His Biography: The Condition of People Before the Mission of Noah: Before the birth of Noah's people, there lived five righteous men from the ancestors of Noah's people. They lived for a while and then died. The names of the five men were: (Wadd, Suwa', Yaghuth, Ya'uq, Nasr). After their death, people made statues for them in memory and honor. Time passed. Those who carved the statues died. Their sons came. The sons died and the sons' sons came. Then stories and tales were woven around the statues, attributing to them a special power. Satan took advantage of the opportunity and made people believe that these were statues of gods who possessed benefit and were able to harm. People began to worship these statues. Sending Noah, peace be upon him: Noah was a believer in God Almighty by nature before his mission to people. All the prophets believed in God Almighty before their mission. He was very grateful to God Almighty. So God chose him to carry the message. So Noah went out to his people and began his call: O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him. Indeed, I fear for you the punishment of a terrible Day. With this brief sentence, Noah put his people before the reality of divinity... and the reality of resurrection. There is a creator God and He alone is worthy of worship... and there is death, then resurrection, then a day of resurrection. A great day, in which there is a great day of torment. Noah explained to his people that it is impossible for there to be other than one God, the Creator. He made them understand that Satan had deceived them for a long time, and that the time had come for this deception to stop. Noah told them about God's honoring of man. How He created him, granted him sustenance, and bestowed upon him the blessing of reason. Idol worship is nothing but oppression that stifles reason. Noah's people moved in two directions after his call. The call touched the hearts of the weak, the poor and the miserable, and bent over their wounds and pains with mercy. As for the rich, the powerful and the great, they looked at the call with skepticism… and since they benefited from the situation remaining as it was… they began their war against Noah. At first, they accused Noah of being a human being like them: Then the leaders of his people who disbelieved said, “We see you only as a human being like us.” Al-Qurtubi’s interpretation said: The leaders of his people who disbelieved were the leaders who were among his people. They are called leaders because they are full of what they say. These leaders said to Noah: You are a human being, O Noah. Although Noah did not say otherwise, and confirmed that he was just a human being.. and God sends to the earth a messenger from among humans, because the earth is inhabited by humans, and if the earth was inhabited by angels, God would have sent a messenger from among the angels.. The war between the unbelievers and Noah continued. At first, the unbelievers thought that Noah's call would soon be extinguished on its own, but when they found that the call attracted the poor, the weak, and the people of simple industries, they began to attack Noah from this side. They attacked him and his followers, and said to him: No one followed you except the poor, the weak, and the lowly. Thus, the conflict broke out between Noah and the leaders of his people. The unbelievers resorted to bargaining. They said to Noah: Listen, Noah. If you want us to believe in you, then expel those who believed in you. They are weak and poor, and we are the masters of the people and their rich.. It is impossible for us to include one call with these. Noah listened to the unbelievers of his people and realized that they were stubborn, and despite that, he was kind in his response. He made his people understand that he could not expel the believers, because first of all they are not his guests, but they are the guests of Allah. Mercy is not his house that he can let in whomever he wants or expel from whomever he wants, but mercy is the house of Allah that receives whomever he wants. Noah discussed all the arguments of the unbelievers with the noble and honorable logic of the prophets. It is the logic of thought that strips itself of personal pride and the desire for private interests. He told them that Allah had given him the message, the prophethood, and mercy. They did not see what Allah had given him, and therefore he does not force them to believe in his message while they are reluctant. The word “There is no god but Allah” is not imposed on any human being. He made them understand that he does not ask them for anything in return for his call, he does not ask them for money that would burden them, his reward is with Allah, He is the one who gives him his reward. He made them understand that he cannot expel those who believe in Allah, and that he has his limits as a prophet. His limits do not give him the right to expel the believers for two reasons: They will meet Allah believing in Him, so how can he expel a believer in Allah? Then, if he had expelled them, they