ভূমিকা

“And if Allah were to take people to task for their inequity, He would not leave on it (the earth) a single moving being, but He respites them until an appointed time; so, when their term comes, they can not delay (it) an hour nor (yet) can they advance (it).” The general rule of Allah is the postponement of the punishment, but it sometimes happens that He teaches the oppressors a lesson so as to provide instruction for others such as whatever happened to the nation of Lot, Noah, and Thamūd.

This respite provided by Allah is for the sake of repentance and compensation for one’s sins and is based on His favour. Hence, do not become arrogant because of it.

Anyway, after discussing about the terrible crimes of the Arab pagans through previous verses in connection with the evil innovations they committed and the crime of burying alive of their own daughters, some may raise this question as to why is it that Allah does not immediately punish the culprit subjects with all these oppressions, and abhor-able crimes?

This very verse in question seeks to provide an answer to this question implying: If Allah were to punish people for the oppressive offences which they commit, no moving object will survive throughout the earth. The verse says: “And if Allah were to take people to task for their inequity, He would not leave on it (the earth) a single moving being…” The Arabic term /dabbah/ refers to whatever moving and living animal there is.

It may, here, allude to ‘human beings’ metaphorically by procuring the symmetrical dimensions to it which in this case is /‘al a zulmihim/ (for their inequity). That is, were Allah to question human beings with regard to their tyranny, there would remain no mankind throughout the earth.