Surah Ash Shu'ara Tafseer

And you hew out in the mountains, houses with great skill.

Ibn Abbas and others said,

"With great skill."

According to another report from him:

"They were greedy and extravagant."

This was the view of Mujahid and another group.

There is no contradiction between the two views, because they built the houses which they carved in the mountains as a form of extravagant play, with no need for them as dwelling places. They were highly skilled in the arts of masonry and stone-carving, as is well known to anyone who has seen their structures.

So, Salih said to them:

فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُونِ