[Ruby’s note regarding the verses from 7:59 to 7:93
God is deliberately using the exact same expression for all these four prophets to clearly convey that this is the fundamental message and it has not changed over time, and it will remain to so for ever. ]
Sura-7 [ Al Araf mecca 39]
The Quranic Text & Ali’s version:
لَقَدْ
أَرْسَلْنَا
نُوحًا
إِلَى
قَوْمِهِ
...
7:59. We sent Noah to his people.
C1039. The story of Noah in greater detail will be found in 11:25-48.
Here the scheme is to tell briefly the stories of some of the Prophets between Noah and Moses, and lead up thus to a lesson for the contemporaries of the Prophet Muhammad himself.
When Noah attacked the wickedness of his generation, he was laughed at for a madman, for he mentioned the Great Day to come in the Hereafter. Allah's retribution came soon afterwards-the great Flood, in which his unbelieving people were drowned, but he and those who believed in him and came, into the Ark were saved.
... فَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ...
He said: "O my people!
...اعْبُدُواْ اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ...
worship Allah! Ye have no other god but Him.
...إِنِّيَ أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمْ عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ ﴿٥٩﴾
I fear for you the punishment of a dreadful day!"
وَإِلَى
عَادٍ
أَخَاهُمْ
هُوداً
...
7:65. To the Ad people, (We sent) Hud, one of their (own) brethren:
C1040. The 'Ad people, with their prophet Hud, are mentioned in many places. See especially 26:123-140, and 46:21-26.
Their story belongs to Arabian tradition. Their eponymous ancestor 'Ad was fourth in generation from Noah, having been a son of 'Aus, the son of Aram, the son of Sam, the son of Noah.
They occupied a large tract of country in Southern Arabia, extending from Umman at the mouth of the Arabian Gulf to Hadhramaut and Yemen at the southern end of the Red Sea. The people were tall in stature and were great builders. Probably the long, winding tracts of sands (ahqaf) in their dominions (46:21) were irrigated with canals.
They forsook the true God, and oppressed their people. A three years famine visited them, but yet they took no warning. At length a terrible blast of wind destroyed them and their land, but a remnant, known as the second 'Ad or the Thamud (see below) were saved, and afterwards suffered a similar fate for their sins.
The tomb of the Prophet Hud (qabr Nabi Hud) is still traditionally shown in Hadhramaut, latitude 16 N, and longitude 49 1/2 E', about 90 miles north of Mukalla. There are ruins and inscriptions in the neighbourhood.
See "Hadhramaut, Some of its Mysteries Unveiled," by D. van der Meulen and H. von Wissmann, Leyden, 1932. (R).
... قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ...
He said:
"O my people!
...اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ أَفَلاَ تَتَّقُونَ ﴿٦٥﴾
worship Allah! ye have no other god but Him.
Will yet not fear (Allah)?"
وَإِلَى
ثَمُودَ
أَخَاهُمْ
صَالِحًا
...
7:73. To the Thamud people (We sent) Salih, one of their own brethren:
C1043. The Thamud people were the successors to the culture and civilization of the 'Ad people, for whom see n. 1040 and 7:65 above.
They were cousins to the 'Ad, apparently a younger branch of the same race.
Their story also belongs to Arabian tradition, according to which their eponymous ancestor Thamud was a son of 'Abir (a brother of Aram), the son of Sam, the son of Noah.
Their scat was in the north-west corner of Arabia (Arabia Petraea), between Madinah and Syria. It included both rocky country (hijr, 15:80), and the spacious fertile valley (Wadi) and plains country of Qura, which begins just north of the City of Madinah and is traversed by the Hijaz Railway.
When the holy Prophet in the 9th year of the Hijrah led his expedition to Tabuk (about 400 miles north of Madinah) against the Roman forces, on a reported Roman invasion from Syria, he and his men came across the archaeological remains of the Thamud. The recently excavated rock city of Petra, near Maan, may go back to the Thamud, though its architecture has many features connecting it with Egyptian and Graeco-Roman culture overlaying what is called by European writers Nabataean Culture.
Who were the Nabataeans?
They were an old Arab tribe which played a considerable part in history after they came into conflict with Antigonus I in 312 B.C. Their capital was Petra, but they extended their territory right up to the Euphrates. In 85 B.C. they were lords of Damascus under their king Haritha (Aretas of Roman history). For some time they were allies of the Roman Empire and held the Red Sea littoral. The Emperor Trajan reduced them and annexed their territory in A.D. 105.
The Nabataeans succeeded the Thamud of Arabian tradition. Ile lbamijd are mentioned by name in an inscription of the Assyrian King Sargon, dated 715 B.C., as a people of Eastern and Central Arabia (Encyclopedia of Islam). See also Appendix VII to Surah 26.
