48:22). The punishment will be multiplied refers to the fact that they will be punished for their own misguided ways and also for misguiding others (JJ); see 7:38–39c; 17:75; 29:12–13; 33:66–68. Commenting on They were not able to hear; neither did they see, al-Rāzī notes that these words refer to a “deafness of heart and blindness of soul,” which is consistent with the Quran’s characterization of those who are spiritually insensible to the prophetic messages as “blind” and “deaf” (see, e.g., 2:171, 5:71; 6:104; 7:64; 10:43; 11:28; 13:19; 27:4, 66, 81; 30:53; 41:17, 44; 43:36–37, 40). Regarding the Quranic notion that one will ultimately be forsaken by what one has fabricated, including false idols, ideas, and religious beliefs, see 6:24, 54; 10:30; 16:87; 28:75c.
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# Truly those who believe and perform righteous deeds and are humble before their Lord, it is they who are the inhabitants of the Garden; they shall abide therein.
23 Humble here means penitent and fearful (Bg), and can also describe those who are in a state of peace in the remembrance of God (Ṭs), as in 13:28: Those who believe and whose hearts are at peace in the remembrance of God. Are not hearts at peace in the remembrance of God?
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$ The parable of these two groups is that of one blind and deaf, and one hearing and seeing. Are they equal when compared? Will you not remember?
24 These two groups refers to those who fabricate lies against God (see vv. 18–22)—that is, the disbelievers—and those who believe in God and act righteously (see v. 23). The former are spiritually blind and deaf (R), since they cannot see God’s signs or hear His Word (Aj), whereas the latter are hearing and seeing, because they can see God’s signs and hear His Word (Aj). The question Are they equal when compared? is similar to the one posed in 39:9: Are those who know and those who do not know equal?
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% Indeed, We sent Noah unto his people, “Truly I am unto you a clear warner,
25 For the story of Noah, see 7:59–64; 10:71–73; 23:23–30; 26:105–21; 37:75–82; 54:9–15; Sūrah 71. The story of Noah here serves as an introduction to the stories of the punished and destroyed peoples that follow in the remainder of the sūrah. The general function of the prophets is to act as both warners and bearers of glad tidings; see 2:213: Mankind was one community; then God sent the prophets as bearers of glad tidings and as warners; cf. 4:165; 6:48; 18:56. Noah describes himself to his people as a clear warner (see also 71:2), which is to say that he was warning them of the impending punishment (see 11:26c) that would befall them as well as the way in which they could avoid it (Bḍ). For other verses in which the Prophet is described as only being a warner, see 13:7; 22:49; 27:92; 29:50; 35:23; 38:70; 46:9; 67:26; and 79:45.
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& that you might worship none but God. Truly I fear for you the punishment of a painful day.”
26 In saying worship none but God, which is the same call made by other prophets in the Quran (see 41:14; 46:21; cf. 2:83; 3:64; 11:2), Noah was calling his people to cast aside their idols, to cease worshipping them, and to obey only God (Q; cf., e.g., 7:59; 23:23; 71:3). The punishment of a painful day refers to the chastisement that Noah’s people would receive in this world as well as their punishment in the Hereafter (JJ); cf. 7:59; 71:1.
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' But the notables among his people who disbelieved said, “We see you as naught but a human being like us, and we see none who follow you, save the lowliest among us, as is clear to see. Nor do we see that you have any merit over us; nay, we think that you are liars.”
27 The notables refers to the leaders of Noah’s society (Q); see also 7:60, 66. The answer of Noah’s people (see also 23:24) is the same as that given to all of God’s messengers as mentioned in 14:10: You are but human beings like us (see also 26:154 in the context of the story of the prophet Ṣāliḥ). Noah’s followers are described by his opponents as the lowliest among us; they were looked down upon because they were poor and employed in what were considered trades or occupations of low social standing (Q); see also 26:112c. Elsewhere Noah’s people refuse to believe in him precisely because the lowliest members of their society follow him: Shall we believe you, when the lowliest follow you? (26:111). Nor do we see that you have any merit over us is directed by the notables to both Noah and his followers (Kl), who were considered unworthy of being followed because they did not have any special kind of distinction in their society, by way of either dress, wealth, or high social status (Kl).
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( He said, “O my people! What think you: if I stand upon a clear proof from my Lord, and He has granted me Mercy from Himself, and you are blind to it. Shall we force it upon you, though you are unwilling?
28 Noah’s standing upon a clear proof from my Lord refers to the clarity and truth of his message (see also 6:57–58c) and is also repeated by the prophets Ṣāliḥ and Shuʿayb to their people later in this sūrah (see vv. 63, 88, respectively; cf. v. 11). In 6:57, the Prophet Muhammad is also instructed to tell his people, Truly I stand upon a clear proof from my Lord. The Mercy from Himself that was given to Noah is God’s conferral of prophethood upon him (Kl) or the guidance and knowledge that God gave him (Bg). Noah’s question to his people is rhetorical and accords with the principle enunciated in 2:256: There is no coercion in religion. Sound judgment has become clear from error.
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) O my people! I ask not of you any wealth in return for it; my reward lies only with God. And I shall not drive away those who believe; truly they shall meet their Lord. But I see that you are an ignorant people.
29 The it in in return for it refers to what Noah was calling his people to, namely, faith in and sincere worship of the One God (Ṭ). It is said that the notables to whom Noah brought the message told Noah that if he wanted them to believe in him, then he should shun those who were currently following him (see v. 27), because they were unworthy of being on equal footing with the notables (Ṭ, Ṭs). The Quraysh also had the same issue with the Prophet’s followers; see 6:52c. Noah’s statement But I see that you are an ignorant people is in reference to the leaders’ request that he should shun those who believed in God (Ṭ); see also 46:23 for an identical phrase used by the prophet Hūd when addressing his people.
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Ð O my people! Who would help me against God, were I to drive them away? Will you not remember?
30 Noah’s question can be taken to mean, “Who would prevent God’s Punishment against me, were I to shun those who believe and who on the Day of Judgment will make a case against me before God?” (Ṭs).
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Ñ I say not unto you that with me are the treasuries of God; nor do I know the Unseen. And I say not that I am an angel; nor do I say of those who are despicable in your eyes, ‘God will not give them any good’—God knows best what is in their souls—for then I would indeed be among the wrongdoers.”
31 Al-Rāzī explains that Noah’s statement that he did not have the treasuries of God (for other references to treasuries in the Quran, see 6:50; 15:21; 17:100; 38:9; 52:37; 63:7), did not know the Unseen, and was not an angel highlights his humility and lowliness before God, an attitude that allowed him to embrace those who were deemed to be lowly by their own people, while preventing him from being seduced by the company of the notables and leaders of his society. The same assertions are made by the Prophet in response to the criticisms of the Quraysh; see 6:50 and commentary.
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Ò They said, “O Noah! You have disputed with us, and have prolonged the disputation; so bring upon us that wherewith you have threatened us, if you are among the truthful.”
Ó He said, “God alone shall bring it to you, if He will, and you cannot thwart [it].
