Surah Hud (The Prophet Hud)

1. Alef, Lam, Ra. Allah best knows their meaning. This is a Book of great importance, the verses of which are cogently conceived, powerfully constructed, and clearly articulated. Its suras constitute diverse parts which have been revealed separately . The precepts they teach have later been described in detail. They come from a wise Allah who takes into consideration the needs of His servants. He is all-knowing and sets everything in its place.

2. In His noble Book, Allah orders you, O humans, to worship no one but Him and to associate no one with Him. Mohammad, say to mankind: “Allah has sent me to you to warn you about His punishment if you disobey Him, and to announce to you the good tidings that if you obey Him you will be rewarded.”

3. Therefore, beg for your Lord’s forgiveness and ask Him to pardon you for your idolatry, your disbelief, and your crimes. Return to Him in repentance, and worship only Him in all sincerity. If you act in this way, if you plead to Allah for forgiveness and submit yourselves to Him, He will grant you the enjoyment of a peaceful life in this world, He will accord you His favours, and He will grant you a certain space of time until the moment comes that He has fixed for you to die. He will make you the best of peoples by granting you the greatest of His blessings, power and glory. He will reward every deserving human being for his wisdom and his actions. However, if you show yourself to be rebellious and turn away from what I have told you, I fear you will be punished on the terrible Day of Judgement.

4. It is to Allah Almighty that you will return on the Day of Resurrection. He is Omnipotent: He grants His favours to the faithful and punishes His enemies. He Alone is capable of resurrecting His creatures on the last day.

5. Those unbelievers who reject the call to monotheism bend their backs and bow their heads when they hear the Quran, as if they were trying to retract their breast by folding it on their stomachs in order to deceive the Prophet who is reciting it to them, so that he cannot see them when they hear Allah’s warnings and signs. Allah Almighty warns them that such deception will be utterly useless to them, for He penetrates into their intentions and the secrets that they conceal. He is capable of knowing what their state is and what they are thinking, even when they are enveloped in their clothes in the dead of night, when they dress themselves in order to hide their bodies and go to bed. He knows just as well what they pronounce publicly and what they hide in the depths of their hearts.

6. Let them be aware that Allah’s Omnipotence, His favours, and His knowledge are all-embracing. There is no creature on earth whose actions are not known to Allah, and He knows where they live and where they lie after death. Everything is written in His book.

7. Allah Almighty speaks of His creative power. He says that He created the heavens and the earth in six days. Formerly, His throne was on the waves (the throne of the Lord, Who knows all mysteries, is imperceptible by the senses. Human beings are incapable of imagining it or fully understanding how it was set there). Allah created mankind and established them securely on earth in order to put them to the test and see which of them would perform the most virtuous deeds. An action is of no value unless it is devoted to Allah and conforms to Divine law; otherwise, actions will swell until they burst and will be utterly without value. O Mohammad, if you teach these idolaters that Allah will resurrect them, just as beforehand He created them, they will deny your teachings and say that the only people who believe and follow you are those you have bewitched.

8. If we postpone their punishment until a fixed and certain date, they will mock you, saying: “What is delaying this punishment which the Prophet keeps warning us about?” for they are in the habit of being sceptical and of denying everything. On the day when the punishment, which they so long to witness, is inflicted on them, nothing will be able to save them, and it will encompass them on all sides.

9. And Allah Almighty speaks of the faults of all men except for those who benefit from Divine grace. If a misfortune befalls them after they have benefited from good fortune, they lose all hope in Allah’s mercy, and deny His favours and His grace.

10. Similarly, if they enjoy good fortune after a period of adversity and misfortune, they say: “We are no longer subject to misery or injustice.” That leads them to revel in the ephemeral pleasures of this earth and to demonstrate how fatuous they are; it distracts them and prevents their hearts from rendering thanks to Allah for their good fortune.

11. Allah Almighty spurns those obstinate men who seek to dismay believers who arm themselves with patience in the face of misfortune and adversity, through their faith and their love of Allah. Through the misfortune which afflicts them, Allah grants them His indulgence and will generously reward them for the good deeds they have performed in prosperous times.

12. Allah Almighty consoles His Prophet concerning the obstinacy of the idolaters and those who incite people against him. He says to him: “O Prophet, are you going to give up informing the idolaters of a single part of what has been revealed to you by your Lord, which is painful for them to hear, such as the call to monotheism and the prohibition of polytheism? Does it trouble you to tell them?” Allah Almighty then indicates to His prophet that he must not let himself be discouraged, that nothing must induce him to stop summoning them to Allah night and day, and that he must not let himself be troubled when he hears them say: “Why does Allah not send a great treasure down to him, or why does He not send an angel to accompany him, to corroborate his message?” and other intransigent remarks of this kind. Allah Almighty tells His Prophet that He sent him to give warning to the people, to transmit to them the orders He has communicated to him, and that Allah alone is capable of guiding them, if He so wishes, and that He is responsible for everything in the universe.

13. Allah Almighty demonstrates the inimitable nature of the Quran, and upbraids the idolaters among the Quraish who said: “Mohammad invented the Quran. He himself created it and ascribed it to Allah. But it is a pure lie.” Allah answers them: “If that is indeed the case and you are telling the truth, produce ten suras similar to these which are forgeries. You may make use of any help you wish, if you are telling the truth when you say that the Quran was composed by Mohammad.” Indeed, if Mohammad (peace be upon him) himself composed the Quran, they should be able to compose one similar to it, for he is one of them.

14. And Allah Almighty forces them to feel how powerless they are to accomplish such an undertaking; He says to the Prophet and the believers: “If they fail to compose and present you with the ten suras similar to those of the Quran, as you have requested them, then know that they are unable to do so, and that no human being can compose something which resembles the Quran. Know that the Quran issues solely from the wisdom of Allah and there is no other Allah but Him. Submit yourselves therefore to Him and be sincere in your faith.”