With the advance of material civilisation, the Thamud people became godless and arrogant, and were destroyed by an earthquake. Their prophet and warner was Salih, and the crisis in their history is connected with the story of a wonderful she-camel:'
see next note.
... قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ ...
he said: "O my people!
...اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ...
worship Allah; ye have no other god but Him.
...قَدْ جَاءتْكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ ...
Now hath come unto you a clear (sign) from your Lord!
...هَـذِهِ نَاقَةُ اللّهِ لَكُمْ آيَةً فَذَرُوهَا تَأْكُلْ فِي أَرْضِ اللّهِ...
This she-camel of Allah is a sign unto you: so leave her to graze in Allah's earth,
...وَلاَ تَمَسُّوهَا بِسُوَءٍ فَيَأْخُذَكُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ ﴿٧٣﴾
and let her come to no harm, or ye shall be seized with a grievous punishment.
C1044. The story of this wonderful she-camel, that was a sign to the Thamud, is variously told in, tradition. We need not follow the various versions in the traditional story. What we are told in the Quran is: that
- she was a Sign or Symbol, which the prophet Salih, used for a warning to the haughty oppressors of the poor:
- there was scarcity of water, and the arrogant or privileged classes tried to prevent the access of the poor or their cattle to the springs, while Salih intervened on their behalf (26:155, 44:28);
- like water, pasture was considered a free gift of nature, in this spacious earth of Allah (7:73), but the arrogant ones tried to monopolise the pasture also;
- this particular she-camel was made a test case (54:27) to see if the arrogant ones would come to reason;
- the arrogant ones, instead of yielding to the reasonable rights of the people, ham-strung the poor she-camel and slew her, probably secretly (91:14, 54:29):
the cup of their iniquities was full, and the Thamud people were destroyed by a dreadful earthquake, which threw them prone on the ground and buried them with their houses and their fine buildings
Asad’s Version:
7: 59
Yusuf Ali We sent Noah to his people. He said: "O my people! worship Allah! ye have no other god but Him. I fear for you the punishment of a dreadful day!
Pickthall We sent Noah (of old) unto his people, and he said: O my people! Serve Allah. Ye have no other God save Him. Lo! I fear for you the retribution of an Awful Day.
Transliteration Wa laqad arsalna_ nu_han ila_ qaumihi faqa_la ya_ qaumi'budulla_ha ma_ lakum min ila_hin gairuh(u_), inni akha_fu 'alaikum 'aza_ba yaumin 'azim(in).
7: 65
Yusuf Ali To the Ad people (We sent) Hud one of their (own) brethren: He said: "O my people! worship Allah! ye have no other god but Him. Will yet not fear (Allah)?"
Pickthall And unto (the tribe of) Aad (We sent) their brother, Hud. He said : O my people! Serve Allah. Ye have no other God save Him. Will ye not ward off (evil)?
Transliteration Wa ila_ 'a_din akha_hum hu_da_(n), qa_la ya_ qaumi'budulla_ha ma_ lakum min ila_hin gairuh(u_), afala_ tattaqu_n(a).
7: 73
Yusuf Ali To the Thamud people (We sent) Saleh one of their own brethren: he said: "O my people! worship Allah; ye have no other god but Him. Now hath come unto you a clear (sign) from your Lord! This she-camel of Allah is a sign unto you: so leave her to graze in Allah's earth and let her come to no harm or ye shall be seized with a grievous punishment.
Pickthall And to (the tribe of) Thamud (We sent) their brother Salih. He said: O my people! Serve Allah. Ye have no other God save Him. A wonder from your Lord hath come unto you. Lo! this is the camel of Allah, a token unto you; so let her feed in Allah's earth, and touch her not with hurt lest painful torment seize you.
Transliteration Wa ila_ samu_da akha_hum sa_liha_(n), qa_la ya_ qaumi'budulla_ha ma_ lakum min ila_hin gairuh(u_), qad ja_'atkum bayyinatum mir rabbikum, ha_zihi na_qatulla_hi lakum a_yatan fazaru_ha_ ta'kul fi ardilla_hi wa la_ tamasu_ha_ bi su_'in fa ya'khuzakum 'aza_bun alim(un).
7: 85
Yusuf Ali To the Madyan people We sent Shu`aib one of their own brethren: he said: "O my people! worship Allah; Ye have no other god but Him. Now hath come unto you a clear (sign) from your Lord! Give just measure and weight nor withhold from the people the things that are their due; and do no mischief on the earth after it has been set in order: that will be best for you if ye have faith.
