Hud 11:80–84

Totally exasperated, what Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) could say at that time was: لَوْ أَنَّ لِي بِكُمْ قُوَّةً أَوْ آوِي إِلَىٰ رُ‌كْنٍ شَدِيدٍ that is, ` only if I had enough strength in me to stand against this onslaught by my people, or that I had the backing of some strong group who would have helped me get rid of these oppressors.'

Seeing this anxiety of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) the angels disclosed their identity and said, ` do not worry. Your group is very strong and very powerful. We are angels of Allah. They cannot touch us. We have come to execute the punishment for them.'

It appears in a Hadith of the Sahih of al-Bukhari that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said about it, ` may Allah Ta` ala have mercy on Lut (علیہ السلام) . He was compelled to seek the protection of some strong group.' And the report in Tirmidhi carries another sentence with it, ` after Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) ، Allah Ta’ ala sent no prophet whose clan or tribe was not his supporter.' (Qurtubi) This was true in the case of the Holy Prophet ﷺ . The disbelieving Quraysh did everything they could against him, but his entire clan supported him - though, they did not agree with him religion-wise. This was the reason why Banu Hashim as a whole sided with the Holy Prophet ﷺ in the boycott imposed by the Quraysh disbelievers whereby they had cut off essential supplies to him.

During this episode, as reported from Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn ` Abbas ؓ when the people of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) mobbed his home, he had closed the entrance door. The conversation with these wicked people was going on from behind it. The angels too were inside. The mob was threatening to jump the walls, barge in and break the door. Thereupon, came these words on the lips of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) . When the angels saw this anxiety of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) they disclosed their real identity and asked him to open the door. It was time that they took over and gave the miscreants a foretaste of the Divine punishment. When the door was opened, archangel Jibra'il (علیہ السلام) pointed his 'Feather' towards their eyes. They turned blind and started running.

At that time, the angels under Divine command said to Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) : فَأَسْرِ‌ بِأَهْلِكَ بِقِطْعٍ مِّنَ اللَّيْلِ (So, move with your family in a part of night). And asked him to instruct everyone in his family not to turn and look back with the exception of his wife because she was going to be hit by the same punishment that was to fall on his people.

This could also mean that he was not to take his wife along with him. And it could also mean that, being his wife, she was to go along as part of his family, but she would not obey the instruction of not looking back he would give to his family. According to some reports, this is what happened. This wife started off with others, but when she heard the big bang of the punishment given to her people, she looked back and felt sorry at their destruction. At that moment there came a splintered rock and finished her off like others. (Qurtubi, Mazhari)

The angels had also told Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) that: إِنَّ مَوْعِدَهُمُ الصُّبْحُ (The deadline [ of the punishment ] is the morning). He said that he wished the punishment would come sooner. Thereupon, the angels said: أَلَيْسَ الصُّبْحُ بِقَرِ‌يبٍ (Is it not that the morning is near?)

After that, the Qur'an portrays the occurrence of the punishment by saying: So, when Our command came, We turned whatever there was in their habitat upside down raining such stones over it as had the names of everyone there marked on it.

Reports say that these habitations were composed of four major towns where those people lived. These very habitations have been named as 'al-mu'tafikat' (the towns overturned) elsewhere in the Holy Qur'an (9:70, 69:9). When the Divine command came, the archangel Jibra'il al-Amin dissected the base of the land mass holding all those towns on top of it with his wing, raised all of it upwards in a way that everything stayed where it was, even water in a water vessel. It was in the backdrop of human, animal and canine voices coming from the sky that he heaved all these habitations straight up towards the sky and, then, threw the whole thing back upside down - as appropriate to and as called for by the evil they indulged in.

At the end of the verse (83), after having mentioned the actual punishment that hit the people of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) was to warn the contemporary peoples of the world that it was said: وَمَا هِيَ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ بِبَعِيدٍ (And it is not far from the transgressors). It means that people who insist upon indulging in this shameful act should not consider themselves very far from this punishment. It can come even today. The Holy Prophet said, ` even in my Ummah, some people will do what the people of Lut (علیہ السلام) used to do. When this starts happening, then wait, for they too would be subjected to the same punishment that was inflicted on the people of Lut (علیہ السلام) .'

