11. Hud (61 – 83)

⁶¹To the Thamud, We sent their brother, Salih. He said, ‘My people, worship God. You have no god other than Him. It was He who brought you into being from the earth and made you inhabit it, so ask forgiveness from Him, and turn back to Him: my Lord is near, and ready to answer.’ ⁶²They said, ‘Salih, We used to have such great hope in you. Will you forbid us to worship what our fathers worshipped? We are in grave doubt about what you are asking us to do.’ ⁶³He said, ‘My people, just think: if I did have clear proof from my Lord, and if He had given me mercy of His own, who could protect me from God if I disobeyed Him? You would only make my loss greater. ⁶⁴My people, this camel belongs to God, a sign for you, so leave it to pasture on God's earth and do not harm it, or you will soon be punished.’ ⁶⁵But they hamstrung it, so he said, ‘Enjoy life^a Literally ‘continue to live in your homes’. for another three days: ⁶⁶this warning will not prove false.’ And so, when Our command was fulfilled, by Our mercy We saved Salih and his fellow believers from the disgrace of that day. [Prophet], it is your Lord who is the Strong, the Mighty One. ⁶⁷The blast struck the evildoers and they lay dead in their homes, ⁶⁸as though they had never lived and flourished there. Yes, the Thamud denied their Lord—so away with the Thamud!

⁶⁹To Abraham Our messengers brought good news. They said, ‘Peace.’ He answered, ‘Peace,’ and without delay he brought in a roasted calf. ⁷⁰When he saw that their hands did not reach towards the meal, he found this strange and became afraid of them. But they said, ‘Do not be afraid. We have been sent against the people of Lot.’ ⁷¹His wife was standing [nearby] and laughed. We gave her good news of Isaac and, after him, of Jacob. ⁷²She said, ‘Alas for me! How am I to bear a child when I am an old woman, and my husband here is an old man? That would be a strange thing!’ ⁷³They said, ‘Are you astonished at what God ordains? The grace of God and His blessings be upon you, people of this house! For He is worthy of all praise and glory.’ ⁷⁴Then, when the fear left Abraham and the good news came to him, he pleaded with Us for Lot's people, ⁷⁵for Abraham was forbearing, tender-hearted, and devout. ⁷⁶’Abraham, cease your pleading: what your Lord has ordained has come about; punishment is coming to them, which cannot be turned back.’

⁷⁷And when Our messengers came to Lot, he was anxious for them, feeling powerless to protect them, and said, ‘This is a truly terrible day!’ ⁷⁸His people came rushing towards him; they used to commit foul deeds. He said, ‘My people, here are my daughters.^b Some commentators interpret this to refer to the daughters of his people, rather than the prophet's own daughters. They are more wholesome for you, so have some fear of God and do not disgrace me with my guests. Is there not a single right-minded man among you?’ ⁷⁹They said, ‘You know very well that we have no right to your daughters. You know very well what we want.’ ⁸⁰He said, ‘If only I had the strength to stop you or could rely on strong support!’ ⁸¹They [the messengers] said, ‘Lot, we are your Lord's messengers. They will not reach you. Leave with your household in the dead of night, and let none of you turn back. Only your wife will suffer the fate that befalls the others. Their appointed time is the morning: is the morning not near?’ ⁸²And so when what We had ordained came about, We turned their town upside down and rained down stones of baked clay on it, layer upon layer, ⁸³marked from your Lord. It is not far from the evildoers.^a This town is not far from the evildoers of Mecca, within their trading range (see 37: 137–8), nor is the punishment far from them.