Status: Age: 58 Faith: Islam Gender:
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Post subject: Prophet Lut
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
The Story of Prophet Lut (pbuh)
Prophet Abraham (PBUH) left Egypt accompanied by his nephew Lut (PBUH), who then went to the city of Sodom (Sadum), which was on the western shore of the Dead Sea.
This city was filled with evil. Its residents waylaid, robbed and killed travellers. Another common evil among them was that men had sex with men instead of with women. This unnatural act later became known as sodomy (after the city of Sodom). It was practiced openly and unashamedly.
It was at the height of these crimes and sins that Allah revealed to Prophet Lut (PBUH) that he should summon the people to give up their indecent behavior, but they were so deeply sunk in their immoral habits that they were deaf to Lut's preaching. Swamped in their unnatural desires, they refused to listen, even when Lut warned them of Allah's punishment. Instead, they threatened to drive him out of the city if he kept on preaching.
Allah the Almighty revealed:
The people of Lut (those dwelt in the towns of Sodom in Palestine) belied the Messengers when their brother Lut said to them: "Will you not fear Allah and obey Him? Verily! I am a trustworthy Messenger to you. SO fear Allah, keep your duty to Him, and obey me. No reward do I ask of you for it (my Message of Islamic Monotheism) my reward is only from the Lord of the Alamin (mankind, jinn and all that exists). Go you in unto the males of the Alamin (mankind), and leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your wives? Nay, you are a trespassing people!"
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????They said: "If you cease not, O Lut! Verily, you will be one of those who are driven out!"
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????HE said: "I am indeed, of those who disapprove with severe anger and fury your (this evil) action (of sodomy). My Lord! Save me and my family from what they do."
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????SO We saved him and his family, all except an old woman (this wife) among those who remained behind.????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬???????????????????????????? [The Quran ; 26:160-171]
The doings of Lut's people saddened his heart. Their unwholesome reputation spread throughout the land, while he struggled against them. As the years passed, he persisted in his mission but to no avail. No one responded to his call and believed except for the members of his family, and even in his household, not all the members believed. Lut's wife, like Noah's wife, a disbeliever.
Allah the Almighty declared:
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????Allah set forth an example for those who disbelieve, the wife of Noah and the wife of Lut. They were under two of Our righteous slaves, but they both betrayed their (husbands, by rejecting their doctrines) so they (Noah & Lut) benefited them (their respective wives) not, against Allah, and it was said: "Enter the Fire along with those who enter!" [The Quran ; 66:10
If home is the place of comfort and rest, then Lut found none, for he was tormented both inside and outside his home. His life was continuous torture and he suffered greatly, but he remained patient and steadfast with his people. The years rolled by, and still not one believed in him. Instead, they belittled his message and mockingly challenged him:
"Bring Allah's Torment upon us if you are one of the truthful!" [The Quran ; 29:29]
Overwhelmed with despair, Lut prayed to Allah to grant him victory and destroy the corrupt. Therefore, the angels left Abraham (pbuh) and headed for Sodom the town of Lut (pbuh). They reached the walls of the town in the afternoon. The first person who caught sight of them was Lut's daughter, who was sitting beside the river, filling her jug with water. When she lifted her face and saw them, she was stunned that there could be men of such magnificent beauty on earth.
One of the tree men (angels) asked her: "O maiden, is there a place to rest?"
Remembering the character of her people she replied, "Stay here and do not enter until I inform my father and return." Leaving her jug by the river, she swiftly ran home. "O father!" she cried. "You are wanted by young men at the town gate and I have never before seen the like of their faces!"
Lut felt distressed as he quickly ran to his guests. He asked them where they came from and where they were going.
They did not answer his questions. Instead they asked if he could host them. He started talking with them and impressed upon them the subject of his people's nature. Lut was filled with turmoil; he wanted to convince his guests without offending them, not to spend the night there, yet at the same time he wanted to extend to them the expected hospitality normally accorded to guests. In vain he tried to make them understand the perilous situation. At last, therefore, he requested them to wait until the night fell, for then no one would see them.
When darkness fell on the town, Lut escorted his guest to his home.
No one was aware of their presence. However, as soon as Lut's wife saw them, she slipped out of the house quietly so that no one noticed her. Quickly, she ran to her people with the news and it spread to all the inhabitants like wildfire. The people rushed towards Lut quickly and excitedly. Lut was surprised by their discovery of his guests. and he wondered who could have informed them. The matter became clear, however, when he could not find his wife, anywhere, thus adding grief to his sorrow.
