َ وَهُوَ الْغَفُورُ الْوَدُودُ ﴿۱۴﴾ ذُو الْعَرْشِ الْمَجِيدُ ﴿۱۵﴾ فَعَّالٌ لِمَا يُرِيدُ ﴿۱۶﴾ هَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ الْجُنُودِ ﴿۱۷﴾ فِرْعَوْنَ وَثَمُودَ ﴿۱۸﴾ بَلِ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا فِي تَكْذِيبٍ ﴿۱۹﴾ وَاللَّهُ مِنْ وَرَائِهِمْ مُحِيطٌ ﴿۲۰﴾ بَلْ هُوَ قُرْآنٌ مَجِيدٌ ﴿۲۱﴾ فِي لَوْحٍ مَحْفُوظٍ ﴿۲۲﴾

﴾14﴿ Wa Huwal Ghafoorul Wadood
﴾15﴿ Zul 'Arshil Majeed
﴾16﴿ Fa' 'aalul limaa yureed
﴾17﴿ Hal ataaka hadeesul junood
﴾18﴿ Fir'awna wa Samood
﴾19﴿ Balil lazeena kafaroo fee takzeeb
﴾20﴿ Wallaahu minw waraaa'ihim muheet
﴾21﴿ Bal huwa Quraanum Majeed
﴾22﴿ Fee Lawhim Mahfooz

﴾14﴿ And He is the Forgiving, the Loving
﴾15﴿ He is the Owner of the Throne, the Possessor of Great Glory
﴾16﴿ He is the Doer of whatever He wills
﴾17﴿ Indeed, the news of the armies has come to you
﴾18﴿ Of Pharaoh and Thamud
﴾19﴿ Rather, those who have disbelieved are engaged in denial
﴾20﴿ And Allah, the Exalted, encompasses them from every side
﴾21﴿ Rather, this Quran is of great glory
﴾22﴿ It is preserved in well-guarded tablets

[17,18] This also emphasizes the central claim of the Surah by mentioning other examples of worldly punishment.
The meaning is: The news of their destruction has reached you; similarly, those who currently deny will also be destroyed as those before them were.
In specifically mentioning Pharaoh and Thamūd, there is an indication that even if one possesses power and kingship like Pharaoh, such kingship will not save him.
Similarly, possessing wealth, industries, and skills like the Thamūd will also not provide safety from Allah’s punishment.
[19,20] This verse is a strong rebuke and mentions the cause of their punishment.
(فِي تَكْذِيبٍ) — they are deeply entrenched in severe denial, unable to escape from it.
(مِنْ وَرَائِهِمْ) — refers to every direction because the term warāʾ can indicate all sides.
(مُحِيطٌ) — means that Allah's power and knowledge fully encompass them. This meaning is narrated from the righteous predecessors (Salaf al-Ṣāliḥ).
In common usage, it also means having full control and dominance.
Thus, they cannot escape from the encompassing power and knowledge of Allah in any way.
[21,22] This verse affirms the authenticity of the Noble Qur’an, refuting those who deny it.
(فِي لَوْحٍ مَحْفُوظٍ) — The reality of this Lawḥ (Tablet) is known only to Allah, as there is no explicit textual evidence clearly describing its precise nature.
(مَحْفُوظٍ) — It is protected from any alteration, corruption, or interference by devils.