وَ اُوْحِیَ And it was revealed اِلٰی to نُوْحٍ Nuh اَنَّهٗ That لَنْ will never یُّؤْمِنَ believe مِنْ from قَوْمِكَ your people اِلَّا except مَنْ (those) who قَدْ have already اٰمَنَ believed فَلَا So (do) not تَبْتَىِٕسْ (be) distressed بِمَا by what كَانُوْا they have been یَفْعَلُوْنَۚۖ doing وَ اصْنَعِ And construct الْفُلْكَ the ship بِاَعْیُنِنَا under Our Eyes وَ وَحْیِنَا and Our inspiration وَ لَا and (do) not تُخَاطِبْنِیْ address Me فِی concerning الَّذِیْنَ those who ظَلَمُوْا ۚ wronged اِنَّهُمْ indeed they (are) مُّغْرَقُوْنَ the ones (to be) drowned 11. Hud Page 226 وَ یَصْنَعُ And he was constructing الْفُلْكَ ۫ the ship وَ كُلَّمَا and every time مَرَّ passed عَلَیْهِ by him مَلَاٌ (the) chiefs مِّنْ of قَوْمِهٖ his people سَخِرُوْا they ridiculed مِنْهُ ؕ [of] him قَالَ He said اِنْ If تَسْخَرُوْا you ridicule مِنَّا us فَاِنَّا then we نَسْخَرُ can ridicule مِنْكُمْ you كَمَا as تَسْخَرُوْنَؕ you ridicule فَسَوْفَ And soon تَعْلَمُوْنَ ۙ you will know مَنْ (on) whom یَّاْتِیْهِ will come عَذَابٌ a punishment یُّخْزِیْهِ (that) will disgrace him وَ یَحِلُّ and will descend عَلَیْهِ on him عَذَابٌ a punishment مُّقِیْمٌ lasting حَتّٰۤی Till اِذَا when جَآءَ came اَمْرُنَا Our command وَ فَارَ and overflowed التَّنُّوْرُ ۙ the oven قُلْنَا We said احْمِلْ Load فِیْهَا in it مِنْ of كُلٍّ every kind زَوْجَیْنِ a pair اثْنَیْنِ two وَ اَهْلَكَ and your family اِلَّا except مَنْ who سَبَقَ has preceded عَلَیْهِ against him الْقَوْلُ the word وَ مَنْ and whoever اٰمَنَ ؕ believed وَ مَاۤ And not اٰمَنَ believed مَعَهٗۤ with him اِلَّا except قَلِیْلٌ a few وَ قَالَ And he said ارْكَبُوْا Embark فِیْهَا in it بِسْمِ in the name اللّٰهِ of Allah مَؔجْرٖىهَا (is) its course وَ مُرْسٰىهَا ؕ and its anchorage اِنَّ Indeed رَبِّیْ my Lord لَغَفُوْرٌ (is) certainly Oft-Forgiving رَّحِیْمٌ Most Merciful وَ هِیَ And it تَجْرِیْ sailed بِهِمْ with them فِیْ on مَوْجٍ the waves كَالْجِبَالِ ۫ like mountains وَ نَادٰی and Nuh called out نُوْحُ and Nuh called out بْنَهٗ (to) his son وَ كَانَ and he was فِیْ [in] مَعْزِلٍ apart یّٰبُنَیَّ O my son ارْكَبْ Embark مَّعَنَا with us وَ لَا and (do) not تَكُنْ be مَّعَ with الْكٰفِرِیْنَ the disbelievers قَالَ He said سَاٰوِیْۤ I will betake myself اِلٰی to جَبَلٍ a mountain یَّعْصِمُنِیْ (that) will save me مِنَ from الْمَآءِ ؕ the water قَالَ He said لَا (There is) no عَاصِمَ protector الْیَوْمَ today مِنْ from اَمْرِ the Command of Allah اللّٰهِ the Command of Allah اِلَّا except مَنْ (on) whom رَّحِمَ ۚ He has mercy وَ حَالَ And came بَیْنَهُمَا (in) between them الْمَوْجُ the waves فَكَانَ so he was مِنَ among الْمُغْرَقِیْنَ the drowned وَ قِیْلَ And it was said یٰۤاَرْضُ O earth! ابْلَعِیْ Swallow مَآءَكِ your water وَ یٰسَمَآءُ and O sky! اَقْلِعِیْ Withhold وَ غِیْضَ And subsided الْمَآءُ the water وَ قُضِیَ and was fulfilled الْاَمْرُ the Command وَ اسْتَوَتْ And it rested عَلَی on الْجُوْدِیِّ the Judi وَ قِیْلَ And it was said بُعْدًا Away لِّلْقَوْمِ with the people الظّٰلِمِیْنَ the wrongdoers وَ نَادٰی And Nuh called نُوْحٌ And Nuh called رَّبَّهٗ (to) his Lord فَقَالَ and said رَبِّ O my Lord اِنَّ Indeed ابْنِیْ my son مِنْ (is) of اَهْلِیْ my family وَ اِنَّ and indeed وَعْدَكَ Your promise الْحَقُّ (is) true وَ اَنْتَ and You اَحْكَمُ (are) the Most Just