Transliteration:( Innaaa arsalnaa Noohan ilaa qawmihee an anzir qawmaka min qabli any yaatiyahum 'azaabun aleem )
1. From the beginning till the end this Surah only has a discussion about Hazrat Nuh (On whom be peace). At that point in time, Hazrat Nuh (On whom be peace) was the prophet of all the humans, and at that time the population was very small. His blessed name was either Abdul Ghaffar or Yashkur. He was given the title of Nuh because he would lament a great deal. He is the fourth Prophet, and the first Prophet to propagate the Message of Allah Almighty to the infidels. The first people to receive Divine punishment, too, were the people of Nuh.
2. At the time of death in the world, in the grave, and in the Hereafter, that is, warn them before the punishment comes. After the punishment comes both your warning and their fear of the punishment would be an exercise in futility.
1. Verily, We sent Nuh to his people (saying): “Warn your people before there comes to them a painful torment.†2. He said: “O my people! Verily, I am a plain warner to you,†3. “That you should worship Allah, and have Taqwa of Him, and obey me,†4. “He will forgive you of your sins and respite you to an appointed term. Verily, the term of Allah when it comes, cannot be delayed, if you but know.â€
Allah says concerning Nuh that He sent him to his people commanding him to warn them of the punishment of Allah before it befell them. He was to tell them that if they would repent and turn to Allah, then the punishment would be lifted from them. Due to this Allah says,
(“Warn your people before there comes to them a painful torment.†He said: “O my people! Verily, I am a plain warner to you.â€) meaning, clarity of the warning, making the matter apparent and clear.
(That you should worship Allah, and have Taqwa of Him,) meaning, `abandon those things that He has forbidden and avoid that which He has declared to be sinful.’
(and obey me,) `In that which I command you to do and that which I forbid you from.’
(He will forgive you of your sins) meaning, `if you do what I command you to do and you believe in what I have been sent with to you, then Allah will forgive you for your sins. ‘
(and respite you to an appointed term.) meaning, `He will extend your life span and protect you from the torment that He would have made befall you if you did not stay away from His prohibitions.’ This Ayah is used as proof by those who say that obedience (to Allah), righteousness and maintaining the family ties truly increase the life span of a person. This is like that which has been reported in the Hadith,
(Maintaining the family ties increases the life span.) Concerning Allah’s statement,
(Verily, the term of Allah when it comes, cannot be delayed, if you but know.) means, hasten to the obedience (of Allah) before the coming of His vengeance. For verily, if He commands that to happen, it cannot be repulsed or prevented. For He is the Great One Who compels everything, and He is the Almighty Whose might all of creation succumbs to.
1. “Warn your peopleâ€: Warn them that the errors and moral evils that they were involved in would only earn them Allah’s punishment if they did not desist from them, and tell them what way they should adopt in order to ward off that punishment.
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