would have argued with him before Allah, and He would punish those who expelled them. So who would support Noah from Allah if he expelled them? Thus, Noah concluded that his people’s demand that he expel the believers was ignorance on their part. Noah then told them that he did not claim for himself more than he had a right to, and he informed them of his humility and humbleness to Allah, the Almighty, as he did not claim for himself what he did not have from the treasures of Allah, which are His blessings upon whomever He wills of His servants, and he does not know the unseen, because the unseen is a knowledge that Allah alone has. He also informed them that he is not an angel. Meaning that his status is not like that of the angels. Noah said to them: Those whom your eyes despise, despise, and find burdensome… These believers whom you despise, their rewards will not be invalidated or lost because of your despising them. Allah knows best what is in their souls. He is the One who will punish them for it and hold them accountable for it. I would be unjust to myself if I said that Allah will not give them any good. And the chiefs that day were tired of this argument that Noah was arguing with.. Allah narrated their position towards him in Surah (Hud): They said, "O Noah, you have argued with us and prolonged the argument with us, so bring us what you promise us, if you should be of the truthful." (32) He said, "Only Allah will bring it to you, if He wills, and you will not cause failure." (33) And my advice will not benefit you, if I wanted to advise you, if Allah wanted to mislead you. He is your Lord, and to Him you will be returned." (34) (Hud) He added Noah tempted them to Allah Almighty. Submitting that Allah is the doer in every case. However, they deserved to be misguided by their voluntary position, full freedom, and complete will. Man is the creator of his actions, but he needs his Lord to issue them from him. From this perspective, the meaning of questioning man about his actions is correct. All that matters is that Allah facilitates every creature for what he was created for, whether the facilitation is to good or evil. This is from the perfection of freedom and its perfection. Man chooses freely, so Allah Almighty facilitates for him the path he chose. The infidels of Noah's people chose the path of misguidance, so Allah facilitated it for them. The battle continues, and the discussion between the unbelievers of Noah's people and him becomes long. When all the arguments of the unbelievers collapse and they no longer have anything to say, they begin to go beyond the bounds of etiquette and curse the Prophet of God: The leaders of his people said, "Indeed, we see you in manifest error." (60) (Al-A'raf) Noah responded to them with the great etiquette of the prophets: He said, "O my people, there is no error in me, but I am a messenger from the Lord of the worlds. (61) I convey to you the messages of my Lord and advise you, and I know from God that which you do not know." (62) (Al-A'raf) Noah continues to call his people to God. Hour after hour. Day after day. Year after year. Years passed and Noah called his people. He called them day and night, secretly and openly, giving them examples. He explained the signs to them and showed them the power of Allah in the universe. Whenever he called them to Allah, they fled from Him, and whenever he called them to forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears and were too arrogant to hear the truth. Noah continued calling his people to Allah for a thousand years minus fifty years. He noticed that the number of believers did not increase, while the number of disbelievers increased. Generations would advise those after them not to believe in Noah - peace be upon him - and to fight him and oppose him. When a father reached maturity and reason, he would advise his son never to believe in Noah. Noah was sad, but he did not lose hope. He continued calling his people and arguing with them, but his people remained arrogant, disbelieving and boasting. Noah was sad for his people, but he did not reach the point of despair. He kept hope for 950 years. It seems that the ages of people before the flood were long, and perhaps this long life of Noah was a special miracle for him. The day came when Allah revealed to him that none of your people will believe except those who have already believed. Allah revealed to him not to grieve over them. At that time, Noah called for the destruction of the disbelievers: And Noah said, "My Lord, leave not upon the earth from among the disbelievers a single inhabitant (26) (Noah) Noah justified his call by saying: Indeed, if You leave them, they will mislead Your servants, and they will not beget except wicked disbelievers (26) (Noah) The Flood: Then Allah Almighty issued His judgment on the disbelievers with the Flood. Allah the Almighty told His servant Noah that he would build an ark (under Our eyes and with Our inspiration), that is, with Allah’s knowledge and instruction, in His sight and according to His