Tafsir of Ash-Shu`ara' 26:158-165

“So the punishment seized them,” the promised one, and it was a shriek at which their bodies became extinguished, their hearts split open, and they died to the last one of them, and stones were poured upon them during that.

“Indeed, in that is a sign, but most of them were not believers. And indeed, your Lord—He is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful.”

“The people of Lot denied the messengers. When their brother Lot said to them”—and they were among his in-laws, peace be upon him—“‘Will you not fear Allah? Indeed, I am to you a trustworthy messenger. So fear Allah and obey me. And I do not ask you for it any payment; my payment is only from the Lord of the worlds. Do you approach the males among the worlds?’”

This is a denial and a rebuke. "Approaching" is a metonymy for sexual intercourse. "The males" (al-dhukran) is the plural of dhakar (male), in opposition to the female.

The apparent meaning is that "among the worlds" is connected to it [the males]; that is: Do you approach the males among the children of Adam, despite their immense number, the diversity of their species, and the prevalence of their females over their males, as if the females have become scarce to you? Thus, "the worlds" refers to mankind, because it is specifically the males among them who are being approached. The indication for this is the execution of the act and the use of the sound masculine plural (al-waw and nun) without considering the convention of dominance (taghlib). The exclusion of angels and jinn follows from rational necessity.

It is also possible that "among the worlds" is connected to "do you approach"; that is: Do you approach—out of all the rest of the inhabitants of the worlds—the males, in such a way that no one else shares this with you? Thus, "the worlds" would mean everyone who is capable of the act, and the world (alam) in this sense is that by which the Creator, Glory be to Him, is known. The plural is used for dominance (taghlib), and the exclusion of others is for the reasons previously mentioned. It does not invalidate this interpretation that donkeys or swine might approach males, as such instances are either rare or are excluded from consideration.

It is permissible to suggest that "the worlds" in this second view also refers to mankind. If it is said that they include all who preceded them in the worlds, the verse signifies that they were the first to establish this evil practice, as is clarified by the saying of Allah the Exalted: "Has any person in the worlds committed such an immorality as you have practiced before you?"