أَلَمْ يَأْتِكُمْ نَبَؤُا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ مِن قَبْلُ فَذَاقُوا۟ وَبَالَ أَمْرِهِمْ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
Alam yaatikum naba'ul lazeena kafaroo min qablu fazaaqoo wabaala amrihim wa lahum 'azaabun aleem
[Disbelievers], have you not heard about those who disbelieved before you? They tasted the evil consequences of their conduct, and a painful torment awaits them.
Has the story not reached you of those who denied before? They tasted the bitter consequence of their conduct, and a painful punishment awaits them.
The question assumes its answer, since these stories had reached the audience already, so it works to prompt recall rather than to inform. Wabāl names the harmful aftermath of an act, and its root points to what sits heavily and will not digest; the verb paired with it is tasting. Consequence is described as something swallowed, which places it inside the person rather than arriving from outside.