When Lut saw the mob approaching his house, he shut the door, but they kept on banging on it. He pleaded with them to leave the visitors alone and fear Allah's punishment. He urged them to seek sexual fulfilment with their wives, for that is what Allah had made lawful.
Lut's people waited until he had finished his short sermon, and then they roared with laughter. Blinded by passion, they broke down the door. Lut became very angry, but he stood powerless before these violent people. He was unable to prevent the abuse of his guests, but he firmly stood his ground and continued to plead with the mob.
At that terrible moment, he wished he had the power to push them away from his guests. Seeing him in a state of helplessness, and grief the guests said: "Do not be anxious or frightened, Lut for we are angels, and these people will not harm you."
On hearing this, the mob was terrified and fled from Lut's house, hurling threats at him as they left. The angels warned Prophet Lut (pbuh) to leave his house before sunrise, taking with him all his family except his wife.
Allah had decreed that the city of Sodom should perish. AN earthquake rocked the town. IT was as if a mighty power had lifted the entire city and flung it down in one jolt. A storm of stones rained on the city. Everyone and everything was destroyed, including Lut's wife.
Allah the Almighty recounted this story:
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????And tell them about the guests (angels) of Abraham. When they entered unto him, and said: "Salaaman (peace)!" Abraham said: "Indeed! We are afraid of you."
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????They (the angels) said: "Do not be afraid! We give you glad tidings of a boy (son) possessing much knowledge and wisdom." (Abraham) said: "Do you give me glad tidings (of a son) when old age has overtaken me? Of what then is your news?" They (the angels) said: "We give you glad tidings in truth. SO be not of the despairing."
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????Abraham said: "And who despairs of the Mercy of his Lord except those who are astray?" (Abraham again) said: "What then is the business on which you have come, O Messengers?"
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????They (the angels) said: "We have been sent to a people who are Mujrimeen (criminals, disbeliveers, polytheists, sinners). (All) except the family of Lut. Them all we are surely going to save (from destruction)."
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????Except his wife, of whom We have decreed that she shall be of the those who remain behind (she will be destroyed).????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????Then when the Messengers (the angels) came unto the family of Lut, he said: "Verily! You are people unknown to me." They said: "Nay! we have come to you with that (torment) which they have been doubting. And we have brought to you the truth (the news of the destruction of your nation) and certainly, we tell the truth. Then travel in a part of the night with your family, and you go behind them in the rear, and let no one amongst you look back, but go on to where you are ordered."
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????And We made known this decree to him, that the root of those (sinners) was to be cut off in the early morning
The inhabitants of the city came rejoicing (at the news of the young men's arrival). Lut said: "Verily! These are my guests, so shame me not. And fear Allah and disgrace me not." They (people of the city) said: "Did we not forbid you to entertain (or protect) any of the Alamin (people, foreigners strangers etc) from us?" Lut said: "These (the girls of the nation) are my daughters to marry lawfully) if you must act so."
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????Verily, by your life (O Muhammad), in their wild intoxication they were wandering blindly. So As Saliha (torment, awful cry etc) overtook them at the time of sunrise; and We turned (the towns of Sodom in Palestine) upside down and rained down on them stones of baked clay. Surely! In this are signs for those who see (or understand or learn the lessons from the Signs of Allah). And verily! They (the cities) are right on the highroad (from Mecca to Syria, i.e. the place where the Dead Sea is now). Surely! Therein is indeed a sign for the believers." [The Quran ; 15:51-77]
Allah the Exalted also declared:
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????So we saved him and his family, all, except an old woman (his wife) among those who remained behind. Then afterward We destroyed the others. We rained on them a rain of torment. How evil was the rain of those who had been warned. Verily, in this is indeed a sign yet most of them are not believers. Verily! Your Lord, He is indeed the All Mighty, the Most Merciful.????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬???????????????????????????? [The Quran ; 26:170-175]
The book was closed on the people of Lut (pbuh). Their towns and names have been erased from the face of the earth. Gone are they from memory. One book was closed of the books of corruption.
Lut (pbuh) proceeded towards Abraham (pbuh). HE visited him, and when he recounted the story of his people, he was surprised to learn that Abraham (pbuh) already knew. So Lut (pbuh) continued to invite people to Allah, as did Abraham (pbuh), the patient one who turned to Allah repentantly, and the two held firm to their mission.
THE CITIES OF SODOM AND GOMORRAH
The Prophet Lut lived at the same time as the Prophet Ibrahim and was sent as a Messenger to a neighbouring tribe to the Prophet Ibrahim. That tribe, according to the Quran, practiced a perversion never before seen in the world: homosexuality. When the Prophet Lut told the people to abandon one of the greatest sins and delivered to them the message of Allah, they rejected him. They denied that he was a Prophet and continued with their horrid lifestyle. As a result of this, the tribe was destroyed in a terrible disaster by Allah.
