the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Allah sent Nūḥ at ˹the age of˺ forty years, and he remained with his nation for a thousand years less fifty years inviting them ˹to Islam.˺ He then lived after the flood for sixty years when the number of people increased and they ˹started to˺ spread."  

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ «بَعَثَ اللَّهُ نُوحًا لِأَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً وَلَبِثَ فِي قَوْمِهِ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ إِلَّا خَمْسِينَ عَامًا يَدْعُوهُمْ وَعَاشَ بَعْدَ الطُّوفَانِ سِتِّينَ سَنَةً حَتَّى كَثُرَ النَّاسُ وَفَشَوْا»  

that the Prophet ﷺ said, "Nūḥ had three children: Sām (Sam), Ḥām (Ham), and Yāfith (Japeth) the father of Romans."  

أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ قَالَ «وَلَدُ نُوحٍ ثَلَاثَةٌ سَامُ وَحَامُ وَيَافِثُ أَبُو الرُّومِ»  

the leaders of the Prophets are five, and Muḥammad ﷺ is the leader of those five. The five are: Nūḥ, Ibrāhīm, Mūsá, ʿĪsá, and Muḥammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon them all.  

سَيِّدُ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ خَمْسَةٌ وَمُحَمَّدٌ ﷺ سَيِّدُ الْخَمْسَةِ نُوحٌ وَإِبْرَاهِيمُ وَمُوسَى وَعِيسَى وَمُحَمَّدٌ صَلَوَاتُ اللَّهِ وَسَلَامُهُ عَلَيْهِمْ  

that he mentioned the statement of Allah ﷻ "We sent Nūḥ to his nation... (Nūḥ 71:1)" then mentioned that Nūḥ took a bath and saw his son looking at him. He then said, "You're looking at me while I'm taking a bath? May Allah discolor you." ˹Ibn Masʿūd˺ said: he was then darkened and he is the father of Sūdān (the African race).  

أَنَّهُ ذَكَرَ قَوْلَ اللَّهِ ﷻ {إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَى قَوْمِهِ} [نوح 1] فَذَكَرَ أَنَّ نُوحًا اغْتَسَلَ فَرَأَى ابْنَهُ يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ: تَنْظُرُ إِلَيَّ وَأَنَا أَغْتَسِلُ؟ خَارَ اللَّهُ لَوْنَكَ! قَالَ: فَاسْوَدَّ فَهُوَ أَبُو السُّودَانِ۔  

There were ten qarn (generations) between Nūḥ and Ādam. They were all upon the True Shariʿah then they differed ˹thereafter.˺ Then Allah sent Prophets to give glad tidings and warnings. ˹Ibn ʿAbbās˺ said: this is how it is in the recitation of ʿAbdullāh ˹b. Masʿūd˺: "The people were all one ummah (nation) and they then differed..."  

«كَانَ بَيْنَ نُوحٍ وَآدَمَ عَشَرَةُ قُرُونٍ كُلُّهُمْ عَلَى شَرِيعَةٍ مِنَ الْحَقِّ فَاخْتَلَفُوا فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ النَّبِيِّينَ مُبَشِّرِينَ وَمُنْذِرِينَ» قَالَ وَكَذَلِكَ فِي قِرَاءَةِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ «كَانَ النَّاسُ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً فَاخْتَلَفُوا»  

that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "If Allah were to show Mercy to anyone from among the nation of Nūḥ, he would show Mercy to Umm al-Ṣabī (mother of the young boy)." The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Nūḥ remained with his nation for a thousand years save fifty inviting them ˹to the Message˺ until the end of his time. He planted trees and they became plentiful/large and they ˹grew˺ in all different ways. Then he cut them and began to make his ship. ˹The people˺ used to pass by and say that he is making a ship on land, how would it sail?' The he would said, 'You will soon find out.'

When he was finished with it and 'fār al-tannūr' (commonly interpreted as the bursting of springs from the ground) and the flooding started in the pathways. Umm al-Ṣabī feared for ˹her child˺ and she loved him intensely. She left toward the mountain until she reached a third of it. When the water reached it, she left from there until she settled on the two-thirds of the mountain. Then when the water reached it, she left from there until settled on ˹top˺ of the mountain. When the water reached up to her neck, she lifted him in her arms until the water washed him away. So if Allah were to show Mercy to anyone among them, he would show Mercy to Umm al-Ṣabī."  

