SURAH AL-A RAAF (AYA 91 to 100)

فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ فَأَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِهِمْ جَاثِمِينَ {7:91}

[Q7:91] Fa akhazat humur rajfatu fa asbahoo fee daarihim jaasimeen. 
[Q7:91] Then the earthquake overtook them, so they became motionless bodies in their abode.

[Q7:91] Maka mereka dibinasakan oleh gempa, lalu menjadilah mereka mayat-mayat yang tersungkur di tempat masing-masing. 

(see commentary for verse 85)

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(7:91) Thereupon a shocking catastrophe seized them, and they remained prostrate in their dwellings.

الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا شُعَيْبًا كَأَنْ لَمْ يَغْنَوْا فِيهَا ۚ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا شُعَيْبًا كَانُوا هُمُ الْخَاسِرِينَ {7:92}

[Q7:92] Allazeena kazzaboo Shu'aiban ka al alm yaghnaw feehaa; allazeena kazzaboo Shu'aiban kaanoo humul khaasireen. 
[Q7:92] Those who called Shu'aib a liar were as though they had never dwelt therein; those who called Shu'aib a liar, they were the losers.

[Q7:92] Orang-orang yang mendustakan Nabi Syuaib (punah-ranah) seolah-olah mereka tidak pernah mendiami negeri itu. Orang-orang yang mendustakan Nabi Syuaib, merekalah orang-orang yang rugi.  

(see commentary for verse 85)

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(7:92) Those who had charged Shu'ayb with lying became as though-they had never lived there; it is they who became utter losers. *75

*75. The destruction of the people of Midian remained proverbial in Arabia for a long time. As such the following lines in Psalms are significant:
Yea, they conspire with one accord; against thee they make a covenant - the tents of Edom and the Ish'maelites. Moab and the Hagrites, Gebal and Ammon and Am'alek,
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;Assyria also has joined them;they are the strong arms of the children of Lot. Do to them as thou didst to Mid'ian (Psalms 83: 5-9).
Note also the following statement in Isaiah:
A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. For though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return. Destruction is decreed, overflowing with righteousness. For the Lord, the Lord of hosts, will make a full end, as decreed, in the midst of all the earth. Therefore, thus says the Lord, the Lord of hosts: 'O my people, who dwell in Zion be not afraid of the Assyrians when they smite you with their rod and lift up their staff against you as the Egyptians did. For in a very little while my indignation will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to their destruction. And the Lord of hosts will wield against them a scourge, as when he smote Mid'ian at the rock of Oreb . . .' (Isaiah 10: 21-6). 

فَتَوَلَّىٰ عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَاتِ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ ۖ فَكَيْفَ آسَىٰ عَلَىٰ قَوْمٍ كَافِرِينَ {7:93}

[Q7:93] Fatawalla 'anhum wa qaala yaa qawmi laqad ablaghtukum Risaalaati Rabbee wa nasahtu lakum fakaifa aasaa'alaa qawmin kaafireen. 
[Q7:93] So he turned away from them and said: O my people! Certainly I delivered to you the messages of my Lord and I gave you good advice; how shall I then be sorry for an unbelieving people? 

[Q7:93] Kemudian Nabi Syuaib meninggalkan mereka sambil berkata: Wahai kaumku! Sesungguhnya aku telah menyampaikan kepada kamu perintah-perintah Tuhanku dan aku telah memberi nasihat kepada kamu. Oleh itu, tidaklah aku merasa sedih terhadap orang-orang kafir (yang telah binasa itu). 

(see commentary for verse 85)

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(7:93) Shu'ayb then departed from his people, and said: '0 my people! Surely I conveyed to you the message of my Lord, and gave you sincere advice. How, then, can I mourn for a people who refuse to accept the truth?' *76

*76. The stories narrated here have a definite didactic purpose and were narrated with a view to highlighting their relevance to the time of the Prophet (peace be on him). IN EACH OF THESE STORIES ONE OF THE PARTIES IS A PROPHET WHO IN RESPECT OF HIS TEACHINGS GREATLY RESEMBLES MUHAMMAD (PEACE BE ON HIM), IN SUMMONING HIS PEOPLE TO THE RIGHT WAY, IN ADMONISHING THEM, IN SINCERELY SEEKING THEIR WELFARE. AT THE OTHER END OF THE SCALE IN EACH NARRATIVE ARE THE UNBELIEVING NATIONS WHO GREATLY RESEMBLED THE QURAYSH IN THE TIME OF THE PROPHET (PEACE BE ON HIM) WITH REGARD TO THEIR DISBELIEF AND MORAL DEGENERATION.
BY RECOUNTING THE TRAGIC END OF EACH OF THESE UNRIGHTEOUS NATIONS OF THE PAST, THE QURAYSH ARE REMINDED OF THE MORAL PURPOSE OF THESE STORIES. Through the stories they are told that if, because of their stubbornness they fail to follow the Messenger of God during the term of respite granted to them, they will be subjected to the same destruction which befell those past nations who persisted in wrong-doing and error. 

