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The Advent of Prophet Lut:
The Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) was contemporary of Prophet Ibrahim
(peace be upon him). He was a nephew and follower of the Faith of his uncle.
He was the resident of Ur, an ancient town in Mesopotamia God conferred
prophethood upon him.
He was commanded to leave his native land and go to Sodom and Gomorra to
warn and reform the people who were indulged in grave sins such as
homosexual intercourse and robbery. The Holy Qur'an says:
"And Lut (remember) when he said to his folk: Will you commit abomination
such as no creature ever did before. Lo! you come with lust unto men instead
of women. Nay, but you are wanton folk." (7:80, 81)
In another Verse the Holy Qur'an throws a light on the character of those
sinning people. It says:
"What? Do you not come to males and commit robbery on the highways and do
evil deeds in your meeting?" (29: 29)
The Prophet Lut Preaches and is Opposed:
The Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) was an alien to those people. He began
to preach the religion of God energetically. He advised the people to guard
themselves against the punishment from God. He exhorted them to abandon
sinful ways. He told them that God had created woman for them to satisfy
their lust. They did not listen to the admonitions of their Prophet. They
ridiculed and threatened him of dire consequences. They retorted that he
would be expelled from that town in case he did not stop preaching and
rebuking them. The Holy Qur'an affirms:
"And the answer of his people was only that they said (to one another): Turn
them out of your township. They are folk who seek to keep pure." (7:82)
The same idea is expressed in the following Verses:
"They said: If you desist not, 0' Lut, you will soon be of the outcast. He
said: I am, in fact, of those who hate your conduct. My Lord! save me and my
household from what they do." (26: 167-169)
Gradually time passed by and the Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) did not
achieve remarkable success on reforming those sinful persons. They were
shamelessly addicted to grave sins and his warnings simply exasperated them.
Angels Appear as Guests:
One day three angels in the disguise of handsome young boys came to Prophet
Lut (peace be upon him) and they conveyed to him a special message from
Almighty Allah. The Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) and his followers were
directed to leave the town because something very dreadful was going to
happen. When the people got wind of the visit of charming boys they tried to
invade the house of Prophet Lut(peace be upon him) and demanded of him to
deliver the guests to them. The Prophet was much upset and he said:
"O' my people! Here are my daughters! They are purer for you! Beware of
Allah and degrade me not in (the presence of) my guests. Is there not among
you any upright man ?" (11: 78)
They rejected this appeal of the Prophet and said:
"Well, you know that we have no right to your daughters and well, you know
what we want." (11:79)
The Prophet was much disappointed and said:
"Would that I had strength to resist you or had some strong support." (11:
80)
The Angels Convey Message:
The Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) warned the people of the inevitable
punishment in case they insisted on committing indecency. They laughed and
doubted his character. When all efforts were ended in smoke, the angels who
were in the form of human beings, said:
"O' Lut, Lo! We are messengers of thy Lord; they shall not reach thee. So
travel with thy people in a part of the night and not one of you turn round
all save thy wife." (11:81)
The Prophet Lut is Delivered and his Nation Destroyed:
The Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) and his adherents left the city in the
fagging part of the night and took shelter in a place of safety. Soon after
an uproar took place. A sudden tremendous noise shock the earth. It was a
scary and dreadful earthquake. The houses crumbled down and lofty buildings
smashed to nothing but rubble. The rocks that went up in the air hit those
who tried to escape. All arrogant sinners were completely destroyed. The
Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) and his followers were saved but his wife
could not survive because she sympathised with the sinners. The Holy Qur'an
gives a brief description of this mishap in the following Verses:
"Then the (awful) cry overtook them at the sunrise: And We utterly
confounded them, and We rained upon them stones of heated clay. Lo! therein
verily are portents for those who read the signs." (15:73-75)
The Prophet Lut (peace be upon him) was admitted to God's mercy and was
declared to be one of the righteous. He died in Palestine and was buried at
Bani Na'ima near Hebron. |