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ «لَوْ رَحِمَ اللَّهُ أَحَدًا مِنْ قَوْمِ نُوحٍ لَرَحِمَ أُمَّ الصَّبِيِّ» قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «كَانَ نُوحٌ مَاكِثًا فِي قَوْمِهِ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ إِلَّا خَمْسِينَ عَامًا يَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَى اللَّهِ حَتَّى كَانُوا آخِرَ زَمَانِهِ غَرَسَ شَجَرَةً فَعَظُمَتْ وَذَهَبَتْ كُلَّ مَذْهَبٍ ثُمَّ قَطَعَهَا ثُمَّ جَعَلَ يَعْمَلُ سَفِينَةً فَيَسْخَرُونَ مِنْهُ وَيَقُولُونَ يَعْمَلُ سَفِينَةً فِي الْبَرِّ فَكَيْفَ تَجْرِي؟ فَيَقُولُ سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

فَلَمَّا فَرَغَ مِنْهَا فَارَ التَّنُّورُ وَكَثُرَ الْمَاءُ فِي السِّكَكِ خَشِيَتْ أُمُّ الصَّبِيِّ عَلَيْهِ وَكَانَتْ تُحِبُّهُ حُبًّا شَدِيدًا فَخَرَجَتْ إِلَى الْجَبَلِ حَتَّى بَلَغَتْ ثُلُثَهُ فَلَمَّا بَلَغَهَا الْمَاءُ خَرَجَتْ بِهِ حَتَّى بَلَغَتْ ثُلُثَيِ الْجَبَلِ فَلَمَّا بَلَغَهَا خَرَجَتْ حَتَّى اسْتَوَتْ عَلَى الْجَبَلِ فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ الْمَاءُ رَقَبَتَهَا رَفَعَتْهُ بِيَدِهَا حَتَّى ذَهَبَ بِهِ الْمَاءُ فَلَوْ رَحِمَ اللَّهُ مِنْهُمْ أَحَدًا لَرَحِمَ أُمَّ الصَّبِيِّ۔»  

Allah ﷻ gathered knowledge for all prior ˹nations˺ for Nūḥ and strengthened him with the Rūḥ (Holy Spirit). He then invited his nation ˹to Islam˺ privately and publically for nine hundred and fifty years. Any time a generation passed and ˹the next˺ generation followed them in their ˹corruption˺ and thus they increased in disbelief and transgression.  

جَمَعَ رَبُّنَا ﷻ لِنُوحٍ عِلْمَ الْمَاضِينَ كُلِّهِمْ وَأَيَّدَهُ بِرُوحٍ مِنْهُ فَدَعَا قَوْمَهُ سِرًّا وَعَلَانِيَةً تِسْعَ مِائَةٍ وَخَمْسِينَ سَنَةً كُلَّمَا مَضَى قَرْنٌ اتَّبَعَهُ قَرْنٌ فَزَادَهُمْ كُفْرًا وَطُغْيَانًا  

they all attributed this ḥadīth to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ that Allah will call Nūḥ and nation on the Day of Resurrection as the first among the people, and He will say, "How did you respond to Nūḥ?" They will say, "He did not invite us ˹to Islam˺, nor he had conveyed ˹the Message˺, nor had commanded us to do ˹works˺, nor had prohibited us ˹to do other works.˺ Then Nūḥ will say, "O Lord, I called my people with an open Call to the first of them to the last of them, Ummah after Ummah until it reached the end with the seal of the Prophets, Aḥmad. He scribed ˹the Message˺, recited it, and believed in it.

Then Allah will say to the angels, call Aḥmad and his Ummah. Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his Ummah will rush with light terminating in front of them. Then Nūḥ will say to Muḥammad and his Ummah, "Do you know that I conveyed the message to my nation and strove to give them counsel and tried my best that they be saved from the Hellfire ˹preaching˺ then privately and publically and 'they did nothing but increasingly avoid my call' (Nūḥ 71:6)?" Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his followers will testify, "We bear witness that you are indeed among the truthful in all that you have said."

