Tafseer of The Poets · Ash-Shu'araa · 26:138
And we are not to be punished."
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
...they had said: وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمُعَذَّبِينَ (and we will not be punished). Yet they did acknowledge the Creator while worshipping idols, in the same manner as the polytheists among the Arabs who worshipped [them] and said that they [the idols] bring them closer to Allah. For this reason they said to Hūd, rejecting his prophethood: سَوَاءٌ عَلَيْنَا أَوَعَظْتَ أَمْ لَمْ تَكُنْ مِنَ الْوَاعِظِينَ (It is the same to us whether you admonish or are not among the admonishers). Then they said to him: what we do is nothing other than the custom of those before us and their character traits, and Allah will not punish us for it. Just as Allah, exalted be His mention, has informed us about the former peoples before us, that they said to their messengers: إِنَّا وَجَدْنَا آبَاءَنَا عَلَى أُمَّةٍ وَإِنَّا عَلَى آثَارِهِمْ مُقْتَدُونَ (We found our fathers upon a community, and we are following in their footsteps).
