Transliteration:( Faqaaloo Rabbanaa baa'id baina asfaarinaa wa zalamooo anfusahum faja'alnaahum ahaadeesa wa mazzaq naahum kulla mumazzaq; inna fee zaalika la Aayaatil likulli sabbaarin shakoor )
63. The wealthy people of Saha became envious that due to these amenities, there is no longer any difference in travelling conditions between the poor and us.
 If these settlements were far apart we would have been able to take with us food slaves and maidservants and enjoy our journey. There would have been a difference in our mode of travelling. Therefore they made this dua
64. From this we learn that when people's difficult days are near, they begin to lose their intelligence. They then offer duas, which are harmful to them. Thus, one should always offer duas which are well known by Allah Almighty and in Prophets who are our best well-wishers
 65. In that the people of Saba were given such admonitory punishment that the coming generations should take a lesson from it and relate it to others as a warning.
66. Their cities were destroyed and new ones were laid far apart and their tribes were settled far away. Thus, the people of Ghassaan settled in Syria and the people of Aza came to Oman, the Khiza in Ichamah, the people of Khazoena settled in Iraq and the remote ancestor of the Aus and Kharaj. Amro bin Amr settled in Madina Shareef (Khazainul Irfaun)
67. Although there is a lesson in these incidents for everybody, but those who are patient and grateful would derive greater benefit from them.
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The tafsir of Surah Saba verse 19 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Saba ayat 18 which provides the complete commentary from verse 18 through 19.
(34:19) But they said: “Lord, make the stages of our journeys longer.”[32] They wronged their own selves so We reduced them to bygone tales, and utterly tore them to pieces.[33] Verily there are Signs in this for everyone who is steadfast and thankful.[34]
32. They may not have prayed thus in so many words. As a matter of fact, whoever is ungrateful to Allah for His blessings, tells Allah, as if to say that he is not worthy of those blessings. Likewise, the nation which abuses the bounties of Allah, in fact, prays to Him, as if to say, “Our Lord, withdraw Your blessings from us, we are not worthy of these.” Moreover, the words in the text also seem to suggest that the Sabaeans perhaps regarded their large population as a calamity for themselves, and they also wanted like the other foolish people that their population should fall.
33. That is, the people of Saba were so dispersed in all directions that their dispersion became proverbial. Even today when the Arabs have to mention the complete dispersion of any people they refer to the people of Saba as an example. When Allah caused His blessings to be withdrawn from them, the different tribes of the Sabaeans started leaving their homes and migrating to other parts of Arabia. The Banu Ghassan went to settle in Jordan and Syria, the Aus and Khazraj in Yathrib, and the Khuzaah in Tihamah near Jeddah. The Azd left for Uman and the Bani Lakhm and Judham and Kindah were also forced to give up their homes for other places. Thus, the Sabaeans ceased to exist as a nation and became a mere legend.
34. In this context the “steadfast and grateful” implies every such person (or persons) who does not lose his balance after he has received blessings from Allah, nor exults at prosperity, nor becomes heedless of God Who has blessed him with these. Such a person can learn great lessons from the history of those people who adopted the way of disobedience after attaining opportunities for progress and prosperity and ultimately met with their doom.
[1227]- Stories related to others as lessons or examples.
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