A photograph of the Dead Sea
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????????????????????????And Lut, when he said to his people, "Do you commit an obscenity not perpetrated before you by anyone in all the worlds? You come with lust to men instead of women. You are indeed a depraved people." [The Quran, 7:80-81]
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????????????????????????We rained down a rain upon them. See the final fate of the evildoers!????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬???????????????????????????? [The Quran, 7:84]
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????????????????????????(Our Messengers said to Lut,) ????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????We will bring down on the inhabitants of this city a devastating punishment from heaven because of their deviance.????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¢ We have left a Clear Sign of them behind for people who use their intellect.????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬???????????????????????????? [The Quran, 29:34-35]
This city, in which the Prophet Lut lived and which was later destroyed, is called "Sodom" in the Old Testament. It appears that this people, who lived to the north of the Red Sea, was destroyed in a manner compatible with the description in the Quran. Archaeological excavations have revealed that the city lay close to the Dead Sea on the present-day Israeli-Jordanian border. According to scientists, the area is covered in large deposits of sulphur. For this reason, no life in the form of animals or plants is to be found there and the region stands as a symbol of destruction.
Sulphur is an element which appears as a result of volcanic eruptions. Indeed, there is clear evidence in the Quran that the method of destruction was earthquake and volcanic eruptions. The German archaeologist Werner Keller says this about the region:
Together with the base of this mighty fissure, which runs precisely through this area, the Vale of Siddim, including Sodom and Gomorrah, plunged one day into the abyss. Their destruction came about through a great earthquake which was probably accompanied by explosions, lightning, issue of natural gas and general conflagration????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????????????????????????¦ The subsidence released volcanic forces that had been lying dormant deep down along the whole length of the fracture. In the upper valley of the Jordan near Bashan there are still towering craters of extinct volcanoes; great stretches of lava and deep layers of basalt have been deposited on the limestone surface.
Thumbnail, click to enlarge.
The photographs above show the ancient settlement area around the volcano Mount Vesuvius. It is clear from the remains in the region that the Pompeiians who lived here enjoyed a luxurious and splendid lifestyle.
The petrified body on the left is a remain testifying to the disasters that struck the people of Pompeii.
These layers of lava and basalt are the most important evidence showing that a volcanic eruption and earthquake once took place there. In any event Lake Lut, otherwise known as the Dead Sea, lies directly above a seismically active region-in other words, an earthquake belt:
The base of the dead sea is located with a tectonic rooted downfall. This valley is located in a tension stretching between the Taberiye Lake in the north, and mid of Arabah Valley in the south.
The technical aspect of the disaster suffered by the people of Lut has been revealed in studies carried out by geologists. These have shown that the earthquake which wiped out the people of Lut came about as the result of a very long fault line. The Jordan River drops a total of 180 metres during its 190 km course. This, and the fact that the Dead Sea is 400 metres below sea level, combined to prove that that there once took place a major geological event in and around this area.
This interesting structure of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea comprise only part of the crack or fissure which passes through this region. It begins at the slopes of the Toros Mountains and runs southward past the southern shores of the Dead Sea, through the Arabian Desert, reaching the Gulf of Aqaba, from where it crosses the Red Sea before coming to an end in Africa. There is major volcanic activity in those areas through which the line passes. In fact, this occurs to such an extent that black basalt and lava can be found in the Mountains of Galilee in Israel, in part of the high plateaus in Jordan, the Gulf of Aqaba and other areas.
All these remains and geographical features show that there was a major geological event at the Dead Sea.
The December 1957 edition of National Geographic magazine contained these statements on the subject:
The mount of Sodom, a barren wasteland, rises sharply above the dead sea. No one has ever found the destroyed cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, but scholars believe that they stood in the Vale of Siddim across from these cliffs. Possibly flood waters of the Dead Sea engulfed them following an earthquake.
One of the pieces of information regarding this destroyed city is-as revealed in Surat al-Hijr 76-that these cities are still on the main line. Geographers have identified this region as being on a line to the south-east of the Dead Sea, extending from the Arabian peninsula to Syria and Egypt.
????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬????????We turned the place completely upside down and rained down on them stones of hard-baked clay. There are certainly Signs in that for the discerning. They were beside a road which still exists. There is certainly a Sign in that for the believers.????????????????????????????¢?????????????????????¢??????????????????????¬???????????????????????????? [The Quran, 15:74-77]
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