Ash-Shu'araa (The Poets)

112. “He said: 'No knowledge have I of what they were doing;”

113. “Their reckoning is only on my Lord, if you could (but) perceive;”

In Islam, belevers are to judge according to the apparent situation and if a person embraces Islam we would not have the right to say he has not faith in his heart.

The Qur’an says:

“...and do not say to the one who offers you peace: ‘You are not a believer’...”1

In another verse, the Holy Qur’an, addressing the Prophet (S), says:

“And do not repel those who call upon their Lord in the morning and the evening seeking His countenance. Nothing of their account falls upon you nor anything of your account falls upon them, that you should repel them and thus become of the unjust.”2

This verse indicates that Noah disarmed them by implying that his duty was to call people to the truth and to improve the society, and he did not know what they did in the past.

The verse says:

“He said: ‘No knowledge have I of what they were doing;”

What they had done was done, the important thing was their condition at that time whether they answered the prophet’s call positively and tried to improve themselves by delivering their heart and their entity to the truth, or not.

Therefore, they should understand that if those believers did a good or bad thing in the past, its reckoning is up to Allah.

The verse says:

“Their reckoning is only on my Lord, if you could (but) perceive;”

It is understood from this statement that, besides poverty, the pagans wanted to accuse that group of the believers to ethical and practical bad record, while corruption and pollution is found in the comfortable people of the society more than other levels. It is those who have all means of mischief in their possession and are proud of their wealth and rank and worship their Lord scarcely.

But, without quarrelling with them about this matter, Noah implies that he does not know anything bad about them, and if there is something, as you say, its account is with Allah.