Surah Qaf ayat 12 Tafsir Quran 50:12

﴿كَذَّبَتْ قَبْلَهُمْ قَوْمُ نُوحٍ وَأَصْحَابُ الرَّسِّ وَثَمُودُ﴾
[ ق: 12]

50:12 The people of Noah denied before them, and the companions of the well and Thamud

The people of Noah denied before them kadhdhabat has a feminine person inflection because of the feminine gender of the import of qawm ‘people’ and so did the dwellers at al-Rass — this was the name of a well around which they dwelt together with their livestock; they worshipped idols and it is said that their prophet was one Hanzala b. Safwān; but some say that he was some other person — and Thamūd the people of Sālih

Long before them - the Meccans - did the people of Nuh (Noah) and those of the town of Rass and those of Thamud (the Thamudites), suspect their Messengers of falsehood

Reminding the Quraysh of the Destruction of earlier Disbelieving Nations Allah the Exalted warns the disbelievers of Quraysh and reminds them of the punishment and painful torment that He sent in this life on their likes, who disbelieved before them.
For instance, Allah the Exalted punished the people of Nuh by drowning them in the encompassing flood that touched all the people of earth.
There is also the end that struck the people of Ar-Rass, and we mentioned their story before in Surat Al-Furqan, وَثَمُودُوَعَادٌ وَفِرْعَوْنُ وَإِخْوَنُ لُوطٍ ( ...and Thamud, and `Ad, and Fir`awn, and the brethren of Lut, ) the people of Sadum ( Sodom ) and the surrounding areas, to whom Lut was sent.
Allah the Exalted shook the earth beneath them and turned their area into a reeking lake, as stinking as the disbelief, tyranny and defiance of the Truth that they had, وَأَصْحَـبُ الاٌّيْكَةِ ( And the Dwellers of Al-Aykah ), they are the nation of Shu`ayb, peace be upon him, وَقَوْمُ تُّبَّعٍ ( and the people of Tubba` ), King of Yemen; we explained his story in the Tafsir of Surat Ad-Dukhan, and therefore, we do not need to repeat it here.
All praise is due to Allah. كُلٌّ كَذَّبَ الرُّسُلَ ( Everyone of them denied (their ) Messengers,) means, all of these nations and their generations belied their respective Messenger, and whoever denies even one Messenger, is as if he has denied all Messengers.
Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said, كَذَّبَتْ قَوْمُ نُوحٍ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ( The people of Nuh denied the Messengers. )( 26:105 ) even though only one Messenger was sent to them, and indeed, if all the Messengers were sent to them, they would have disbelieved in them as well.
Allah said, فَحَقَّ وَعِيدِ ( so My threat took effect. ) meaning, the promise of torment and punishment that Allah delivered to them on account of their denial took effect.
Therefore, all those who fear suffering the same end should be warned, especially since the latter have denied their Messenger, just as the former denied their Messenger. Repeating the Creation is Easier than originating It Allah the Exalted said, أَفَعَيِينَا بِالْخَلْقِ الاٌّوَّلِ ( Were We then tired with the first creation ) meaning, `did starting the creation bring fatigue to Us, so as to cause doubt in them that repeating the creation was not possible' بَلْ هُمْ فِى لَبْسٍ مِّنْ خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍ ( Nay, they are in confused doubt about a new creation. ) meaning, `starting the creation did not tire Us, and repeating it is even easier.' Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said, وَهُوَ الَّذِى يَبْدَأُ الْخَلْقَ ثُمَّ يُعِيدُهُ وَهُوَ أَهْوَنُ عَلَيْهِ ( And He it is Who originates the creation, then He will repeat it; and this is easier for Him. )( 30:27 ), and, وَضَرَبَ لَنَا مَثَلاً وَنَسِىَ خَلْقَهُ قَالَ مَن يُحىِ الْعِظَـمَ وَهِىَ رَمِيمٌ قُلْ يُحْيِيهَا الَّذِى أَنشَأَهَآ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَهُوَ بِكُلّ خَلْقٍ عَلِيمٌ- ( And he puts forth for Us a parable, and forgets his own creation.
He says: "Who will give life to these bones after they are rotten and have become dust" Say: "He will give life to them Who created them for the first time! And He is the All-Knower of every creation!" )( 36:78-79 ) aWe mentioned earlier a Hadith collected in the Sahih,
«يَقُولُ اللهُ تَعَالَى يُؤْذِينِي ابْنُ آدَمَ يَقُولُ: لَنْ يُعِيدَنِي كَمَا بَدَأَنِي.
وَلَيْسَ أَوَّلُ الْخَلْقِ بِأَهْوَنَ عَلَيَّ مِنْ إِعَادَتِه»
( Allah the Exalted said, "Son of `Adam insults Me when he says, `He will not resurrect me as He created me before!' But surely, originating creation is not easier for Me than reproducing it again." )

(50:12) In the past Noah's people, and the people of Rass *12 and Thamud gave the lie (to Messengers),

The people of Noah denied before them, meaning

*12) Before this the people of Rass ( Ashab ar-Rass ) have been mentioned in Surah AI-Furqan: 38 above, and now here, but at both places they have been only referred to as of those nations who rejected the Prophets.
No other detail about them has been given.
In the traditions of Arabia two places are well known by the name of ar-Rass, one in the Najd and the other in northern Hejaz.
Of these ar-Rass of the Najd is better known and has been referred to more often in the pre-Islamic poetry of Arabia.
Now it is difficult to detetmine which of these was the home of the Ashab ar-Rass.
No reliable detail of their story is found in any tradition either.
The most that one can say with certainty is that it was a nation which had thrown its Prophet into a well.
But from the mere allusion that has been made to them in the Qur'an one is led to think that in the time of the revelation of the Qur'an the Arabs were generally aware of this nation and its history, but the traditions about them could not be preserved in historic records.