SECTION 12

Warning against punishment

Cause of the distress sent on the previous disbelievers disbelieving people---Warning with the Punishment.

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا فِي قَرْيَةٍ مِنْ نَبِيٍّ إِلَّا أَخَذْنَا أَهْلَهَا بِالْبَأْسَاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَضَّرَّعُونَ {7:94}

[Q7:94] Wa maaa arsalnaa fee qaryatim min Nabiyyin illaaa akhaznaaa ahlahaa bil baasaaa'i waddarraaa'i la'allahum yaddarra'oon. 
[Q7:94] And We did not send a prophet in a town but We overtook its people with distress and affliction in order that they might humble themselves.

[Q7:94] Dan (Tuhan berfirman): Kami tidak mengutus dalam sesebuah negeri seorang Nabi (yang didustakan oleh penduduknya), melainkan Kami timpakan mereka dengan kesusahan (kesempitan hidup) dan penderitaan (penyakit), supaya mereka tunduk merendah diri (insaf dan tidak berlaku sombong takbur). 

THE PROPHETS OF ALLAH (SWT) WERE SENT TO ERADICATE CORRUPTION AND EVIL-a natural consequence of polytheism.

ALLAH (SWT) gave enough rope to the people, BUT neither affluence nor suffering taught them [1] Patience, [2] Humility, [3] Gratitude and [4] Kindness to others BECAUSE they belied the signs of ALLAH (SWT) and rejected belief and guidance preached to them by the messengers of ALLAH (SWT). THEY THOUGHT SUCH THINGS HAPPENED IN ALL AGES, but they were found napping and helpless when wrath of ALLAH (SWT) seized them in the midst of their obstinate infidelity.

THE PROPHETS WHO WERE REJECTED BY THEIR OWN PEOPLE STOOD FIRM ON ALLAH (SWT)'S MESSAGE, AND WERE ABLE TO CONVINCE A FEW TO BELIEVE IN ALLAH (SWT) AND HIS MESSAGE. Those who had heard the message and rejected it found it more difficult to retrace their steps. Evil had blocked the channels of ALLAH (SWT)'s grace to them. With each step they fell deeper and deeper into the mire.

Ì  IT MUST BE NOTED that while all the prophets, having tried their best to reform their people, left them to their fate when nothing positive could be done, BUT the Holy Prophet (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad), as the "mercy unto the worlds", notwithstanding a more adamant and clever opposition, always felt deeply concerned about the human race. "You may perhaps wear out your heart because they do not come to belief" says ALLAH (SWT) to him in ash-Shu-ara 26:3.

As said in al Baqarah 2:7 (see its commentary) ALLAH (SWT) SEALS UP THE HEARTS OF THOSE WHO DO NOT BELIEVE.

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(7:94) Never have We sent a Prophet to a place without trying its people with adversity and hardship that they may humble themselves.

ثُمَّ بَدَّلْنَا مَكَانَ السَّيِّئَةِ الْحَسَنَةَ حَتَّىٰ عَفَوْا وَقَالُوا قَدْ مَسَّ آبَاءَنَا الضَّرَّاءُ وَالسَّرَّاءُ فَأَخَذْنَاهُمْ بَغْتَةً وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ {7:95}

[Q7:95] Summa baddalnaa makaa nas saiyi'atil hasanata hattaa 'afaw wa qaaloo qad massa aabaa'anad darraaa'u wassarraaa'u fa akhaznaahum baghtatanw wa hum laa yash'uroon. 
[Q7:95] Then We gave them good in the place of evil until they became many and said: Distress and happiness did indeed befall our fathers. Then We took them by surprise while they did not perceive.

[Q7:95] Setelah (mereka tidak juga insaf) Kami gantikan kesusahan itu dengan kesenangan hingga mereka kembang biak (serta senang-lenang) dan berkata (dengan angkuhnya): Sesungguhnya nenek moyang kita juga pernah merasai kesusahan dan kesenangan (sebagaimana yang kita rasakan). Lalu Kami timpakan mereka (dengan azab seksa) secara mengejut dan mereka tidak menyedarinya.  