32–33 So bring upon us that wherewith you have threatened us, which is a typical reaction by disbelievers to the teachings of the prophets (see also 7:70, 77; 46:22), refers to the impending punishment (Kl) about which Noah had informed them (see v. 26); and you cannot thwart [it] (cf. 6:135; 10:53) refers to their inability to escape it (JJ).
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Ô And my sincere advice will not benefit you, much as I desire to advise you, if God desires to cause you to err. He is your Lord, and unto Him shall you be returned.”
34 God’s causing people to err is tantamount to the more common Quranic notion that He causes some people to stray from the truth (see, e.g., 17:97; 18:17; 74:31), for which, see 4:88–90c; 4:143c; 6:39c. On related issues, see 3:108–9c and the essay “The Quran and Schools of Islamic Theology and Philosophy.”
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Õ Or do they say, “He has fabricated it”? Say, “If I fabricated it, then my guilt is upon me; but I am quit of that which you commit.”
35 This verse pertains to the Makkan idolaters and their accusation that the Prophet had fabricated the Quran (JJ; see v. 13; 10:38c; 32:2; 46:8). Then my guilt is upon me implies punishment (JJ) and is thus equivalent to saying, “Then I shall be punished for my sin.”
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Ö And it was revealed unto Noah, “None of thy people shall believe, save those who had already believed. So be not distressed by that which they used to do.
36 It is said that Noah had been calling his people to God for some 950 years (Aj); see 29:14, which states: And he remained among them a thousand years, less fifty. Thus, those who had already believed refers to those who had, up to that point, believed in Noah’s message (Aj). God’s counsel to Noah that he should not be distressed—that is, saddened or despairing (Ṭ)—over the actions of his people relates to the wider Quranic theme of God’s addressing the prophets’ human reactions to the trials that they would inevitably encounter; see 2:214; 15:97–99; 21:83–84; 26:3.
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× Build the Ark before Our Eyes and by Our Revelation. And address Me not concerning those who did wrong; surely they shall be drowned.”
37 Before Our Eyes is a figurative manner of saying that God will watch over and protect Noah’s building of the Ark (Kl); by Our Revelation means that God instructed Noah how to build the Ark (Bḍ). God’s telling Noah not to address Him concerning those who did wrong means that Noah was not to attempt to intercede with God on their behalf (Kl) and that he should not pray to God to withhold the impending punishment from them (Bḍ).
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Ø And he was building the Ark, and whenever notables among his people passed by him, they would scoff at him. He said, “If you scoff at us, surely we shall scoff at you, just as you scoff.
Ù For soon you shall know upon whom there comes a punishment that disgraces him and upon whom there falls a punishment enduring.”
38–39 Noah’s words If you scoff at us, surely we shall scoff at you, just as you scoff have in view the final state of affairs, when the believers will laugh at the disbelievers, just as the disbelievers used to laugh at them during the life of this world (see 83:29–36). This verse relates to the broader Quranic notion that people’s evil actions will ultimately rebound upon them (see, e.g., 2:9, 57; 10:23; 35:43; 47:38). A punishment that disgraces (cf. 11:93; 39:40) refers to the flood, which was going to humiliate, in this world, the people who rejected Noah (IK), while a punishment enduring (cf. 5:37; 9:68; 39:40) refers to their state of punishment in the Hereafter (Ṭ).
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@ Till when Our Command came, and the oven gushed forth, We said, “Carry on board two of every kind, and thy family—save the one against whom the Word has already gone forth—and those who believe.” And none believed along with him, save a few.
A He said, “Embark upon it. In the Name of God be its coursing and its mooring. Truly my Lord is Forgiving, Merciful.”
40–41 Till when Our Command came, and the oven gushed forth indicates the beginning of the flood, which God sent to destroy the people of Noah. The oven here refers to the earth (Bg, Q) in general or a particular region, such as Syria or Iraq (Bg); for more on the oven gushed forth, see 23:27–28c. According to one account, God first gathered all manner of birds and animals before Noah, who then chose one male and one female from each species and took the pairs onto the ship (JJ). It is said that save the one against whom the Word has already gone forth characterizes both Noah’s wife (see 66:10c) and his son (JJ; see vv. 42–43, 45).
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B And it sailed with them upon waves like mountains. And Noah called out to his son, who remained aloof, “O my son! Embark with us, and be not with the disbelievers.”
42 Waves like mountains refers to the size of the waves from the flood (Z), which were formed on account of the intensity of the wind (Q).
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C He said, “I shall take refuge on a mountain; it will protect me from the water.” He said, “There is no protector on this day from the Command of God, save for the one upon whom He has Mercy.” And the waves came between them, and he was among the drowned.
43 The son of Noah who remained aloof in v. 42 is said to have been named Yām (IK, Z) or Kanʿān (Z). From a spiritual point of view, his statement that he would take refuge on a mountain can be understood to refer to the false sense of security, stability, and permanence (symbolized by a mountain) that the disbelievers, in their state of denial of God, assign to the world.
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D And it was said, “O earth! Swallow your water! And O sky! Hold back!” And the water was made to recede, and the command was carried out, and it settled on [Mount] Jūdī. And it was said, “Away with the wrongdoing people!”
44 God’s Commands to the earth and sky denote the end of the flood. It is said in some traditional sources that [Mount] Jūdī, where the Ark settled, is a mountain near Mosul (JJ, Kl), while other sources associate it with Mt. Ararat in the eastern region of present-day Turkey. It is believed that Away with the wrongdoing people! was spoken by God (R); see also 23:41 for the identical phrase.
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E And Noah called out to his Lord and said, “O my Lord! Truly my son is from my family. Thy Promise is indeed true, and Thou art the most just of judges.”
F He said, “O Noah! Truly he is not from thy family; surely such conduct was not righteous. So question Me not concerning that whereof thou hast no knowledge; truly I exhort thee, lest thou be among the ignorant.”
G He said, “My Lord! Truly I seek refuge in Thee from questioning Thee concerning that whereof I have no knowledge. If thou dost not forgive me and have Mercy upon me, I shall be among the losers.”
45–47 It is said that Noah pleaded with God to save his son because God had promised Noah that He would save his family (IJ, Ṭ; cf. v. 40), which is the promise to which Noah was referring when he said, Thy Promise is indeed true (IJ). For God as the most just of judges, see 95:8c (cf. 7:87; 10:109; 12:80). From one perspective, God’s Words to Noah Truly he is not from thy family mean that Noah’s son did not belong to those members of Noah’s family whom God had promised to save (Q, R); cf. the wording in v. 40: Carry on board . . . thy family—save the one against whom the Word has already gone forth (see also 11:40–41c). From another perspective, Noah’s son can be described as not being from Noah’s family in a spiritual sense, as he rejected the message with which his father had come. See also 6:74, where Abraham’s dissociation from his father is mentioned.
The son’s unrighteous conduct was denying God and disbelieving in Him. Some read such conduct was not righteous to mean, “He was [a doer of] unrighteous conduct,” with the subject being implicit (R). Ignorant in lest thou be among the ignorant refers more specifically to sinfulness (Q, R); God exhorts Noah not to question Him concerning his son’s fate (see v. 45) lest he be “among the sinners.” Noah’s words of repentance are identical to those uttered by Adam and his wife in 7:23 after Satan’s trickery against them had become clear to them.
