Prophet Shuʿayb: The Orator of the Prophets, and the Beginning of Yūsuf
Section 2 of 24 · Lives of the Prophets
Their Brother Shuʿayb, and the People of al-Aykah
وَإِلَىٰ مَدْيَنَ أَخَاهُمْ شُعَيْبًا ۗ قَالَ يَـٰقَوْمِ ٱعْبُدُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـٰهٍ غَيْرُهُۥ ۖ قَدْ جَآءَتْكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ ۖ فَأَوْفُوا۟ ٱلْكَيْلَ وَٱلْمِيزَانَ وَلَا تَبْخَسُوا۟ ٱلنَّاسَ أَشْيَآءَهُمْ وَلَا تُفْسِدُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ بَعْدَ إِصْلَـٰحِهَا ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ
“And to Madyan (We sent) their brother Shu‘aib. He said, “O my people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him. There has come to you a clear sign from your Lord. Give the measure and weight in full, and do not make people short of their things, and do not make mischief on the earth after it has been set in order. That is good for you, if you are believers.” (7:85)
And Sayyidunā Shuʿayb (peace be upon him) made daʿwah to his people in Madyan. Madyan is the town, the area. Allah (swt) says: wa ilā Madyana akhāhum Shuʿaybā — and to the people of Madyan, their brother Shuʿayb. What does brother here mean? It means he is part of them; he is from those people.
كَذَّبَ أَصْحَـٰبُ لْـَٔيْكَةِ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ إِذْ قَالَ لَهُمْ شُعَيْبٌ أَلَا تَتَّقُونَ
“The people of Aaikah rejected the messengers when Shu‘aib said to them, “Do you not fear Allah?” (26:176–177)
But in another ayah, Allah (swt) says: kadhdhaba aṣḥābu al-Aykati al-mursalīn, idh qāla lahum Shuʿayb — the people of al-Aykah disbelieved in the messengers, when Shuʿayb was sent to them. Over here, in this ayah, it didn't say brother. Even though in Sūrat al-Shuʿarāʾ — and this ayah is from Sūrat al-Shuʿarāʾ — when it talks about ʿĀd, it says akhāhum Hūdā, their brother Hūd. When it talks about Thamūd, it says akhāhum Ṣāliḥā, their brother Ṣāliḥ. When it talks about Lūṭ: akhāhum Lūṭā, brother Lūṭ*. But it didn't say their brother Shuʿayb. Why?
Ibn Kathīr says: because in that ayah Allah was saying the people of al-Aykah. Al-Aykah is a large tree which they used to worship. So Allah said: the people of al-Aykah. And Allah (swt) did not want to attribute brotherhood to the people of al-Aykah, because al-Aykah is a god that is taken besides Allah. So Allah said Shuʿayb, without saying their brother. But when Allah (swt) said ilā Madyan — when We sent to Madyan — Allah (swt) said: their brother Shuʿayb. And this is a small note in terms of the difference in the ayat.