Said [Abraham]: “And what [else] may you have in view, O you [heavenly] messengers?”

They answered: “Behold, we have been sent unto a people lost in sin,

to let loose upon them stone-hard blows of chastisement,

marked out in thy Sustainer’s sight for [the punishment of] such as have wasted their own selves.”

And in the course of time We brought out [of Lot ’s city] such [few] believers as were there:

for apart from one [single] house We did not find there any who had surrendered themselves to Us.

And so We left therein a message for those who fear the grievous suffering [which awaits all evildoers].

AND IN [the story of Pharaoh and] Moses, too, [We left the same message: for] when We sent him unto Pharaoh with [Our] manifest authority,

and he turned away in [the pride of] his power and said, “A sorcerer [is this Moses], or a madman!” –

We seized him and his hosts, and cast them all into the sea: and [none but Pharaoh] himself was to blame [for what happened].

And [you have the same message] in [what happened to the tribe of] Ad, when We let loose against them that life-destroying wind

which spared nothing of what it came upon, but caused [all of] it to become like bones dead and decayed.

And in [the story of the tribe of] Thamud, too, when they were told, “You shall enjoy your life for [but] a little while,”

after they had turned with disdain from their Sustainer’s commandment - whereupon the thunderbolt of punishment overtook them while they were [helplessly] looking on:

for they were unable even to rise, and could not defend themselves.

And [thus, too, We destroyed] Noah’s people aforetime: for they were iniquitous folk.

AND IT IS We who have built the universe with [Our creative] power; and, verily, it is We who are steadily expanding it.

And the earth have We spread out wide - and how well have We ordered it!

And in everything have We created oppos­ites, so that you might bear in mind [that God alone is One].

And so, [O Muhammad, say unto them:] “Flee unto God [from all that is false and evil]! Verily, I am a plain warner to you from Him!

And do not ascribe divinity to aught side by side with God: verily, I am a plain warner to you from Him!”

[But] thus it is: never yet came any apostle to those who lived before their time but they said, “A spellbinder [Lit., "sorcerer".] [is he], or a madman!”

Have they, perchance, handed down this [way of thinking] as a legacy unto one another? Nay, they are people filled with overweening ar­rogance!

Turn, then, away from them, and thou shalt incur no blame;

yet go on reminding [all who would listen]: for, verily, such a reminder will profit the believers.

And [tell them that] I have not created the invisible beings and men to any end other than that they may [know and] worship Me.

[But withal,] no sustenance do I ever demand of them, nor do I demand that they feed Me:

for, verily, God Himself is the Provider of all sustenance, the Lord of all might, the Eternal!

And, verily, they who are bent on doing evil shall have their share [of evil] like unto the share of their fellows [of old]: so let them not ask Me to hasten [their doom]!

For, woe unto those who are bent on denying the truth - [woe] on the Day which they have been promised

CONSIDER Mount Sinai!

Consider [God’s] revelation, inscribed

on wide-open scrolls.

Consider the long-enduring house [of worship]!

Consider the vault [of heaven] raised high!

Consider the surf-swollen sea!

VERILY, [O man,] the suffering decreed by thy Sustainer [for the sinners] will indeed come to pass:

there is none who could avert it.

[It will come to pass] on the Day when the skies will be convulsed in [a great] convulsion,

and the mountains will move with [an awesome] movement.

Woe, then, on that Day to all who give the lie to the truth –

all those who [throughout their lives] but idly played with things vain –

on the Day when they shall be thrust into the fire with [an irresistible] thrust, [and will be told:]

“This is the fire which you were wont to call a lie!

Was it, then, a delusion or is it that you failed to see [its truth]?

Endure it [now]! But [whether you] bear yourselves with patience or without patience, it will be the same to you: you are but being requited for what you were wont to do.”

[But,] verily, the God-conscious will find themselves [on that Day] in gardens and in bliss,

rejoicing in all that their Sustainer will have granted them: for their Sustainer will have warded off from them all suffering through the blazing fire.