Commentary

An account of Sayyidna Shu'aib and his people appears in the verses cited above. Besides being kafirs and mushriks, his people used to give less in weights and measures. Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) carried his call to them, told them not to give less in weights and measures, and warned them of Divine punishment if they persisted with this way of life. But, they did persist with their denial and contumacy and, as a consequence, all those people were destroyed through a severe punishment, details of which appear as follows.

In the first verse (84), it was said: وَإِلَىٰ مَدْيَنَ أَخَاهُمْ شُعَيْبًا (And to Madyan [ We sent ] their brother, Shu'aib Madyan was actually the name of a town settled by Madyan ibn Ibrahim. Its present location has been given as ` Ma` an' in Jordan. The people of this town are also called Madyan. Therefore, by calling Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) ` brother of Madyan,' it was hinted that Allah Ta` ala sent His messenger to those people from among them so that they feel familiar and find it easier to accept his teachings.

Then, it was said:

قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَٰهٍ غَيْرُ‌هُ ۖ وَلَا تَنقُصُوا الْمِكْيَالَ وَالْمِيزَانَ

0 my people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him.

And do not lessen the measure and the weight.

Here, Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) has invited his people to believe in the Oneness of Allah (Tauhid) because they were Mushriks, those who associated partners in the divinity of Allah. They worshipped trees. That has been pointed to through the use of the word: الایکہ (al-'aikah: trees) in the Holy Qur'an and it is in this respect that the people of Madyan have also been given the sobriquet of اَصحَاب الاَیکہ (ashabu al--aikah: the people of aikah - 15:78, 26:176, 38:13, 50:14). Along with this kufr and shirk, they were also involved in the grave sin of cheating in commercial transactions when they would weigh short and give less in measure and thus deprive people of what was to come to them as their right. Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) told them not to do that.

Special Note

Here, it is useful to keep in mind that kufr and shirk are the roots of all sins. People soaked in these are usually the first to be invited to believe. Faith comes before consideration could be given to matters like social transactions and individual deeds. Whether they have deliverance in the present world or would deserve punishment are things that too are decided on the basis of this faith or denial. All events related to past prophets and their peoples mentioned in the Qur'an bear witness to this mode of action - with the exception of two communities. Punishment came upon them because of their disbelief as well as due to their evil deeds. The people of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) were one of them upon whom, as mentioned earlier, their entire habitation was overturned. It has been stated that their evil practice was the reason for it. The people of Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) were the other one. They were punished because of their kufr and shirk as well as because of their habit of weighing less and measuring short.

This tells us that both these things are most hated and grave, more than any other sin. Obviously, the reason is that they bring serious loss upon the entire human race leaving the world populated by it in a disorder of ominous proportions.

Turning to the verses cited above, we see that Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) has used his prophetic compassion to make his people stop their evil practice of giving short measure and less weight. The words he has used to say that are eloquent: إِنِّي أَرَ‌اكُم بِخَيْرٍ‌ وَإِنِّي أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمْ عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ مُّحِيطٍ (I see you quite well off, and I fear for you the punishment of an encircling day - 84). It means that Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) found them living comfortably. There were not poor, hungry and financially straitened which could be one of the reasons why they had to take recourse to such a cursed practice. Now that they were already blessed by Allah Ta` ala, it required that they should not subject His creation to injustice. Not leaving it at that, they were also told that, in the event they did not listen to their prophet and did not stop this evil practice, he apprehended that Divine punishment might encircle them. This punishment could mean the punishment of the Hereafter, and the punishment of the present world too. Then, the punishments due to come in this world may be of different kinds. The lowest punishment could be that they might lose the prosperity they had, or they may fall victims to famines and price hikes, as said by the Holy Prophet ﷺ `

When a people start lessening weights and measures, Allah Ta` ala makes them suffer from the punishment of famine and price hikes.'