[1700] Those who truly Believe and obey God will come to lead lives of abundance: “Had they taken to the right way, We would have given them abundant water to drink” (72: 16); “… and had they upheld the Torah and the Evangel and what was sent down to them from their Lord, they would have eaten ˹blissfully˺ from above them and from under their feet” (5: 66); “…and whoever is Mindful of Allah, He will make a way out for them, *and He will provide for him whence he never expects…” (65: 2-3).
[1701] These are the times they are least expecting something terrible to hit them: “Such is the seizing of your Lord when He seizes the towns while they are doing wrong. Surely His seizing is painful, severe!” (11: 102).
[1702] “And those who Denied Our Signs, We will ˹gradually˺ lure them whence they know not. *And I will grant them indulgence for a while. Truly, My planning is stout ˹, unfailing˺” (7: 182-183); “Let not those who Deny think that the rein We give them is better for them. We only give them allowance so that they would accumulate sins; theirs is a humiliating Punishment” (3: 178).
Even the most devout of Believers should not feel content with the good that they have done, as were our rightly-guided predecessors (cf. Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī). ʿAbdullāh Ibn ʿAmr (رضي الله عنه) reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: “The hearts of the offspring of Adam are between two Fingers of the Fingers of the Most Merciful like one heart. He directs it wherever He wishes”. Then the Messenger (ﷺ) added: “O Allah! You Who directs hearts. Direct our hearts towards Your observance” (Muslim: 2654).
[1703] Indeed the Signs of God’s ability are all around people; their very existence and taking over after those who preceded them is not the least of these: “Had they not seen how many a generation before them We have destroyed? We had established them in the land ˹far˺ more firmly than how We established you ˹people˺! We sent the sky pouring down on them profusely and We made the rivers run under their feet, ˹only˺ then We destroyed them for their sins and We brought into being another generation after them” (6: 6); “Is it not ˹enough of˺ a lesson for them ˹to see˺ how many a generation We destroyed before them, in whose homes they now walk? There truly are Signs in this; do they not hear?” (32: 26).
[1704] “And who is more unjust than those who, when reminded of their Lord’s Signs, turn away from them and forget what their own hands have done? We have certainly put sheaths over their hearts – leaving them unable to perceive this ˹Qur’an˺ – and impairment in their ears. And if you invite them to guidance, they will never be guided” (18: 57).
[1705] This is a connecting passage which concludes the previous episode and opens up the next one.
[1706] These stories are related so that the Messenger (ﷺ) and the Believers around him find comfort. Further, they serve as a reminder for those who take heed and a warning for those who Deny (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, Ibn Kathīr): “If they deny you ˹Muhammad˺, surely did deny before them the people of Nūḥ, ʿĀd, and Thamūd, *and the People of Ibrāhīm and the people of Lūṭ *and the inhabitants of Midian, and Mūsā too was denied. But I granted the Deniers respite; then I overtook them ˹with punishment˺; how, then, was the repudiation I wrought!” (22: 42-44); “These accounts We relate to you ˹Muhammad˺, of the ˹bygone˺ towns; some are still standing ˹deserted˺, while others have been mowed down. *We did not wrong them but they wronged themselves; the gods they prayed to besides Allah availed them nothing: when Allah’s Command came upon them, they increased them in nothing except destruction. *That is how your Lord seizes the townships as He seizes them when they are wrongdoers. His seizing is indeed painful, severe. *Truly in that is a Sign for those who fear the Punishment of the Hereafter. That is a Day on which mankind shall be gathered together, and that is a Day that shall be witnessed” (11: 100-103).
[1707] “They had sworn by Allah with their most solemn oaths that if a Sign were to come to them, they would surely Believe in it. Say ˹Muhammad˺: “Indeed Signs are from none but Allah!” How would you ˹Believers˺ know that when they ˹the Signs˺ come, they would ˹still˺ not Believe? *We keep on turning their hearts and their sights away for not Believing in it the first time and ˹thus˺ We leave them to wander aimlessly in their ˹unbending˺ recalcitrance” (6: 109-110): “…so when they deviated, Allah made their hearts deviate. Allah does not guide the rebellious people” (61: 5).
[1708] “Indeed the Deniers, whether you warn them or do not warn them, they will not Believe. *Allah has sealed their hearts and their hearing, and over their eyes there is a veil—theirs is a grievous Punishment” (2: 6-7); “Those who dispute Allah’s Signs, with no authority given to them, are doing something that is loathed by Allah and by those who Believe. In this way God stamps on the heart of every arrogant tyrant” (40: 35).
[1710] The story of Moses is singled out and recounted in detail here and indeed in many other suras (‘Moses’ is mentioned no less than 136 times in 34 suras) for its special significance. Of all the Messengers, his mission bears the most similarities with that of Prophet Muhammad’s (ﷺ), his miracles were amongst the greatest to be found, it is one of the most nuanced and intricate of the stories of the Messengers (عليهم السلام), his laws were the greatest before the advent of Islam and, in a way, paved the way for it, his nation were among the greatest nations that followed a Messenger before Muhammad (ﷺ) and at the time of revelation they existed in the locales of revelation (notably in Madinah) so that they were to be called on to Believe in Prophet Muhammad’s Message, and that the Believers were to take heed from them and not forget the pledge of God as they did (cf. Abū Ḥayyān, al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar, Ibn ʿĀshūr). In short, the lessons drawn from Moses’ story are very relevant.
[1711] This is a teaser for the long and epic story that will shortly unfold (cf. Riḍā).