The Heights (Al-A‘raf)
Verses 65-69 GROUP_265 7.65-69
65
وَإِلَى عَادٍ أَخَاهُمْ هُوداً قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ أَفَلاَ تَتَّقُونَ
To the people of ‘Ad We sent their brother, Hud. He said, ‘O my people, worship God, you have no other god but He. Then will you not be God-fearing?’
66
قَالَ الْمَلأُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ مِن قَوْمِهِ إِنَّا لَنَرَاكَ فِي سَفَاهَةٍ وِإِنَّا لَنَظُنُّكَ مِنَ الْكَاذِبِينَ
The leading men of his people who refused to acknowledge the truth, said, ‘We can see you are a foolish man, and we think you are lying.’
67
قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَيْسَ بِي سَفَاهَةٌ وَلَكِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِّن رَّبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
He said, ‘My people, I am by no means a fool, but rather am a messenger from the Lord of the Universe,
68
أُبَلِّغُكُمْ رِسَالاتِ رَبِّي وَأَنَاْ لَكُمْ نَاصِحٌ أَمِينٌ
I am conveying my Lord’s messages to you and I am your sincere and honest adviser.
69
أَوَعَجِبْتُمْ أَن جَاءكُمْ ذِكْرٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ عَلَى رَجُلٍ مِّنكُمْ لِيُنذِرَكُمْ وَاذكُرُواْ إِذْ جَعَلَكُمْ خُلَفَاء مِن بَعْدِ قَوْمِ نُوحٍ وَزَادَكُمْ فِي الْخَلْقِ بَسْطَةً فَاذْكُرُواْ آلاء اللّهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ
Do you find it strange that a Message should come from your Lord, through one of your own men, to warn you? Remember how He made you successors of Noah’s people, and increased you greatly in stature. Remember the favours of God, so that you may prosper.’
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Commentary
(a) Iram, Noah’s grandson was one of the believers who were saved in Noah’s Ark. He was the forefather of a tribe known as ‘Ad. These people, settled in Yemen, were initially adherents of the religion of Noah. But later on when they strayed from the right path, God appointed Hud to be their prophet. But in the eyes of the leaders of the community, he did not appear to possess that greatness which they thought should inhere in prophets. So they felt that either he was a fool or that he was making a false claim. b Literally ‘I am your well-wisher.’ This utterance of the prophet shows that the relationship between the call-giver and his addressees is not that of a rival or a competitor. It is a relationship of well-wishing and trust. The call-giver should be such that he should have nothing in his heart except good wishes for his addressees. Howsoever rude and unpleasant the behaviour that he comes across in his addressees may be, the call-giver should remain their well-wisher till the last moment. Then, while delivering his message, he should not have the feeling that he is bestowing upon another something which belongs to him. He should feel rather that it belongs to others and that he is holding it in trust for them, and that, by delivering it, he is relieving himself of a great responsibility.