And when the disbelievers of Quraysh kept repeating their request for signs after their harm had intensified; and he - blessings and peace be upon him - was very eager for the faith of everyone; so how about his people, the Arabs?! How about his relatives among them?! Perhaps he hoped that Allah, glorified and exalted is He, would respond to their request; out of desire for their faith; and to relieve himself and his followers from their harm; and what they saw from the sign of the Night Journey was an astonishing matter; then they did not believe; rather, some of those who had believed among them turned back; the situation, in its strong demand, was such that it could be said - after mentioning the verse of punishment -: Why are they not hastened in their punishment? Or are they answered to their requests? So it could be said in response: What has prevented us from hastening their punishment except that we have set for them a term they must reach; 'And what has prevented us'; meaning: despite our greatness; which nothing can incapacitate; and no barrier can prevent; 'from sending'; meaning: a sending that manifests our greatness; in general; 'with the signs'; meaning: those which Quraysh proposed; so it was as if there were no signs with them other than it; 'except'; our knowledge in the world of testimony of what occurred from 'that they denied it'; meaning: the proposals; 'the former ones'; and our knowledge in the world of the unseen that these are like the former ones; in that the wretched among them do not believe in the proposals; just as they did not believe in others; and that he says about them what he said about others; that they are magic; and similar to this; and the happy one does not need in his faith to them; how many times have we answered a nation to their request; and that did not increase the people of misguidance among them except in disbelief; so we seized them; because our tradition has been that we do not delay after responding to the proposals from those who denied them; and we have decreed, by the mercy of this nation; and its honor over the previous nations; by not exterminating it; for what comes forth from the loins of its disbelievers from our chosen servants; and the prevention here is an exaggeration; intended by it the negation of responding to their proposals; and it is not permissible to take it at its apparent meaning; because the existence of what makes the occurrence of the action from the capable impossible; then he turned to what the situation indicated; and it is: 'So how many have we answered?'; to the end of what I mentioned; His saying, glorified and exalted is He: 'And We gave'; meaning: with what we have of the magnificent glory; 'Thamud the she-camel'; while it was 'seeing'; meaning: illuminating; worthy of being seen by everyone who witnessed it; 'So they wronged by it'; meaning: they fell into the injustice; which is like darkness; because of it; by not believing; and they did not fear its consequence; and He specifically mentioned the sign of Thamud as a warning; because they are Arabs; they proposed what was a reason for their extermination; and because they had knowledge of it; and knowledge of their dwellings; being close to them; and its being in their land; which they do not have knowledge of other than it; and He specifically mentioned the she-camel because it is an animal brought forth from a rock; and the situation is to prove the ability to resurrect; even if they were stones or iron; and it indicated their foolishness in both matters; on the path of the confused narration; by mentioning David - peace be upon him -; as a reference to iron; and the she-camel; as a reference to stones; so for Allah is this reference; how precise it is! And this phrase; how profound it is; and how rightful it is! 'And We do not send'; meaning: with what we have of the majesty; which mountains dissolve for; 'with the signs'; meaning: the proposals; and others; 'except as a warning'; meaning: to the one sent to them with it; for if they feared, they would be saved; and otherwise, they would perish; so when the matter is revealed to you in the world of testimony that they do not fear it; according to what was with us in the world of the unseen; it is known that there is no benefit for you in it.