15. Those who cherish the world here below and wish to enjoy its pleasures, such as food and drink, or its ornaments, such as clothes, furniture, goods and children, without preparing themselves for the afterlife by performing acts of piety and generosity and by purifying themselves through obedience to the divine commandments, we will allow them full and complete possession of the fruits of their actions. They will lose nothing of the results they have achieved, on account of their misdeeds. For the acquisitions of this world result from actions, not from intentions or the goals one seeks to attain. In the life here below, the reward for acts depends on two things: the products of labour, and fate. In the hereafter, rewards depend on Allah alone, without mediators.

16. Those who concern themselves with nothing but life here below, with its ornaments and blandishments will have nothing but Hell as their share in the afterworld, for recompense there depends on actions accomplished on earth. But in this world they will have done nothing which could be of any use to them in the Hereafter.

17. He who knows his religion well and clearsightedly follows it — that is to say, Mohammad (peace be upon him) and every believer who has embraced his religion –, who is sustained by a Divine light which attests to its truthfulness (that is, the Quran which shines with light and guidance) and also by that previous evidence (that is, the Book revealed to Moses) which was a preamble in matters of faith and legislation and an act of mercy towards those children of Israel who believed in it, is he who has such qualities to be compared with the man who concentrates on the ephemeral life here below and deprives himself of the spiritual life which leads to eternal happiness in the ultimate life? Those who possess both a given argument and an acquired one believe in the Quran and submit themselves to it, and swear that it is a revelation from the Lord. Those among the factions of Makkah and the leaders of the Quraish who reject the Quran and deny that it comes from Allah, in order to turn people away from it, they will have Hell as their everlasting dwelling-place for having ignored Allah’s warnings. Be in no doubt concerning the Quran, O believer. It is the Truth, which cannot in any way be affected by falsehood. But most people do not believe in it in an absolute fashion.

18. Allah Almighty describes the state of those who fabricate lies concerning Him, and says that they will be brought low by witnesses on the last day. And Allah Almighty says: “No one is more wicked than those who fabricate lies concerning Allah, by ascribing to Him statements, acts, decrees, or characteristics, claiming that He took to Himself a companion or a son, or by denying the messages of His prophets….” Such people will be confronted by their Lord on the last day, so that He can judge them for what they have done or said. Those among the angels, the prophets, and the true believers who come to bear witness against them will say: “Here are those who invented lies about their Lord. Allah’s curses on the wicked.” The Prophet says: “Allah, all-powerful and sublime, approaches the believer and covers him with his shroud, hides him from men’s sight, and makes him confess his sins. Then He says to him: `Do you confess such-and-such a sin? And such-and-such another?’ Once He has made him confess his sins, and the sinner thinks himself lost, Allah says to him: `I hid them from you in the world below, and now I pardon you for them.’ Then the penitent will be given the book in which his good deeds are inscribed. As for the unbelievers and hypocrites, the witnesses will point them out, saying: ‘There are those who lied about Allah. Allah’s curses on the wicked.'” (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

19. Allah defines these wicked men, saying: “They are those who lead people astray from the way of Allah, prevent them from believing, seek to make Allah’s path a winding one, according to their desires and passions, and deny the last day, treating it as a lie.”

20. If Allah wishes to punish such wicked people, they will not reduce Him to powerlessness by fleeing Him on earth. He has them in His power and they must submit to His will. He is capable of wreaking His revenge on them. No one, therefore, except Allah, will be able to come to their aid or help them. Allah Almighty delays their punishment and postpones His vengeance until the last day. On that day, He will double their torments, for He has granted them hearing, sight, and reason, but they have not made use of them and have remained deaf to the voice of truth, and blind to the path which they should follow.

21. Such people are responsible for having lost themselves and deprived themselves of Allah’s mercy by fabricating lies concerning Him. They have exchanged guidance for error. They will go to hell and will suffer a punishment which will never diminish nor cease. They will not find the equals, the associates, and the sons that they have attributed to Allah. Their statues and idols will be of no use to them whatsoever, but only Allah alone.

22. There can be no doubt that on the Day of Resurrection they will be the great losers, for they have renounced Paradise in exchange for Hell, and have preferred punishment to forgiveness.

23. After having described the state of these wretched beings on the last day, Allah Almighty describes the state of the blessed who believe, who perform good deeds, whose hearts are submissive to Allah and filled with confidence in Him, and who shun wicked deeds. Through their own acts, their acceptance, and their submission to Allah, they will have won Paradise and its indescribable blessings.

24. Speaking of the happy believers who dwell in Paradise and the unbelievers who suffer punishment, Allah compares the latter to the blind and deaf who cannot see or hear or find their way properly. He compares the happy believers to a person who can see well, hear well, abandon evil, grasp cogent arguments and not let himself be misled by false arguments. Do these two appear similar? Certainly not. Will you not meditate on the difference between the right path and the wrong one, the true and the false, in order to follow the path of salvation and faith and abandon the way of disbelief and error?

25. Noah (peace be upon him) was the first prophet sent by Allah Almighty to the inhabitants of earth who were polytheists and idolaters. He said to his people: “The Lord has charged me to warn you explicitly, and to show you the path of salvation. Therefore, believe in Him and obey His commandments.”

26. “Worship one Allah alone, without associate, for I fear that you will be punished on the Day of Resurrection if you persist in your polytheism, and if you continue to deny the Lord and worship deities other than Allah Almighty.”

27. The leaders of his people answered: “We see in you only a human being like us and not an angel come down from Heaven. How then have you received Divine inspiration, and why has the Lord chosen you from among us?” They saw that he was followed by the riff-raff and the most vulgar members of the population, and not by the nobles and chiefs, and concluded that his followers had not committed themselves to him after reflection and meditation, but on a first impulse. Finally they told him that they could not see that either he or his followers enjoyed any advantages greater than theirs, either physical or moral, or even in terms of situation, power, or knowledge, and they therefore saw no reason to follow him. They accused him of being an obvious impostor in claiming to be a prophet, and they treated his followers as liars in claiming to be pious, just, and devout.

