Quran Universe
15:66

وَقَضَيۡنَآ إِلَيۡهِ ذَٰلِكَ ٱلۡأَمۡرَ أَنَّ دَابِرَ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ مَقۡطُوعٞ مُّصۡبِحِينَ

Waqadayna ilayhi thalika alamra anna dabira haolai maqtooAAun musbiheena

And We conveyed to him [the decree] of that matter: that those [sinners] would be eliminated by early morning.

Word by word
  1. وَقَضَيۡنَآAnd We conveyed
  2. إِلَيۡهِto him
  3. ذَٰلِكَ[that]
  4. ٱلۡأَمۡرَthe matter
  5. أَنَّthat
  6. دَابِرَ(the) root
  7. هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ(of) these
  8. مَقۡطُوعٞwould be cut off
  9. مُّصۡبِحِينَ(by) early morning
Al-Hijr · 15:66Makkah

He was told the hour before the town knew.

The end would come by early morning

The decree
made known to Lutahead of time
that
the sinnersrooted out
by
early morningis it not near?
How far away it is
someday, far offplenty of time
by morningcloser than it seems

Allah made this decree known to him: they would be rooted out in the early morning. Ibn Kathir quotes 11:81, morning is their appointed time; is not the morning near?

You plan to fix things with Allah later: after the exams, after the wedding, after retirement. Morning is always nearer than it feels at night. Today is a good time.

I have plenty of time before any of this matters.

The appointed time is closer than it feels; morning is always near.

Try this

Do tonight the one good thing you keep saying you will do someday.

Related11:81
Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 15:65)

"Then travel for a portion of the night with your family, and you go behind them in the rear, and let no one amongst you look back, but go on to where you are ordered. (65)And We made this decree known to him that those (sinners) would be rooted out in the early morning (66)

Lut is ordered to leave with His Family during the Night

Allah tells us that His angels ordered Lut to set out after part of the night had passed. They told him to walk behind them, to protect them. Similarly, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would walk in the rear of the army on military campaigns, in order to help the weak and carry those who had no means of transport.

وَلَا يَلْتَفِتْ مِنكُمْ أَحَدٌ

(and let no one amongst you look back,) meaning - when you hear the people screaming from their torment, do not turn around to look at them; leave them to face whatever punishment and vengeance is coming to them.

وَامْضُوا حَيْثُ تُؤْمَرُونَ

(but go on to where you are ordered.) - it is as if they had a guide with them to show them the way.

وَقَضَيْنَا إِلَيْهِ ذَٰلِكَ الْأَمْرَ

(And We made this decree known to him) meaning - We already told him about that.

أَنَّ دَابِرَ هَٰؤُلَاءِ مَقْطُوعٌ مُّصْبِحِينَ

(that those (sinners) would be rooted out in the early morning.) meaning in the morning, as in another Ayah:

إِنَّ مَوْعِدَهُمُ الصُّبْحُ ۚ أَلَيْسَ الصُّبْحُ بِقَرِيبٍ

(Indeed, morning is their appointed time. Is not the morning near?)[11:81]