Surah Az-Zukhruf (The Ornaments of Gold), Verse 56

فَجَعَلْنٰهُمْ سَلَفًا وَّمَثَلًا لِّلْاٰخِرِیْنَ 

Faja'alnaahum salafanw wa masalan lil aakhireen

“And We made them (a people) of the Past and an Example to later ages.”

Quran 43:56 (Yusuf Ali Translation)