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H It was said, “O Noah! Disembark with peace from Us, and blessings upon thee and upon the communities that [will arise] from those with thee, and communities for whom We shall grant enjoyment. Then a painful punishment from Us shall befall them.”
48 God tells Noah that he and those with him can come out of the Ark and live on land without fear of perishing (Bq, Ṭ). An elision in blessings upon thee and upon the communities that [will arise] from those with thee, and communities for whom We shall grant enjoyment causes it to mean, “blessings upon thee and upon the communities that [will arise] from those with thee; and [from those with thee] are communities for whom We shall grant enjoyment” (Z). This statement is understood to mean that the communities of believers that will arise from Noah’s family will be blessed, or that the communities of both disbelievers and believers that will arise from Noah’s family will receive provision from God (Z), but the disbelieving communities are promised a painful punishment from God. It is said that this phrase refers to the destroyed nations that came after Noah, such as the ʿĀd, the Thamūd, the Sodomites, and the Midianites (Z), all of whom were descendants of Noah; see vv. 50–60, 61–68, 77–83, 84–95, respectively.
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I These are among the accounts of the Unseen that We reveal unto thee. Thou knewest not of them, neither thou nor thy people, beforehand. So be patient. Truly the end belongs to the reverent.
49 Thou knewest not of them, neither thou nor thy people, beforehand is understood to mean that the Prophet did not know such accounts as the story of Noah before the revelation came to him (Kl, Z), nor were they known to the people of Makkah at that time, since they were not “People of the Book” (Ṭs). However, given the presence of Christians and Jews in Makkah during the lifetime of the Prophet, it is more likely that this verse refers to a lack of knowledge about the details and spiritual meaning of such stories rather than a lack of general knowledge of them.
God’s counsel to the Prophet to be patient is aimed at both the task of conveying the message given to him and the hardships he was enduring from the Makkan idolaters, implying that the Prophet should be as patient as Noah was (JJ). The end belongs to the reverent is also found in 7:128; 28:83; cf. 20:132.
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P And unto ʿĀd, their brother Hūd. He said, “O my people! Worship God! You have no god other than Him. You are naught but fabricators.
Q O my people! I ask not of you any reward for it. My reward lies only with the One Who originated me. Do you not understand?
50–51 For the story of the prophet Hūd, see also 7:65–72; 26:123–39; 46:21–25; 54:18–21. Hūd was an Arabian prophet, not mentioned in the Bible, who is said to have been a descendant of the prophet Noah; see 7:65c. ʿĀd, the people to whom Hūd was sent, are believed to have come from the southern part of Arabia, from between the valley of Ḥaḍramawt and Oman. They were a tribal people who worshipped idols; their name derives from that of a man to whom they traced their common ancestry (Q). It is said that there were two peoples with the name ʿĀd: ʿĀd the Former (53:50), who are also known as Iram (see 89:7–8c); and ʿĀd the Latter, who are simply referred to as ʿĀd; see also 53:50–51c. The people to whom Hūd was sent were ʿĀd the Former (Q).
Hūd was the brother of the ʿĀd people since he was one of them (Q). Like the other prophets, Hūd called his people to worship God alone and to relinquish their idols. You are naught but fabricators means, “In your associating idols with God, you are nothing but a lying people, creating falsehood, for there is no God other than He” (Ṭ). Al-Rāzī notes that Hūd’s assurance to his people that he does not ask of them any reward for it (see also 26:127) and that his reward lies only with God is identical in meaning to Noah’s statement to his people in v. 29: O my people! I ask not of you any wealth in return for it; my reward lies only with God, and is similar to those made by other prophets throughout the Quran (see also, e.g., 6:90; 26:109, 127, 145, 164, 180; 36:22; 38:86; 42:23).
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R O my people! Seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance. He will send the sky upon you with abundant rain, and add strength to your strength. And turn not away, guilty.”
52 For the connection between the order of the call to seek forgiveness from God and the call to then turn unto Him in repentance with reference to the Makkan idolaters, which also pertains to ʿĀd, see 11:3c (see also v. 90). Hūd’s words He will send the sky upon you with abundant rain, which addressed the problem of the drought that ʿĀd had been experiencing (JJ), were also uttered by Noah to his people (71:11); see also 7:72c. Guilty, in the sense of being culpable of wrongdoing, refers here to “people who ascribe partners unto God” (JJ). It is said that the drought they experienced lasted three years (Kl). According to traditional Islamic teachings, seeking God’s Forgiveness and repenting to Him are means by which a sinful people can beseech God to send rain to their lands (Kl). On the basis of this belief, there are special prayers performed by Muslims at the time of the drought as well as on the occasion of other national calamities.
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S They said, “O Hūd! You have not brought us a clear proof, and we shall not forsake our gods on your word, for we are not believers in you.
T We say only that one of our gods has smitten you with evil.” He said, “I call God as witness—and you be witness—that I am quit of that which you ascribe as partners
53–54 Hūd’s people tell him that he has not brought them a clear proof, by which they mean clear evidence that testifies to the truthfulness of his claim to being a prophet sent by God (Bḍ). It is said that they were unable to see the clear proofs brought by Hūd because of their obstinacy in rejecting his message (Bḍ). The claim that one of their gods has smitten Hūd with evil manifests their belief that he was a madman who had been put under a spell by one of their idols, because he had cursed it and had called his people to cease worshipping idols (Kl); cf. 7:66. The Makkan idolaters, likewise, had accused the Prophet Muhammad of being mad or possessed; see 15:6; 23:70; 34:8; 37:36; 44:14; 68:51; 81:22.
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U apart from Him. So scheme against me then, all together, and grant me no respite.
V Truly I trust in God, my Lord and your Lord. There is no creature that crawls, but that He holds it by its forelock. Truly my Lord is upon a straight path.
55–56 For similar statements made by prophets concerning the beliefs of the people to whom they had been sent, see also 6:19; 6:78. Hūd’s challenge, which is addressed to his people and their gods (N), to scheme and grant him no respite means, “Neither you nor your gods will be able to do anything!” (Kl). Hūd then provides them with the reason for his confidence in their inability to scheme against him, namely, his firm and unshakeable reliance upon God (Kl).
There is no creature that crawls, but that He holds it by its forelock is a metaphor to denote that all creatures are under God’s Control and Authority (N). Truly my Lord is upon a straight path means that God is upon the path of truth, is Just, and does not let wrongdoers escape Him. It also means that He will not forsake one who relies upon Him (Z). Regarding straight path, see 1:6c.
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W But if you turn away, [know that] I have delivered unto you the message wherewith I have been sent by Him. My Lord will cause you to be succeeded by a people other than yourselves, and you harm Him not in the least. Truly my Lord is Watcher over all things.”
X And when Our Command came, We saved Hūd and those who believed with him through a Mercy from Us; and We saved them from a grave punishment.
