Prophet Nuh (Noah)
Nuh and the great ark
Prophet Nuh (Noah, peace be upon him) is one of the very greatest and most patient of all the prophets. For a very, very long time — longer than we can even imagine — he called his people, with gentleness and love, to worship Allah alone. His story is a story of patience that never, ever gives up, even when almost nobody wants to listen. It teaches us that doing good is worth it even when it is slow and hard.
A patient call to Allah
Allah sent Nuh to warn his people, because they had slowly begun to worship statues instead of worshipping Allah who made them. Nuh called them night and day, quietly one time and openly another, for hundreds and hundreds of years — the Quran tells us he stayed among them a thousand years less fifty. He never shouted at them, and he never gave up on them. Only a few people believed, but Nuh kept being gentle and patient, always calling his people back to their loving Lord and reminding them of Allah's mercy.
إِنَّآ أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَىٰ قَوْمِهِۦٓ أَنْ أَنذِرْ قَوْمَكَ مِن قَبْلِ أَن يَأْتِيَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌۭ
Innaaa arsalnaa Noohan ilaa qawmihee an anzir qawmaka min qabli any yaatiyahum 'azaabun aleem"Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, [saying], 'Warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment.'"
Say it: This is how Nuh's mission begins. Tell your child: Allah sent Nuh to warn his people kindly, because Allah did not want anything to harm them.
Building a ship on dry land
When all those long years had passed, Allah told Nuh that a great flood was coming to the land. Allah commanded him to build a huge ship — right there on the dry ground, far away from any sea or river — while the people laughed at him and pointed and made fun. But Nuh trusted Allah completely, so he built the ship anyway, plank by plank, exactly as Allah showed him, under Allah's own loving care and guidance. Doing the right thing while everyone else is laughing takes real, quiet courage, and Nuh had it because his heart was full of trust.
وَٱصْنَعِ ٱلْفُلْكَ بِأَعْيُنِنَا وَوَحْيِنَا وَلَا تُخَٰطِبْنِى فِى ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّهُم مُّغْرَقُونَ
Wasna'il fulka bi-a'yuninaa wa wahyinaa wa laa tukhaa tibnee fil lazeena zalamoo; innahum mughraqoon"And construct the ship under Our observation and Our inspiration." Allah promised Nuh His care and guidance while he built.
Say it: Read it in gentle steps and let your child echo the meaning: build the ship — under Allah's care — with Allah's guidance.
Saved by trusting Allah
When the flood finally came, Nuh, and all the believers with him, and pairs of every kind of animal, were kept safe inside the ark, while the water rose higher and higher over the land. Allah saved every single person who had trusted Him. When at last the rain stopped and the water went down, the ark came to rest, and Nuh thanked and praised his Lord with all his heart. His long, long patience had carried him and the believers all the way through to safety. Patience and trust in Allah can carry us through too, even when the people around us do not understand. Every single day, Nuh chose to trust Allah instead of giving up, and that quiet, steady kind of trust is a real treasure that we can carry inside our own hearts too.
الْفُلْك
al-fulk
the ship / the ark
Why did people laugh at Nuh while he was building the ark?