ONE AYAT A DAY
وَمَا مَنَعَ النَّاسَ اَنْ يُّؤْمِنُوْٓا اِذْ جَاۤءَهُمُ الْهُدٰى وَيَسْتَغْفِرُوْا رَبَّهُمْ اِلَّآ اَنْ تَأْتِيَهُمْ سُنَّةُ الْاَوَّلِيْنَ اَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ قُبُلًا
Wa mā mana‘an-nāsa ay yu'minū iż jā'ahumul-hudā wa yastagfirū rabbahum illā an ta'tiyahum sunnatul-awwalīna au ya'tiyahumul-‘ażābu qubulā(n).
And nothing has prevented the people from believing when guidance came to them and from asking forgiveness of their Lord except that there [must] befall them the [accustomed] precedent of the former peoples or that the punishment should come [directly] before them.
The Rebellion of the DisbelieversAllah tells us about the rebellion of the disbelievers in ancient times and in more recent times, and how they rejected the obvious truth even when they witnessed clear signs and proofs. Nothing stopped them from following the truth except their demand to witness with their own eyes the punishment which they were being warned about. As some of them said to their Prophet:فَأَسْقِطْ عَلَيْنَا كِسَفاً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ(So cause a piece of the heaven to fall on us, if you are of the truthful!) 26:187, Others said:ائْتِنَا بِعَذَابِ اللَّهِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ(Bring Allah's torment upon us if you are one of the truthful.) 29:29 The Quraysh said:اللَّهُمَّ إِن كَانَ هَـذَا هُوَ الْحَقَّ مِنْ عِندِكَ فَأَمْطِرْ عَلَيْنَا حِجَارَةً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ أَوِ ائْتِنَا بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ(O Allah! If this is indeed the truth from You, then rain down stones on us from the sky or bring upon us a painful torment.) 8:32وَقَالُواْ يأَيُّهَا الَّذِى نُزِّلَ عَلَيْهِ الذِّكْرُ إِنَّكَ لَمَجْنُونٌ - لَّوْ مَا تَأْتِينَا بِالْمَلَـئِكَةِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ(And they say: "O you to whom the Reminder has been sent down! Verily, you are a mad man! Why do you not bring angels to us if you are of the truthful") 15:6-7. There are other Ayat refering to the same thing. Then Allah says:إِلاَّ أَن تَأْتِيَهُمْ سُنَّةُ الاٌّوَّلِينَ(e…