57–58 My Lord will cause you to be succeeded by a people other than yourselves means that God will destroy the ʿĀd and replace them with a people who believe in God’s Oneness and worship Him alone (Q, Ṭ); see also 7:69; 9:39; 47:38. By telling his people that they harm Him not in the least (cf. 3:144, 176; 9:39; 47:32), Hūd conveys the fact that they do not harm God in any fashion whatsoever by turning away from Him, nor does any harm come to Him if He destroys them, for He did not create them out of His need for them in the first place (Ṭs). Alternately, it can mean that they will not have the ability to cause God any harm if He causes another people to replace them (Ṭs).
God’s Command here refers to His Punishment (JJ), which was in the form of a howling wind (54:19). Since the ʿĀd had experienced an extended drought (see v. 52), they mistook a cloud that had appeared to be a sign of impending rain. Thus in 46:24 they say, This is a cloud bringing us rain. But, it turned out to be a wind carrying a painful punishment, which 46:25 describes as destroying everything by the Command of its Lord. They became such that naught was seen but their dwellings. See also 54:20, which describes it as tearing out people as if they were uprooted palm trunks, and 7:72c. Some commentators mention that those who accepted Hūd’s message are said to have been forty thousand in number (Z). Their being saved . . . through a Mercy from Us refers to their being guided to faith in God as well as to the performance of righteous deeds (R).
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Y That was ʿĀd. They rejected the signs of their Lord, disobeyed the messengers, and followed the command of every stubborn tyrant.
` And they were pursued by a curse in this world, and [shall be] on the Day of Resurrection. Behold! Truly ʿĀd disbelieved in their Lord. Behold! Away with ʿĀd, the people of Hūd!
59–60 That following the command of every stubborn tyrant is bound to fail is similar to Every stubborn tyrant fails in 14:15. In other words, those who follow people who stubbornly reject the truth brought by God’s messengers will ultimately be unsuccessful, since God will aid His messengers against them; see 14:15c; in connection with the people of Hūd, see also 26:130. The curse against the people who rejected Hūd refers to their being distanced from God’s Mercy (Bg). Away with functions as a kind of refrain throughout this sūrah, used here in connection with the ʿĀd, then with the Thamūd (v. 68), and finally with the Midianites (v. 95).
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a And to Thamūd, their brother Ṣāliḥ. He said, “O my people! Worship God! You have no god other than Him. He brought you forth from the earth and settled you therein. So seek forgiveness from Him; then turn unto Him in repentance. Truly my Lord is Nigh, Responsive.”
61 For the story of Ṣāliḥ, see also 7:73–79; 15:80–84; 26:141–58; 54:23–31. Ṣāliḥ was an Arabian prophet sent to the Thamūd, who inhabited a rocky plain located in western Arabia, between the Ḥijāz and Syria; see 7:73c. Like Hūd, Ṣāliḥ is not mentioned in the Bible, and like the ʿĀd, the Thamūd were descendants of Noah. Ṣāliḥ’s call to his people to worship God alone is identical to the words uttered by Hūd to his people; see v. 50. He is likewise described as the brother of the people to whom he had been sent, since he was one of them (see also 26:142). For the connection between seeking forgiveness and repentance, see 11:3c; see also vv. 52, 90. Truly my Lord is Near, Responsive means that God is close to those who are sincere toward Him in their worship and wish to repent, and that He answers the call of supplicants when they call upon him (Q), as in 2:186: When My servants ask thee about Me, truly I am near. I answer the call of the caller when he calls Me. So let them respond to Me and believe in Me, that they may be led aright. According to Islamic theology, God is close to all human beings, even those who feel distant from Him or even deny Him; the condition of sincerity is not a requirement for God’s closeness, but those without faith are unaware of it.
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b They said, “O Ṣāliḥ! You were a source of hope among us before this. Do you forbid us to worship that which our fathers worshipped, while we remain in grave doubt about that to which you call us?”
62 The response of Ṣāliḥ’s people, You were a source of hope among us before this, means that before Ṣāliḥ called them to worship the one true God, they had hoped he would eventually assume a leadership role (sayyid) among them (Q), as he was already one of his society’s most noble and respected figures; see 7:73c. The appeal made by the Thamūd to the religious ways of their fathers is a common Quranic theme, namely, that when prophets bring the message of God’s Oneness to an idolatrous people, they reject it on the grounds that it does not conform to the ways of their ancestors (see, e.g., 5:104; 10:70; 21:53; 31:21); cf. 7:28. See also 2:170, which responds to a similar statement of loyalty to the traditions of one’s fathers: What! Even though their fathers understood nothing, and were not rightly guided?
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c He said, “O my people! What think you: if I stand up on a clear proof from my Lord, and He has granted me Mercy from Himself, then who can help me against God, were I to disobey Him? For you would increase me in naught but loss.
63 For the clear proof brought by the prophets, see 11:28c. Ṣāliḥ’s rhetorical question, which is similar to Noah’s in 11:30, is in response to his people’s reaction to his call to them to leave their ways (see v. 62). The reference Mercy from Himself is to God’s bestowal of prophethood upon Ṣāliḥ (JJ). By loss here is meant “misguidance” (JJ) or Ṣāliḥ’s actions coming to naught (Z).
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d O my people! This she-camel of God is a sign unto you. Leave her to graze freely on God’s earth, and cause her no harm, lest you be seized by a punishment nigh.”
e But they hamstrung her. So he said, “Enjoy yourselves in your abode for three days—that is a promise that will not be belied.”
64–65 See 7:73c. Ṣāliḥ brought the pregnant she-camel forth from a large rock in accordance with the Thamūd’s request to produce a miracle in order to prove his claim to prophethood (see 26:154). Hence, the she-camel is referred to as a sign; see also 7:73, where it is called a clear proof, and 54:27, where it is referred to as a trial for them. The injunction to let the she-camel graze freely on God’s earth and to cause her no harm (see also 7:73; 26:155), which is recounted here, makes up one part of the command. The other part of the command is recounted in 26:155: She shall have drink and you shall drink on an appointed day (see also 54:28). Yet they hamstrung her and, as 7:77 says, they insolently defied the Command of their Lord, thus disobeying God’s Command out of disdain for His message; see 7:77–78c. The Thamūd then challenged Ṣāliḥ, Bring upon us that wherewith you have threatened us, if you are among those sent [by God] (7:77), at which time Ṣāliḥ promised them an impending punishment after three days.
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f So when Our Command came, We saved Ṣāliḥ and those who believed with him, through a Mercy from Us, and from the disgrace of that day. Truly thy Lord, He is the Strong, the Mighty.
66 As in v. 58, Our Command here refers to God’s Punishment (Q), which Ṣāliḥ promised would be visited upon the Thamūd (v. 65). As was the case with Hūd (see 11:58c), Ṣāliḥ and his followers (regarding whom, see 7:75–76c) are said to have been saved through a Mercy from God.
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g The Cry seized those who did wrong, and morning found them lying lifeless in their abode,
h as though they had never dwelt there. Behold! Truly Thamūd disbelieved in their Lord. Behold! Away with Thamūd!