 

Reminding the Quraysh of the Destruction of earlier Disbelieving Nations Allah the Exalted warns the disbelievers of Quraysh and reminds them of the punishment and painful torment that He sent in this life on their likes, who disbelieved before them.
For instance, Allah the Exalted punished the people of Nuh by drowning them in the encompassing flood that touched all the people of earth.
There is also the end that struck the people of Ar-Rass, and we mentioned their story before in Surat Al-Furqan, وَثَمُودُوَعَادٌ وَفِرْعَوْنُ وَإِخْوَنُ لُوطٍ ( ...and Thamud, and `Ad, and Fir`awn, and the brethren of Lut, ) the people of Sadum ( Sodom ) and the surrounding areas, to whom Lut was sent.
Allah the Exalted shook the earth beneath them and turned their area into a reeking lake, as stinking as the disbelief, tyranny and defiance of the Truth that they had, وَأَصْحَـبُ الاٌّيْكَةِ ( And the Dwellers of Al-Aykah ), they are the nation of Shu`ayb, peace be upon him, وَقَوْمُ تُّبَّعٍ ( and the people of Tubba` ), King of Yemen; we explained his story in the Tafsir of Surat Ad-Dukhan, and therefore, we do not need to repeat it here.
All praise is due to Allah. كُلٌّ كَذَّبَ الرُّسُلَ ( Everyone of them denied (their ) Messengers,) means, all of these nations and their generations belied their respective Messenger, and whoever denies even one Messenger, is as if he has denied all Messengers.
Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said, كَذَّبَتْ قَوْمُ نُوحٍ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ( The people of Nuh denied the Messengers. )( 26:105 ) even though only one Messenger was sent to them, and indeed, if all the Messengers were sent to them, they would have disbelieved in them as well.
Allah said, فَحَقَّ وَعِيدِ ( so My threat took effect. ) meaning, the promise of torment and punishment that Allah delivered to them on account of their denial took effect.
Therefore, all those who fear suffering the same end should be warned, especially since the latter have denied their Messenger, just as the former denied their Messenger. Repeating the Creation is Easier than originating It Allah the Exalted said, أَفَعَيِينَا بِالْخَلْقِ الاٌّوَّلِ ( Were We then tired with the first creation ) meaning, `did starting the creation bring fatigue to Us, so as to cause doubt in them that repeating the creation was not possible' بَلْ هُمْ فِى لَبْسٍ مِّنْ خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍ ( Nay, they are in confused doubt about a new creation. ) meaning, `starting the creation did not tire Us, and repeating it is even easier.' Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said, وَهُوَ الَّذِى يَبْدَأُ الْخَلْقَ ثُمَّ يُعِيدُهُ وَهُوَ أَهْوَنُ عَلَيْهِ ( And He it is Who originates the creation, then He will repeat it; and this is easier for Him. )( 30:27 ), and, وَضَرَبَ لَنَا مَثَلاً وَنَسِىَ خَلْقَهُ قَالَ مَن يُحىِ الْعِظَـمَ وَهِىَ رَمِيمٌ قُلْ يُحْيِيهَا الَّذِى أَنشَأَهَآ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَهُوَ بِكُلّ خَلْقٍ عَلِيمٌ- ( And he puts forth for Us a parable, and forgets his own creation.
He says: "Who will give life to these bones after they are rotten and have become dust" Say: "He will give life to them Who created them for the first time! And He is the All-Knower of every creation!" )( 36:78-79 ) aWe mentioned earlier a Hadith collected in the Sahih, «يَقُولُ اللهُ تَعَالَى يُؤْذِينِي ابْنُ آدَمَ يَقُولُ: لَنْ يُعِيدَنِي كَمَا بَدَأَنِي.
وَلَيْسَ أَوَّلُ الْخَلْقِ بِأَهْوَنَ عَلَيَّ مِنْ إِعَادَتِه» ( Allah the Exalted said, "Son of `Adam insults Me when he says, `He will not resurrect me as He created me before!' But surely, originating creation is not easier for Me than reproducing it again." )

( The folk of Noah denied ) denied Noah ( before them ) before your folk, O Muhammad, ( and (so did ) the dwellers at al-Rass) al-Rass is a well close to al-Yamamah; the dwellers of al-Rass are the people of Shu’ayb who denied Shu’ayb ( and (the tribe of ) Thamud) the people of Salih,

Denied before them (i.e. these pagans of Makkah who denied you, O Muhammad SAW) the people of Nuh (Noah), and the dwellers of Rass, and the Thamud,

Page 518 English transliteration