The Moon — Verse 16

How dreadful then were My chastisement and My warnings? this is an interrogative meant as an affirmative; kayfa ‘how’ is the predicate of kāna ‘was’ and it is here being used to inquire about a ‘state’; the intention is to prompt those who are being addressed to affirm the fact that God’s chastisement of those who denied Noah was fully deserved.

ولقد أبقينا قصة نوح مع قومه عبرة ودليلا على قدرتنا لمن بعد نوح؛ ليعتبروا ويتعظوا بما حلَّ بهذه الأمة التي كفرت بربها، فهل من متعظ يتعظ؟ فكيف كان عذابي ونذري لمن كفر بي وكذب رسلي، ولم يتعظ بما جاءت به؟ إنه كان عظيمًا مؤلمًا.

أي كيف كان عذابي لمن كفر بي وكذب رسلي ولم يتعظ بما جاءت به نذري وكيف انتصرت لهم وأخذت لهم بالثأر.

والاستفهام فى قوله - سبحانه - : ( فَكَيْفَ كَانَ عَذَابِي وَنُذُرِ ) للتهويل والتعجيب من شدة هذا العذاب الذى حاق بقوم نوح - عليه السلام - .أى : فكيف كان عذابى لهم ، وإنذارى إياهم؟ لقد كانا على كيفية هائلة لا يحيط بها الوصف ، ولا تحدها العبارة .والنذر : مفرده نذير ، وجمع لتكرار الإنذار من نوح - عليه السلام - لقومه .قال الجمل : وقرىء فى السبع بإثبات الياء وحذفها . وأما فى الرسم فلا تثبت لأنها من ياءات الزوائد ، وكذا يقال فى المواضع الآتية كلها . . .

وقوله ( فَكَيْفَ كَانَ عَذَابِي وَنُذُرِ ) يقول تعالى ذكره: فكيف كان عذابي لهؤلاء الذين كفروا بربهم من قوم نوح, وكذّبوا رسوله نوحا, إذ تمادوا في غيهم وضلالهم, وكيف كان إنذاري بما فعلت بهم من العقوبة التي أحللت بهم بكفرهم بربهم, وتكذيبهم رسوله نوحا, صلوات الله عليه, وهو إنذار لمن كفر من قومه من قريش, وتحذير منه لهم, أن يحلّ بهم على تماديهم في غيهم, مثل الذي حلّ بقوم نوح من العذاب.وقوله ( وَنَذَرَ ) يعني: وإنذاري, وهو مصدر.

( فكيف كان عذابي ونذر ) أي : إنذاري . قال الفراء : الإنذار والنذر مصدران ، تقول العرب : أنذرت إنذارا ونذرا ، كقولهم أنفقت إنفاقا ونفقة ، وأيقنت إيقانا ويقينا ، أقيم الاسم مقام المصدر .

فَكَيْفَ كَانَ عَذَابِي وَنُذُرِ (16(تفريع على القصة بما تضمنته من قوله : { ففتحنا أبواب السماء } [ القمر : 11 ] إلى آخره . و ( كيف ( للاستفهام عن حالة العذاب . وهو عذاب قوم نوح بالطوفان والاستفهام مستعمل في التعجيب من شدة هذا العذَاب الموصوف . والجملة في معنى التذييل وهو تعريض بتهديد المشركين أن يصيبهم عذاب جزاء تكذيبهم الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم وإعراضهم وأذاهم كما أصاب قوم نوح .وحُذف ياء المتكلم من { نذر } وأصله : نُذري . وحذفها في الكلام في الوقف فصيح وكثر في القرآن عند الفواصل .والنذر : جمع نذير الذي هو اسم مصدر أَنذر كالنذارة وتقدم آنفاً في هذه السورة وإنما جمعت لتكرر النذارة من الرسول لقومه طلباً للإِيمانهم .

{ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ عَذَابِي وَنُذُرِ } أي: فكيف رأيت أيها المخاطب عذاب الله الأليم وإنذاره الذي لا يبقي لأحد عليه حجة.

فكيف كان عذابي ونذر أي إنذاري ، قال الفراء : الإنذار والنذر مصدران . وقيل : نذر جمع نذير ونذير بمعنى الإنذار كنكير بمعنى الإنكار .

The leaders of Noah’s community, consumed as they were by false prestige, were not prepared to accept Noah. The result was that they were afflicted by the retribution of God. This punishment came upon them in the shape of a terrible flood. The entire people and their dwellings were submerged in it. But, Noah and his companions, as commanded by God, boarded an ark. This vessel sailed forth and stopped at Mount Judi in the Mount Ararat range. Ararat is in Turkey. The highest mountain of the region, it rises to 16, 853 ft. Certain aeroplane pilots claim that, while flying over the snow-covered Ararat peak, they have seen some boat-like thing caught up in the snow there. If this is correct, then just as the dead body of Pharaoh (of Moses’s period) was extracted from its pyramid in the late nineteenth century and became a sign of God ( 10:92 ), similarly perhaps Noah’s ark may be discovered and become a sign of God for mankind.

ذَاتِ أَلْوَاحٍ وَدُسُرٍ‌ (to board that [ ship ] which had planks and nails...54:13). The word alwah is the plural of lawh and it refers to a board or a plank. The word dusur is the plural of disar and it stands for nail. It also means a cord of fibres of the palm tree with which the planks of a ship are bound together.

(Then see how (dreadful) was My punishment after My warnings!) See, O Muhammad, how My punishment of these folk and how the state of those warned became, when Noah warned them but they rejected faith.