الْحٰكِمِیْنَ (of) the judges 11. Hud Page 227 قَالَ He said یٰنُوْحُ O Nuh! اِنَّهٗ Indeed he لَیْسَ (is) not مِنْ of اَهْلِكَ ۚ your family اِنَّهٗ indeed [he] عَمَلٌ (his) deed غَیْرُ (is) other than صَالِحٍ ۖؗۗ righteous فَلَا so (do) not تَسْـَٔلْنِ ask Me مَا (about) what لَیْسَ not لَكَ you have بِهٖ of it عِلْمٌ ؕ any knowledge اِنِّیْۤ Indeed I اَعِظُكَ admonish you اَنْ lest تَكُوْنَ you be مِنَ among الْجٰهِلِیْنَ the ignorant قَالَ He said رَبِّ O my Lord! اِنِّیْۤ Indeed I اَعُوْذُ seek refuge بِكَ in You اَنْ that اَسْـَٔلَكَ I (should) ask You مَا what لَیْسَ not لِیْ I have بِهٖ of it عِلْمٌ ؕ knowledge وَ اِلَّا And unless تَغْفِرْ You forgive لِیْ me وَ تَرْحَمْنِیْۤ and You have mercy on me اَكُنْ I will be مِّنَ among الْخٰسِرِیْنَ the losers قِیْلَ It was said یٰنُوْحُ O Nuh! اهْبِطْ Go down بِسَلٰمٍ with peace مِّنَّا from Us وَ بَرَكٰتٍ and blessings عَلَیْكَ on you وَ عَلٰۤی and on اُمَمٍ the nations مِّمَّنْ from those مَّعَكَ ؕ with you وَ اُمَمٌ But (to other) nations سَنُمَتِّعُهُمْ We will grant enjoyment ثُمَّ then یَمَسُّهُمْ will touch them مِّنَّا from Us عَذَابٌ a punishment اَلِیْمٌ painful تِلْكَ This مِنْ (is) from اَنْۢبَآءِ the news الْغَیْبِ (of) the unseen نُوْحِیْهَاۤ (which) We reveal اِلَیْكَ ۚ to you مَا Not كُنْتَ you were تَعْلَمُهَاۤ knowing it اَنْتَ you وَ لَا and not قَوْمُكَ your people مِنْ from قَبْلِ before هٰذَا ۛؕ this فَاصْبِرْ ۛؕ So be patient اِنَّ indeed الْعَاقِبَةَ the end لِلْمُتَّقِیْنَ۠ (is) for the God fearing
(11:36) It was revealed to Noah that no more of your people, other than those who already believe, will ever come to believe. So do not grieve over their deeds,
(11:37) and build the Ark under Our eyes and Our direction. And do not supplicate Me concerning those who have engaged in wrong-doing. They are doomed to be drowned.40
(11:38) As Noah was building the Ark, whenever the leading men of his nation passed by him, they would scoff at him. He said: 'If you scoff at us, we too scoff at you in like manner.
(11:39) You will come to know who will be struck by a humiliating chastisement, and who will be subjected to an unceasing torment.41
(11:40) Thus it was until Our command came to pass and the oven boiled over.42 We said: 'Take into the Ark a pair of every species; and take your own family except those who have already been declared (as unworthy);43 and also take everyone who believes.44 But those who, along with him, had believed were indeed just a few.
(11:41) Noah said: ' Embark in it. In the name of Allah is its sailing and its anchorage. My Lord is Ever Forgiving, Most Merciful.45
(11:42) The Ark sailed along with them amid mountain-like waves. Noah, spotting his son at a distance, called out to him: 'My son. embark with us. and do not be with the unbelievers.'
(11:43) The son replied: 'I will go to a mountain for refuge and it will save me from the water.' Noah said: 'None can save anyone today from the command of Allah except those on whom He may have mercy.' Thereupon a wave swept in between the two and he was drowned.
(11:44) And the command was given: 'Earth! Swallow up your water'; and: 'Heaven! Abate!' So the water subsided, the command was fulfilled, and the Ark settled on Mount Judi,46 and it was said: 'Away with the wrong-doing folk!'
