سُوْرَةُ النَّمْلِ
Surah An-Naml (27) — Ayah 49
قَالُوا۟ تَقَاسَمُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ لَنُبَيِّتَنَّهُۥ وَأَهْلَهُۥ ثُمَّ لَنَقُولَنَّ لِوَلِيِّهِۦ مَا شَهِدْنَا مَهْلِكَ أَهْلِهِۦ وَإِنَّا لَصَـٰدِقُونَ ﴿49﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
They said: "Swear one to another by Allâh that we shall make a secret night attack on him and his household, and thereafter we will surely say to his near relatives: ‘We witnessed not the destruction of his household, and verily we are telling the truth.’"
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
قَالُوا۟
qālū
They said
تَقَاسَمُوا۟
taqāsamū
Swear to each other
بِٱللَّهِ
bil-lahi
by Allah
لَنُبَيِّتَنَّهُۥ
lanubayyitannahu
surely, we will attack him by night
وَأَهْلَهُۥ
wa-ahlahu
and his family
ثُمَّ
thumma
Then
لَنَقُولَنَّ
lanaqūlanna
we will surely say
لِوَلِيِّهِۦ
liwaliyyihi
to his heir
مَا
mā
Not
شَهِدْنَا
shahid'nā
we witnessed
مَهْلِكَ
mahlika
(the) destruction
أَهْلِهِۦ
ahlihi
(of) his family
وَإِنَّا
wa-innā
and indeed, we
لَصَـٰدِقُونَ
laṣādiqūna
(are) surely truthful
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
49. They said, "Let us all swear by Allah that we will attack Salih and his family by night [50], and then we will say to his guardian, 'We were not present at the destruction of his family, and indeed we are telling the truth.'"
[50]
The Conspiracy of the Thamudite Thugs:
When these people, through mutual collusion, incited Qidar to injure the she-camel of Allah, then Prophet Salihؑ gave them an ultimatum that the punishment would come after three days. Even after this ultimatum, these people thought that whether this punishment comes or not, why not finish off Salih and his household before that. Thus, nine miscreants devised a scheme to get rid of Prophet Salihؑ in the same way that the Quraysh of Makkah had planned to eliminate the Messenger of Allahﷺ before the migration. However, the difference was that the Quraysh thought that if, in the case of a riot, they were demanded to pay blood money for the murder, they would divide it among themselves. But these miscreants were thinking even further ahead. Their idea was that when the guardian of Prophet Salihؑ (just as Abu Talib was the guardian of the Messenger of Allahﷺ) would question them, they would say that they were not present at the scene. We have no idea who killed them. And the second difference was that the Quraysh of Makkah had only planned to kill the Messenger of Allahﷺ, whereas these miscreants had planned to kill Prophet Salih and his entire family, and in their agreement for this plan, they all swore oaths before each other that, firstly, they would not rest until they had killed this family, and secondly, they would never confess to their crime.
[50]
The Conspiracy of the Thamudite Thugs:
When these people, through mutual collusion, incited Qidar to injure the she-camel of Allah, then Prophet Salihؑ gave them an ultimatum that the punishment would come after three days. Even after this ultimatum, these people thought that whether this punishment comes or not, why not finish off Salih and his household before that. Thus, nine miscreants devised a scheme to get rid of Prophet Salihؑ in the same way that the Quraysh of Makkah had planned to eliminate the Messenger of Allahﷺ before the migration. However, the difference was that the Quraysh thought that if, in the case of a riot, they were demanded to pay blood money for the murder, they would divide it among themselves. But these miscreants were thinking even further ahead. Their idea was that when the guardian of Prophet Salihؑ (just as Abu Talib was the guardian of the Messenger of Allahﷺ) would question them, they would say that they were not present at the scene. We have no idea who killed them. And the second difference was that the Quraysh of Makkah had only planned to kill the Messenger of Allahﷺ, whereas these miscreants had planned to kill Prophet Salih and his entire family, and in their agreement for this plan, they all swore oaths before each other that, firstly, they would not rest until they had killed this family, and secondly, they would never confess to their crime.