instructions. Allah the Almighty issued His command to Noah: (And do not address Me concerning those who have wronged. Indeed, they are to be drowned.) Allah drowns those who have wronged, no matter how important they are or how close they are to the Prophet, and Allah forbids His Prophet to address Him or intercede for them. Noah began building the ship. It was a ship of great length, height and strength. The commentators differed about its size, shape, number of layers, duration of work, place where it was built, and the amount of its length and width, with conflicting statements, none of which were correct. Al-Fakhr Al-Razi said about all of this: I know that these discussions do not please me, because they are matters that there is no need to know at all, and there is no benefit related to knowing them at all. We agree with Al-Razi in his statement. We do not know about the reality of this ship except what Allah has told us. Allah the Almighty has moved beyond these unimportant details to the content of the story and its important meaning. Noah was building the ship, and the infidels would pass by him and see him busy building the ship, and drought was prevailing, and there were no rivers or seas nearby. How will this ship sail, Noah? Will it sail on land? Where is the water in which your ship can swim? Noah has gone mad, and the laughter of the infidels increases and their mockery of Noah - peace be upon him - increases. They mocked him, saying: You became a carpenter after being a prophet! The peak of the conflict in the story of Noah is revealed in this time period, falsehood mocks the truth. It laughs at it for a long time, imagining that the world is its property, that security is its portion, and that torment is not real.. However, all of this is temporary until the time of the flood. Then the believers mock the unbelievers, and their mockery is the truth. The ship was finished, and Noah sat waiting for God's command. God revealed to Noah that the boiling of the oven is a sign of the beginning of the flood. It was said in the interpretation of the oven that it is a volcano in the area, and it was said that the oven in Noah's house, if water came out of it and bubbled, this was an order for Noah to move. The terrible day came, the oven bubbled. Noah quickly opened his ship and called the believers to him. Noah carried to the ship two pairs of every animal, bird and beast, a cow and a bull, an elephant and an elephant, a sparrow and a sparrow, a tiger and a tigress, and so on, to ensure the survival of the animal and bird species on Earth. This means that the flood drowned the entire Earth, otherwise there would have been no point in carrying these types of animals and birds. The ship began to ascend. The animals, beasts and birds ascended, and those who believed in Noah ascended, but the number of believers was few. Noah's wife did not believe in him, so she did not ascend. One of his sons hid his disbelief and showed faith in front of Noah, so he did not ascend either. The majority of the people were also disbelievers, so they did not ascend. The believers ascended. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: Eighty people from the people of Noah believed. Water rose from the openings in the ground. Heavy rain poured from the sky in quantities that the earth had never seen. The rain from the sky met the waters of the earth, and it began to rise hour after hour. The seas lost their calm, and their waves exploded, encroaching on the land and sweeping the earth. The Earth was submerged for the first time in water. The water rose higher than the people. It surpassed the tops of trees and mountain peaks, and covered the entire surface of the Earth. At the beginning of the flood, Noah called to his son. His son was standing apart from him. God Almighty tells us the short dialogue that took place between Noah - peace be upon him - and his son before the waves suddenly separated them. Noah called his son saying: O my son, embark with us and do not be with the disbelievers. The son replied: He said: I will seek refuge on a mountain that will protect me from the water. Noah addressed him again: He said: There is no protector today from the command of Allah except for him upon whom He has mercy. And the dialogue between Noah and his son ended: And the wave came between them, so he was among the drowned. Look at the expression of the Holy Quran (And the wave came between them), the wave ended their dialogue suddenly. Noah looked but did not find his son. He did not find anything but the mountains of waves rising and lifting the ship with them, and making it lose sight of everything but the water. And God's mercy willed that the son should drown far from the father's eyes, out of mercy for the father, and Noah believed that his believing son thought that the mountain would protect him from the water, so he drowned. The flood continued. It continued to carry Noah's Ark. Hours after it began, every eye that blinked on the earth had perished by drowning. There remained no life and living things