The Story of the People of Nuh and the Lesson from it Allah the Exalted said, كَذَّبَتْ (denied) `before your people, O Muhammad,' قَوْمُ نُوحٍ فَكَذَّبُواْ عَبْدَنَا (the people of Nuh. They rejected Our servant) means, they denied him categorically and accused him of madness, وَقَالُواْ مَجْنُونٌ وَازْدُجِرَ (and said: "A madman!" Wazdujir.) Mujahid said about Wazdujir: "He was driven out accused on account of madness." It was also said that Wazdujir means, he was rebuked, deterred, threatened and warned by his people saying: لَئِنْ لَّمْ تَنْتَهِ ينُوحُ لَتَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْمُرْجُومِينَ ("If you do not stop O Nuh, you will be among those who will be stoned.") 26:116 This was said by Ibn Zayd, and it is sound. فَدَعَا رَبَّهُ أَنُّى مَغْلُوبٌ فَانتَصِرْ (Then he invoked his Lord (saying): "I have been overcome, so help (me)!") meaning, `I am weak and cannot overcome or resist my people, so help Your religion!' Allah the Exalted said, فَفَتَحْنَآ أَبْوَبَ السَّمَآءِ بِمَاءٍ مُّنْهَمِرٍ (So, We opened the gates of the heaven with water Munhamir.) As-Suddi said about Munhamir, "It means abundant." وَفَجَّرْنَا الاٌّرْضَ عُيُوناً (And We caused springs to gush forth from the earth.) means, from every part of the earth, and even ovens in which fire was burning -- water and springs gushed forth, فَالْتَقَى المَآءُ (So, the waters met), means, of the heaven and the earth, عَلَى أَمْرٍ قَدْ قُدِرَ (for a matter predestined.) Ibn Jurayj reported from Ibn `Abbas: فَفَتَحْنَآ أَبْوَبَ السَّمَآءِ بِمَاءٍ مُّنْهَمِرٍ (So, We opened the gates of the heaven with water Munhamir), Torrential rain, the only water that fell from the sky before that day and ever since was from clouds. But the sky's gates were opened on them that day, and therefore, the water that came down was not from clouds. So both the waters (of the earth and the heaven) met according to a matter ordained." Allah said, وَحَمَلْنَاهُ عَلَى ذَاتِ أَلْوَحٍ وَدُسُرٍ (And We carried him on a (ship) made of planks and nails (Dusur)), Ibn `Abbas, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Al-Qurazi, Qatadah and Ibn Zayd said that Dusur means nails. Ibn Jarir preferred this view. Allah's statement, تَجْرِى بِأَعْيُنِنَا (Floating under Our Eyes), means, `by Our command and under Our protection and observation,' جَزَآءً لِّمَن كَانَ كُفِرَ (a reward for him who had been rejected!) meaning, as recompense for them because of their disbelief in Allah and as reward for Nuh, peace be upon him. Allah the Exalted said, وَلَقَدْ تَّرَكْنَـهَا ءايَةً (And indeed, We have left this as a sign.) Qatadah said, "Allah left the ship of Nuh intact until the first generation of this Ummah were able to see it." However, it appears that the meaning here is that Allah kept ships as a sign. For instance, Allah the Exalted said, وَءَايَةٌ لَّهُمْ أَنَّا حَمَلْنَا ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ فِى الْفُلْكِ الْمَشْحُونِ - وَخَلَقْنَا لَهُمْ مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْكَبُونَ (And a sign for them is that We bore their offspring in the laden ship. And We have created for them of the like thereunto, on which they ride.)(36:41-42), إِنَّا لَمَّا طَغَا الْمَآءُ حَمَلْنَـكُمْ فِى الْجَارِيَةِ - لِنَجْعَلَهَا لَكُمْ تَذْكِرَةً وَتَعِيَهَآ أُذُنٌ وَعِيَةٌ (Verily, when the water rose beyond its limits, We carried you in the boat. That We might make it an admonition for you and that it might be retained by the retaining ears.)(69:11-12) Allah's statement here, فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ (Then is there any that will remember) means, `is there any that will receive admonition and reminder. Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah bin Mas`ud said, "The Prophet recited to me, فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ (Then is there any that will remember)" Al-Bukhari collected a similar Hadith from `Abdullah that he said, "I recited to the Prophet (فَهَلْ مِن مُّذَّكِرٍ) (then is there any that will remember) and the Prophet said, فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ (Then is there any that will remember)" Allah's statement, فَكَيْفَ كَانَ عَذَابِى وَنُذُرِ (Then how (terrible) was My torment and My warnings) means, `how terrible was My torment that I inflicted on those who disbelieved in Me and denied My Messengers, who did not heed to My warnings How was My help that I extended to My Messengers and the revenge exerted on their behalf,' وَلَقَدْ يَسَّرْنَا الْقُرْءَانَ لِلذِّكْرِ (And We have indeed made the Qur'an easy to understand and remember); meaning, `We have made the Qur'an easy to recite and comprehend for those who seek these traits, to remind mankind,' as Allah said, كِتَـبٌ أَنزَلْنَـهُ إِلَيْكَ مُبَـرَكٌ لِّيَدَّبَّرُواْ ءَايَـتِهِ وَلِيَتَذَكَّرَ أُوْلُو الاٌّلْبَـبِ ((This is) a Book which We have sent down to you, full of blessings, that they may ponder over its Ayat, and that men of understanding may remember.)(38:29), فَإِنَّمَا يَسَّرْنَـهُ بِلَسَانِكَ لِتُبَشِّرَ بِهِ الْمُتَّقِينَ وَتُنْذِرَ بِهِ قَوْماً لُّدّاً (So We have made this (the Qur'an) easy in your own tongue, only that you may give glad tidings to those who have Taqwa and warn with it the most quarrelsome people.)(19:97) Allah said, فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ (then is there any that will remember), meaning, `is there anyone who will remember through this Qur'an, which We made easy to memorize and easy to understand' Muhammad bin Ka`b Al-Qurazi commented on this Ayah, "Is there anyone who will avoid evil"