The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 2) — Page 554
CH. 7 AL-A'RĀF PT. 8 قَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِنْ قَوْمِةٍ إِنَّا لَنَرُكَ فِي The chiefs of his people. 61 ضَللٍ مُّبِينٍ said, 'Surely, we see thee to be in manifest error. '960 a11:28; 23:25-26. generations after Adam and eleven generations before Abraham. (Gen, 5:3-32; Luke 3:34-38). His native land was Mesopotamia. He is believed to be the progenitor of the greater part of mankind. The word (Noah) may, in Arabic, be considered to have been derived from which means, he bewailed or mourned. ie the woman ناحت على زوجها They say bewailed or mourned over her dead husband. ad est means, the pigeon cooed in a plaintive manner. The Prophet Noah is particularly known for the Flood that overtook his people as the result of his bewailings and lamentations before God for the persecution he had to suffer at the hands of his wicked people, most of whom perished in the Flood. His three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, are generally believed to be the ancestors of the three principal races of mankind. See also 11:26. Commentary: to which After having briefly described the great moral and spiritual reformation that the appearance of a Prophet brings about among a people, and the evil consequences opposition to him leads, the present verse proceeds to give illustrations of some of the nations of antiquity, beginning with the people of Noah, to show that those, who oppose God's 994 Prophets, meet with nothing but destruction. Most of the different races now living on this earth are believed to be descended from Noah. His descendants seem to have spread in all directions, as may be seen from the story of the Deluge which is known to the people of Europe, Asia, Africa and even America. The words, We sent Noah to his people, show that the Deluge overtook only the people to whom Noah was sent. It was not a universal phenomenon, but the descendants of Noah may have carried the tale to distant lands. literally meaning The words "a great day", have been used to signify a day of heavy punishment which was too dreadful to be forgotten. 960. Commentary: It is worth noting that Noah's people do not here accuse him of imposture. They attribute to him merely an error of judgement and not fabrication or deliberate falsehood. This shows that they looked upon him as an upright man. Indeed, all Prophets, before they receive their mission from God, are looked upon as upright and virtuous men. It is only after they announce their heavenly mission that they are dubbed liars.