28. Noah (peace be upon him) answered them: “Tell me, if I am armed with certainty, with a shining truth and a trustworthy prophecy, if Allah has granted me a compassion to which you have remained blind and have refused guidance but have chosen to ignore its worth and have denied and rejected it, do you expect us to oblige you to accept it by force and to believe in it against your will?”

29. “O my people, when I give you advice and call upon you to worship Allah alone, I do not ask you for any money in remuneration. I seek my reward only from Allah. I could in no way spurn my followers, as you have requested me to do, because you consider yourselves superior to them and because you shun their company, for they will meet their Lord and the Almighty will question me concerning them. I find that when you ask me something you fall into error and you go astray from the true path into that of ignorance and falsehood. You do not realize that the way in which men must compete with each other in the eyes of the Creator is in terms of faith and good deeds, and not through wealth or noble blood or status.”

30. “Allah is the protector of believers. If I spurned these believers after they have accepted the faith and responded to my call, I would be committing a terrible crime. Who would protect me against Allah, their master? Will you never understand that Allah is the Lord of all men, and that only through faith, piety, and good deeds does anyone have any merit in His eyes?”

31. Noah (peace be upon him) informs them that he is Allah’s messenger, that he is calling upon people to worship Him without asking anything in return, and that he is charged with appealing to all men, the noble as well as the humble. Whoever responds to his call will be fulfilled and will gain salvation. He also tells them that he is incapable of dispensing Allah’s treasures, that he is ignorant of the mysteries except for those which Allah reveals to him, that he is not an angel but a human being like them, descended from them, sent by Allah their Lord, and sustained by His miracles. He tells them not to assert that Allah will fail to reward the faith and the good deeds of those believers whom they despise and scorn, that only Allah Almighty knows these people in their heart of hearts, that if they are truly sincere in their belief they will receive from Allah the most beautiful reward, and that if he claimed otherwise he would be among the wicked.

32. The leaders of Noah’s people answered him: “You have argued quite enough, and you have debated so long with us that we are bored. We have nothing more to say. We will not follow you. Bring down upon us the wretchedness and punishment you keep promising us. Bring down upon us whatever curses you desire. Let the punishment strike us now, if you are telling the truth when you claim that Allah will punish us here on earth instead of inflicting His punishment on the last day.”

33. And Noah (peace be upon him) answered them: “It is not for me to inflict on you the punishment you are impatient to undergo. It is for Allah alone, who knows all, to lead you to it and to hasten it.”

34. “How can the advice and the messages I bring to you help you if Allah wishes to lead you astray and plunge you into error? The Almighty controls everything. Everyone will return to their absolute Master, the fair Judge who never commits an injustice, on the Day of Judgement, so that He can repay everyone according to their deserts. The law which Allah has decreed for mankind stipulates that only those who are willing to follow the true path will accept my admonitions, whereas the corrupt and the errant will reject them.”

35. Do not the idolaters of Makkah say: “Mohammad (peace be upon him) invented the story of Noah and attributed it to Allah”? Tell them: “If I had invented it and attributed it to Allah, I would be guilty and I would accept the responsibility. Allah Almighty does not allow those who lie about Him to escape punishment. You will in no way be responsible for my sin, just as I am innocent of your crimes, by which I mean your disbelief and your injustice.”

36. When Noah’s people were eager to provoke Allah’s anger and undergo His punishment, and said to Noah (peace be upon him): “Take us where you promised us, if you are telling the truth,” he implored Allah Almighty: “Lord, let no unbeliever survive on earth.” Allah Almighty revealed to him: “From now on, only those among your people who already believe will be capable of belief. Do not allow yourself to feel any regret concerning their former behaviour, and the fact that they denied you, contradicted you, and tried to harm you.”

37. And Allah Almighty commanded His servant Noah (peace be upon him) to build an ark according to the instructions he received from his Lord, in order to save the believers. Allah said to His servant that he was protected by divine Providence, and that He would destroy by drowning those whose disbelief had shown them to be wicked.

38. Noah (peace be upon him) therefore set about constructing the ark. The leaders of his people who came by and saw what he was building mocked him and his threats of drowning. He answered them: “You mock us when you see something which you do not believe to be useful at the moment. We will mock you tomorrow when Allah carries out His promise and inflicts on you the punishment that He has promised.”

39. “When Allah’s decree is put into effect and you receive the promised punishment, then you will know who will suffer the divine punishment which will cover him with shame and humiliate him in this world by drowning him, and also in the hereafter, by condemning him to eternal torture.”

40. Allah gave Noah a sign to indicate to him the moment when punishment would descend upon his people: it would be when a torrential rain would fall that would neither cease nor abate, when springs of water would gush from the earth, until water boiled in the ovens. When he saw that, Noah should take into the ark one pair from each species. Allah ordered him to take into the ark his family and his relatives, with the exception of those who did not believe in his message or in Allah, including his wife and one of his sons. He told him also to take on board the ark his followers, who were not numerous, as Allah says.

41. Noah took them on board the ark and said to them: “Go aboard. May the ark float and navigate in the name of Allah. It is He who will take care of it through His power and His omnipotence, He who will guard and protect it. Allah is all-forgiving towards anyone who repents in His sight. He is merciful towards His servants.”

42. The ark floated upon the water among waves as high as mountains. The earth was submerged under the water. Noah hailed his son, who was an unbeliever, and asked him to believe and to climb into the ark with him, so that he would not be drowned like the rest of the unbelievers. Noah’s son was standing on the bank on a spot cut off by the water which surrounded it on all sides.

43. His son answered him: “I shall seek refuge on the top of a mountain that will save me from the waves,” believing that the mountain peaks would be safe from the flood, and that he would be able to cling to a peak and be saved. Noah said to him: “Nothing today will protect you from the destiny and the decree of Allah.” The waves rose and came between father and son, and the latter drowned along with the rest.