67–68 The punishment that befell the Thamūd is said to have been an earthquake (7:78) accompanied by a terrible, loud sound, which is why here the punishment is also referred to as the Cry; see also 7:77–78c, which explains why morning found them lying lifeless in their abode, as though they had never dwelt there (see the identical wording in vv. 94–95; cf. 7:78).
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i And indeed Our messengers came to Abraham with glad tidings. They said, “Peace.” “Peace,” he said, and he hastened to bring them a roasted calf.
69 For the story of Abraham, see also 14:35–41; 15:51–60; 37:83–113; 51:24–36; cf. Genesis 17:1–25:10. Our messengers, also referred to in 51:24 as the honored guests of Abraham and in 15:51 as his guests, are said to have been a group of angels (Kl) ranging (according to various accounts) from three to twelve in number; see 51:24–25c. The glad tidings with which the messengers came were the announcement of the birth of Abraham’s son (Kl); see 11:71–73c. The roasted calf Abraham hastened to bring to his guests is also described in 51:26 as a fattened calf.
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p Then when he saw that their hands reached not toward it, he conceived a fear of them. They said, “Fear not. Verily we have been sent unto the people of Lot.”
70 When Abraham saw that they did not partake of the food that he put before them, he feared that they had come with some ill intent (Q, R), confirming a suspicion he had of his guests as mentioned in 51:25, where he refers to them as an unfamiliar folk. Refusing to eat food brought by a host would have been a sign of hostility; see 51:27–28c. As al-Rāzī explains, the guests did not eat the food presented to them because, although they came in the form of men, they were angels, and angels do not consume physical nourishment; for another instance of an angel appearing in the form of a man in the Quran, see 19:17. That the angels have been sent unto the people of Lot (cf. 15:58–60; 51:32–34) means they have come to destroy them (JJ). According to 15:57 and 51:31, the angels’ reply was prompted by Abraham’s question, What is your errand, O messengers?
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q And his wife was standing there and she laughed. Then We gave her glad tidings of Isaac, and after Isaac, of Jacob.
r She said, “Oh, woe unto me! Shall I bear a child when I am an old woman, and this husband of mine is an old man? That would surely be an astounding thing.”
s They said, “Do you marvel at the Command of God? The Mercy of God and His Blessings be upon you, O People of the House! Truly He is Praised, Glorious.”
71–73 It is said that Abraham’s wife, Sarah (JJ, R), laughed because of her joy over the fact that the guests did not pose a threat to Abraham (R). Alternately, her laughter denotes her happiness over the news of the impending destruction of the people of Lot (JJ, R); cf. Genesis 17:17; 18:12–15. Abraham was said to be 120 years old at this time, and Sarah was 99 (JJ); see also 51:29. Sarah’s astonishment over the glad tidings (see also 51:27–28; cf. 37:112) that they would have a son (Isaac; cf. 51:28; 15:53) and a grandson (Isaac’s son Jacob) was on account of their old age (see also 15:54; 51:29). The angels’ response to Sarah’s comment is similar to God’s reply to Zachariah’s prayer for a child in 19:9; see also 15:55; 51:30.
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t So when the awe had left Abraham and glad tidings had come unto him, he pleaded with Us concerning the people of Lot.
74 Abraham . . . pleaded with Us is understood to mean that he spoke to the angels and tried to dissuade them from bringing destruction down upon the people of Lot (Kl, Ṭ), as in 29:32, where Abraham protests, Verily, Lot is in it (cf. Genesis 18:23–33).
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u Truly Abraham was clement, tenderhearted, penitent.
75 See also 9:114, which describes Abraham in similar terms with reference to his plea for forgiveness of his father.
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v “O Abraham! Turn away from this. Truly the Command of thy Lord has come, and surely a punishment that cannot be repelled comes upon them.”
76 Turn away from this is said to have been uttered by the angels (Bḍ, Z); for the same expression in the context of the story of Joseph, see also 12:29. The Command of thy Lord has come means that God’s Decree and Judgment have been passed concerning the people of Lot and therefore cannot be stopped by supplication or any other means (Z).
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w When Our messengers came to Lot, he was distressed on their account, and felt himself powerless concerning them. And he said, “This is a terrible day!”
x And his people came hurrying toward him, while earlier they had been committing evil deeds. He said, “O my people! These are my daughters; they are purer for you. So reverence God, and disgrace me not with regard to my guests. Is there not among you a man of sound judgment?”
y They said, “Certainly you know that we have no right to your daughters, and surely you know that which we desire.”
77–79 For the story of Lot, see also 7:80–84; 15:57–77; 26:160–73; 27:54–58; 29:28–35; 37:133–38; 54:33–38. Lot was the nephew of Abraham, but some say he was his maternal cousin. Lot was sent to the people of Sodom and its surrounding towns, calling them to believe in the One God and relinquish their sinful ways; see 7:80–81c.
The angels went from Abraham’s village to Lot’s village, which was nearby (R). Since they arrived in the form of handsome male youths, when Lot saw them, he did not know that they were angels (R). Thus Lot was distressed on their account, because he feared that his people would attempt to have sexual relations with them (R), as the men among the people of Lot were known to have sexual interest in male foreigners, but also in males among themselves. Lot felt himself powerless, since he feared that his people had come for his guests and that he would be unable to defend them (R, Z). It is also said that the people of Lot had sought to satisfy their sexual desires with great aggression (see 7:80–81c; 15:67–71; Genesis 19), which would only augment Lot’s fears.
Although the plain sense of my daughters refers to Lot’s own daughters, which is how many commentators understand the expression (Ṭs, Z), others say that the daughters here are not Lot’s own biological children, but rather the women among the people of Lot (IK, Ṭ). By offering females to his people—that is, offering women to them in marriage (JJ, Ṭ)—Lot was attempting to divert them from his male guests, in search of whom they had come (Ṭ). Lot’s statement to his people that his daughters are purer for them is related to 7:82, where his people deride the morality of Lot and his followers by calling them those who keep themselves pure (cf. 27:56), which some commentators say refers to their refusal to engage in the sexual practices of the Sodomites. The Sodomites’ reply to Lot, You know that we have no right to your daughters, is understood to mean that they have no sexual need (ḥājah) for his daughters (JJ, Ṭs).
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À He said, “Would that I had the strength [to resist] you, or could seek refuge in some mighty support!”
Á They said, “O Lot! We are the envoys of thy Lord. They shall not reach thee. So set out with thy family during the night, and let none of you turn around, save thy wife; surely that which befalls them shall befall her. Indeed, the morning shall be their tryst. Is not the morning nigh?”
80–81 Strength here refers to an army (JJ), and mighty support to family or both family and friends (Aj). They shall not reach thee means that Lot’s people will not be able to inflict any kind of evil upon him (JJ). For God’s saving Lot and his family, but not his wife, who is believed to have outwardly followed the religion of Lot, but who was secretly a disbeliever and thus was among those who lagged behind; see also 7:83; 15:60; 26:171; 27:57; 29:32; 37:134.
