Transliteration:( Wa Lootan aatainaahu hukmanw wa 'ilmanw wa najjainaahu minal qaryatil latee kaanat ta'malul khabaaa'is; innahum kaanoo qawma saw'in faasiqeen )
"And how many towns that were oppressing [18], We utterly destroyed and raised up another people after them [19]."
Here, oppressing towns refers to disbelieving communities, as disbelief is the greatest form of injustice.
Allah says:
“Undoubtedly, associating partners with Allah is a tremendous wrong” (Surah Luqman, 31:13).
Thus, these towns were destroyed due to their oppression through disbelief, rebellion, and rejection of divine truth.
This is a stern warning to the Quraish and all who reject faith:
If you persist in denial, your end will be no different—destruction, and then replacement with better people.
History proves this pattern: the likes of Abu Jahl were eliminated, and sincere, humble believers like the Ansaar of Madinah were raised to support and uphold Islam.
The tafsir of Surah Anbiya verse 74 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Anbiya ayat 71 which provides the complete commentary from verse 71 through 75.
(21:74) We bestowed upon Lot sound judgement and knowledge,[67] and We delivered him from the city that was immersed in foul deeds. They were indeed a wicked people, exceedingly disobedient.
67. The original Arabic word hukm is very comprehensive. It means judgment, wisdom and discretion, and authority from Allah. Ilm stands for the revealed knowledge of the truth. Thus, We bestowed hukm and ilm on Lot. We appointed Lot as a Prophet. For the story of Lot, see (Surah Al-Aaraf, Ayat 80-84); (Suran Yunus, Ayat 70-83); (Surah Al-Hijr, Ayat 57-74) and the E.Ns there of.
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