except this wooden part of Noah's Ark, which contained the faithful essence of the people of the earth. And the types of animals and birds that were carefully selected. Today, it is difficult to imagine the horror or greatness of the flood. It was something terrifying that demonstrated the power of the Creator. The ship was sailing with them in waves like mountains. Some geologists today believe that the separation of the continents and the formation of the earth in its current form occurred as a result of an ancient, mighty flood, in which the waters rose in an incomprehensible revolution. Until they covered the surface of the dry part of the earth, and the ocean floors rose and what we can call a geographical revolution occurred. Noah's flood continued for a time that we do not know the amount of. Then the divine command was issued to the sky to stop raining, to the earth to settle down and swallow the water, and to the wood of the ship to anchor on Al-Judi, which is the name of an ancient place said to be a mountain in the Arabian Peninsula or Iraq. The flood purified the earth and washed it. Allah the Almighty said in Surah (Hud): And it was said, "O earth, swallow your water, and O sky, withhold (your rain)." And the water subsided, and the matter was accomplished, and the ship came to rest on Al-Judi. And it was said, "Away with the wrongdoing people!" (44) (Hud) (And the water subsided) means the water decreased and returned to the openings of the earth. (And the matter was accomplished) means that it was decided and finished, meaning the disbelievers of Noah's people were completely destroyed. It is said that God made their wombs sterile forty years before the flood, so that no child or young person was killed. (And it came to rest on Al-Judi) meaning it settled on it. (And it was said, "Away with the wrongdoing people") meaning destruction to them. The flood cleansed the earth of them and washed it. The terror went away with the flood. The conflict moved from the wave to Noah's soul. He remembered his son who had drowned. Noah did not know until that moment that his son was an unbeliever. He thought that he was a stubborn believer who preferred to be saved by taking refuge on a mountain. The wave had ended their conversation before it was complete. Noah did not know his son's share of faith. The father's emotions stirred in the father's heart. God Almighty said in Surat Hud: And Noah called upon his Lord and said, “My Lord, indeed my son is of my family, and indeed, Your promise is true, and You are the most just of judges.” (45) (Hud) Noah wanted to tell God that his son was from his believing family. God had promised him the salvation of his believing family. God Almighty said, informing Noah of the truth about his son for the first time: O Noah, indeed he is not of your family. Indeed, he is an act other than righteous. So do not ask Me about that of which you have no knowledge. Indeed, I advise you, lest you be among the ignorant (46) (Hud) Al-Qurtubi said - quoting his sheikhs from the scholars - and this is the opinion that we prefer: His son - meaning Noah - was a believer in his opinion, and Noah would not say to his Lord: (Indeed, my son is from my family) except that he was like that in his opinion, since it is impossible for him to ask for the destruction of the disbelievers, then ask for the salvation of some of them. His son was secretly disbelieving and outwardly believing. So Allah informed Noah of the knowledge of the unseen that He alone possessed. That is, He knew about your son’s condition what you did not know. When Allah admonished him that he should be among the ignorant, He wanted to exonerate him from imagining that his son could be a believer and then perish with the disbelievers. There is an important lesson contained in the noble verses that tell the story of Noah and his son. Allah, the Almighty, wanted to tell His noble prophet that his son was not of his family, because he did not believe in Allah, and blood is not the true connection between people. The son of the prophet is his son in belief. He is the one who follows Allah and the prophet, and his son is not the one who disbelieves in him even if he is from his lineage. Here, the believer should disavow the non-believer. Here also, the believers should be connected only by belief. No considerations of blood, race, color, or land. Noah asked forgiveness of his Lord and repented to Him, and Allah had mercy on him and ordered him to get off the ship surrounded by Allah’s blessing and care. And Noah got off his ship. The birds and beasts were released and scattered on the earth. The believers then descended. Noah, his sons, and the believers lived on earth as long as Allah willed. It is said that Allah did not give any of the believers who were with him any offspring or descendants except Noah, peace be upon him. So everyone on the face of the earth today from all the races of the children of Adam are descended from the three sons of Noah who survived: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
