أَفَنَضْرِبُ عَنْكُمُ الذِّكْرَ صَفْحًا أَنْ كُنْتُمْ قَوْمًا مُسْرِفِينَ ﴿۵﴾ وَكَمْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ نَبِيٍّ فِي الْأَوَّلِينَ ﴿۶﴾ وَمَا يَأْتِيهِمْ مِنْ نَبِيٍّ إِلَّا كَانُوا بِهِ يَسْتَهْزِئُونَ ﴿۷﴾ فَأَهْلَكْنَا أَشَدَّ مِنْهُمْ بَطْشًا وَمَضَى مَثَلُ الْأَوَّلِينَ ﴿۸﴾ وَلَئِنْ سَأَلْتَهُمْ مَنْ خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ لَيَقُولُنَّ خَلَقَهُنَّ الْعَزِيزُ الْعَلِيمُ ﴿۹﴾ الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْأَرْضَ مَهْدًا وَجَعَلَ لَكُمْ فِيهَا سُبُلًا لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ ﴿۱۰﴾

﴾5﴿ Afa nadribu 'ankumuz Zikra safhan an kuntum qawman musrifeen
﴾6﴿ Wa kam arsalnaa min Nabiyyin fil awwaleen
﴾7﴿ Wa maa yaateehim min Nabiyyin illaa kaanoo bihee yastahzi'oon
﴾8﴿ Fa ahlaknaaa ashadda minhum batshanw wa madaa masalul awwaleen
﴾9﴿ Wa la'in sa altahum man khalaqas samaawaati wal arda la yaqoolunna khalaqa hunnal 'Azeezul 'Aleem
﴾10﴿ Allazee ja'ala lakumul arda mahdanw wa ja'ala lakum feehaa subulan la'allakum tahtadoon

﴾5﴿ Shall We then turn away the reminder from you, disregarding it, because you are a people of polytheists
﴾6﴿ And We certainly sent many prophets among the former peoples
﴾7﴿ And no prophet came to them except that they mocked him
﴾8﴿ So We destroyed those who were stronger than them in might, and the examples of the former peoples have passed
﴾9﴿ And if you ask them who created the heavens and the earth, they will surely say, The Almighty, the All-Knowing has created them
﴾10﴿ He is the One who made the earth a stable resting place for you and created pathways in it so that you may be guided

[5] This torment refers to the rejection of the Qur'an through rhetorical questioning—meaning, if the polytheists say, “We do not accept monotheism, so why do you present this Qur'an to us and torment us with it?”—then the answer to them is: We do not stop the revelation and explanation of the Qur'an because of your polytheism and denial.
[6,7,8] These verses provide consolation to the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) and serve as a worldly warning to the deniers following the reprimand.
In the first verse, the mention of the sending of Messengers is intended to affirm the divine practice and to strengthen the Prophet's resolve.
The second verse addresses the mockery of the deniers, which is not merely a reflection of disbelief but a cause for punishment—it exposes their arrogance and spiritual blindness.
In the third verse, the outcome is stated explicitly: the punishment itself, which is the direct result (مسبب) of their persistent mockery and rejection of the truth.
This progression—from divine mercy through the sending of Messengers, to human obstinacy, and finally to divine retribution—follows a Qur'anic pattern meant to warn, awaken, and establish justice.
[9] This is a rational, confessional proof regarding the issue of monotheism, and their acknowledgment is mentioned in Surah Al-‘Ankabūt (29:61) and Surah Luqmān (31:25).
[10] This is the second proof. In this, there is no acknowledgment (from them), because it says “lakum” (for you) and not “lana” (for us).
Therefore, it has been mentioned in continuation of the previous point by way of clarification (tanwīr), meaning: since you accept that Allah is the Creator of the heavens and the earth, then you must also necessarily accept His other powers.
And in this verse, two examples of divine power are mentioned.