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 So when Our Command came, We made its uppermost to be its lowermost, and We rained down upon them stones of baked clay, one upon another,
à marked by thy Lord; and they are never far from the wrongdoers.
82–83 God’s Command is also referred to as the Cry that seized them at sunrise in 15:73; for the connection between God’s Command and the Cry with reference to the destruction of the Thamūd, see commentary on 11:66–68. It is said that the people of Lot lived in five (Q) or seven (Āl) cities, of which Sodom was the greatest (Āl, IK, Q). We made its uppermost to be its lowermost means that God caused Sodom to become completely overturned, making it the lowliest of the cities of the people of Lot after it had been the greatest of them (Āl); see also 15:75. The rain of stones of baked clay that came down upon the people of Lot (see also 15:74) is also referred to as a rain in 7:84; 26:173; 27:58. They are described here as marked, since it is believed that each stone had inscribed upon it the name of the person for whom it was intended (IK, M, N), and by thy Lord, since each stone fell in accordance with God’s Judgment (N); see also the identical wording in 51:34 as well as the commentary on this verse. Never far from the wrongdoers is understood to mean that these stones were not distant from the people of Lot (M). Alternately, it can mean that these stones could also be sent upon the Makkan idolaters (JJ, M), thus functioning as a threat (N), since it implies that the latter would be liable to the same fate as the people of Lot if they continue in their ways.
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Ä And unto Midian, their brother Shuʿayb. He said, “O my people! Worship God! You have no god other than Him. Diminish not the measure and the balance. Truly I see you faring well, but I fear for you the punishment of an all-encompassing Day.
Å O my people! Observe fully the measure and the balance with justice and diminish not people’s goods, and behave not wickedly upon the earth, working corruption.
Æ The remnant from God is better for you, if you are believers, and I am not a keeper over you.”
84–86 For the story of Shuʿayb, see also 7:85–93; 26:176–89. Shuʿayb was also an Arabian prophet who is identified by many Muslim authorities with the Biblical figure Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses. Shuʿayb was sent to the people of Midian, who resided in northwestern Arabia; see 7:85c. Like other prophets, he called his people to worship the One God. He tells them to diminish not the measure and the balance (cf. 7:85; 26:181) and to observe fully the measure and the balance with justice (cf. 7:85; 26:181–82), meaning that the Midianites should be honest in their business relations. He also calls them to diminish not people’s goods (see also 7:85; 26:183)—that is, that they should give people the full measure of what they paid for—which was also a problem among the Makkan idolaters during the time of the Prophet; see Sūrah 83. For Shuʿayb’s call to his people to behave not wickedly upon the earth, working corruption, see 7:85c.
The remnant from God renders baqiyyat Allāh; baqiyyah literally means “remainder” or “that which remains.” The wealth that is obtained through honest commercial practices and given by God is better than the gains acquired through fraudulent ones (R), the remnant being what is “left” after one observes fully the measure and the balance with justice and abstains from what is illicit. Alternately, it can refer to the reward that is with God or His Contentment, which is greater than what is gained through the act of defrauding (R), since it remains and abides in the Hereafter; see also 42:36: That which lies with God is better and more lasting for those who believe and trust in their Lord; cf. 20:73, 131. For the Quranic insistence that the Prophet Muhammad is not a keeper or guardian over his people, see 4:80; 6:66, 104, 107; 10:108; 17:54; 39:41; 42:6, 48; 88:22.
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Ç They said, “O Shuʿayb! Does your manner of praying require that we forsake that which our fathers worshipped, or that we should not do as we will with our wealth? Surely you are a man of forbearance and sound judgment.”
87 Some commentators note that the Midianites’ question here is a form of mockery (Kl, Q). Even in their estimation of Shuʿayb as surely . . . a man of forbearance and sound judgment, they intimate that he has these qualities only in his own opinion (Q). The implication is thus that the Midianites, who were arrogant (7:88), did not take seriously Shuʿayb’s message, instead referring to him as but one of the bewitched (26:185) and among the liars (26:186).
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È He said, “O my people! What think you: if I stand upon a clear proof from my Lord, and He has provided me with goodly provision from Himself? I desire not to do behind your backs that which I forbid you. I desire naught but to set matters aright so far as I am able; but my success lies with God alone. In Him do I trust and unto Him do I turn.
88 The clear proof that Shuʿayb brought is said to be in the form of miracles (muʿjizāt), which are given to all prophets by God to prove their veracity; see 7:85c. My success lies with God alone (wa mā tawfīqī illā bi’Llāh) is a well-known expression in everyday Muslim discourse employed in many diverse contexts; it conveys the idea that no matter what one does, it is ultimately up to God whether it will be successful and carry a blessing in this world and in the next. Shuʿayb’s statement In Him do I trust and unto Him do I turn is identical to the statement the Prophet is taught to make in 42:10; see also 7:88–89c.
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É O my people! Let not your dissension with me lead you into sin, such that there should befall you that which befell the people of Noah, or the people of Hūd, or the people of Ṣāliḥ; and the people of Lot are not far from you!
Ґ And seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance. Truly my Lord is Merciful, Loving.”
89–90 In a sense v. 89 says, “Let not your enmity toward me cause you to commit sin, so that you become afflicted with the kind of punishment that befell previous generations” (Kl); on not letting anger or resentment (even when justified) lead one to sin, see 5:2, 8. For the destruction of the people of Noah, Hūd, Ṣāliḥ, and Lot, see vv. 25–48, 50–60, 61–68, 77–83, respectively. When Shuʿayb tells his people, The people of Lot are not far from you! he is pointing out that Lot’s community was the most recent one, the closest to them in time, to have perished (Kl). Seek forgiveness from your Lord; then turn unto Him in repentance is also uttered by the prophet Hūd in 11:52.
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ґ They said, “O Shuʿayb! We do not comprehend much of what you say, and verily we consider you to be weak among us. And were it not for your clan, we would surely stone you, for you have no power over us.”
91 The Midianites tell Shuʿayb that they do not comprehend much of what he says as a way of expressing derision for him (Z), since, in their eyes, he was weak, that is, lowly (Z); see also 11:87c. In ancient Arabian tribal culture people were offered protection by their clan, and since the clan to which Shuʿayb belonged was a part of the religious community of the Midianites, they could not hurt him (R, Z).
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Ғ He said, “O my people! Is my clan mightier over you than God? Yet, you would put Him behind you with disregard. Surely my Lord encompasses whatsoever you do.
ғ O my people! Act according to your position; I, too, am acting. Soon you shall know upon whom there comes a punishment that disgraces him, and who is a liar. So keep watch! I, too, am among you watching.”
92–93 You would put Him behind you with disregard; that is, “You would cast God behind your backs and not be fearful of Him?” (JJ). Shuʿayb’s words Act according to your position; I, too, am acting are similar to what the Prophet is instructed to tell the Makkan idolaters (see 6:135; 39:39), and serve as both a warning and a threat; see 6:135c. The same is the case with Shuʿayb’s statement to those who rejected his message: they should keep watch; he too is watching along with them. The Prophet is told to speak similar words to those who do not believe in his message (see 9:52; 10:20, 102; 32:30); see also 6:135c; 7:87c.
