That is: he called out to Him saying, "Indeed, harm has touched me." It is read as "Indeed," with a kasra, based on the implied saying or because it includes the meaning of the call, and "harm" - with a fatha - refers to harm in everything, and with a dhamma: it refers to harm to oneself from illness and weakness. There is a distinction between the two forms due to the difference in meanings. He was subtle in his request as he mentioned himself in a way that necessitates mercy, and he mentioned his Lord with the utmost mercy without explicitly stating his request. It is narrated that an old woman approached Sulayman ibn Abdul Malik and said: "O Commander of the Faithful, the rats of my house are walking on the sticks!" He replied to her: "You were subtle in your request; I will certainly make them leap like leopards and fill her house with grain." Ayub, peace be upon him, was a Roman from the lineage of Ishaq ibn Yaqub, peace be upon them. Allah had appointed him as a prophet and had expanded his worldly possessions, and his family and wealth increased: he had seven sons and seven daughters, and he had various types of livestock, and five hundred faddans, followed by five hundred servants, each servant having a wife and children and palm trees. Allah tested him by the loss of his children - the house collapsed on them and they perished - and by the loss of his wealth, and by illness in his body for eighteen years. According to Qatadah, it was thirteen years. According to Muqatil, it was seven years, seven months, and seven hours. One day, his wife said to him: "Why don't you call upon Allah?" He replied to her: "How long was the period of ease?" She said: "Eighty years." He said: "I am shy before Allah to call upon Him while my period of trial has not yet reached the duration of my period of ease." When Allah removed the affliction from him, He revived his children and granted him similar ones and additional blessings. It is reported that his wife gave birth to twenty-six sons. That is: for Our mercy towards the worshippers, and We mention them with kindness; We do not forget them, or as a mercy from Us for Ayub and a reminder for others among the worshippers, so that they may be patient as he was patient, until they are rewarded as he was rewarded in this world and the Hereafter.