ٱلْأَعْرَاف : ١٦٤

  • وَإِذۡ And when
  • قَالَتۡ said
  • أُمَّةٞ a community
  • مِّنۡهُمۡ among them
  • لِمَ Why
  • تَعِظُونَ (do) you preach
  • قَوۡمًا a people
  • ٱللَّهُ (whom) Allah
  • مُهۡلِكُهُمۡ (is going to) destroy them
  • أَوۡ or
  • مُعَذِّبُهُمۡ punish them
  • عَذَابٗا (with) a punishment
  • شَدِيدٗاۖ severe
  • قَالُواْ They said
  • مَعۡذِرَةً To be absolved
  • إِلَىٰ before
  • رَبِّكُمۡ your Lord
  • وَلَعَلَّهُمۡ and that they may
  • يَتَّقُونَ become righteous
And when a community among them said, "Why do you advise [or warn] a people whom Allāh is [about] to destroy or to punish with a severe punishment?" they [the advisors] said, "To be absolved before your Lord and perhaps they may fear Him."
And when (wa-idh is a supplement to the preceding idh, 'how') a community among them, who neither fished nor prohibited it, said, to those who prohibited it: 'Why do you preach [admonition] to a folk whom God is about to destroy or chastise with a severe chastisement?' They said, our admonishing [them] is, 'As an exculpation, by which we excuse ourselves, before your Lord, lest we are reproached for failing to prohibit [them] in any way; and so that they might be wary, of fishing'.