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Surah 11 · Makkah · 123 āyāt

Phase 04 · Ṭāʾif, al-Isrāʾ and the final Makkan years(c. 5–1 BH) — view in timeline

HūdHūd (the prophet)

هود

Revealed 52nd, immediately after Yūnus. The Prophet ﷺ said: 'Hūd and its sisters have turned my hair grey' — a surah of destroyed nations, of a prophet whose own son drowned, and of the command that weighed heaviest: 'So remain steadfast as you have been commanded.' Between the ruins it plants three lifelines: seek forgiveness and He will grant you enjoyment, no creature moves but its provision is upon Allah, and good deeds erase bad ones.

Why it was revealed

The Prophet ﷺ was carrying rejection without protection, and the community faced the question every persecuted believer asks: how long, and what if we do not see victory? The surah answers with seven nations who were warned, refused, and ended.

Drawn fromAl-Tirmidhī 3297; Al-Tirmidhī 3297 (graded ḥasan; Bukhārī 526; Bukhārī 526 and Muslim 2763 (occasion of 11:114); Muslim 2763; Ibn Kathīr on 11:112; also al-Ṭabarānī)

Al-Tirmidhī records that Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه said: 'O Messenger of Allah, you have gone grey.' He ﷺ replied: 'Hūd, al-Wāqiʿah, al-Mursalāt, ʿAmma yatasāʾalūn and Idhā al-shamsu kuwwirat have turned my hair grey.' For āyah 114, Bukhārī and Muslim record the occasion of the man who kissed a woman and came to the Prophet ﷺ in remorse; the āyah on prayer erasing sins was revealed, and the Prophet ﷺ said it is for all his ummah.

Cited toAl-Tirmidhī 3297 (graded ḥasan; also al-Ṭabarānī); Bukhārī 526 and Muslim 2763 (occasion of 11:114)

In the Prophet's ﷺ life

RevelationMakkan period · Age About 50 · Makkah

'Hūd has turned my hair grey'

Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه noticed the greying of the Prophet ﷺ, and he named this surah first among those that aged him — the weight of steadfastness and of nations destroyed.

Recalled in āyah 112

فَٱسْتَقِمْ كَمَآ أُمِرْتَ وَمَن تَابَ مَعَكَ وَلَا تَطْغَوْا۟ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ

So remain on a right course as you have been commanded, [you] and those who have turned back with you [to Allāh], and do not transgress. Indeed, He is Seeing of what you do.

Cited toAl-Tirmidhī 3297

  • Madd — 2 vowels
  • Madd — 2, 4 or 6 vowels
  • Madd — 6 vowels (lāzim)
  • Madd — 4 or 5 vowels (wājib)
  • Ghunnah — 2 vowels
  • Qalqalah
  • Ikhfāʾ
  • Ikhfāʾ shafawī
  • Idghām shafawī
  • Idghām with ghunnah
  • Idghām without ghunnah
  • Idghām mutajānisayn
  • Idghām mutaqāribayn
  • Iqlāb
  • Hamzat al-waṣl
  • Lām shamsiyyah
  • Silent letter

Tajwīd markup and colour convention: Quran.com API (v4) — text_uthmani_tajweed. Recitation audio: Quran.com / Quran Foundation Audio API (v4).

THEME 01Āyāt 1–6

Seek forgiveness, and provision follows

A Book whose āyāt are made firm then explained in detail, opening with: worship none but Allah, seek His forgiveness and turn to Him, and He will grant you good enjoyment for an appointed term. Then the guarantee that removes the excuse of fear: there is no creature on earth but that its provision is upon Allah.

Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 11:6; Ibn Kathīr on 11:3

6

۞ وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٍ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱللَّهِ رِزْقُهَا وَيَعْلَمُ مُسْتَقَرَّهَا وَمُسْتَوْدَعَهَا ۚ كُلٌّ فِى كِتَـٰبٍ مُّبِينٍ

Tajwīd markup unavailable for this āyah — text shown uncoloured

And there is no creature on earth but that upon Allāh is its provision, and He knows its place of dwelling and place of storage. All is in a clear register.

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From the tafsīr

Istighfār is paired with tawbah: seeking pardon for the past and turning towards Allah for the future; the promised 'good enjoyment' includes ease in this life.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 11:3

Provision being 'upon Allah' is a promise He obligated upon Himself as a favour, so anxiety about sustenance is misplaced effort.

Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 11:6

Key takeaways

Reflect

What decision have you avoided out of fear for your provision?

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Check yourself

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Question 1 of 2

What does Ibn Kathīr say istighfār is paired with in 11:3?

Question 2 of 2

What does al-Saʿdī say about provision being 'upon Allah'?

THEME 02Āyāt 36–49

Nūḥ and the son who was not of his family

After centuries of daʿwah Nūḥ عليه السلام is told none of his people will believe beyond those who already have. As the waves rise he calls his son: embark with us, do not be with the disbelievers. The boy answers that he will climb a mountain. Nūḥ appeals to the promise about his family and is answered: he is not of your family; his deed was other than righteous — and he is warned not to ask about what he has no knowledge of.

Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 11:47; Ibn Kathīr on 11:46

46

قَالَ يَـٰنُوحُ إِنَّهُۥ لَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِكَ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ عَمَلٌ غَيْرُ صَـٰلِحٍ ۖ فَلَا تَسْـَٔلْنِ مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِۦ عِلْمٌ ۖ إِنِّىٓ أَعِظُكَ أَن تَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْجَـٰهِلِينَ

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He said, "O Noah, indeed he is not of your family; indeed, he is [one whose] work was other than righteous, so ask Me not for that about which you have no knowledge. Indeed, I advise you, lest you be among the ignorant."

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From the tafsīr

'He is not of your family' means not of the family entitled to salvation, because the tie that saves is faith, not lineage.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 11:46

Nūḥ's response — 'I seek refuge in You from asking what I have no knowledge of' — is the model of correcting oneself immediately when shown the limit of one's knowledge.

Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 11:47

Key takeaways

Reflect

How do you respond when you are corrected — defence, or immediate return?

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Check yourself

0 / 2 correct

Answer from memory before scrolling back — retrieval is what makes it stick.

Questions and options are reshuffled and reworded each attempt

Question 1 of 2

What does al-Qurṭubī highlight in Nūḥ's reply in 11:47?

Question 2 of 2

What does 'he is not of your family' mean per Ibn Kathīr?

THEME 03Āyāt 112–115

Stand firm as you were commanded

The heaviest command in the Qurʾān according to many of the salaf: fastaqim kamā umirta — remain upright exactly as commanded, you and those who turned back with you, and do not transgress. Then: do not incline towards the wrongdoers or the Fire will touch you. Then the relief: establish prayer at the two ends of the day and in the hours of the night — indeed good deeds remove bad deeds. And be patient, for Allah does not waste the reward of those who do good.

Drawn fromAl-Tirmidhī 3297; Al-Saʿdī on 11:113; Ibn Kathīr on 11:114

112

فَٱسْتَقِمْ كَمَآ أُمِرْتَ وَمَن تَابَ مَعَكَ وَلَا تَطْغَوْا۟ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ

Tajwīd markup unavailable for this āyah — text shown uncoloured

So remain on a right course as you have been commanded, [you] and those who have turned back with you [to Allāh], and do not transgress. Indeed, He is Seeing of what you do.

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114

وَأَقِمِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ طَرَفَىِ ٱلنَّهَارِ وَزُلَفًا مِّنَ ٱلَّيْلِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلْحَسَنَـٰتِ يُذْهِبْنَ ٱلسَّيِّـَٔاتِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ ذِكْرَىٰ لِلذَّٰكِرِينَ

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And establish prayer at the two ends of the day and at the approach of the night. Indeed, good deeds do away with misdeeds. That is a reminder for those who remember.

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From the tafsīr

The Prophet ﷺ named Sūrat Hūd among the surahs that turned his hair grey; the salaf connect this weight with the command of āyah 112.

Cited toAl-Tirmidhī 3297

The āyah was revealed for a man who confessed a sin, and the Prophet ﷺ affirmed it applies to the whole ummah: the prayers erase what lies between them.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 11:114

'Do not incline towards the wrongdoers' forbids even the slight leaning of approval or reliance, let alone assisting them in their wrong.

Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 11:113

Key takeaways

Reflect

Where in your week does uprightness slip — and which prayer could anchor it?

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Check yourself

0 / 2 correct

Answer from memory before scrolling back — retrieval is what makes it stick.

Questions and options are reshuffled and reworded each attempt

Question 1 of 2

What is the scope of 11:114 according to Ibn Kathīr?

Question 2 of 2

What did the Prophet ﷺ say about Sūrat Hūd?