(11:45) And Noah called out to his Lord, saying: 'My Lord! My son is of my family. Surely Your promise is true,47 and You are the greatest of those who judge.48
(11:46) In response Noah was told: 'Most certainly he is not of your family; verily he is of unrighteous conduct.49 So do not ask of Me for that concerning which you have no knowledge. I admonish you never to act like the ignorant ones.50
(11:47) Noah said: 'My Lord! I take refuge with You that I should ask you for that concerning which I have no knowledge. And if You do not forgive me and do not show mercy to me, I shall be among the losers.51
(11:48) It was said: 'Noah! Disembark,52 with Our peace, and with blessings upon you and upon those who are with you. There are also people whom We shall allow to enjoy themselves for a while, and then a painful chastisement from Us shall afflict them.'
(11:49) We reveal to you these accounts of matters that are beyond the reach of human perception. Neither you nor your people knew about them before this. Be, then, patient. Surely, the good end is for the God-fearing.53
40. This demonstrates that when a Messenger communicates his Message to his people, they are granted respite from punishment only as long as it remains possible for the social milieu to produce a reasonable number of good people. ‘As soon as that milieu becomes shorn of good people, and none but the iniquitous remain, then the term of respite ends. At this juncture, God’s Mercy itself calls for the destruction of these incorrigible rogues lest they also contaminate others. For to show any further leniency to them would amount to perpetrating an injustice on the whole world and on future generations.
41. This fascinating story illustrates how man can be deluded by the appearance of things. When the Prophet Noah (peace be on him) was busy building the Ark on a tract of land far from any sea or river, it must have appeared a very silly thing to do. Noah’s people would surely have laughed at him, mocking at the old fellow’s apparently senile plan. They may even have called it an adventure of sailing on the Ark across dry land! At that moment it would have simply been inconceivable for anyone to think that the Ark would one day indeed sail on that very tract of land as it became flooded with water.
Hence they perhaps went around telling people that if anyone needed proof of Noah’s mental derangement, this was now no longer needed.
The same act would, however, have been perceived quite differently by anyone who really knew what was going to happen, who knew that soon enough a ship would indeed be a necessity for anyone who wished to move around. Such a person could only have laughed at the ignorance and stupid complaisance of his people. Noah (peace be on him), who knew these things well, would often have said to himself: ‘How stupid are these people! God’s chastisement is just about to afflict them, and I have been warning them of this.
That moment has all but come and they even see me making an effort to escape the impending chastisement. Is it not strange that they remain totally unperturbed? Not only that, but they look upon me as an utter lunatic.’ This offers a good illustration of two contrasting attitudes. One is based on knowledge of the apparent, one that is grasped by the senses. The other is based on true knowledge, a knowledge of truths that lie beyond the range of the apparent. If one were to be satisfied with what is apparent, one would regard many a thing as sheer folly. Now, if there is someone who knows truths that lie beyond the range of the apparent, that person will consider these apparent follies the very zenith of wisdom. Such a person would indeed consider the flair of smartness displayed by the superficially knowledgeable to be no more than ignorance and stupidity.
42, Commentators on the Qur’an have offered different explanations of this incident. In our view, the place from which the Flood began was a particular oven. It is from beneath it that a spring of water burst forth. This was followed by both a heavy downpour and by a very large number of springs which gushed forth. Sarah al-Qamar provides relevant information in some detail:
So We opened the gates of the heaven, with water intermittently pouring forth, and We caused the earth to be cleaved and the springs to flow out everywhere. Then the water (from both the sources — the heaven and the earth) converged to bring about that which had been decreed (al-Qamar, 54: 11-12).
In the present verse, the word tannur has been preceded by the article al.
According to Arabic grammar, this indicates that the reference is to a particular tannur (oven). Thus, it is evident that God had determined that the Flood should commence from a particular oven. As soon as the appointed moment came, and as soon as God so ordained, water burst forth from that oven.
Subsequently, it became known as the Flood-Oven.
The fact that God had earmarked a certain oven to serve as the starting-point of the Flood is borne out by a/-Mu’ minun 23: 27.
43. Information that some members of Noah’s family were unbelievers and so were unworthy of God’s mercy had already been given. Noah (peace be on him) had also been directed not to provide them with space in the Ark.
Presumably these were only two persons. One was Noah’s own son; the story of his drowning will be referred to shortly (see verse 43 below). The other was Noah’s wife (see al-Tahrim 66: 15). It is possible that some other members of Noah’s family also belonged to this category. Be that as it may, the Qur’an does not expressly mention any others.
