17:58
There is not a population but We shall destroy it before the Day of Judgment or punish it with a dreadful Penalty: that is written in the (eternal) Record.
The Qurʾān frequently refers to the destruction of “towns” because of the wrongdoing of their inhabitants (e.g., Qurʾān 7:4, 7:59–101, 17:16, 21:11, 22:45), and in many contexts this destruction signifies the complete uprooting and annihilation of their people (Ṭabarī; Zamakhsharī). In the present verse, however, destruction is described as the eventual fate of all towns prior to the Day of Resurrection. Some commentators interpret this to mean that while every town will ultimately perish, righteous communities experience “destruction” through natural death and the normal passing of generations, whereas wicked communities face severe punishment accompanied by terrifying forms of destruction (Qurṭubī; Ṭabarī; Ṭabarsī; Zamakhsharī). The statement that this destiny is recorded in the “Book”—commonly understood as the Preserved Tablet—indicates that the time appointed for the destruction of all towns has already been decreed (cf. Qurʾān 7:34; 15:4; 18:59) (Ṭabarī; Ṭabarsī).
References:
Nasr, Hossein (2015). Study Quran.