۞ Say: What! do you indeed disbelieve in Him Who created the earth in two periods, and do you set up equals with Him? That is the Lord of the Worlds. 9 He set firm mountains on top (of the earth) and He blessed it. And in four days He ordained in it many provisions, equal to those who ask. 10 Then He Istawa (rose over) towards the heaven when it was smoke, and said to it and to the earth: "Come both of you willingly or unwillingly." They both said: "We come, willingly." 11 So He ordained them seven heavens in two periods, and revealed in every heaven its affair; and We adorned the lower heaven with brilliant stars and (made it) to guard; that is the decree of the Mighty, the Knowing. 12 If they turn away, then say, "I warn you of a lightning-bolt like the one which struck the 'Ad and the Thamud: 13 Recall what time the apostles came unto them from before them and behind them, saying: worship none save Allah. They said: had our Lord listed, He surely would have sent down angels, so verily in that wherewith ye have been sent we are disbelievers altogether. 14 As for the tribe of 'Ad, they behaved arrogantly in the land without any justification and said, "Who is mightier than we in power?" Did they not see that God, who created them, was mightier than they in power? Still they continued to deny Our signs, 15 whereupon We sent upon them a fierce wind on inauspicious days that We might make them taste a degrading chastisement in the life of this world. And surely the chastisement of the Hereafter is even more degrading. There will be none to help them there. 16 We sent guidance to the people of Thamud but they preferred blindness to guidance so a humiliating blast of torment struck them for their evil deeds. 17 And We saved those who believed and used to fear Allah. 18