which fhaH happen unto them. Verily the predi&ion of their punifhment fhall
be fulfilledin the morning: is not the morning near? And when our command
came, we turned thofe cities upfide down % and we rained upon them
ftones of baked clay b, one following another, and being marked“, from
thy L o r d ; and they are not far diftant from thofe who a£l unjuftly*. And
unto M a d i a n we fent their brother S h o a i b ': he faid, O my people, wor-
ihip G o d ; ye have no G o d but him : and diminilh not meafure and
weight. Verily I fee you to he in a happy conditionf : but I fear for you
the punilhment of the day which will encompafs the ungodly. O my people,
give full meafure, and juft weight; and diminilh not unto men ought
of their matters; neither commit injuftice in the earth, acfting corruptly.
The refidue which Jhall remain unto you as the gift of G o d , after ye fhall have
done jujlice to others, will be better for you, than wealth gotten by fraud ; if
ye be true believers'. I am no guardian over you. They anfwered 0 S h o a i b , do thy prayers injoin thee, that we fhould leave the gods which our
fathers worfhipped ; or that we fhould not do what we pleafe with our fub-
ftance ®? Thou only, it feems, art the wife perfon, and fit to diretft. He faid
O my people, tell me ; if I have received an evident declaration from my
L o r d , and he hath bellowed on me an excellent provifion, and I will notcon-
fent unto you in that which I forbid you ; do I feek any other than your reformation,
to the utmoft of my power ? My fupport is from G o d alone; on
him do I truft, and unto him do I turn me. O my people, let not your oppofins
of me, draw an you a vengeance like unto that which fell on the people of
N oah,
to a different reading óf the vowel, fome interpret
it, Except tby wife; the meaning being;
that Lot is here commanded to take his family
with him except bis wife. Wherefore the commentators
cannot agree whether Lot's wife went
forth with him or not; fome denying it, and
pretending that ffie was left behind and perilhed
in the common deftru&ion; and others affirming
it, and faying, that when lhe heard the noife of
the ftorm and overthrow of the cities, lhe turned
back lamenting their fate, and was immediately
llruck down and killed by one of the ftones
mentioned a little lower z. A punilhment lhe
juftly merited for her infidelity, and difobedience
to her husband *.
3 We turned tbofe cities upfide down;] For they
tell us, that Gabriel thruft his wing under them,
and lifted them up fo high, that the inhabitants
of the lower heaven heard the barking of the
dogs, and the crowing<of the cocks ; and then
inverting them, threw them down to the earth 3.
b Stones o f baked clay.j] The kiln wherein
they were burned, fome imagine to have been
hell.
And being marked,] That is, as fome fuppofe,
ilreaked with white and red, or having fome o-
ther peculiar mark to diftinguilh them from ordinary
ftones. But the common opinion is, that
each ftone had the name of the perlon who was
to be killed by it, written thereon *. The army
of Abraba al AJhram was alfo deftroyed by the
fame kind of ftones.
d And they are not fa r diftant from tbofe who
aft unjufily;] This is a kind of threat to other
wicked perfons, and particularly to the infidels
of Mecca, who deferved and might juftly apprehend
the fame punilhment.
f See chap. 7. p. 126, &c.
f I f a you to be in a happy condition j] That is,
enjoying plenty of all things; and therefore having
the lefs occafion to defraud one another, and
being the more ftrongly bound to be thankful
and obedient unto G od.
8 That we fhould not do wbat we pleafe with
our fubftance;] For this liberty they imagined
was taken from them, by his prohibition of falfe
weights and meafures, or to diminilh or adulterate
their coin L
1 lidem interpretes. * See chap. 66. 3 J allalo’ddin, ‘a lB z iD a w 1.
s a U B z i d a w i .
* Iidm-
N oah , or the people of Hbd, or the people of S a l e h : neither was the people
of L o t far diftant from you \ Ask pardon therefore of your L ord s
and be turned unto him: for my L ord is merciful, and loving. They anfwered.
0 Shoaib, we underftand not much of what thou fayeft ; and we fee thee to
be a man of no power b among us : if it had not been for the fake of thy
family we had furely ftoned thee, neither couldeft thou have prevailed a-
gainft us. StioM-B faid, O my people, is myfamily more worthy in your
opinion, than God? and do ye call him behind you with negledl ? Verily
my L ord comprehendeth that which ye do. O my people, do ye work according
to your condition ; I will furely work accordingto my duty 4. And ye
fhall certainly know, on whom will be inflifted a punifhment which fhall
cover him with fhame, and who is a lyar. Wait therefore the event ; for
1 alfo will wait it with you. Wherefore when our decree came to be executed,
vie delivered S h o a ib and thofe who believed with him, through our
mercy: and a terrible noife from heaven aflailed thofe who had afted
unjuftly ; and in the morning they were found in their houfes lying dead
and proftrate, as though they had never dwelt therein. Was not M a d ia n
removed from off the garth, as T h am u d had been removed? And we
formerly fent M o s e s with our figns, and manifeft power, unto P h a r
a o h and his princes ': but they followed the command of P h a r a o h ;
although the command of P h a r a o h did not direft them aright. P h a raoh
fhall precede his people on the day of refurredtion, and he fhall
lead them Into hell fire ; an unhappy way fhall it be which they fhalLbe led.
They were followed in this life by a curfe, and on-the day of refurredtion
miferable fhall be the gift which fhall be given them. This is a part of the
hiftories of the cities, which we rehearfe unto thee. Of them there are fome
Handing ; and others which are utterly- demolifhedf. And we treated them
not unjuftly, but they dealt unjuftly with their own fouls: and their gods which
they invoked, befides G o d , were of no advantage unto them at all, when
the decree of thy L o rd came to be executed on them, neither were they any
other than a detriment unto them. And thus was the punifhment of thy L o r d
infixed, when he punifhed the cities which were unjuft ; for his punifh-
ment is grievous and fevere. Verily herein is a fign unto him who feareth
B b che
3 Neither was the people o f Lotfa r diftant from refpedt we bear to thy family and relations ;
you ;] For Sodom and Gomorrah were fituatemot whom we honour as being of our religion, and
a great way from you,, and their deftrudtion not for any apprehenfion we have of their power
happened not many ages ago ; neither did they to affift you againft us. The original word here
deferve it, on account of their obftinacy and tnnfated family, fignifies any number from three
wickednefs, much more than yotrr felves. to feven or ten, but not more l . 1 v
b A man o f no power ;] The Arabic word daif d See chap. 6. p. 113. not. a. i
weak, fignifying alfo, in the Hamyaritic dialeft, e See chap. 7. p. 128, &c.
blind, fome fuppofe that Shoaib was fo, and that f Demolifhed;] Literally, mowen down i the -
the Midianites objected that to him, as a de- fentence prefenting the different images of corn
feft which difqualified him for the prophetic ftanding, and cut down, which is alfo often ufed
°®ce- ;i, by the facred writers.
f. For thje fake o f thy family;] i. e. For the