(see commentary for verse 94)

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(7:95) Then We changed adversity into ease until they throve and said: 'Our forefathers had also seen both adversity and prosperity.' So We suddenly seized them without their even perceiving it. *77

*77. After narrating individually the stories of how various nations responded to the Message of their Prophets, the Qur'an now spells out the general rule which has been operative throughout the ages. First, before the appearance of a Prophet in any nation, conditions that would conduce to the acceptance of his Message were created. This was usually done by subjecting the nations concerned to a variety of afflictions and punishments. They were made to suffer miseries such as famine, epidemics, colossal losses in trade and business, defeat in war. Such events usually have a healthy impact on people. They lead to a softening in their hearts. They generate humility and modesty. They enable people to shake off their pride and shatter their reliance on wealth and power and induce thern to trust the One Who is all-powerful and fully controls their destiny. Above all, such events incline people to heed the words of warning and to turn to God in humility.
BUT IF THE PEOPLE CONTINUE TO REFRAIN FROM EMBRACING THE TRUTH THEY ARE SUBJECTED TO ANOTHER KIND OF TEST - THAT OF AFFLUENCE. This last test signals the beginning of their destruction. Rolling in abundant wealth and luxury, people are inclined to forget the hard times they have experienced. Their foolish leaders also inculcate in their minds an altogether preposterous concept of history. They explain the rise and fall of nations and the alternation of prosperity and adversity among human beings by reference to blind natural forces, and in total disregard of moral values. Hence if a nation is seized by an affliction or scourge, such people see no reason why it should be explained in terms of moral failure. They are rather inclined to consider that a person's readiness to heed moral admonition or to turn humbly towards God, is a sign of psychological infirmity.
This foolish mentality has been portrayed all too well by the Prophet (peace be on him): 'A believer continually faces adversity until he comes out of it purified of his sins. As for the hypocrite, his likeness in adversity is that of a donkey who does not know why his master had tied him and why he later released him.' (Cited by Ibn Kathir in his comments on the verse - Ed.) Hence, when a people become so hard of heart that they neither turn to God in suffering, nor thank Him for His bounties in prosperity, they are liable to be destroyed at any moment.
It should be noted that the above rule which was applied to the nations of the previous Prophets, was also applied in the time of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him). When this surah was revealed the Quraysh displayed exactly the same characteristics and attitudes as those nations which had earlier been destroyed. According to a tradition narrated by both 'Abd Allah b. Mas'ud and Abd Allah b. 'Abbas, as the Quraysh grew in defiance to the Prophet's call, he prayed to God that he might be assisted by inflicting famine on the Quraysh, as in the days of the Prophet Joseph. Accordingly, God subjected the Quraysh to such a severe famine that they took to subsisting on carcasses, the skins of animals, bones, and wool. Unnerved by this the Quraysh, led by Abu Sufyan, implored the Prophet (peace be on him) to pray to God on their behalf. But when the Prophet*s prayer helped to improve the situation somewhat, the Quraysh reverted to their arrogant and ignorant way's. (Bukhari, Kitab al-Taharah, Bab idha istashfa'a al-Mushrikun bi al-Muslim' - Ed.) The wicked ones among them tried to dissuade from God those who had derived some lesson from the famine. They argued that famines take place in course of operation of natural laws, that they are merely a recurrent physical phenomenon. They emphasized that the occurrence of famine should not mislead people into believing in Muhammad (peace be on him). It was during this time that the surah under discussion was revealed. The above verses were thus quite relevant and it is against this backdrop that one appreciates their full significance. (For details see Yunus 10: 21, al-Nahl 16: 112, al-Muminun 23: 75-6; and al-Dukhan 44: 9-16.) 

وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَىٰ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ بَرَكَاتٍ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَلَٰكِنْ كَذَّبُوا فَأَخَذْنَاهُمْ بِمَا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُونَ{7:96}

[Q7:96] Wa law anna ahlal quraaa aamanoo wattaqaw lafatahnaa 'alaihim barakaatim minas samaaa'i wal ardi wa laakin kazzaboo fa akhaznaahum bimaa kaanoo yaksiboon. 
[Q7:96] And if the people of the towns had believed and guarded (against evil) We would certainly have opened up for them blessings from the heaven and the earth, but they rejected, so We overtook them for what they had earned.

[Q7:96] Dan (Tuhan berfirman lagi): Sekiranya penduduk negeri itu, beriman serta bertakwa, tentulah Kami akan membuka kepada mereka (pintu pengurniaan) yang melimpah-limpah berkatnya, dari langit dan bumi. Tetapi mereka mendustakan (Rasul Kami), lalu Kami timpakan mereka dengan azab seksa disebabkan apa yang mereka telah usahakan.  

(see commentary for verse 94)

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(7:96) Had the people of those towns believed and been God-fearing, We would certainly have opened up to them blessings from the heavens and the earth; but they gave the lie [to their Prophets] and so We seized them for their deeds so.

أَفَأَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَىٰ أَنْ يَأْتِيَهُمْ بَأْسُنَا بَيَاتًا وَهُمْ نَائِمُونَ {7:97}

[Q7:97] Afa amina ahlul quraaa ai yaatiyahum baasunaa bayaatanw wa hum naaa'imoon. 

