Quran Universe
9:70

أَلَمۡ يَأۡتِهِمۡ نَبَأُ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبۡلِهِمۡ قَوۡمِ نُوحٖ وَعَادٖ وَثَمُودَ وَقَوۡمِ إِبۡرَٰهِيمَ وَأَصۡحَٰبِ مَدۡيَنَ وَٱلۡمُؤۡتَفِكَٰتِۚ أَتَتۡهُمۡ رُسُلُهُم بِٱلۡبَيِّنَٰتِۖ فَمَا كَانَ ٱللَّهُ لِيَظۡلِمَهُمۡ وَلَٰكِن كَانُوٓاْ أَنفُسَهُمۡ يَظۡلِمُونَ

Alam yatihim nabao allatheena min qablihim qawmi noohin waAAadin wathamooda waqawmi ibraheema waashabi madyana waalmutafikati atathum rusuluhum bialbayyinati fama kana Allahu liyathlimahum walakin kanoo anfusahum yathlimoona

Has there not reached them the news of those before them - the people of Noah and [the tribes of] 'Aad and Thamud and the people of Abraham and the companions of Madyan and the towns overturned? Their messengers came to them with clear proofs. And Allah would never have wronged them, but they were wronging themselves.

Word by word
  1. أَلَمۡHas not
  2. يَأۡتِهِمۡcome to them
  3. نَبَأُ(the) news
  4. ٱلَّذِينَ(of) those who
  5. مِن(were) before them
  6. قَبۡلِهِمۡ(were) before them
  7. قَوۡمِ(the) people
  8. نُوحٖ(of) Nuh
  9. وَعَادٖand Aad
  10. وَثَمُودَand Thamud
  11. وَقَوۡمِand (the) people
  12. إِبۡرَٰهِيمَ(of) Ibrahim
  13. وَأَصۡحَٰبِand (the) companions
  14. مَدۡيَنَ(of) Madyan
  15. وَٱلۡمُؤۡتَفِكَٰتِۚand the towns overturned
  16. أَتَتۡهُمۡCame to them
  17. رُسُلُهُمtheir Messengers
  18. بِٱلۡبَيِّنَٰتِۖwith clear proofs
  19. فَمَاAnd not
  20. كَانَwas
  21. ٱللَّهُAllah
  22. لِيَظۡلِمَهُمۡto wrong them
  23. وَلَٰكِنbut
  24. كَانُوٓاْthey were (to)
  25. أَنفُسَهُمۡthemselves
  26. يَظۡلِمُونَdoing wrong
At-Tawbah · 9:70Madinah

Allah wronged no one; they wronged themselves.

The news of past nations as a lesson

The stories already told
Nuh, Ad, Thamudflood, wind, the cry
Ibrahim, Madyanand the overturned towns
all received
clear proofstheir messengers came
Who did the harm
it was unfairthey never had a chance
self-wrongthey saw proof and turned away

Ibn Kathir explains this as advice to the hypocrites: have you not learned the end of nations who rejected their messengers? Each was given clear proofs and unequivocal evidence. So when the end came, it was not Allah who wronged them.

Your doctor shows you the test results twice. Your friend warns you about the debt, kindly, more than once. When it finally catches up with you, it is tempting to call it bad luck. Often the warning was clear. The choice was yours.

Bad things just happened to those people.

They were warned clearly, and the harm came from their own turning away.

Try this

Think of one clear warning you keep ignoring, in health, money, or faith. Act on it once.

Related53:53
Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir

Has not the story reached them of those before them? – The people of Nuh,'Ad, Thamud, the people of Ibrahim, the dwellers of Madyan and the overturned cities; to them came their Messengers with clear proofs. So it was not Allah Who wronged them, but they used to wrong themselves (70)

Advising the Hypocrites to learn a Lesson from Those before Them

Allah advises the hypocrites who reject the Messengers,

أَلَمْ يَأْتِهِمْ نَبَأُ الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ

(Has not the story reached them of those before them?), have you (hypocrites) not learned the end of the nations before you who rejected the Messengers,

قَوْمِ نُوحٍ

(The people of Nuh), and the flood that drowned the entire population of the earth, except those who believed in Allah's servant and Messenger Nuh, peace be upon him,

وَعَادٍ 

(and 'Ad), who perished with the barren wind when they rejected Hud, peace be upon him,

وَثَمُودَ 

(and Thamud), who were overtaken by the Sayhah (awful cry) when they denied Salih, peace be upon him, and killed the camel,

وَقَوْمِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ

(and the people of Ibrahim), over whom He gave Ibrahim victory and the aid of clear miracles. Allah destroyed their king Nimrod, son of Canaan, son of Koch from Canaan, may Allah curse him,

وَأَصْحَابِ مَدْيَنَ

(and the dwellers of Madyan), the people of Shu'ayb, peace be upon him, who were destroyed by the earthquake and the torment of the day of the Shade,

وَالْمُؤْتَفِكَاتِ 

(and the overturned cities), the people of Lut who used to live in Madyan. Allah said in another Ayah,

وَالْمُؤْتَفِكَةَ أَهْوَىٰ

(And He destroyed the overturned cities)[53:53], meaning the people of the overturned cities in reference to Sadum [Sodom], their major city. Allah destroyed them all because they rejected Allah's Prophet Lut, peace be upon him, and because they committed the sin that none before them had committed (homosexuality).

أَتَتْهُمْ رُسُلُهُم بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ

(to them came their Messengers with clear proofs.), and unequivocal evidence,

فَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيَظْلِمَهُمْ

(So it was not Allah Who wronged them), when He destroyed them, for He established the proofs against them by sending the Messengers and dissipating the doubts,

وَلَٰكِن كَانُوا أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ

(but they used to wrong themselves), on account of their denying the Messengers and defying the Truth; this is why they earned the end, torment and punishment, that they did.