We gave Moses the Book and appointed his brother Aaron as his counsellor: 35 then We said to them, "Go to the people who have treated Our Revelations as false. " So We annihilated those people utterly. 36 We drowned the people of Noah because of their rejection of the Messengers and made them evidence of the Truth for mankind. We have prepared a painful torment for the unjust ones. 37 And the 'Aad and the Thamud and the dwellers of the Rass and many generations in-between. 38 And for each We presented examples [as warnings], and each We destroyed with [total] destruction. 39 And indeed they have visited the township upon which had rained a harmful rain; so were they not seeing it? In fact, they never expected to be raised again. 40 Hence, whenever they consider thee, [O Muhammad,] they but make thee a target of their mockery, [saying:] "Is this the one whom God has sent as an apostle? 41 Well nigh he had led us astray from our gods if we had not persevered towards them. Presently they shall know, when they behold the torment, who is more astray in respect of path. 42 Did you see the one who chose his own desires as his God? So will you accept the responsibility of guarding him? 43 Or do you think that most of them hear or understand something? They are not but like the cattle – in fact more astray from the path than them! 44