and the pathways of guidance had been erased (1). The people of the earth had become liable for punishment to descend upon their very midst; the Compeller—glorified be His Majesty—looked upon them and loathed them (2), Arabs and non-Arabs alike, save for a scant remnant from among the People of the Scripture. At that time the nations ranged between one who associated partners with the Most Merciful and worshipped idols, one who worshipped fire, one devoted to the cross, and others who worshipped the sun, the moon, and the stars, denying Allah, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer. Still others wandered bewildered in the wasteland of their misguidance, seduced by Satan, who barred them from the road of guidance and faith. Thus, to them “good” was whatever matched their desire and pleasure, while “evil” was whatever opposed their whim. The Most Merciful had abandoned them, and disgrace clung to them: they heard and saw by passion, not by their Lord; they struck and walked by themselves and their devil, not by Allah. The gate of guidance was closed before them, and access to the knowledge of their Lord and the pursuit of His good pleasure was blocked. The inhabitants of the earth were therefore either lost and confused, or slaves to the world, panting after it; compliant followers of Satan—ignorant, obstinate, or associating partners with the Most Merciful.
The earth was shrouded in the darkness of disbelief, idolatry, ignorance, and obstinacy. The leaders (3) of unbelief and the armies of corruption held sway. Every people clung to the darkness of its own opinions and judged concerning Allah and among His servants according to their false claims and desires. The market of falsehood thrived, bustling and alive, while the market of truth lay stagnant, unattended. The armies of falsehood rampaged across every region of the earth, imagining that their dominion would last forever and that there was no hope for the soldiers of Allah and His party within it.
It was then that Allah sent His Messenger, when the inhabitants of the earth were in greater need of his message than the parched land is of heaven’s rain,