THEME 04Āyāt 100–120

Why the ruins are recited to you

The surah names its own method: these are accounts of the towns We relate to you — some still standing, some harvested. Allah would not destroy towns unjustly while their people were reformers. And the closing line explains everything before it: all that We relate to you of the news of the messengers is so that We may make firm your heart with it.

Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 11:117; Ibn Kathīr on 11:120

120

وَكُلًّا نَّقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنۢبَآءِ ٱلرُّسُلِ مَا نُثَبِّتُ بِهِۦ فُؤَادَكَ ۚ وَجَآءَكَ فِى هَـٰذِهِ ٱلْحَقُّ وَمَوْعِظَةٌ وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

Tajwīd markup unavailable for this āyah — text shown uncoloured

And each [story] We relate to you from the news of the messengers is that by which We make firm your heart. And there has come to you, in this, the truth and an instruction and a reminder for the believers.

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From the tafsīr

The stories are recited to steady the heart of the Prophet ﷺ and of the believers, to give them precedent, patience and certainty of outcome.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 11:120

Communities are not destroyed for wrong belief alone while their people maintain justice between themselves; destruction follows when injustice becomes their norm.

Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 11:117

Key takeaways

Reflect

Which prophet's story steadies you most when you feel outnumbered?

Saved on this device · included in your printable study sheet

Check yourself

0 / 2 correct

Answer from memory before scrolling back — retrieval is what makes it stick.

Questions and options are reshuffled and reworded each attempt

Question 1 of 2

What does 11:117 tie the destruction of towns to?

Question 2 of 2

What reason does 11:120 give for narrating the messengers' stories?

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VOCABULARY

Roots from this surah

Learn the three-letter root and you unlock every word built from it — across the whole Qur'an, not just this surah.

ق و م

āyāt 112, 114

to stand, to be upright, to establish

  • ٱسْتَقِمْremain upright
  • أَقِمِestablish
  • مُسْتَقِيمstraight

ر ز ق

āyāt 6

provision granted, not earned outright

  • رِزْقprovision
  • رَازِقprovider
  • يَرْزُقُHe provides

ث ب ت

āyāt 120

to be firm, to hold in place

  • نُثَبِّتُWe make firm
  • ثَابِتfirm
  • تَثْبِيتstrengthening

غ ف ر

āyāt 3, 90

to cover over a fault and pardon it

  • ٱسْتَغْفِرُوا۟seek forgiveness
  • غَفُورmost forgiving
  • مَغْفِرَةforgiveness

و ف ق

āyāt 88

to grant success and alignment

  • تَوْفِيقgranted success
  • وِفَاقagreement
  • مُوَفَّقone granted success

ح س ن

āyāt 114

beauty and excellence in action

  • حَسَنَاتgood deeds
  • إِحْسَانexcellence
  • مُحْسِنone who excels

Carry this with you

  • Ask forgiveness first; ease in provision is promised behind it.
  • No creature crawls on earth without its sustenance already assigned.
  • Faith, not blood, decides who is saved.
  • Correct yourself the moment you are shown you spoke beyond your knowledge.
  • Uprightness is a daily line to hold, not a peak to reach once.
  • Even leaning towards wrongdoers is legislated against.
  • Your five prayers are the erasing mechanism between them.
  • The stories of the messengers exist to make your heart firm.

Where this surah connects

Cross-surah threads

Parts of the Qurʾān explain other parts. Each thread below opens the same subject as it is argued across every other surah you have studied, in revelation order.

The signs you already walk on3 movementsThe Hour and the accounting1 movementProvision, wealth and the tongue that forgets1 movementPatience while the answer is delayed1 movement
All threads →

Sources behind Sūrah Hūd

Every line of context, tafsīr and takeaway on this page traces back to one of these references. Ḥadīth numbers open on sunnah.com and āyah references open on quran.com, so you can check the claim rather than take it on trust. The Arabic text itself is fetched live from a verified public corpus.

Other references1

  • also al-Ṭabarānī)
FINAL ASSESSMENT

Full exam — the whole surah, from memory

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Hūd — full exam

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8 questions across 4 themes.

Hūd · Nūḥ and the son who was not of his family

What does 'he is not of your family' mean per Ibn Kathīr?

Arabic (Uthmānī script) and the Ṣaḥīḥ International translation are fetched live from the Quran.com API (v4), sourced from the King Fahd Complex muṣḥaf — api.quran.com API docs · Translation: Ṣaḥīḥ International · Integrity & testing protocol