44. Allah Almighty says that when all of Noah’s people had drowned except for those aboard the ark, Allah ordered the earth to swallow the water that was gushing from it and submerging it, and commanded the sky to stop raining. The level of the water began to go down, and it started to recede. The execution of Allah’s sentence was complete. All the unbelievers among Noah’s people were destroyed. None of them survived. The ark landed on Mount Judi (some think that this is a mountain near Musel), and it was said: “May the wicked be cursed, lost, and removed from Allah’s mercy!”

45. Noah (peace be upon him) here asks for news of his son who was drowned, saying: “Lord, my son is of my household. But you promised to save my household, and you never break your word. How is it then that he was drowned, You who are the most just of masters, whose infallible and equitable judgement issues from perfect knowledge and absolute wisdom?”

46. And Allah Almighty answers: “O Noah, he is not among those I promised to save with you in the ark, for I promised to save the believers among your people. Through his disbelief, he broke the bonds between you. Therefore, do not question me on a matter of which you lack reliable knowledge. I forbid you to be among the ignorant who petition Allah to abrogate His commands in order to satisfy their passions and whims.”

47. “Lord,” says Noah, “it is in you that I seek refuge and protection against any idea of petitioning you concerning matters where I am ignorant of the truth. If you do not grant me your pardon for having committed this sin, if you do not include me in your mercy, I shall be lost.”

48. When the waters receded and the ark landed on Mount Judi, Allah Almighty ordered Noah to disembark and granted him and those with him His grace, His blessing, and abundant benefits. He told him that his companions would be divided, after him, that some of them would receive Divine benediction on account of their faith, whereas others would enjoy the pleasures of this world but that Allah’s grace and mercy would be withheld from them, in contrast to the believers, for the devil would lead them astray and would make polytheism, injustice, and excess attractive to them. Then a painful punishment would be inflicted upon them on the last day.

49. This story that we have recounted to you concerning Noah (peace be upon him) and his people is an episode from times past which raises some mysteries. We reveal it to you in a clear light and exactly as it happened. For you and your people did not know the story before. Those who deny you cannot therefore claim that you learned it from one of them. Rather, it is Allah who told you exactly what transpired, something which is confirmed by earlier prophets. Arm yourself with patience against those who deny and slander you, just as the earlier prophets did when they endured the insults heaped on them by their peoples. We will accord you victory as well as grace. We will save you and grant you victory in this world and the next, both you and your companions who fear Allah, following the example of the earlier messengers to whom we granted victory over their enemies.

50. To the people of A’ad we sent Hud (peace be upon him), their relative, to command them to worship Allah alone without associate and to renounce the cult of idolatry that they had invented in contravention of the truth and for which they had invented the names of various divinities.

51. He told them that he sought no payment from them for his advice and for the Divine message he transmitted to them, for he wished only to be rewarded by Allah who created him, blessed with a naturally virtuous character and immune to all sacrilege. And Hud further addressed his people as follows: “Will you not meditate on what you have been told, in order to discern what is useful to you and what is harmful, and to understand that he who summons you to your salvation in this world and the next, without expecting any recompense from you, could not possibly be a liar?”

52. Hud (peace be upon him) ordered his people to implore Allah’s forgiveness for having been polytheists and for the sins they had committed. He commanded them to repent in all sincerity, and told them that whoever truly repents and begs the Lord’s forgiveness will be granted abundant favours by Allah, and He will render their lives easy, protect them, and will pour abundant rains down from heaven, to make them even stronger and cause them to live comfortably. Then he ordered them not to turn their backs on his summons but to renounce their denials, their crimes, and their wickedness. (The Prophet (peace be upon him) says: “Whoever is steadfast in his repentance, Allah will wash away his care, console him in his afflictions, and grant him favours when he least expects them.”)

53. They said to him: “O Hud, you provide us with no argument or proof to confirm the truth of what you say or the fact that you are Allah’s messenger. We will not renounce the cult of our divinities for the simple reason that you are telling us to abandon our Allahs, and we do not believe your claims to be the messenger sent to us by Allah.”

54. And they added: “We believe that one of our divinities has disturbed your mind for having forbidden us to worship them and for having denigrated them. That is why you are mad.” “Witness yourselves,” he said, “and I call Allah to witness that I am innocent of believing in any of the associates and idols that you worship instead of Allah.”

55. “Gather all your Allahs together and unleash all your stratagems against me, spare no effort and do not hesitate for a single instant. That will in no way affect me and will do me absolutely no harm.”

56. “I put my trust in Allah, my true Lord and yours. He created everything, put all creatures at His mercy and under His power. He is the just Master who injures nobody. Reigning over the Universe, He controls the path of righteousness and equity. As for the idols, they are mere stones incapable of being either useful or harmful, and incapable of doing good or evil even to themselves.”

57. If you spurn my call to worship Allah alone, without associate, you will no longer have any argument at your disposal, for I have transmitted to you the message that Allah charged me to communicate to you. Allah is capable of causing your destruction and replacing you with a people who will appropriate your homes and your goods, who will worship Him alone and ascribe no associates to Him. Allah cares nothing for you, for through your impiety and your rejection you cannot harm Him in the least. You alone will undergo the dire consequences. My Lord observes all, and watches over the entire universe.

58. When the time came for Allah’s decree to destroy the people of A’ad, He unleashed against them a devastating tempest which annihilated them all, leaving not a single survivor. Allah in His mercy saved Hud and his fellow-believers from the terrible punishment which He inflicted on the people of A’ad.

59. Such was the fate of the people of A’ad who had shown themselves to be unbelievers, had denied Allah’s signs and spurned His messengers (for whoever denies one messenger denies all messengers). The riff-raff followed every rebellious tyrant among their chiefs and leaders who refused to follow the path of salvation and would not obey Allah, in spite of all the convincing arguments.

