The Great Flood
2 min read
When Allah's command finally came, the punishment arrived in a way no one could escape. Water poured down from the sky like never before.
فَفَتَحْنَآ أَبْوَٰبَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ بِمَآءٍۢ مُّنْهَمِرٍۢ
"Then We opened the gates of the heaven with rain pouring down"
— Surah Al-Qamar 54:11
At the very same time, water also burst out from the ground itself. The water from the sky and the water from the earth met together, exactly as Allah had already planned.
وَفَجَّرْنَا ٱلْأَرْضَ عُيُونًۭا فَٱلْتَقَى ٱلْمَآءُ عَلَىٰٓ أَمْرٍۢ قَدْ قُدِرَ
"And caused the earth to burst with springs, and the waters met for a matter already predestined."
— Surah Al-Qamar 54:12
The ship sailed through waves as tall as mountains. In the middle of this terrifying scene, Nuh (AS) saw his own son standing apart from the rest, refusing to board the ship. As a father, he called out to him with love and worry.
وَهِىَ تَجْرِى بِهِمْ فِى مَوْجٍۢ كَٱلْجِبَالِ وَنَادَىٰ نُوحٌ ٱبْنَهُۥ وَكَانَ فِى مَعْزِلٍۢ يَٰبُنَىَّ ٱرْكَب مَّعَنَا وَلَا تَكُن مَّعَ ٱلْكَٰفِرِينَ
"And it sailed with them through waves like mountains, and Noah called to his son who was apart [from them], 'O my son, come aboard with us and be not with the disbelievers.'"
— Surah Hud 11:42
His son still refused, believing he could save himself by climbing a high mountain instead of trusting Allah. Nuh (AS) told him the painful truth — that day, nothing could protect anyone except Allah's mercy. Moments later, a wave came between them, and his son was lost to the flood.
قَالَ سَـَٔاوِىٓ إِلَىٰ جَبَلٍۢ يَعْصِمُنِى مِنَ ٱلْمَآءِ ۚ قَالَ لَا عَاصِمَ ٱلْيَوْمَ مِنْ أَمْرِ ٱللَّهِ إِلَّا مَن رَّحِمَ ۚ وَحَالَ بَيْنَهُمَا ٱلْمَوْجُ فَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلْمُغْرَقِينَ
"[But] he said, 'I will take refuge on a mountain to protect me from the water.' [Noah] said, 'There is no protector today from the decree of Allāh, except for whom He gives mercy.' And the waves came between them, and he was among the drowned."
— Surah Hud 11:43
This was one of the hardest moments in Nuh's life — watching his own son choose disbelief over safety, even as the storm raged around them.