Pickthall And unto Midian (We sent) their brother, Shueyb. He said: O my people! Serve Allah. Ye have no other God save Him. Lo! a clear proof hath come unto you from your Lord; so give full measure and full weight and wrong not mankind in their goods, and work not confusion in the earth after the fair ordering thereof. That will be better for you, if ye are believers.
Transliteration Wa ila_ madyana akha_hum syu'aiba_(n), qa_la ya_ qaumi'budulla_ha ma_ lakum min ila_hin gairuh(u_), qad ja_'atkum bayyinatum mir rabbikum fa auful kaila wal miza_na wa la_ tabkhasun na_sa asyya_'ahum wa la_ tufsidu_ fil ardi ba'da isla_hiha_, za_likum khairul lakum in kuntum mu'minin(a).
[asad note 45: In continuation of the stress, in the preceding passages, on God’s omnipotence and transcendental oneness, verses 59 – 93 refer to several of the earlier prophets, who preached the same stories – beginning with that of Noah, who is considered the first apostle ever sent to mankind…..]
Sura -11 [Hud mecca 52]
The Quranic Text & Ali’s version:
وَلَقَدْ
أَرْسَلْنَا
نُوحًا إِلَى
قَوْمِهِ إِنِّي
لَكُمْ نَذِيرٌ
مُّبِينٌ ﴿٢٥﴾ 
11:25. We sent Noah to his people (with a mission):
"I have come to you with a Clear Warning:
أَن لاَّ
تَعْبُدُواْ
إِلاَّ اللّهَ...
11:26. "That ye serve none but Allah:
...إِنِّيَ أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمْ عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ أَلِيمٍ ﴿٢٦﴾
verily I do fear for you the Penalty of a Grievous Day."
C1517. Noah's mission was to a wicked world, plunged in sin. The mission had a double character, as in the mission of all Prophets of Allah: it had to warn men against evil and call them to repentance, and it had to give them the glad tidings of Allah's Grace in case they turned back to Allah: it was a Guidance and Mercy.
Asad’s Version:
11: 25
Asad And indeed , we sent forth Noah unto his people: “Behold, I come unto you with the plain warning.
Yusuf Ali We sent Noah to his people (with a mission): "I have come to you with a Clear Warning:
Pickthall And We sent Noah unto his folk (and he said): I am a plain warner unto you.
Transliteration Wa laqad arsalna_ nu_han ila_ qaumihi inni lakum nazirum mubin(un),
[asad note 45: …….and stresses the fact that the fundamental message of the Quran is the same as that conveyed to man by the earlier prophets (manar XII, 59f),…see also surah 7, note 45]
11: 26
Yusuf Ali "That ye serve none but Allah: verily I do fear for you the Penalty of a Grievous Day."
Pickthall That ye serve none, save Allah. Lo! I fear for you the retribution of a painful Day.
Transliteration Alla_ ta'budu_ illalla_h(a), inni akha_fu 'alaikum 'aza_ba yaumin alim(in).
11: 26
Yusuf Ali "That ye serve none but Allah: verily I do fear for you the Penalty of a Grievous Day."
41: 43
Yusuf Ali Nothing is said to thee that was not said to the apostles before thee: That thy Lord has at His command (all) Forgiveness as well as a most Grievous Penalty.
Pickthall Naught is said unto thee (Muhammad) save what was said unto the messengers before thee. Lo! thy Lord is owner of forgiveness, and owner (also) of dire punishment.
Transliteration Ma_ yuqa_lu laka il la_ ma_ qad qila lir rusuli min qablik in na rab baka lazu_ magfiratiw wa zu_ iqa_bin alim
[ Ali’s note: 4515 The gist of Allah's Message, now, before, and for ever, is the same: Mercy to the erring and repentant; just punishment to those who wilfully rebel against Allah. (41.43)]
[ Ruby’s note: This verse is fundamental in nature: what was told to all the prophets is about the essence or goal of religion or Din. The variation of ways [shirah or minhaj] to achieve it may differ among different people, see 5:48. This verse is clearly saying (in Mecca) that this prophet has not brought any new religion. This is the continuation of the same message God has sent humankind over and over again. Even though the ways and specific rites and rituals may differ among different people to achieve the goal of submission to the law of God, the goal of submission has been the same: 1. to believe in One Unseen God, 2. to believe in Hereafter or the eternal existence, and 3. to do good in this life by submitting to and complying with God’s Laws: law of justice, law of balance, law of compassion toward God’s creation. To take care of God’s creation the way God does: with wisdom and compassion, with balance and restraint, with truth and justice. The concept of remaining purer and truer to the nature [fitra] God has created with so that we can achieve the highest success here and Hereafter. These are the fundamental ideas that has been brought to people over and over again down through the ages. This essence of the Message has never changed.]