And when He, glorified and exalted is He, established in this verse their similarity in enjoying the worldly pleasures, and concluded it with this ending that indicates vengeance, He followed that by frightening them from resembling those who faced punishment. He turned to the matter of the unseen, as it instills awe, and said, affirming their loss: "Did not the news of those before them come to them?" That is, these vile ones from the people of hypocrisy, "the news of those before them," meaning: their great news which is worthy of being searched for, to act upon what it necessitates when they disobeyed Our messengers. Then He replaced that with His saying: "the people of Noah," meaning: in the length of their lives, the extension of their effects, and the goodness of their settlement in enjoying the pleasures of their land and homes. He destroyed them with the flood; there remained not one of their disobedient people. And He turned to the people of the tribe and said: "and 'Aad," meaning: in the strength of their bodies, their great status, their craftsmanship, their buildings, and their tyranny in their great dominion. He destroyed them with the fierce wind; there remained not one among them who disbelieved. "And Thamud," meaning: in their ability in the land of stone, its width and length, its mountains and plains. They were destroyed by the earthquake; there remained not one of the disbelievers among them. "And the people of Ibrahim," meaning: in the dominion of all the land in its length and width. Allah stripped them of dominion after severe destruction. "And the companions of Madyan," meaning: in gathering wealth and extending hopes to acquire it from what is forbidden and lawful, and in the deficiency of the scale and measure. Allah encompassed them with punishment. "And the overturned cities," meaning: in their turning away from protecting their honor by following the pleasures of their desires. Their actions resulted in their general extinction after the sinking. And when it was as if it was said: What is their news? He said: "Their messengers came to them," meaning: each nation among them had its messenger "with clear signs," meaning: with very clear miracles because they committed such evils that necessitated their destruction. "So what?" That is, it resulted from that that "what" "was not Allah," meaning: with what He has of perfect attributes, intending "to wrong them," meaning: to act upon them in destruction before warning and illuminating the clear signs, the action of one whom you consider among you as unjust. But He sent to them the messengers, and they denied what they brought them of the clear signs. Thus, the scholar regarding their state, when he hears of their destruction and their removal, says: Allah did not wrong them. "But they were always," meaning: throughout their long lives, "themselves wronging," meaning: other than themselves, "by doing what causes their destruction." So if you do not return, we warn you of a punishment like theirs. And perhaps He specifically mentioned these among the remaining nations due to what is with the Arabs of their news and the proximity of their homes to their homes, although they were the most numerous of nations, and their prophets were the greatest of prophets - Abu Hayyan pointed this out. And perhaps he advanced the companions of Madyan over the people of Lut, although they were after them in time, because this concerns those who were described as not finding what could protect them from the punishment they faced, by witnessing the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, from a refuge or caves or an entrance, just as the overturned cities were gathered by this description. The people of Noah, peace be upon him, were not protected when the water came to them by a strong fortress or a high mountain. It is said that they were the ones who built the pyramids, some of which were made of stone to protect them from the calamity that threatened them if it was water, and some of which were made of bricks to protect them from it if it was fire. And 'Aad, when the wind came to them, rushed to their homes, and it uprooted the doors and struck them in the depths of their homes. What they built of well-crafted factories, erected palaces, and fortified fortresses did not avail them. The state of Thamud is known for their expansion in homes, in mountains and plains, but it did not protect them from the cry that followed the earthquake. And the people of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, built the tower, its height being five thousand cubits or two farsakhs, to reach the sky, as it is claimed. Allah came upon their building from its foundations; the wind cast its head into the sea, and the remaining ones fell upon them while they were beneath it. And punishment came to them from where they did not perceive. And the companions of Madyan, when punishment came to them, the earthquake seized them; their city did not avail them, and although they were the companions of the grove, when the heat intensified upon them on the day of shade, they sought the caves and found them hotter than the face of the earth, so they fled from them. The shade gathered them with a cool breeze that deceived them, and it clothed them with it. When they gathered beneath it, its fire burned them, and their shame remained upon them. As for the people of Lut, the command came to them suddenly; they did not perceive until their cities were turned upside down after being raised to the height of the sky, and stones of baked clay were followed upon them, igniting fire. And perhaps He specifically mentioned the people of Lut among those who do not have this description because the Arabs used to pass by the sites of their cities and witness them. And He referred to them as the overturned cities because the stories are for the hypocrites whose affairs are based on lies and diverting matters from their appearances and turning them away from their faces. The meaning is that those who turned the act of marriage from its face were punished by having their cities turned upside down. These are deserving of such punishment for turning the words from their face. And the substance of "falsehood" revolves around the heart in every arrangement. So when you retaliate against a man, it is as if you turned his action and returned it to him and diverted it from you. And the punishment of the animal is likened to the inverted vessel, and lying is diverting speech from its face, so it is falsehood for that. And Allah knows best.