Where the story is told
The story is in Surah Saba, Quran 34:15-21, and the surah takes its name from it. Saba' is the name of the people. The verses begin with a sign that was in their dwelling place, as the Quran puts it, and then show what became of it.
The surah is from Makkah. Before this story, it tells of Dawud and Sulayman عليهما السلام and the blessings Allah gave them. Then it turns to a people who had blessings but did not respond with gratitude.
The two gardens and the call to gratitude
The meaning of Quran 34:15 is that the people of Saba had a sign in their dwelling place: two gardens, one on the right and one on the left. They were told: "Eat from the provision of your Lord and be grateful to Him." Then the verse describes their land and their Lord with two phrases: a good land and a forgiving Lord.
There are three parts in this call:
- The provision is from their Lord, not from themselves.
- They are asked to eat of it. There is no rule against enjoying what Allah gave.
- They are asked to be grateful, which is the answer Allah wanted from them.
Quran 34:18 adds that Allah placed between them and the towns He had blessed many towns that could be seen, and set the distances of the journey so that they could travel by night or day in safety.
Turning away and the flood
The verse says simply: "But they turned away" (34:16). Allah then sent upon them the flood of the dam, in Arabic sayl al-'arim, and replaced their two gardens with two gardens of bitter fruit, tamarisk and a little lote tree.
The Quran says Allah repaid them in this way because they disbelieved, and asks: "And do We repay except the ungrateful?" (34:17). The change in the gardens is in the verse: what had been good fruit became bitter fruit and wild plants.
In verse 19 they said, "Our Lord, lengthen the distance between our journeys," and the verse says they wronged themselves. So Allah made them stories that people tell, and scattered them in total dispersion. The verse ends: "Indeed in that are signs for everyone patient and grateful."
Iblis and the test
Quran 34:20-21 gives a wider view. Iblis had already proved his assumption about them, and they followed him, except for a group of believers. The verses say he had no authority over them, and that the purpose was that Allah would make clear who believes in the Hereafter and who is in doubt about it.
This is a reminder that the believers among them are mentioned too. Not everyone followed Iblis.
What the Quran does not tell us
The Quran does not give a date for the people of Saba, the place of their land beyond the name Saba', the name of any prophet sent to them, or the size of the dam. It does not say how long the gardens lasted. Commentators differ on the meaning of 'arim: some take it as the dam itself, and some as a strong flood. Accounts of the dam's history and of the exact manner of the people's scattering come from books of commentary and history, not from the verses, so they are left out here.
The Quran also mentions a queen of Saba in Surah an-Naml (27:22-44). That is told in a different context and is not covered here, and the verses of Surah Saba do not connect the two accounts.
Lessons from this story
- Blessings are a trust and need gratitude. The first command to the people of Saba was to eat from their Lord's provision and be grateful.
- A good land and a forgiving Lord did not protect those who turned away. Gratitude is shown in obedience and not in words alone.
- Allah can change what people have. The gardens of good fruit were replaced by bitter fruit and wild trees.
- Ease can be taken for granted. The people asked for longer journeys although they had been given safe and easy ones, and the verse calls this wronging themselves.
- The story is a sign for "everyone patient and grateful": patience in hardship and gratitude in ease are both part of faith.
General information for learning, not a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar.