Such is the punishment of your Lord when He seizes human settlements in the acts of wickedness. Surely His hold is grievous and terrible.
102
Tafseer
'Abdullāh Ibn 'Abbās / Muḥammad al-Fīrūzabādī
تفسير : (even thus is the grasp of your lord) the chastisement of your lord (when he graspeth the townships) when he chastises the people of these townships (while they are doing wrong) when they are disbelievers and idolaters. (lo! his grasp) his chastisement (is painful, very strong).
Jalāl al-Dīn al-Maḥallī
تفسير : such, like that seizing, is the seizing of your lord when he seizes the towns, meaning its inhabitants, while they are doing wrong, by way of sins: in other words, nothing can avail them in any way when he seizes them. truly his seizing is painful, severe. the two shaykhs [bukhārī and muslim] reported [by way of an isnād] from abū mūsā al-ash‘arī that he said, ‘the prophet (s) said, “god gives [extended] respite to the evildoer, but when he seizes him there is no escape for him”, whereupon the prophet (s) recited the verse: such is the seizing of your lord [q. 11:102, above]’.