[And they will be told:] “Eat and drink with good cheer as an outcome of what you were wont to do,

reclining on couches [of happiness] ranged in rows!” And [in that paradise] We shall mate them with companions pure, most beautiful of eye.

And as for those who have attained to faith and whose offspring will have followed them in faith, We shall unite them with their offspring; and We shall not let aught of their deeds go to waste: [but] every human being will be held in pledge for whatever he has earned.

And We shall bestow on them fruit and meat in abundance - whatever they may desire:

and in that [paradise] they shall pass on to one another a cup which will not give rise to empty talk, and neither incite to sin.

And they will be waited upon by [immortal] youths, [as if they were children] of their own, [as pure] as if they were pearls hidden in their shells.

And they [who are thus blest] will turn to one another, asking each other [about their past lives].

They will say: “Behold, aforetime - when we were [still living] in the midst of our kith and kin - we were full of fear [at the thought of God’s dis­pleasure]:

and so God has graced us with His favour, and has warded off from us all suffering through the scorching winds [of frustration].

Verily, we did invoke Him [alone] ere this: [and now He has shown us] that He alone is truly benign, a true dispenser of grace!”

EXHORT, then, [O Prophet, all men:] for, by thy Sustainer’s grace, thou art neither a soothsayer nor a madman.

Or do they say, “[He is but] a poet - let us wait what time will do unto him”?

Say thou: “Wait, [then,] hopefully; behold, I, too, shall hopefully wait with you!”

Is it their minds that bid them [to take] this [attitude] - or are they [simply] people filled with overweening arrogance?

Or do they say, “He himself has composed this [message]”? Nay, but they are not willing to believe!

But then, [if they deem it the work of a mere mortal,] let them produce another discourse like it - if what they say be true!

[Or do they deny the existence of God?] Have they themselves been created without anything [that might have caused their creation]? or were they, perchance, their own creators?

[And] have they created the heavens and the earth? Nay, but they have no certainty of anything!

[How could they?] Are thy Sustainer’s treasures with them? Or are they in charge [of destiny]?

Or have they a ladder by which they could [ascend to ultimate truths and] listen [to what is beyond the reach of human perception]? Let, then, any of them who have listened [to it] produce a manifest proof [of his knowledge]!

Or, [if you believe in God, how can you believe that] He has [chosen to have] daughters, whereas you yourselves would have [only] sons?

Or is it that [they who reject thy message, O Muhammad, fear lest] thou ask of them a reward, so that they would be burdened with debt [if they should listen to thee]?

Or [do they think] that the hidden reality [of all that exists] is almost within their grasp, so that [in time] they can write it down?

Or do they want to entrap [thee in contradic­tions]? But they who are bent on denying the truth - it is they who are truly entrapped!

Have they, then, any deity other than God? Utterly remote is God, in His limitless glory, from anything to which men may ascribe a share in His divinity!

AND YET, if they [who refuse to see the truth] were to see part of the sky falling down, they would [only] say, “[It is but] a mass of clouds!”

Hence, leave them alone until they face that [Judgment] Day of theirs, when they will be stricken with terror:

the Day when none of their scheming will be of the least avail to them, and they will receive no succour.

But, verily, for those who are bent on doing evil, there is suffering in store [even] closer at hand than that [supreme suffering in the hereafter]: but most of them are not aware of it.

And so, await in patience thy Sustainer’s judgment, for thou art well within Our sight. And extol thy Sustainer’s limitless glory and praise whenever thou risest up,

and extol His glory at night, and at the time when the stars retreat.

CONSIDER this unfolding [of God’s message], as it comes down from on high!

This fellow-man of yours has not gone astray, nor is he deluded,

and neither does he speak out of his own desire:

that [which he conveys to you] is but [a divine] inspiration with which he is being inspired –

something that a very mighty one has imparted to him:

[an angel] endowed with sur­passing power, who in time manifested himself in his true shape and nature,

appearing in the horizon’s loftiest part,

and then drew near, and came close,

until he was but two bow-lengths away, or even nearer.

And thus did [God] reveal unto His servant whatever He deemed right to reveal.

