And assuredly We have variously propounded in this Qur'an for mankind every kind of similitude; and man is of all things the most disputing. 54 And nothing prevents men from believing when the guidance comes to them, and from asking forgiveness of their Lord, except that what happened to the ancients should overtake them, or that the chastisement should come face to face with them. 55 We only send the messengers to bring good news and to give warning. Those who deny use fallacious arguments to nullify the truth, treating My revelations and My warnings as a jest. 56 And who is more unjust than one who, when reminded of the signs of his Lord, turns away from them and forgets what his hands have sent forward? We have put covers on their hearts so as not to understand the Qur’an, and deafness in their ears; and even if you call them to guidance, they will never attain the right path. 57 And your Lord is the Forgiving, full of mercy. If He were to impose blame upon them for what they earned, He would have hastened for them the punishment. Rather, for them is an appointment from which they will never find an escape. 58 Such were the populations we destroyed when they committed iniquities; but we fixed an appointed time for their destruction. 59