44. This refutes the opinion of those historians and genealogists who trace the ancestry of all human beings to Noah’s three sons. This misconception has arisen from the Israelite traditions which suggest that Noah, his three sons and their wives were the only survivors of the Flood. (See Genesis 6: 18, 7:7, p.1— and 9: 19.) The Qur’an, however, repeatedly says that apart from Noah’s family, at least some other people belonging to his nation — even if only a few — were also saved by God from the Flood. The Qur’an, therefore, considers the future generations of mankind to have descended not only from Noah, but also from those believers who, under God’s directive, were accommodated in the Ark by Noah. It is significant that the Qur’an mentions post-Flood mankind as the ‘offspring of those whom We carried along with Noah’ (al-Isra’ 17: 3) and the ‘offspring of Adam and those whom We carried along with Noah’ (Maryam 19: 58). It does not refer to them simply as ‘the offspring of Noah’.
45. Trust in God is the quintessential characteristic of the believer. True, like any other person, the believer also has recourse to worldly measures. It is, in fact, necessary to use them on account of the laws of nature under Which all human beings live and operate. One thing, however, differentiates a believer from a man of the world. A believer, while having recourse to worldly measures, places his reliance on God rather than on the measures he adopts. He is well aware that none of his measures can be of any avail unless they coincide with God’s favour and mercy.
46. Mount Judi is situated to the north-east of the Island of Ibn ‘Umar in Kurdistan. According to the Bible, the Ark’s resting place was Ararat, which is the name of a particular mountain as well as of a whole range of mountains in Armenia. Ararat, in the sense of a mountain range, extends from the Armenian plateau to southern Kurdistan. The mount called Judi is part of this range and is known even today by the same name.
In ancient historical accounts, Mount Judi is mentioned as the place where the Ark rested. Around 250 B.C., a Babyloffian priest, Berasus, wrote a history of his country based on Chaldean traditions. He mentions Judi as the resting-place of Noah’s Ark. The history written by Abydenus, a disciple of Aristotle, also corroborates this. Abydenus further remarks that many people in Mesopotamia possessed pieces of the Ark which they used as a charm. They ground those pieces in water and gave the preparation to the sick so as to cure them of their ailments.
In connection with this great incident one is also faced with the question of whether the Flood was universal or whether it was limited to the area inhabited by the people of Noah. This question remains unanswered to this day. Under the influence of Israelite traditions, it is believed that it was a universal Flood (Genesis 7: 18-24). The Qur’an, however, does not explicitly say so. There are several allusions in the Qur’an which indicate that subsequent generations of mankind are the descendants of those who were saved from the Flood. But that does not necessarily mean that the Flood covered the whole world. For, it is quite plausible that at that point in history the human population was confined only to the area which was overtaken by the Flood, and that those born after the Flood gradually dispersed to other parts of the world.
This view is supported by two things. Firstly, ancient historical traditions, archaeological discoveries and geological data provide evidence that a great flood took place at some period in the distant past in the Tigris-Euphrates region. There is no such evidence for a universal flood. Secondly, traditions about a great flood have been popular among all communities of the world down the ages. Such traditions are found even in the folklore of such distant regions as Australia, America and New Guinea. One may thus conclude that at some time in the past the ancestors of all these communities lived together in some region which was overtaken by the Flood. Since presumably their descendants subsequently dispersed to, and settled down in, different parts of the world, they transmitted and preserved the traditions of this great Flood. (For details see Towards Understanding the Qur’ an, vol. Ill, al-A‘raf7,n. 47, pp. 37-8.)
47. Noah (peace be on him) reminds God of His promise to spare his family.
Since his son was quite obviously part of his family, Noah requests of God that he be spared.
48. Noah (peace be on him) acknowledges that God’s judgement is final; that it is one against which there can be no appeal. Moreover, God’s judgement is also based on absolute knowledge and perfect justice.
49. The import of this Qur’anic verse may best be appreciated by analogy to the limbs on a person’s body. A limb may become rotten and a physician may decide to remove it by surgical operation. Now, the patient may ask his doctor not to amputate because it is a part of his body. The natural reply of the physician would be that the rotten limb was not truly a part of his body. Such a reply does not amount to denying, in a literal sense, the obvious fact that the limb is a part of that person’s body. What such a statement actually means is that a person’s body requires sound and healthy limbs rather than those which are rotten. For rotten limbs are not only useless, they are even able to damage other healthy limbs. In view of the above, it makes sense that that limb be surgically removed.
In a similar way a righteous father may be told that his corrupt son is not a part of his family. The biological fact of his being the son of his father is not being negated here. Rather, it is being said that on a moral plane the son has nothing to do with his father’s righteous household.