The [servant’s] heart did not give the lie to what he saw:

will you, then, contend with him as to what he saw?

And, indeed, he saw him a second time

by the lote-tree of the farthest limit,

near unto the garden of promise.

with the lote-tree veiled in a veil of nameless splendour….

[And withal,] the eye did not waver, nor yet did it stray:

truly did he see some of the most profound of his Sustainer’s symbols.

HAVE YOU, then, ever considered [what you are worshipping in] Al-Lat and Al-Uzza,

as well as [in] Manat, the third and last [of this triad]?

Why - for yourselves [you would choose only] male offspring, whereas to Him [you assign] female:

that, lo and behold, is an unfair division!

These [allegedly divine beings] are nothing but empty names which you have invented - you and your forefathers - [and] for which God has bestowed no warrant from on high. They [who worship them] follow nothing but surmise and their own wishful thinking - although right guidance has now indeed come unto them from their Sustainer.

Does man imagine that it is his due to have all that he might wish for,

despite the fact that [both] the life to come and this present [one] belong to God [alone]?

For, however many angels there be in the heavens, their intercession can be of no least avail [to anyone] - except after God has given leave [to inter­cede] for whomever He wills and with whom He is well-pleased.

Behold, it is [only] such as do not [really] believe in the life to come that regard the angels as female beings;

and [since] they have no knowledge whatever thereof, they follow nothing but surmise: yet, behold, never can surmise take the place of truth.

Avoid thou, therefore, those who turn away from all remembrance of Us and care for no more than the life of this world,

which, to them, is the only thing worth knowing. Behold, thy Sustainer is fully aware as to who has strayed from His path, and fully aware is He as to who follows His guidance.

Indeed, unto God belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth: and so He will reward those who do evil in accordance with what they did, and will reward those who do good with ultimate good.

As for those who avoid the [truly] grave sins and shameful deeds - even though they may some­times stumble behold, thy Sustainer is abounding in forgiveness. He is fully aware of you when He brings you into being out of dust, and when you are still hidden in your mothers’ wombs: do not, then, consider your­selves pure - [for] He knows best as to who is conscious of Him.

HAST THOU, then, ever considered him who turns away [from remembering Us, and cares for no more than the life of this world],

and gives so little [of himself for the good of his soul], and so grudgingly?

Does he [claim to] have knowledge of some­thing that is beyond the reach of human perception, so that he can see [it clearly]?

Or has he never yet been told of what was [said] in the revelations of Moses,

and of Abra­ham, who to his trust was true:

that no bearer of burdens shall be made to bear another’s burden;

and that nought shall be accounted unto man but what he is striving for;

and that in time [the nature of] all his striving will be shown [to him in its true light],

where­upon he shall be requited for it with the fullest requital;

and that with thy Sustainer is the beginning and the end [of all that exists];

and that it is He alone who causes [you] to laugh and to weep;

and that it is He alone who deals death and grants life;

and that it is He who creates the two kinds - the male and the female –

out of a [mere] drop of sperm as it is poured forth,

and that [therefore] it is within His power to bring about a second life;

and that it is He alone who frees from want and causes to possess;

and that it is He alone who sustains the bright­est star;

and that it is He who destroyed the ancient [tribes of] Ad

and Thamud, leaving no trace [of them],

as well as the people of Noah before them - [since,] verily, they all had been most willful in their evildoing and most overweening –

just as He thrust into perdition those cities that were overthrown

and then covered them from sight forever.

About which, then, of thy Sustainer’s powers canst thou [still] remain in doubt?

THIS IS a warning like those warnings of old:

that [Last Hour] which is so near draws ever nearer,

[although] none but God can unveil it....

Do you, perchance, find this tiding strange?

And do you laugh instead of weeping,

and divert yourselves all the while?

[Nay,] but prostrate yourselves before God, and worship [Him alone]!

THE LAST HOUR draws near, and the moon is split asunder!

But if they [who reject all thought of the Last Hour] were to see a sign [of its approach], they would turn aside and say, “An ever-recurring delusion!” –

for they are bent on giving it the lie, being always wont to follow their own desires. Yet everything reveals its truth in the end.

