Sūrah Nūḥ Noah: Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary

Surah Overview

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance

SurahنوحMakkī 28 versesNūḥ's 950-year mission, daʿwah methods, pre-Islamic idol lineage

Key DisagreementWere Wadd, Suwāʿ, Yaghūth, Yaʿūq, and Nasr (71:23) worshipped in pre-Islamic Arabia?Idol lineageAl-Ṭabarī: yes through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās tracing how Nūḥ's people's idols were revived among the Arabs

Competing OpinionsWere these five originally righteous men whose images later became idols?Idol origin debateAl-Ṭabarī: presents the chain from Ibn ʿAbbās affirming they were originally righteous people whose memorial statues became objects of worship a classic Isrāʾīliyyāt-adjacent account he accepts due to chain strength

MethodologyTracing pre-Islamic Arabian idol lineage through chains from Companion historical knowledgeHistorical chain methodAl-Ṭabarī uses chains from Ibn ʿAbbās the leading Companion authority on pre-Islamic Arabian religion to trace the idol lineage

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

The five idols (71:23) Wadd, Suwāʿ, Yaghūth, Yaʿūq, Nasr are analyzed by al-Ṭabarī through the famous chain from Ibn ʿAbbās: these were originally righteous people among Nūḥ's people. When they died, Satan whispered to their relatives to make statues of them to remember them. Generations later, when the original intent was forgotten, the statues became idols. The same idols were eventually adopted by Arab tribes: Wadd by Kalb, Suwāʿ by Hudhayl, Yaghūth by Murād and Banū Ghutayf, Yaʿūq by Hamdān, Nasr by Himyar.

Nūḥ's daʿwah methods (71:5–9) are analyzed through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās and Mujāhid: he invited publicly and privately, openly and in secret, during the day and at night exhausting every available approach. Al-Ṭabarī uses this to illustrate the Quranic model of prophetic persistence and the legitimacy of multiple daʿwah methods. The 950-year duration (71:2 combined with 29:14) is also verified through chain analysis.

وَقَالُوا لَا تَذَرُنَّ آلِهَتَكُمْ وَلَا تَذَرُنَّ وَدًّا وَلَا سُوَاعًا وَلَا يَغُوثَ وَيَعُوقَ وَنَسْرًا Wa-qālū lā tadharunna ālihatakum wa-lā tadharunna Waddan wa-lā Suwāʿan wa-lā Yaghūtha wa-Yaʿūqa wa-Nasrā "And they said, 'Do not abandon your gods and do not abandon Wadd or Suwāʿ or Yaghūth and Yaʿūq and Nasr.'" (71:23) Al-Ṭabarī presents the famous chain from Ibn ʿAbbās tracing each idol's origin as a memorial statue that became an object of worship across generations.

قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّي دَعَوْتُ قَوْمِي لَيْلًا وَنَهَارًا فَلَمْ يَزِدْهُمْ دُعَائِي إِلَّا فِرَارًا Qāla rabbi innī daʿawtu qawmī laylan wa-nahāran fa-lam yazid-hum duʿāʾī illā firārā "He said, 'My Lord, indeed I invited my people night and day, but my invitation increased them not except in flight.'" (71:5–6) Al-Ṭabarī traces chains from Ibn ʿAbbās on the exhaustive nature of Nūḥ's mission every approach tried, yet persistent rejection shows the depth of his people's refusal.

Idol lineage chain: The Ibn ʿAbbās chain on the five idols' origins righteous men whose memorials became idols is one of the most important Isrāʾīliyyāt-adjacent chains al-Ṭabarī accepts due to chain strength.
Arabian idol adoption: Al-Ṭabarī traces each idol's specific Arabian tribal adoption connecting Quranic history to pre-Islamic Arabian religious geography.
Daʿwah methods: Nūḥ's exhaustive use of every available method (public, private, day, night) is treated as a model of prophetic persistence.
950-year mission: Al-Ṭabarī verifies the duration through chain analysis connecting 71:2 to the explicit number in 29:14.
Intercession refusal: Nūḥ's curse on his own people (71:26–27) is analyzed through chains as prophetic intercession withdrawn a rare Quranic case of a prophet praying against his people.

Surah Overview

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

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