Surah 51

Surah 51:43

"And (there is also a sign) in Thamūd: when it was said to them, ‘Enjoy (yourselves) for a time!’"
Lessons from the Destruction of Fir'awn, 'Ad, Thamud, and the People of Nuh Verses 51:38-46
Show Full Scripture Context (51:38-46) — 9 Verses
Verse 38

وَفِي مُوسَىٰٓ إِذۡ أَرۡسَلۡنَٰهُ إِلَىٰ فِرۡعَوۡنَ بِسُلۡطَٰنٖ مُّبِينٖ

And (there is also a sign) in Moses: when We sent him to Pharaoh with clear authority.

Verse 39

فَتَوَلَّىٰ بِرُكۡنِهِۦ وَقَالَ سَٰحِرٌ أَوۡ مَجۡنُونٞ

But he turned away with his supporter(s), and said, ‘A magician or a man possessed!’

Verse 40

فَأَخَذۡنَٰهُ وَجُنُودَهُۥ فَنَبَذۡنَٰهُمۡ فِي ٱلۡيَمِّ وَهُوَ مُلِيمٞ

So We seized him and his forces, and tossed them into the sea, (for) he was to blame.

Verse 41

وَفِي عَادٍ إِذۡ أَرۡسَلۡنَا عَلَيۡهِمُ ٱلرِّيحَ ٱلۡعَقِيمَ

And (there is also a sign) in ‘Ād: when We sent upon them the desolating wind.

Verse 42

مَا تَذَرُ مِن شَيۡءٍ أَتَتۡ عَلَيۡهِ إِلَّا جَعَلَتۡهُ كَٱلرَّمِيمِ

It left nothing it came upon, but made it like decayed (ruins).

Verse 43

وَفِي ثَمُودَ إِذۡ قِيلَ لَهُمۡ تَمَتَّعُواْ حَتَّىٰ حِينٖ

And (there is also a sign) in Thamūd: when it was said to them, ‘Enjoy (yourselves) for a time!’

Verse 44

فَعَتَوۡاْ عَنۡ أَمۡرِ رَبِّهِمۡ فَأَخَذَتۡهُمُ ٱلصَّـٰعِقَةُ وَهُمۡ يَنظُرُونَ

But they disdained the command of their Lord, and the thunderbolt took them while they were looking on,

Verse 45

فَمَا ٱسۡتَطَٰعُواْ مِن قِيَامٖ وَمَا كَانُواْ مُنتَصِرِينَ

and they were not able to stand, nor were they helped.

Verse 46

وَقَوۡمَ نُوحٖ مِّن قَبۡلُۖ إِنَّهُمۡ كَانُواْ قَوۡمٗا فَٰسِقِينَ

And the people of Noah before (them) – surely they were a wicked people.

Allah the Exalted said, {And in Musa, when We sent him to Fir'awn with a manifest authority.} meaning, with clear proof and plain evidence, {But he turned away along with his hosts,} meaning, in rebellion and arrogance, Fir'awn turned away from the plain truth that Musa was sent with, {Bending his neck in pride, and leading (others) too (far) astray from the path of Allah.} (22:9), meaning turning away from truth in arrogance, {and said: "A sorcerer, or a madman."} meaning Fir'awn said to Musa, "With regards to the message that you brought me, you are either a magician or a madman." Allah the Exalted replied. {So We took him and his armies, and dumped them}, meaning 'We threw them,' {into the Yamm}, into the sea, {for he was blameworthy.} meaning, Fir'awn was a denying sinner and a stubborn disbeliever worthy of blame. Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said, {And in 'Ad when We sent against them the barren wind} that destroys everything and produces nothing. This was said by Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah and others. Allah's statement, {It spared nothing that it reached,} meaning, everything that the wind could destroy, {but blew it into broken spreads of rotten ruins.} meaning, made it just like a rotten and destroyed. Sa'id bin Al-Musayyib and others commented on: {when We sent against them the barren wind}, "Southerly winds." However, there is a Hadith in the Sahih from Shu'bah bin Al-Hakam, from Mujahid, from Ibn 'Abbas, who said that the Messenger of Allah said, "I have been made victorious with the Saba (easterly wind), and the people of 'Ad were destroyed with the Dabur (westerly wind)." Allah saying, {And in Thamud, when they were told: "Enjoy yourselves for a while!"} is just as He said in another Ayah, {And as for Thamud, We guided them to the path of truth, but they preferred blindness to guidance; so the Sa'iqah of disgracing torment seized them.} (41:17) Allah said here, {And in Thamud, when they were told: "Enjoy yourselves for a while!" But they insolently defied the command of their Lord, so the Sa'iqah overtook them while they were looking.} Thamud were given a respite for three days, during which they await the torment. In the early morning of the fourth day, the torment overtook them, {Then they were unable to rise up,} they were unable to escape and run away from it. {nor could they help themselves.} nor could they save themselves from the torment that befell them. Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said, {(So were) the people of Nuh before them.} meaning, 'We destroyed the people of Nuh before these people (Fir'awn, 'Ad and Thamud).' {Verily, they were a people who were rebellious.} We mentioned these stories in details before in the Tafsir of several other Surahs.

— from Tafsir Ibn Kathir (269-272)

About this Source & Scholarly Authority (Tafsir Ibn Kathir)

Universal Sunni Consensus: Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim by Hafiz Ibn Kathir (701–774 AH / 1301–1373 AD) is universally regarded across all major schools of Sunni Islam (traditional, Salafi, Ash'ari) as the most authoritative classical exegesis. It is prized because it relies on Tafsir bil-Ma'thur—interpreting the Quran using the Quran itself, authentic Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, and recorded statements of the early Companions (Sahabah).

Standard English Edition: This text is from the standard 10-volume English abridgment published by Dar-us-Salam Publications (supervised by Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri), which is the official, most widely distributed English Quranic commentary in mosques and Islamic libraries worldwide today.