So, the nation of Nūḥ will ask, "O Aḥmad, how did you and you Ummah come to know this when you and your Ummah are the last of the nations?" The Messenger of Allah ﷺ will respond, "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, 'Indeed, We sent Nūḥ to his people, ˹saying˺, warn your people before there comes to them a painful punishment. (Nūḥ, 71:1).'" He will recite the entire Sūrah. When he finishes it, the nation of Nūḥ will say, "We bear witness 'that this is indeed the true account, and there is no deity except Allah, and Allah is indeed the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. (Āl ʿImrān 3:62)" Thereupon, Allah ﷻ will say, "But stand apart today, you criminals. (Yā Sīn 36:59)" and thus they will be the first to be separated ˹from the rest destined toward˺ the Hellfire.  

كُلُّهُمْ رَفَعُوا الْحَدِيثَ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَدْعُو نُوحًا وَقَوْمَهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ أَوَّلَ النَّاسِ، فَيَقُولُ: مَاذَا أَجَبْتُمْ نُوحًا؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: مَا دَعَانَا وَمَا بَلَّغَنَا وَلَا نَصَحَنَا وَلَا أَمَرَنَا وَلَا نَهَانَا۔ فَيَقُولُ نُوحٌ: دَعَوْتُهُمْ يَا رَبِّ دُعَاءً فَاشِيًا فِي الْأَوَّلِينَ وَالْآخِرِينَ، أُمَّةً بَعْدَ أُمَّةٍ، حَتَّى انْتَهَى إِلَى خَاتَمِ النَّبِيِّينَ أَحْمَدَ، فَانْتَسَخَهُ وَقَرَأَهُ وَآمَنَ بِهِ وَصَدَّقَهُ۔

فَيَقُولُ اللَّهُ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ: ادْعُوا أَحْمَدَ وَأُمَّتَهُ۔ فَيَأْتِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَأُمَّتُهُ يَسْعَى نُورُهُمْ بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ۔ فَيَقُولُ نُوحٌ لِمُحَمَّدٍ وَأُمَّتِهِ: هَلْ تَعْلَمُونَ أَنِّي بَلَّغْتُ قَوْمِي الرِّسَالَةَ، وَاجْتَهَدْتُ لَهُمْ بِالنَّصِيحَةِ وَجَهِدْتُ أَنْ أَسْتَنْقِذَهُمْ مِنَ النَّارِ سِرًّا وَجِهَارًا {فَلَمْ يَزِدْهُمْ دُعَائِي إِلَّا فِرَارًا} [نوح 6]؟ فَيَقُولُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَأُمَّتُهُ: «فَإِنَّا نَشْهَدُ بِمَا نَشَدْتَنَا بِهِ أَنَّكَ فِي جَمِيعِ مَا قُلْتَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ۔»

فَيَقُولُ قَوْمُ نُوحٍ: وَأَيْنَ عَلِمْتَ هَذَا يَا أَحْمَدُ أَنْتَ وَأُمَّتُكَ، وَنَحْنُ أَوَّلُ الْأُمَمِ وَأَنْتَ وَأُمَّتُكَ آخِرُ الْأُمَمِ؟ فَيَقُولُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ {إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَى قَوْمِهِ أَنْ أَنْذِرْ قَوْمَكَ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ} [نوح 1]» قَرَأَ السُّورَةَ حَتَّى خَتَمَهَا فَإِذَا خَتَمَهَا قَالَتْ أُمَّتُهُ: نَشْهَدُ {أَنَّ هَذَا لَهُوَ الْقَصَصُ الْحَقُّ وَمَا مِنْ إِلَهٍ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ لَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ} [آل عمران 62] فَيَقُولُ اللَّهُ ﷻ عِنْدَ ذَلِكَ {امْتَازُوا الْيَوْمَ أَيُّهَا الْمُجْرِمُونَ} فَهُمْ أَوَّلُ مَنْ يَمْتَازُ فِي النَّارِ۔