And withal, there has come unto them many a tiding that should have restrained [their arrogance]:

far-reaching wisdom [was held out to them]: but [since] all warnings have been of no avail,

turn thou away from them. On the Day when the Summoning Voice will sum­mon [man] unto something that the mind cannot conceive,

they will come forth from their graves, with their eyes downcast, [swarming about] like locusts scattered [by the wind],

running in con­fusion towards the Summoning Voice; [and] those who [now] deny the truth will exclaim, “Calamitous is this Day!”

[LONG] BEFORE those [who now deny resurrec­tion] did Noah’s people call it a lie; and they gave the lie to Our servant and said, “Mad is he!” - and he was repulsed.

Thereupon he called out to his Sustainer, “Verily, I am defeated; come Thou, then, to my succour!”

And so We caused the gates of heaven to open with water pouring down in torrents,

and caused the earth to burst forth with springs, so that the waters met for a purpose pre-ordained:

but him We bore on that [vessel] made of [mere] planks and nails,

and it floated under Our eyes: a recom­pense for him who had been rejected with ingratitude.

And, indeed, We have caused such [floating vessels] to remain forever a sign [of Our grace unto man]: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?

And how severe is the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!

Hence, indeed, We made this Qur’an easy to bear in mind: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?

TO THE TRUTH gave the lie [the tribe of] Ad: and how severe was the suffering which I inflicted when My warnings were disregarded!

Behold, We let loose upon them a raging storm wind on a day of bitter misfortune:

it swept the people away as though they were palm-trunks uprooted:

for, how severe is the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!

Hence, indeed, We made this Qur’an easy to bear in mind: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?

[AND the tribe of] Thamud gave the lie to all [Our] warnings;

and they said: “Are we to follow one single mortal, one from among ourselves? In that case, behold, we would certainly sink into error and folly!

Why - on him alone from among all of us should a [divine] reminder have been bestowed? Nay, but he is a boastful liar!”

[And God said:] “On the morrow they will come to know who the boastful liar is!

Behold, [O Salih] We are letting loose this she-camel as a test for them; and thou but watch them, and contain thyself in patience.

And let them know that the water [of their wells] is to be divided between them, with each share of water equitably apportioned.”

But they summoned their [boldest] companion, and he ventured [upon the evil deed], and cruelly slaughtered [the animal]:

and how severe was the suffering which I inflicted when My warnings were disregarded!

Behold, We let loose upon them one single blast [of Our punishment], and they became like the dried-up, crumbling twigs of a sheepfold.

Hence, indeed, We made this Qur’an easy to bear in mind: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?

LOT ’S PEOPLE [too] gave the lie to all [Our] warn­ings:

[and so,] behold, We let loose upon them a deadly tempest; and only Lot ’s kinsfolk did We save at the break of dawn,

as a blessing from Us: thus do We reward all who are grateful.

For he had truly warned them of Our punishing might; but they stubbornly cast doubt on these warn­ings,

and even demanded that he give up his guests [to them]: whereupon We deprived them of their sight [and thus told them, as it were]: “Taste, then, the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!”

And, indeed, abiding suffering did befall them early on the morrow:

“Taste, then, the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!”

Hence, indeed, We made this Qur’an easy to bear in mind: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?

Now surely, unto Pharaoh’s folk [too] came such warnings;

they, too, gave the lie to all Our messages: and thereupon We took them to task as only the Almighty, who determines all things, can take to task.

ARE, THEN, those of you who [now] deny the truth better than those others - or have you, per­chance, [been promised] immunity in the [ancient] books of [divine] wisdom?

Or do they say, “We are a group united, [and therefore] bound to prevail”?

[Yet] the hosts [of those who deny the truth] shall be routed, and they shall turn their backs [in flight]!

But nay - the Last Hour is the time when they shall truly meet their fate; and that Last Hour will be most calamitous, and most bitter:

for, behold, those who are lost in sin [will at that time come to know that it is they who] were sunk in error and folly!