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Ҕ And when Our Command came, We saved Shuʿayb and those who believed with him, through a Mercy from Us. And the Cry seized those who did wrong, and morning found them lying lifeless in their abode,
ҕ as though they had never dwelt there. Behold! Away with Midian, just as Thamūd was done away!
94–95 For identical wording in the story of the prophet Ṣāliḥ with respect to the coming of God’s Command, the role of Divine Mercy in the salvation of those who believed in their prophet, the Cry seizing the wrongdoers, and morning finding them lying lifeless in their abode, as though they had never dwelt there, see commentary on 11:66–68. V. 95 proclaims, Away with Midian, just as Thamūd was done away, since their fates were so similar; see also 7:91–92c.
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Җ And indeed We sent Moses with Our signs and a manifest authority
җ unto Pharaoh and his notables. But they followed the command of Pharaoh, and the command of Pharaoh was not sound.
96–97 For the story of Moses, see also 2:49–61; 7:103–55; 10:75–93; 20:9–97; 26:10–66; 28:3–46; 79:15–25. The signs with which Moses came, which are also referred to as clear proofs (7:105; 29:39), are the miracles he performed (Kl); see 7:105c. Some state that a manifest authority refers to Moses’ staff specifically (Q); for Moses’ staff, see 7:106–8c. On the notables of Pharaoh, see 7:103c; 10:75c.
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Ҙ He shall go before his people on the Day of Resurrection and lead them to the Fire. Evil indeed is the watering place to which they are led!
ҙ And they were pursued in this [world] by a curse, and [shall be] on the Day of Resurrection. Evil indeed is the gift that will be offered them!
98–99 Watering place renders wird, a word usually associated with the quenching of thirst, thus emphasizing the severity of the punishment (Z). Pharaoh’s people will be led by him to Hell on the Day of Resurrection in accordance with 17:71: On the Day We shall call every people by their imam. The sentence They were pursued in this [world] by a curse (v. 99) can refer to a curse in general (Z) or specifically to their being drowned in the Red Sea (Ṭ; see 7:136c).
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Ā These are among the stories We have recounted unto thee of the towns. Among them are some that remain and some that have been mown down.
ā We wronged them not, but they wronged themselves. And their gods whom they called upon apart from God did not avail them in the least when the Command of thy Lord came, and they increased them in naught but ruin.
Ă Such is the seizing of thy Lord when He seizes the towns while they are doing wrong. Surely His seizing is painful, severe.
100–102 These verses mark the end of the long sequence of narratives in this sūrah about the prophets who had been sent to their respective communities and those communities’ destruction for rejecting the message. The punishments that befell these people were not arbitrary, but were the result of the iniquities that they had committed; they thus wronged themselves and left themselves liable to punishment. In other words, God wronged them not, because they had been given fair warning through the sending of messengers, but they wronged themselves (cf. 2:57; 9:70; 16:33, 118; 29:40; 30:9) by failing to acknowledge the clear proofs and follow the teachings of the prophets who were sent to them.
The reason that the gods whom these destroyed communities called upon apart from God could not avail them in the least was because in this world they could not bring about any benefit for them; this would be the case even more so in the Hereafter (cf. 16:20). God destroyed the towns while they were doing wrong, although if they had changed their ways, He might not have destroyed them, as in v. 117: And thy Lord would never destroy the towns unjustly, while their people were reforming.
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ă Truly in that is a sign for those who fear the punishment of the Hereafter. That is a Day on which mankind shall be gathered together, and that is a Day that shall be witnessed.
Ą And We delay it not, save for a limited term.
103–4 In that is a sign refers to the previous stories of the destroyed nations (JJ). Mankind will all be gathered together on the Day of Judgment in order to be judged and recompensed for their actions (Bḍ), an event referred to elsewhere as the Day of Gathering (42:7; 64:9). The Day of Judgment is also called a Day that shall be witnessed, because it will be the day on which all human beings, from the beginning of creation to its end, will be present (Kl) and stand before God (Z) when He calls them to account for their actions during their time on earth. A limited term refers to the fact that the time of the Day of Judgment is already known to God (R).
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ą On the Day it comes, no soul shall speak save by His Leave. Among them shall be the wretched and the felicitous.
105 That none will be allowed to speak on the Last Day except with God’s Permission is also related in 78:38: That Day the Spirit and the angels stand in rows, none speaking, save one whom the Compassionate permits, and who speaks aright; and 20:108: And the voices will be humbled before the Compassionate, and you will hear naught but a murmur; cf. 36:65. The terms the wretched and the felicitous refer to the damned and the saved, respectively; these are among the more commonly used terms for these two groups in Islamic texts, and much has been written, especially in Sufi literature, about them.
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Ć As for those who are wretched, they shall be in the Fire, wherein there shall be for them groaning and wailing,
ć abiding therein for so long as the heavens and the earth endure, save as thy Lord wills. Surely thy Lord does whatsoever He wills.
Ĉ And as for those who are felicitous, they shall be in the Garden, abiding therein for so long as the heavens and the earth endure, save as thy Lord wills—a gift unfailing.
106–8 The inhabitants in Hell are described as groaning and wailing, which means that they will be breathing heavily, weeping ceaselessly, and experiencing an extreme state of pain, regret, and incurable grief (R). Al-Bayḍāwī argues that the period in Hell described as for so long as the heavens and the earth endure refers to neither serial time nor time as it exists in the physical realm of existence. Rather, it refers to the heavens and earth as the basic topographic “setting” of the Afterlife. To support his point, he cites 14:48: On that Day the earth shall be changed into other than the earth, and the heavens [too]. The felicitous too remain in the Garden for so long as the heavens and the earth endure, but with the added nuance that it is a gift unfailing, which is interpreted to mean that the Garden will never cease (Kl). According to the seventh/thirteenth-century Damascene theologian and jurist Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728/1328), the wording in v. 107 is a clear indication that Hell itself will one day cease to exist, but not Heaven (al-Radd ʿalā man qāla bi-fanāʾ al-jannah wa-l-nār [Riyadh, 1995], 66–68). The thesis that Hell would one day cease to exist or “freeze over” is also asserted by many other Islamic authorities, especially Sufis. See also the essay “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran.”
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ĉ So be not in doubt concerning that which these [people] worship; they worship only as their fathers worshipped before. We shall surely give them their share, undiminished.
109 According to this verse, there should be no doubt concerning the final outcome for the Makkan idolaters (Bḍ). The Makkans, like the communities before them, ardently adhered to the religious worldview of their ancestors. See also v. 62 and commentary, where the Thamūd likewise are given to the ways of their fathers. The share, undiminished that the Makkan idolaters will receive is punishment (IK); cf. 11:15–16c.
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Đ Indeed, We gave unto Moses the Book; then difference arose regarding it. And were it not for a Word that had preceded from thy Lord, judgment would have been rendered between them. Yet, truly they are confounded by doubt regarding it.
