| Q: (36) And how many generations We destroyed before them...

Then the Almighty said: {And how many a generation have We destroyed before them, who were mightier than them in power!}

After warning them about the Great Day and the painful punishment that lies ahead, He warns them about the swift, destructive punishment and ruin that befalls them, clarifying the state of those who preceded them. This has been explained in previous sections, but what is specific to this passage involves several points.

First: If this verse is meant to combine warnings about both immediate and delayed punishment, why is it placed between the Almighty's saying: {And Paradise will be brought near to the righteous} (Q: 31) until His saying: {and with Us is more} (Q: 35)?

The answer is that this placement serves to invoke both fear and hope. He mentioned the state of the defiant disbeliever and the state of the grateful worshipper in the Hereafter, as a means of deterrence and encouragement. Then the Almighty said: If you are in doubt about the eternal, lasting punishment, then you should not be in doubt about the swift, destructive punishment that befell those like you.

If one asks: Why did He not combine deterrence and encouragement regarding the immediate worldly matters, as He did regarding the Hereafter, and why did He not mention the state of those who submitted (believed) before and were blessed, just as He mentioned those who associated partners with Him and were destroyed?

The answer is that blessings had already reached them, and they were enjoying those blessings; thus, mentioning them was unnecessary. They were only heedless of the destruction, so they were warned about it. However, in the Hereafter, they were heedless of both matters (blessing and punishment), so He informed them of both.

Second: The Almighty's saying: {then they roamed through the lands.}

There are several interpretations of its meaning:

1. It is similar to what the Almighty said concerning Thamud: {who carved out the rocks in the valley} (Al-Fajr: 9)—meaning they possessed the strength to carve out roads and pierce rocks.
2. Nakabū (they roamed/traversed) means they traveled extensively and found no refuge or escape. Under this interpretation, it might refer to the people of Mecca, meaning they traveled and saw the ruins and remnants therein.
3. {then they roamed through the lands} means they became chiefs/leaders (nuqabā’) on Earth, referring to what their might and power afforded them. The particle fa (then) supports this, as it indicates a consequence following its prerequisite. For example, one says: Zayd was stronger than 'Amr, so he defeated him; and 'Amr was sick, so Zayd defeated him. Similarly here, the Almighty said: {who were mightier than them in power}, so they became chiefs on Earth.

It was also read as {fanqabū} (with a shaddah on the qāf), which also indicates the third meaning, because tanqīb (intensive searching/investigation) is related to naqaba meaning "to become a chief/leader."

Third: The Almighty's saying: {Is there any escape?}

This bears three possible meanings:

1. Based on the reading where naqabū is read with shaddah (intensive), it could mean they searched for an escape: {Is there any escape?}
2. Based on all readings, it is an interrogative statement implying negation: There was no escape for them.
3. It is a new statement, as if the Almighty is saying to the people of Muhammad (peace be upon him): They were destroyed despite their great power; so, is there any escape you can rely upon?

Al-Mahīṣ is like al-maḥīd (escape/evasion), but al-maḥīṣ specifically denotes a turning aside or an escape from severity. This is supported by their saying: waqaʿū fī ḥayṣ bayṣ (they fell into great distress and difficulty). Al-maḥīd is an escape, even if chosen deliberately; one says ḥāda ʿan aṭ-ṭarīq (he deviated from the path) deliberately, but one does not say ḥāṣa ʿan al-amr (he evaded the matter) deliberately.

! 7 < { Indeed, in that is a reminder for whoever has a heart or who listens attentively while being present. } > 7