Surah Al-A'raf, Ayah 93

يَقَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَـلَـتِ رَبِّى وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ

("O my people! I have indeed conveyed my Lord's Messages unto you and I have given you good advice.") Shu`ayb said, I have conveyed to you what I was sent with, so I will not feel any sorrow for you since you disbelieved in what I brought you,

فَكَيْفَ ءَاسَى عَلَى قَوْمٍ كَـفِرِينَ

("Then how can I grieve over pepple who are disbelievers")

In the sixth (93) verse, it was said: فَتَوَلَّىٰ عَنْهُمْ (So, he turned away from them). It means that, with punishment for his people in sight, Sayyidna Shu'aib (علیہ السلام) and his believing companions moved away from there. The majority of commentators says that these blessed souls left this place for Makkah al-Mu` azzamah where they stayed till the end.

It was his total disappointment with his people neck-deep in disobedience and contumacy which prompted him to pray that they be chastened. But, when the actual punishment came as a result of it, his heart pinched because of his prophetic concern and affection for them. Then, it was for the peace of his own heart that he said addressing his people: ` 0 my people, I have surely delivered to you the messages of my Lord, and wished you betterment. How, then, should I grieve over a disbelieving people?'

Shu‘ayb’s community was not guilty of denying God, but of misrepresenting Him, i.e. it had attributed to God a religion which was not sent by Him. This has been the position of the communities of all the prophets. The communities of the prophets were no different from those to whom God had earlier revealed His religion. But, by means of self-made changes and additions, they made it into something else. They changed the religion of God into the religion of their desires and started calling it the religion of God. The religious leaders of today, who have the support of the people and are in power, do realize that they cannot argue with the prophets, as they would not succeed. But since they do not want someone to usurp them of their importance, they look for a way to silence them. Allowances can be made for a person so long as the Truth is not clear to him. But after the Truth has been made clear, and if a man still chooses to be arrogant, he loses any right to sympathy. In this world, punishment is given on this basis; and on this same basis, punishment will be decided according to the guilt of the people in the Hereafter.