So We revealed to him saying ‘Build the Ark the ship under Our watch under Our observation and protection and by Our revelation Our command. Then when Our command comes that they be destroyed and the oven of the baker gushes with water — and this was Noah’s sign — bring into it admit into the ship of every kind of animal two mates a male and a female that is two of every species thereof ithnayn is an object; min ‘of’ is semantically connected to usluk ‘bring into it’. According to the story God exalted be He gathered all the beasts of prey and the birds and other animals for Noah. As he Noah pushed forth his hands into each species his right hand would fall upon a male and the left upon a female whereafter he would take them on board the ship a variant reading for min kuli ‘of every’ is min kullin ‘of every kind’ in which case zawjayni ‘two mates’ becomes a direct object with ithnayn ‘two’ being repeated for emphasis thereof; together with your family — his wife ? and children — except for those against whom the Word has already gone forth that they be destroyed namely his wife and his son Canaan Kan‘ān unlike Shem Sām Ham Hām and Japheth Yāfith whom together with their three wives he carried on board. In sūrat Hūd the following is mentioned where Noah is told who he should carry in the ship ‘… and those who believe.’ And none believed with him except a few Q. 1140. It is said that these were six men and their wives. Moreover it is said that all those who were on the ship numbered seventy eight half of them were men and half were women. And do not plead with Me concerning those who have done wrong those who have disbelieved that I should refrain from destroying them. They shall indeed be drowned.