It is also pertinent to remember the context in which the present pronouncement was made. A judgement was needed in the encounter between faith and unbelief so as to determine who had faith and who was devoid of it.
The righteous were to be saved and the evil were to be destroyed. The pronouncement was not intended to suggest that those of a certain stock would be saved while others would be destroyed.
By mentioning Noah’s son as ‘one of unrighteous conduct’, the Qur’an draws our attention to another significant fact. A worldly person brings un his children and holds them dear for the simple reason that they happen to be his offspring regardless of their conduct. However, for a believer, the main consideration is how his children actually behave. A believer’s view of his children is governed by the conception that his children are God’s trust placed in his care such that he may bring them up in a manner that allows them to pursue the end for which God has created man. It is possible, however, that in spite of their best efforts parents may not succeed in the proper upbringing of their children and that the latter, when they grow up, fail to obey their Lord. If this happens, parents should realize that all their efforts have been wasted and that there is no reason for them to hold such children dear to their hearts.
The Qur’an is firm in its suggestion of such an attitude. It is obvious, therefore, that the same holds true for other relatives who are not as close as one’s own children. For faith, as we know, is essentially an ideational and moral quality, and people are called believers or men of faith by dint of possessing that quality. It is man’s faith which creates affinity between him and all other believers. The essential nexus of this relationship is thus ideational and moral. Those who happen to be a person’s kin through blood ties are indeed relatives. If they do not share their faith, however, a believer will fulfil and be required to fulfil only the duties he owes to them on account of the accident of this blood relationship. This relationship, however, is bound to be devoid of the true cordiality and spiritual affinity which characterizes his relationship with believers. And should there be any conflict between belief and unbelief whereby a believer’s relatives confront him, the believer is required to treat them exactly as any other unbeliever.
50. God’s observation should not give even the slightest misunderstanding that Noah (peace be on him) in any way lacked the true spirit of faith or that his faith was, to any degree, tainted by Ignorance (Jahiliyah). What perhaps one ought to remember, in order to fully appreciate what is being said here is that even Prophets are human. As human beings, it is not always possible even for them to maintain the very high standards of excellence laid down for men of faith. At some psychologically-charged moment even Prophets, despite their extraordinary spiritual excellence and sublimity, become vulnerable albeit momentarily to human weaknesses. However, as soon as they realize or are made to realize by. God that their conduct is falling short of the high standards required of them, they repent. Without the least hesitation or delay, they strive to mend their ways.
In fact, there cannot be any better proof of Noah’s moral excellence than the present incident mentioned in the Qur’an. Just consider what had happened.
Only a few moments previously Noah’s son had drowned before his very eyes, something that would have simply shattered his father’s whole being. At such an agonizing moment Noah (peace be on him) was reminded by God that his son had identified himself with falsehood rather than with truth. Noah (peace be on him) was told that this feeling that his son belonged to him merely because he was from his loins was a vestige of jahiliyah. What is significant is that Noah (peace be on him) immediately re-oriented himself and fully adopted the attitude required of him by Islam, doing so despite the fact that the wound that he had sustained was fresh.
51. By relating the story of Noah’s son, God has unequivocally and effectively made it clear that His justice is free from all biases, that His judgement is perfect and absolute. The Makkan unbelievers had entertained the illusion that God’s wrath would not overtake them no matter how they behaved. They thought so because they happened to be the descendants of Abraham (peace be on him) and the devotees of a number of well-known gods and goddesses. In the past, Jews and Christians also entertained, as they still entertain, illusions of the same kind. In fact, there are also many deviant Muslims who place their reliance on false hopes. They believe that since they are descendants or devotees of some saints, the intercession of those saints will enable them to escape God’s justice.
However, the Qur’an portrays how one of the great Prophets helplessly watches his own flesh and blood drown. In a state of severe emotional agitation, he piteously implores God to forgive his son. In response, God rebukes him. Thus, we see that even a person of a Prophet’s ranking failed to salvage an iniquitous son.
52. Noah (peace be on him) was directed to disembark on the mountain on which the Ark had rested.
53. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) is consoled by the statement that in the same way that Noah (peace be on him) and his righteous people ultimately succeeded, so will he and his Companions. It is God’s law that the opponents of the truth seem to achieve some measure of success in the beginning. But ultimate success is the lot of those who, out of their God-fearing, avoid all erroneous ways while seeking to serve the cause of the truth. The import of the story, therefore, is that the believers should not feel heart-broken by their ephemeral sufferings or the successes of their opponents.
Instead, they should persevere, with courage and fortitude, in their struggle for the cause of the truth.