đ Surely for each, thy Lord shall pay them in full for their deeds. Truly He is Aware of what they do.
110–11 V. 110 is repeated verbatim in 41:45; see commentary on that verse. For the Book that was given to Moses, namely, the Torah, see also 6:154: Then We gave unto Moses the Book, complete for those who would be virtuous, as an exposition of all things, and as a guidance and a mercy, that haply they might believe in the meeting with their Lord (cf. 2:53; 17:2; 23:49; 25:35; 28:43; 32:23). A Word that had already gone forth is commonly employed in the Quran when speaking about God’s Decree; see 10:19; 20:129; 41:45; 42:14. That thy Lord shall pay them in full for their deeds means that God will give them the full reward for their actions (Kl).
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Ē So be steadfast, as thou hast been commanded—and those who turn in repentance along with you—and be not rebellious. Truly He sees whatsoever you do.
ē And incline not toward the wrongdoers, lest the Fire should touch you—and you will have no protector apart from God. Thereafter you will not be helped.
112–13 Be steadfast, a command addressed to the Prophet, is understood by some to mean that he should hold steadfastly to the Quran (R); by extension, it is a command also directed toward those who turn in repentance along with him, namely, the Prophet’s Companions (Q). And incline not toward the wrongdoers means that the believers should never approve of the actions of the Makkan idolaters (IK).
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Ĕ And perform the prayer at the two ends of the day and in the early hours of the night. Truly good deeds remove those that are evil. This is a reminder for those who remember.
ĕ And be thou patient. Truly God neglects not the reward of the virtuous.
114–15 The prayers here are usually understood as referring to the five daily canonical prayers (ṣalāh) in Islam. The prayers at the two ends of the day are interpreted to be the prayers performed at dawn (ṣubḥ/fajr) and sunset (maghrib), or at dawn and in the late afternoon (ʿaṣr), or at midday (ẓuhr) and in the late afternoon; the early hours of the night can collectively refer to the prayers performed at sunset and during the night (ʿishāʾ), or to the latter only (IK). A similar range of opinion regarding the five prayers can be seen in identifying the middlemost prayer in 2:238.
Truly good deeds remove those that are evil is understood to mean that performing the daily prayers erases one’s minor sins, as the Prophet is reported to have said, “Verily from prayer to prayer there is an expiation for the [minor sins committed] between them, as long as the major sins have been avoided” (Z). In a more general sense, it can refer to the manner in which the positive effects of good actions can offset the negative effects of evil actions, as the Prophet said, “Follow up an evil deed with a good deed, and it shall erase it.” In a ḥadīth the Prophet said, “For everything there is a polish, and the polish of the heart is the remembrance of God” (see also 13:28c), referring to the effect of prayer and remembrance on a heart that is hardened and darkened by sin. On the connection between patience and God’s reward, see v. 11c. Other verses that mention how God will not neglect the reward of believers include 3:171; 7:170; 9:120; 12:56, 90; 18:30.
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Ė So why were there not among the generations before you those possessing merit, who would forbid corruption upon the earth, other than a few of those whom We saved among them? Those who did wrong pursued the luxuries they had been given, and they were guilty.
ė And thy Lord would never destroy the towns unjustly, while their people were reforming.
116–17 The Shiite Quran commentator al-Ṭūsī observes that, in asking the question in v. 116, God intends to produce wonder and amazement in the Prophet that in past communities there were only a few who were righteous while the rest were disbelievers who deserved punishment. Some interpret v. 117 to mean that God would not destroy a people just because they were disbelievers if their worldly transactions and conduct could be characterized as fair and honest; that is, the peoples of Noah, Ṣāliḥ, Lot, and Shuʿayb were destroyed utterly when God characterized them as harming not only their own souls, but also other human beings and other creatures (Q, R).
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Ę And had thy Lord willed, He would have made mankind one community. But they cease not to differ,
ę save those upon whom thy Lord has Mercy—and for this He created them. And the Word of thy Lord is fulfilled: “I shall surely fill Hell with jinn and men all together!”
118–19 Mankind is not one community, because the existence of diversity and difference (ikhtilāf) is decreed by the Divine Wisdom (Aj); see also 5:48; 16:93; 42:18; 2:213c. As a consequence of what is demanded by God’s Wisdom, people did not cease to differ, which suggests that strife and difference are a necessary part of life in this world: some people receive the Divine Mercy and follow the truth, while others, namely, those who receive God’s Vengeance, pursue falsehood (Aj). More specifically, they cease not to differ may be a reference to the religious and sectarian differences among people (Q, R). Save those upon whom thy Lord has Mercy suggests that there are people who are not bound up in the strife and difference in the world. As Ibn ʿAjībah explains, they are “a people whom God has guided out of His Bounty. They adhere to what is the root of religion and its foundation, such as belief in God’s Oneness, and faith in all of the messengers and that with which they have come.”
For this can be a reference to the differences to be found of necessity in the human world (Aj); that is, God created the world in order for there to be differences by virtue of His Wisdom. Alternately, for this can refer to the Divine Mercy (R), which would mean that God created the world in order to manifest His Mercy. Some, however, interpret this verse as meaning, “We created the people of difference for difference, and the people of mercy for mercy,” suggesting that God created human beings for the purpose of bringing about the situation described in the first part of v. 119 (R). Yet another possibility is that for this refers to both differences and Divine Mercy, which would imply that all the differences we see in the world are ultimately nothing but manifestations of God’s Mercy. God’s Promise that He shall surely fill Hell with jinn and men all together is also repeated in 32:13 (cf. 7:18; 38:85).
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Ġ All that We recount unto thee of the stories of the messengers is that whereby We make firm thine heart. And herein there has come unto thee the Truth, and an exhortation and a reminder for the believers.
120 This verse confirms that the stories of the previous generations were revealed to the Prophet in order to make firm his heart, that is, to strengthen and console him in the face of the difficulties he encountered in his prophetic mission; see also 11:112–13c. The Quran’s accounts of episodes in sacred history are often read as spiritual allegories that teach human beings in general how to overcome the enemies within their own souls. Concerning the message being a reminder for the believers, see 51:55: And remind, for truly the reminder benefits the believers.
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ġ And say unto those who believe not, “Act according to your position; we, too, are acting.
Ģ And wait! We, too, are waiting.”
121–22 Regarding these statements, which function as warnings and threats against the Makkan idolaters, see 6:135c.
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ģ Unto God belongs the Unseen in the heavens and on the earth, and unto Him are all matters returned. So worship Him, and trust in Him. And thy Lord is not heedless of that which you do.
123 After recounting to the Prophet the fate of the previous generations and granting him assurance that, like the other prophets before him, he and his followers will ultimately triumph over their enemies and that the latter will suffer a humiliating defeat if they do not mend their ways, this sūrah ends with a summary of its message to the Prophet and, by extension, to all believers. The call to trust in Him is echoed throughout the Quran, as in 3:159: Truly God loves those who trust; and 5:23: And trust in God, if you are believers. According to a Sufi interpretation of the virtue of trust in God, trust is there when “the heart is at rest because of the Lord’s Guarantee” (Aj).