60. As a consequence of their impiety and their arrogance, they deserved in this world, every time they were mentioned, the malediction of Allah, of angels, and of men. This malediction will hound them on the last day when witnesses are called against them: “The people of A’ad denied their Lord. May curses and perdition befall the people of A’ad, Hud’s people.”

61. Allah Almighty says that He sent to the people of Thamud a messenger who was one of them, that is to say Saleh (referring to a community which inhabited Al-Hijr, between Tabouk and Medina and which succeeded the people of A’ad). Saleh (peace be upon him) commanded them to worship Allah alone, without associate, and told them that it was Allah who created their father Adam from the earth, and caused them to multiply and cultivate the earth. He ordered them to beg the Lord to forgive them for the sins they had committed, and to return to Him through repentance, for Allah is near and hears those who implore Him, and answers the prayers of sincere believers.

62. His people answered him: “Saleh, you were a cause of hope before you started forbidding us the worship of the divinities our fathers and forefathers worshipped, and before you called upon us to worship Allah alone. In truth, we feel raging doubts concerning what you are proposing to us.”

63. Saleh (peace be upon him) answered them: “Behold, if I were guided by my Lord and furnished with proof, if I obtained through Him irrefutable evidence that I was following the true path and that I was provided with His mercy and chosen by Him to carry His message, and if I then disobeyed Him and renounced the mission He had charged me with, which consists in summoning you to the true path and calling upon you to worship Allah alone, who could then protect me and defend me against Allah? If I disobey Him, if I prefer what you have to what Allah has, if I exchange your pleasure for His anger, you will be of no use to me, and you will only exacerbate my loss.”

64. And Saleh continued: “Here is Allah’s she-camel. She is distinguished from the rest of camels by her food, her drink, and her shape. Allah has sent her to you as an argument and a proof of the truth of the message I am conveying to you. Let her therefore pasture on Allah’s earth and do not seek to do her any harm. If you should commit this reprehensible act, Allah will destroy you by inflicting on you a punishment which will not be long in coming.”

65. The people of Thamud were troubled by the camel and by Saleh. In order to defy and deny him, they slaughtered the camel. Their prophet then said to them: “Allah will wreak His revenge on you. That is a promise on Allah’s part which He will not fail to carry out and which cannot be denied.”

66. When they suffered their punishment, Allah in His mercy saved Saleh (peace be upon him) and his companions. He spared them from punishment and torture on that day. Allah is Mighty and Omnipotent, and no one can defy Him and nothing can reduce Him to powerlessness.

67. When Allah had saved Saleh and the believers, the unbelievers who had brought evil upon themselves were carried off by a clamorous punishment. The earth was crushed flat, and it shook. They perished, prostrate on their knees, their faces to the ground.

68. They were immediately and totally annihilated, as if they had never constructed or inhabited their houses. This punishment struck the people of Thamud because they had denied their Lord, ascribed associates to Him, and transgressed His commandments. Cursed be Thamud, which was deprived of Allah’s grace!

69. The angels, Allah’s messengers, brought to Abraham (peace be upon him) the glad tidings of the coming birth of his son Isaac, saying: “We salute you.” He greeted them also and hastened to bring them some roast veal, according to his duty towards his visitors.

70. Seeing that the visitors did not touch his food as was customary, he was vexed and anxious. They said to him: “Have no fear of us, for we wish you no harm. We have been sent by your Lord to destroy Lot’s people.”

71. Sarah, his wife, who had remained present in order to serve the meal, began to laugh on hearing the good news that the people of Lot were going to perish, so horrible were their vices. The angels announced to her the glad tidings that she would have a son named Isaac, who while she and her husband Abraham were still alive would have a son called Jacob.

72. Sarah said to them: “How is it possible for me to have a son, for I am an old woman and my husband too is old and can no longer have children. If it really does happen, that will be a most astounding thing.”

73. The angels answered her: “You must not be surprised at anything decreed by the Lord. Is there anything which can prevent Allah’s will from being realized? May the mercy and blessings of Allah be on you, the inhabitants of this house. All praise and glory to Allah!”

74. Abraham (peace be upon him) was afraid of the angels because they had not eaten his meal, then they announced the good news concerning Isaac and told him that they had been sent to destroy Lot’s people. He was terrified to hear this. When he had recovered from his fear, he was seized with pity and began to argue with the angels about Lot’s people and how they were going to destroy them although there were some believers among them.

75. Allah Almighty describes Abraham (peace be upon him) as a forbearing, most compassionate, and most repentant man, submissive to Allah’s will and commandments.

76. Allah Almighty said to Abraham: “Abraham, stop arguing about Lot’s people and petitioning us on their behalf.” He then informed him that His decision had been taken concerning them, that His decree that they be destroyed was irrevocable, and that they would suffer the inexorable punishment that criminals deserve.

77. Allah Almighty speaks of the angels who presented themselves to Lot (peace be upon him) in the form of very handsome young men. Because of the sins of his people, Lot had abstained from receiving guests, so that he would not have to protect them if his people decided to attack them, as was their habit with passing strangers. He was therefore vexed by the arrival of these guests, because he feared that they would be attacked by his people, so handsome were they. He invited them in. Only his household was informed, but his wife went to announce the news to the people, who crowded towards Lot’s house in search of such beautiful prey. “What a distressing day!” said Lot to himself.

78. Having learned of the arrival of guests with ravishing faces, at Lot’s house, some of his people rushed to look and were enchanted. They were naturally driven to do them harm and commit sin with them, since they had recourse to men rather than women, and let it be known publicly in their circles. Lot (peace be upon him) said to them: “You will commit no sin if you have recourse to women.” He wanted in this way to indicate to them the companions that Allah had created for them, and to orient towards women those among them who wished to marry, since it is purer to enjoy women with whom one is married than to soil oneself with pederasty. He then ordered them to protect themselves from Allah, to fear Him, and to stop requesting him to render up his guests, since to harm them would be to dishonour and shame him. Having almost given up hope of driving them out, he concluded: “Is there no reasonable, sensible man among you who will help me to drive you out and prevent you from going astray?” (The prophet considers all the women among his people as his own daughters. Lot is therefore not referring specifically to his own daughters. Allah’s prophets do not accept people indulging in fornication or encouraging others to do so.)