[Q7:97] What! Do the people of the towns then feel secure from Our punishment coming to them by night while they sleep?
[Q7:97] Patutkah penduduk negeri negeri itu (bersedap hati) serta merasa aman daripada kedatangan azab Kami kepada mereka pada malam hari, semasa mereka sedang tidur? 

(see commentary for verse 94)

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(7:97) Do the people of those towns feel secure that Our punishment will not come to them at night while they are asleep?

أَوَأَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَىٰ أَنْ يَأْتِيَهُمْ بَأْسُنَا ضُحًى وَهُمْ يَلْعَبُونَ {7:98}

[Q7:98] Awa amina ahlul quraaa ai yaatiyahum baasunaa duhanw wa hum yal'aboon. 
[Q7:98] What! Do the people of the towns feel secure from Our punishment coming to them in the morning while they play?

[Q7:98] Atau patutkah penduduk negeri negeri itu (bersedap hati) serta merasa aman daripada kedatangan azab Kami kepada mereka pada siang hari, semasa mereka sedang leka bermain-main? 

(see commentary for verse 94)

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(7:98) Or, do the people of those towns feel secure that Our punishment will not come to them by daylight while they are at play?

أَفَأَمِنُوا مَكْرَ اللَّهِ ۚ فَلَا يَأْمَنُ مَكْرَ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ {7:99}

[Q7:99] Afa aminoo makral laah; falaa yaamanu makral laahi illal qawmul khaasiroon. 
[Q7:99] What! Do they then feel secure from ALLAH (SWT)'s plan? But none feels secure from ALLAH (SWT)'s plan except the people who shall perish.

[Q7:99] Patutkah mereka (bersukaria) sehingga mereka merasa aman akan rancangan buruk (balasan azab) yang diatur oleh ALLAH (SwT)? Kerana sebenarnya tidak ada yang merasa aman dari rancangan buruk (balasan azab) yang diatur oleh ALLAH (SwT) itu melainkan orang-orang yang rugi.  

(see commentary for verse 94)

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(7:99) Do they feel secure against the design of Allah *78 None can feel secure against the design of Allah except the utter losers.

*78. The expression makr signifies a secret strategy of which the victim has no inkling until the decisive blow is struck. Until then, the victim is under the illusion that everything is in good order. 

SECTION 13

The Ministry of Moses

The hearts of the previous disbelievers sealed against understanding as they were not faithful to the Covenant---Moses’ Mission to Pharaoh---Signs demanded of Moses and his showing them.

أَوَلَمْ يَهْدِ لِلَّذِينَ يَرِثُونَ الْأَرْضَ مِنْ بَعْدِ أَهْلِهَا أَنْ لَوْ نَشَاءُ أَصَبْنَاهُمْ بِذُنُوبِهِمْ ۚ وَنَطْبَعُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ فَهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُونَ{7:100}

[Q7:100] Awa lam yahdi lillazeena yarisoonal arda mim ba'di ahlihaaa al law nashaaa'u asabnaahum bizunoobihim; wa natba'u 'alaa quloobihim fahum laa yasma'oon. 
[Q7:100] Is it not clear to those who inherit the earth after its (former) residents that if We please We would afflict them on account of their faults and set a seal on their hearts so they would not hear.

[Q7:100] Adakah (yang demikian itu tersembunyi dan) tidak jelas kepada orang-orang yang mewarisi negeri itu sesudah penduduknya (hilang lenyap kerana ditimpa bencana), bahawa kalau Kami kehendaki tentulah Kami akan menimpakan mereka pula dengan azab disebabkan dosa-dosa mereka dan Kami meteraikan di atas hati mereka sehingga mereka tidak dapat mendengar (nasihat-nasihat pengajaran)? 

(see commentary for verse 94)

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(7:100) Has it not, then, become plain to those who have inherited the earth in the wake of the former generations that, had We so willed, We could have afflicted them for their sins, *79 (they, however, are heedless to basic facts and so) We seal their hearts so that they hear nothing. *80

*79. Every nation which rises in place of one that falls, can perceive the misdeeds which brought about the preceding nation's fall. Were such a people to make use of their reason, to appreciate the false ideas and misdeeds which led to the undoing of those who once strutted abroad in vainglory, they would have realized that the Supreme Being Who had once punished them for their misdeeds and deprived them of power and glory had not ceased to exist. Nor has that Supreme Being been deprived of the power to inflict a punishment on the people of the present times, a power with which He smote the nations of the past. Nor has God become bereft of the capacity to dislodge the wicked nations of today in the manner He did in the past. 
*80. Those people who derive no lesson from history, who thoughtlessly pass over the ruins of the past, remaining engrossed in heedlessness, are deprived by God of the capacity to think correctly and to pay due attention to the counsel of well-wishers. Such is the God-made law of nature that if someone closes his eyes, not even a single ray of sun-light will reach his sight. Similarly, if someone is bent upon closing his ears none can make him hear even a word.