وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَى قَوْمِهِ فَلَبِثَ فِيهِمْ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ إِلَّا خَمْسِينَ عَامًا فَأَخَذَهُمُ الطُّوفَانُ وَهُمْ ظَالِمُونَ ﴿۱۴﴾ فَأَنْجَيْنَاهُ وَأَصْحَابَ السَّفِينَةِ وَجَعَلْنَاهَا آيَةً لِلْعَالَمِينَ ﴿۱۵﴾ وَإِبْرَاهِيمَ إِذْ قَالَ لِقَوْمِهِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاتَّقُوهُ ذَلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ ﴿۱۶﴾

﴾14﴿ Wa laqad arsalnaa Noohan ilaa qawmihee falabisa feehim alfa sanatin illaa khamseena 'aaman fa akhazahumut toofaanu wa hum zaalimoon
﴾15﴿ Fa anjainaahu wa as haabas safeenati wa ja'alnaahaaa Aayatal lil'aalameen
﴾16﴿ Wa Ibraheema iz qaala liqawmihi' budul laaha wattaqoohu zaalikum khayrul lakum in kuntum ta'lamoon

﴾14﴿ And indeed, We sent Noah, peace be upon him, to his people, and he stayed among them for a thousand years minus fifty years. Then, the flood seized them, and they were wrongdoers
﴾15﴿ Then We saved him and those with him in the ark, and made this story a lesson for all people
﴾16﴿ And We sent Abraham, peace be upon him, when he said to his people, Worship Allah alone and fear Him. This is better for you if you know

[14] From this verse until verse (41), it is the second section. In it, four types of trials faced by the prophets (peace be upon them) are mentioned for encouragement.
The first trial is having a long life spent in calling and preaching, with few followers — like the incident of Noah (peace be upon him).
The second trial is inviting to Tawheed in detail, facing the opposition of his people, and being thrown into fire — like the incident of Ibrahim (peace be upon him).
The third trial is the mockery of the people and their demand for punishment — like the incident of Lot (peace be upon him).
The fourth trial is the denial and ridicule of the people — like the incident of Shu‘ayb (peace be upon him).
Then the four nations are mentioned again, and the punishments upon them are described in four different ways. This relates to the second claim of the surah.
In this verse (14), the incident of Noah (peace be upon him) is mentioned briefly, and the purpose is to describe the trial of spending a long life along with hardships in calling and preaching.
For this reason, the age of Noah (peace be upon him) is mentioned in relation to his people — meaning how long he lived among them enduring hardships — and this is not found in any other surah. So, it relates to the first claim.
The punishment of his people is also mentioned, and that relates to the second claim.
Benefit: The verse does not say “nine hundred and fifty” directly for several reasons.
One reason is that the wording used is more concise.
Another reason is to show the greatness of this trial — that first the large number was mentioned, and then a portion was excluded from it.
A third reason is that this wording fully conveys the meaning — because the word “sanah” (سَنَةً) indicates burden and hardship, while the word “‘aam” (عَامًا) indicates ease and relief — meaning that many years were spent under hardship, and fifty years were spent in relative ease.
[15] In this verse, there is consolation for the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) and his followers through the salvation and safety of the companions of the ship.
In the Tafsīr Sirāj al-Munīr, a marfūʿ narration is mentioned without a chain of transmission stating that they were seven people along with Noah (peace be upon him).
(Āyatan lil-ʿālamīn) means that this event is a lesson for all the worlds, or that this ship itself is a sign of reflection—similar to the ship mentioned in Surah Yā Sīn (36:42).
[16] This is a narration of the event of Abraham (peace be upon him) related to the second type of trial, which was being thrown into the fire and migrating from his homeland for the sake of calling to the truth and affirming the oneness of Allah.
In this verse, the concept of monotheism is expressed, and associating partners with Allah is prohibited, along with a general mention of its benefit through the word khayr (good), which includes both worldly and eternal goodness.
The phrase (in kuntum taʿlamūn) (if you know) indicates that knowledge is a condition for distinguishing between good and evil.