79. They answered Lot: “You know very well that we have no desire for women. You know that we desire men, and that is what we have come here to look for. It is therefore useless to keep repeating such admonitions to us.”

80. Lot said to them: “If I were strong enough myself, or if I could call upon forces within my tribe and those who support me, I would have opposed you and punished you to prevent you from accomplishing what you desire. Unfortunately, I am incapable of that.” (This is why it is said that after Lot (peace be upon him), Allah sent no more prophets but those men who were honoured by their people.)

81. Lot’s guests then told him that they were angels from the Lord, and His messengers, and that his people would not be able to harm him or molest his visitors. They ordered him to leave with his family in the middle of the night, and to walk behind his household and follow them. They commanded that none of them should turn round if they heard disaster fall upon Lot’s people, and that they must not allow themselves to be frightened by the thunder. And they told him that his wife would suffer the same calamity which would strike down the wicked, for she was just as depraved as the rest. They informed him of the hour when disaster would strike and told him that it would be in the morning (that is to say, between first light and sunrise). He said to them: “Destroy them straight away.” “Is morning not at hand?” they answered. (Some believe that Lot’s people presented themselves at his door and that he pushed them back and dissuaded them and forbade them to do evil, but that they refused to listen to him. Allah then deprived them of sight and they withdrew, unable to find their way, as is indicated in another verse: “They wished to abuse his guests. We deprived them of sight.” See Sure 54 Al-Qamar, (The Moon), 37.)

82. At the moment destined by the Lord for the infliction of their punishment, He overturned the city, and caused blocks of fired clay to rain down upon them, one after another.

83. These blocks with which the Lord destroyed Lot’s people were marked with emblems. Such blocks are prepared and always ready, at Allah Almighty’s command, to lay low the wicked and the shameless. They can find no shelter against them.

84. Allah Almighty says: “We sent to the Midianites (members of the Arab tribe of Midian, who lived in a region situated between Syria and the Hijaz, near the town of Ma’an) their brother Shu’ayb, as a prophet. He was from the nobility. He commanded them to worship Allah alone, without associates, and forbade them to commit fraud in their weights and measures. “I see you enjoying prosperity and earning a good living,” he said to them. “That should satisfy you and prevent you from committing petty theft, cheating people of their rights and wrongly appropriating their goods by under-assessing their merchandise. I fear that you will be deprived of the benefits you enjoy in this world, for committing acts prohibited by the Lord. I fear that Allah’s punishment will descend upon you on the Day of Resurrection, which will surround all mankind on all sides with its horrors, and from which no one will escape except for those to whom Allah has granted His mercy.”

85. He forbade them to give short weight and measure, and ordered them to weigh and measure correctly the goods they received from others. He forbade them to be arrogant, to damage the earth, or to commit pillage on the highway.

86. And Shu’ayb continued to address his people, saying: “The legal profits you will earn when you weigh and measure accurately are worth far more to you than what you earn through falsehood, cheating people of their rights and fraudulently appropriating their goods, if you believe in Allah and His prohibitions concerning honesty in your dealings with other people. So examine your consciences, and obey the precepts of your Lord, for I am not your guardian and I am not responsible for your actions.”

87. They answered mockingly: “O Shu’ayb, do your prayers and your faith order you to call upon us to renounce the idols that our fathers worshipped, or to forbid us to manage our goods as we think fit, according to our own interests and using tricks and deception ? That is the height of insolence. Can this really be you, the wise and long-suffering Shu’ayb?”

88. Shu’ayb (peace be upon him) replied: “If Allah furnished me with proof and guided me, if He granted me the gift of prophecy and blessed me with a fine income, and I then disobeyed the orders He had commanded me to transmit to you, if I ceased to summon you to follow the true path and worship Allah alone, who could protect me from Allah? I do not forbid you one single act which I myself commit in secret. I want you to know that Allah has blessed me with a fine income without my needing to give false weight and measure. When I command you to worship Allah and renounce fraud, I seek only to reform you, as best I can. I appeal only to Allah to succeed and to follow the true path. I put my trust in Him. I am filled with devotion to Him alone, and it is He I worship and obey.”

89. And Shu’ayb (peace be upon him) continues to address his people: “Let not the hatred you bear towards me and the desire to contradict me lead you to persist in impiety and corruption. I fear that you will be struck with the scourge that struck Noah’s people, who drowned, and Hud’s people who were destroyed by the devastating tempest, or Saleh’s people who were struck down by their punishment on the day of the shadow, and your neighbours, Lot’s people, who were chastised and utterly annihilated for denying their Lord, transgressing His commandments, and rejecting His messengers.”

90. “Beg your Lord’s forgiveness for the sins you have committed. Return to Him and repent of your wicked deeds. Allah is all clemency and all indulgence towards sincere penitents.”

91. “Shu’ayb,” they said, “we do not understand much of what you say, about us being wrong to worship our divinities, and how we are being wicked by freely doing what we will with our own property, and how we will undergo a punishment which will encircle us. We can see that you are weak compared to us, for most of your clan do not share your beliefs. If it were not for the respect we owe your tribe, we would have stoned you to death. You have neither the strength nor the support to prevent us from doing so.”

92. Shu’ayb (peace be upon him) said to them: “Do you then feel more respect and consideration for my family than for Allah? Would you desist from harming me out of deference to my family but not to Almighty Allah who will punish you if you harm His prophet, since you have transgressed the bounds set by Allah Almighty, rejected the rights He has over you, and turned your backs on Him by disobeying Him and failing to venerate him? My Lord is aware of everything you do. His knowledge encompasses all your acts and He will punish you as you deserve.”

