What Was the Fate of the Nine Men Who Plotted Against Prophet Saleh?
ما مصير الرهط التسعة الذين تآمروا على نبي الله صالح عليه السلام؟
Answer:
Allah destroyed and finished them before they could attack Prophet Salih.
(And there were in the city nine ˹elite˺ men who spread corruption in the land, never doing what is right. They vowed, “Let us swear by Allah that we will take him and his family down by night. Then we will certainly say to his ˹closest˺ heirs, ‘We did not witness the murder of his family. We are definitely telling the truth.’” And ˹so˺ they made a plan, but We too made a plan, while they were unaware. See then what the consequences of their plan were: We ˹utterly˺ destroyed them and their people all together.) (An-Naml 27:48-51)
أهلكهم الله تعالى ودمرهم قبل أن يتمكنوا من الاعتداء على نبيه صالح عليه السلام.
(وَكَانَ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ تِسْعَةُ رَهْطٍ يُفْسِدُونَ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا يُصْلِحُونَ * قَالُوا تَقَاسَمُوا بِاللَّهِ لَنُبَيِّتَنَّهُ وَأَهْلَهُ ثُمَّ لَنَقُولَنَّ لِوَلِيِّهِ مَا شَهِدْنَا مَهْلِكَ أَهْلِهِ وَإِنَّا لَصَادِقُونَ * وَمَكَرُوا مَكْرًا وَمَكَرْنَا مَكْرًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ * فَانظُرْ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ مَكْرِهِمْ أَنَّا دَمَّرْنَاهُمْ وَقَوْمَهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ) (النمل 27: 48-51)
1. Who Were the Nine? | من هم الرهط التسعة؟
Ibn Kathir explains that the nine were the tyrants and chiefs of Thamud, who called their people to misguidance, disbelief and the denial of Saleh. Al-Qurtubi adds that they were among the most prominent and wealthiest of the people, and that the sum of their affair is that they spread corruption and never set anything right. The reports give their names differently, and al-Qurtubi quotes as-Suhayli that their names cannot be fixed by a sound narration.
وَكَانَ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ تِسْعَةُ رَهْطٍ يُفْسِدُونَ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا يُصْلِحُونَ (سورة النمل: 48)
قال ابن كثير: هم طغاة ثمود ورؤوسهم الذين كانوا دعاة قومهم إلى الضلالة والكفر وتكذيب صالح. وذكر القرطبي أنهم كانوا من أوجه القوم وأغناهم، وأن جملة أمرهم أنهم يفسدون ولا يصلحون. واختلفت الروايات في أسمائهم، ونقل القرطبي عن السهيلي أن ذلك لا ينضبط برواية.
2. An Oath Sworn by Allah to Commit Murder | قسم بالله على جريمة قتل
They swore by Allah to fall upon Saleh and his family by night, and agreed in advance on the lie they would tell his guardian: "We did not witness the killing of his family, and we are truthful." Ibn Kathir cites reports from Ibn Abbas that these were the men whose counsel led to the killing of the she-camel, and that Qudar ibn Salif was the one who struck it with his own hand, the crime that sealed the fate of Thamud.
قَالُوا تَقَاسَمُوا بِاللَّهِ لَنُبَيِّتَنَّهُ وَأَهْلَهُ ثُمَّ لَنَقُولَنَّ لِوَلِيِّهِ مَا شَهِدْنَا مَهْلِكَ أَهْلِهِ وَإِنَّا لَصَادِقُونَ (سورة النمل: 49)
تحالفوا بالله على أن يبيتوا صالحا وأهله ليلا فيقتلوهم، واتفقوا سلفا على الكذبة التي يقولونها لوليه: ما شهدنا مهلك أهله وإنا لصادقون. وذكر ابن كثير عن ابن عباس أنهم هم الذين صدر عن رأيهم ومشورتهم عقر الناقة، وأن قدار بن سالف هو الذي باشر عقرها بيده.
3. Their Plot Against Allah's Plan | مكرهم ومكر الله بهم
Allah says that they plotted and He planned, while they did not perceive it. Ibn Kathir gathers the early explanations of how their plot failed: Qatadah said that as they set out to kill Saleh, Allah sent a rock upon them that crushed them; Ibn Ishaq said the angels struck them with stones; and Ibn Abi Hatim reports that they hid in a cave to ambush Saleh at his place of prayer, and a rock closed over them inside it. The reports differ in detail and agree that they never reached him.
وَمَكَرُوا مَكْرًا وَمَكَرْنَا مَكْرًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ (سورة النمل: 50)
قال تعالى: (ومكروا مكرا ومكرنا مكرا وهم لا يشعرون). ونقل ابن كثير أقوال السلف في إبطال مكرهم: فقال قتادة: بينما هم ماضون إلى صالح ليفتكوا به بعث الله عليهم صخرة فأهمدتهم، وقال ابن إسحاق: دمغتهم الملائكة بالحجارة، وروى ابن أبي حاتم أنهم كمنوا في غار ليقتلوه إذا جاء يصلي فانطبقت عليهم الصخرة. وتختلف الروايات في التفاصيل، وتتفق على أنهم لم يصلوا إليه.
4. Destroyed With Their People | هلاكهم وهلاك قومهم
In these reports the plotters perished first, and the punishment then overtook their whole people: "We utterly destroyed them and their people all together." Their homes were left empty because of their wrongdoing, a sign for people who know. The punishment itself is described in how Thamud was destroyed.
فَتِلْكَ بُيُوتُهُمْ خَاوِيَةً بِمَا ظَلَمُوا ۗ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْلَمُونَ (سورة النمل: 52)
في هذه الروايات هلك الرهط أولا، ثم نزل العذاب بقومهم فهلكوا جميعا، قال تعالى: (فتلك بيوتهم خاوية بما ظلموا إن في ذلك لآية لقوم يعلمون).
5. Saleh and the Believers Were Saved | نجاة صالح والذين آمنوا
The plot was aimed at Saleh and his household, yet Allah saved him and those who believed and feared Him.
وَأَنجَيْنَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَكَانُوا يَتَّقُونَ (سورة النمل: 53)
أراد الرهط إهلاك صالح وأهله، فأنجاه الله والذين آمنوا معه وكانوا يتقون.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Who were the nine men mentioned in Surah An-Naml?
They were chiefs of Thamud who spread corruption in the land and called their people to deny Prophet Saleh (An-Naml 27:48).
What did the nine men plan against Prophet Saleh?
They swore by Allah to kill him and his family by night and then tell his guardian that they had not witnessed it (27:49).
How did Allah foil their plot?
Allah destroyed them before they reached Saleh; early commentators report that a rock or stones struck them. Then their whole people were destroyed (27:50-51).
Was Prophet Saleh harmed?
No. Allah saved Saleh and those who believed and feared Him (An-Naml 27:53).