An-Naml · Makki · ayah 58 of 93

An-Naml 27:58

وَأَمْطَرْنَا عَلَيْهِم مَّطَرًا ۖ فَسَآءَ مَطَرُ ٱلْمُنذَرِينَ

“And We rained upon them a rain [of stones], and evil was the rain of those who were warned.”

Saheeh International

Essence

The same words as 26:173, but here a rain 'upon them' sits two ayat before water sent down 'for you'.

A reflection

Rain upon, and water for

These exact words close Lut's story at 26:173, where their fuller treatment belongs. What is new here is the neighbour.

The lexicons note that amṭara ʿalā, to rain something upon people, is used above all of punishment. It is a sky pouring down what is not water. The commentaries say the rain was stones.

Two ayat later the sky opens again. 'He sent down for you water from the sky, and with it We grew gardens full of delight' (27:60). The preposition has changed. Here the rain falls ʿalayhim, upon them. There the water comes lakum, for you.

The same sky, the same Lord, and the same downward movement. What decides whether it arrives as a blow or as a gift is what lies on the ground beneath it. The surah places the two side by side so nobody mistakes the sky for the cause.

The full entry has 2 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.