93. Having given up all hope on witnessing the response of his people to his appeals, the prophet Shu’ayb said to them: “O my people, act as you wish. Do what you are capable of. As for me, I too will act as I wish and as Allah permits. You will discover which of us, you or I, will be struck by the Divine punishment which humiliates and shames. You will know which of us has been lying. Wait. I too will wait with you.”

94. When the moment came for the promised Divine punishment to strike them down, it descended upon them. Through His mercy and His grace, Allah saved Shu’ayb and those who shared his faith. Shu’ayb’s people were caught in the clamour and the earthquake, punishment cast its shadow over them, the earth shook under their feet and in the morning they were all lying in their houses, either prostrate or on their knees.

95. In the morning, they were annihilated, as if they had never built or inhabited their homes. Cursed be the Midianites. Let it be with them as it was with the people of Thamud who were destroyed and deprived of divine grace (they were neighbours here below, and they will be together in the hereafter because of their impiety and their transgression of Allah’s commandments).

96. Allah Almighty says that to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, He sent Moses (peace be upon him), who was sustained by explicit signs proving the uniqueness of the Lord and His Omnipotence, and demonstrating in a clear and irrefutable manner the truth of his prophecy.

97. Allah Almighty sent Moses to Pharaoh and his entourage, who were Copts. Pharaoh denied the message of Moses and commanded his people to do likewise. They complied, followed Pharaoh’s path, and gave themselves, like him, to arrogance and error. But since Pharaoh did not follow the path of salvation and wisdom, he had no right to be listened to. (Almighty Allah specifically mentions the entourage because they were powerful and the ordinary people followed them.)

98. Just as Pharaoh was his people’s king and leader in this world, so he will lead them into hell on the last day. Wretched destiny, to have only boiling water in hell with which to quench one’s thirst!

99. They were subjected on this earth to the malediction of Allah, the angels, and the people who came after them. They will be cursed on the Day of Resurrection by all those assembled at the hand of Allah. Curses will dog their heels. What a wretched accomplishment and what a miserable gift will be these curses which they receive in this world and which will follow them in the next (Allah Almighty mocks them by calling these curses “gifts” and “acquisitions”).

100. Allah Almighty says to His prophet: “Such are the true stories that we have recounted to you concerning previous prophets, how they were treated by their peoples, and the fate their cities suffered, so that you can make use of these stories when you summon your people to the true path. Some of these cities are still standing, others have been completely destroyed and mown down like wheat. We have told you the exact truth, precisely as it happened.

101. “We did not act maliciously in destroying these peoples. Rather, it is they who treated themselves maliciously by denying the messengers of their Lord, and in denying Allah, His signs, and His prophets. The deities they worshipped were of no use to them and were incapable of saving them from the fate Allah inflicted on them. Their idolatry served only to exacerbate their damnation, for it is precisely because of their idols that they lost everything and were destroyed. Their idols were of no use to them whatsoever.”

102. In the same way that He punished the wicked cities which denied His messengers, Allah will punish those who resemble them in their impiety and sedition. The Almighty imposes terrible and excruciating punishments.

103. A clear proof and an explicit lesson lie in Allah’s narrative concerning the destruction of these peoples, and in the fact that He has indicated the punishment He reserves for the wicked. The stories are aimed at those who fear the punishments of the last day, bear them in mind and arm themselves against injustice in the world here below, knowing that He who has punished the wicked here below is capable of punishing them in the hereafter. The Day of Resurrection is a terrible day when all Allah’s creatures will be assembled for judgement. The noble angels will witness it, the prophets will be gathered together, all creatures will be assembled, and the just Master who wrongs no one, not even by an atom, will pronounce His judgement.

104. Allah will postpone the Day of Resurrection only until the appointed time, which is well known to the Lord, and which will be neither hastened nor delayed.

105. When that day comes, with all its horrors, no one will be able to speak without Allah’s permission. Among those assembled there will be wretched creatures destined for torment and blessed creatures awaiting the favours granted by Allah to those who fear Him.

106. As for those reprobates who suffer because of the punishment that awaits them for having done evil in this world, they will be cast into the fire and be utterly appalled, so horrible the punishment will be. They will sigh and groan.

107. They will abide there eternally, so long as there is a sky to shade Allah’s creatures and an earth to stand upon, unless the Lord decides otherwise. For through His mercy Allah can release disobedient monotheists from hell, and He can show His grace towards others by releasing from hell those who have the least jot of faith in their hearts. He is the Omnipotent and He is quick to accomplish whatsoever He wills.

108. As for the blessed who have obeyed His messengers, believed in Allah, and performed good deeds, they will go to Paradise and dwell there eternally, as long as the heavens and earth endure, unless Allah decides otherwise. (This exception signifies that the blessed will not necessarily remain in bliss; this depends on the will of Allah Almighty. It is He who grants them His grace, and His gifts are constant, continuous, and uninterrupted.)

109. Have no doubt about the fact that what the idolaters worship is nothing but falsehood and error. In fact, they worship what their fathers before them worshipped. Their only argument is that they should follow the same path of error and ignorance that their ancestors trod. They will be repaid as they deserve. (They are rewarded on this earth for the acts of benevolence they perform, such as filial piety, maintaining family bonds, succouring the careladen. Allah permits them to live in comfort and relieves them of anxiety, but they will not be rewarded on the last day.)

110. Allah Almighty says that He revealed to Moses the Torah (the Book), the interpretation of which led to controversies, each man seeking to interpret it in his own fashion and according to his own passions. They split into sects, and many of them strayed from the true path. If Allah had not decided to postpone His punishment until the Day of Resurrection (‘on a fixed date’), He would have settled the matter for them. Those who inherited the Torah have remained disconcerted by doubt concerning it. (This could mean that Allah would have settled the matter if He had not decided to punish no one until He no longer had any excuse and after He had sent all His prophets.)

