Essence of the Holy Qur’an — Page 28
28 Chapter 11 H u d ' " $ ( (Revealed before Hijrah) Date of Revelation According to Ibn ‘Abb a s, Al- H asan, ‘Ikrimah, Muj a hid, Qat a dah and J a bir bin Zaid this S u rah was revealed at Mecca and, according to Muq a til, the whole of it belongs to the Meccan period, with the exception of vv. 13,18 and 115, which are considered to have been revealed at Medina. Subject-Matter The preceding S u rah had classified the enemies of God’s Messengers under three categories: (a) Those who were completely destroyed; (b) others who were wholly spared; and (c) those who were partly destroyed and partly spared. In the present Chapter the Qur’ a n discusses the first category and states that God destroyed the people of H u d so completely that no trace of them was left behind, and that He raised in their place another people with whom started a new era in human activities. The S u rah also points out that God watches men and deals with them according to their actions and makes provision for their guidance as circumstances demand. As this provision is made for their good, those who do not benefit by it suffer moral death. In this way the process goes on. And just as when one generation of men passes away it is succeeded by another generation, similarly, when one religious movement perishes, its place is taken by another. The S u rah further tells us that while worldly progress may be possible for a time without observing Divine commandments, permanent success is granted to those people only—their memory being perpetuated and their name indelibly imprinted on world’s history—who are honest and true to God and man. After this, reasons are given, why believers triumph over disbelievers and the latter fail in their struggle against Truth. The S u rah illustrates this Divine practice by citing examples of peoples who were once mighty in power and strong in numbers, but who met with destruction when they rose against the apparently humble followers of God’s Messengers—the peoples of Noah, H u d, Sa li h , Lot and Shu‘aib. The great Patriarch Abraham is also mentioned but only incidentally in the course of the story of Lot. Reference to Abraham is followed by a brief account of Moses, in relation not to the Israelites but to Pharaoh, who along with his arrogant people was destroyed, because he rejected the Divine Message. Next, believers are warned against associating with people for whom Divine punishment is decreed; for association with such people is calculated naturally to involve them in punishment meant for the latter. Thereafter the Holy Prophet