111. Those who are in conflict and whose story We have told you will be repaid by Allah according to their actions. He is well informed as to everything they do, and nothing escapes Him.

112. Follow therefore the path of righteousness which never swerves, and hold fast to it. Also, let those follow it who have repented of their idolatry, and been converted with you. Do not deviate from the path that has been marked out for you, do not exceed the prescribed bounds, otherwise you will impose intolerable burdens on yourself, excess being just as bad as renunciation. Both constitute a deviation from the true path.

113. Do not rely on the wicked, do not count on them, do not appeal to them, and do not approve of their methods, otherwise it will be as if you accepted their acts. If you do so, you will become the victim of hellfire, which is the punishment reserved for the wicked. On that day you will find no one to protect you from the divine punishment. (This verse is general and includes all the unjust, and does not distinguish between a Muslim and a pagan.)

114. Perform your prayers in the best possible manner, at two moments of the day, in the evening and in the morning, and in the course of the early hours of the night, for good deeds purify and rectify the soul, and wash away bad and reprehensible acts. In the commandments that Allah has ordained for you, meaning rectitude, the avoidance of disobedience, and performing one’s prayers, there lies a good lesson for those who heed it, who fear Allah, and who never forget Him.

115. Strive to be patient and to bear all difficulties, in order to respect Allah’s commandments and to avoid what He has forbidden you, either in these commandments or in others, for Allah will not withhold His reward from those who act well.

116. Among those earlier nations which Allah destroyed on account of their wickedness, there must have been some people who were sensible, judicious, and pious, who forbade evildoers to act wickedly on earth and who stopped them from acting in such a way in order to avoid suffering Divine punishment. For Allah does not destroy a people unless it becomes almost totally corrupted and evil. Nevertheless, among these wicked peoples there existed a minority of believers, most of whom were weak men whose opinion was without value, who were not listened to, and who were not in a position to command or to prohibit. The majority were wicked, arrogant, and intransigent people who persisted in being unjust and impious and in leading a life of excess and debauchery. That prevented them from profiting from the call to Truth. They revealed themselves to be ungrateful and boastful, set themselves to blocking the path to Allah, wallowed in the sins which ease and luxury lead to, and abandoned themselves to them. So they preferred to commit such acts rather than to obey the Lord and follow His messengers. Allah therefore destroyed them. Such is the law that Allah has decreed for His creatures.

117. It is not part of Allah’s law or His justice towards His creatures to destroy cities because of the polytheism of the inhabitants, insofar as they perform good deeds, accomplish salutary acts in social and urban matters and serve civilization, desist from appropriating other people’s goods, do not act aggressively towards others, do not humble themselves before an imperious tyrant, as was the case with Pharaoh’s people, do not commit evil deeds, do not block roads, and do not exercise a bad influence in their circles. To deserve punishment and destruction, they must not only be polytheists but must also bring harm to the earth and engage in damaging acts and judgements and commit injustices against civilization. Citing Jarir bna Abdillah, Al Tabarini and Al-Daylami report that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was questioned concerning this verse. He said: “Their inhabitants act justly towards one another.” A community in which people act wickedly by worshipping, in one way or another, a divinity other than Allah, and where certain people engage in combatting evil, are communities which are saved and which Allah does not punish with destruction. As for communities where there is nobody who dissuades and prohibits evil-doers from causing harm on earth, Allah Almighty will punish them either by destroying them or dispersing them and causing their downfall.

118. O Prophet, you so much want your people to believe and you are saddened because they deny you, or most of them reject your appeals. Allah is capable of making the entire human race into a community embracing the same religion, by virtue of their instincts and their natural disposition. But He has created them with different aptitudes and unequal capacities for acquiring perception. In the beginning they were similar. Their needs subsequently expanded and diverged and their demands multiplied, leading to the emergence of a tendency to diversification. They persist in their differences in matters of religion and of ways of living, according to their leanings, their passions, and their natural dispositions. Each clan assiduously defends its own ideas and those of its ancestors.

119. With the exception of those to whom Allah Almighty has granted His mercy. They remain firmly attached to the message of the prophets and in perfect harmony. Allah knew in advance that human beings would differ, that some of them would accomplish good deeds and would thus earn entry into paradise which would be their dwelling-place. Allah decreed, for a reason that He Aone knows, that Hell would be filled with jinns and humans.

120. Everything that We have narrated concerning the history of the earlier prophets, how they were treated by their peoples, the ills they suffered, the way in which they were denied and how Allah granted victory to His side, that of the believers, and sent defeat to their enemies, the renegades… all that we have recounted to you in order to strengthen your heart and fortify your soul, and so that you can find consolation in the experiences of your brothers, the messengers of Allah. These verses which contain the history of the prophets and the details concerning the way in which they were treated by their peoples will provide you with the truth and a moral which serves as a warning to unbelievers and a reminder to believers.

121. Allah Almighty commands His prophet to say to those who persist in their disbelief and are full of arrogance: “Act as you wish and according to your own ways. Do what you are capable of. As for us, we will act in our own way and do what Allah allows us to do. We will steadfastly keep to our path and persist in doing what we are doing.”

122. “Just wait. We will wait with you to see whose fate will be the better in the Hereafter. The will of Allah dictates that the wicked will not triumph. Allah Almighty has kept His promise to His Prophet. He has granted him victory, sustained him, caused Allah’s word to gain the upper hand, and cast down the words of the wicked.”

123. And Allah Almighty says that He alone knows the mysteries of the heavens and the earth, that it is to Him that everything returns, that He will recompense everyone according to their deserts on the last day, that everything belongs to Him, and all laws in their entirety issue from Him. He then commands His prophet to worship Him Alone and to trust in Him, for He Alone suffices for the needs of those who trust in Him and repent. And He says: “Mohammad, your Lord is not unaware of those who deny you. He knows what they say and what they do. He will punish them as they deserve in this world and the next, and He will cause you to triumph over them, you and your clan, in this world and in the Hereafter.”