On the Day when they shall be dragged into the fire on their faces, [they will be told:] “Taste now the touch of hell-fire!”

BEHOLD, everything have We created in due measure and proportion;

and Our ordaining [a thing and its coming into being] is but one [act], like the twinkling of an eye.

Thus, indeed, did We destroy people like you [in the past]: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?

[They were truly guilty] because all [the evil] that they ever did had been [revealed to them as such] in the [ancient] books of [divine] wisdom;

and everything [that man does], be it small or great, is recorded [with God].

[Hence, too,] behold, the God-conscious will find themselves in [a paradise of] gardens and running waters,

in a seat of truth, in the presence of a Sovereign who determines all things.

THE MOST GRACIOUS

has imparted this Qur’an [unto man].

He has created man:

He has imparted unto him articulate thought and speech.

[At His behest] the sun and the moon run their appointed courses;

[before Him] prostrate them­selves the stars and the trees.

And the skies has He raised high, and has devised [for all things] a measure,

so that you [too, O men,] might never transgress the measure [of what is right]:

weigh, therefore, [your deeds] with equity, and cut not the measure short!

And the earth has He spread out for all living beings,

with fruit thereon, and palm trees with sheathed clusters [of dates],

and grain growing tall on its stalks, and sweet-smelling plants.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

He has created man out of sounding clay, like pottery,

whereas the invisible beings He has created out of a confusing flame of fire.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

[He is] the Sustainer of the two farthest points of sunrise, and the Sustainer of the two farthest points of sunset.

Which, then, of your Sustain­er’s powers can you disavow?

He has given freedom to the two great bodies of water, so that they might meet:

[yet] between them is a barrier which they may not transgress.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

Out of these two [bodies of water] come forth pearls, both great and small.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

And His are the lofty ships that sail like [floating] mountains through the seas.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

All that lives on earth or in the heavens is bound to pass away:

but forever will abide thy Sustainer’s Self, full of majesty and glory.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

On Him depends all creatures in the heavens and on earth; [and] every day He manifests Himself in yet another [wondrous] way.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

[ONE DAY] We shall take you to task, O you sin-laden two!

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

O you who live in close communion with [evil] invisible beings and humans! If you [think that you] can pass beyond the regions of the heavens and the earth, pass beyond them! [But] you cannot pass beyond them, save by a sanction [from God]!

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

A flash of fire will be let loose upon you, and smoke, and you will be left without succour!

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

And when the sky is rent asunder and becomes red like [burning] oil

which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

For on that Day neither man nor invisible being will be asked about his sins.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

All who were lost in sin shall by their marks be known, and shall by their forelocks and their feet be seized!

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

This will be the hell which those who are lost in sin [now] call a lie:

between it and [their own] burning-hot despair will they wander to and fro!

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

BUT FOR THOSE who of their Sustainer’s Presence stand in fear, two gardens [of paradise are readied] -

which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow? –

[two gardens] of many wondrous hues.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

In [each of] these two [gardens] two springs will flow.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

In [each of] these two will two kinds of every fruit be [found].

Which, then, of your Sustainer s powers can you disavow?

[In such a paradise the blest will dwell,] reclin­ing upon carpets lined with rich brocade; and the fruit of both these gardens will be within easy reach.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

In these [gardens] will be mates of modest gaze, whom neither man nor invisible being will have touched ere then.

Which, then, of your Sus­tainer’s powers can you disavow?

[When you are promised splendours] as though [of] rubies and [of] pearls –

which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

Could the reward of good be aught but good?

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

And besides those two will be yet two [other] gardens -

which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow? –

two [gardens] of the deepest green.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

In [each of] these two [gardens] will two springs gush forth.

Which, then, of your Sus­tainer’s powers can you disavow?

In both of them will be [all kinds of] fruit, and date-palms and pomegranates.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

In these [gardens] will be [all] things most excellent and beautiful.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

[There the blest will live with their] companions pure and modest, in pavilions [splendid] -

which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow? –

[companions] whom neither man nor invisible being will have touched ere then.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

[In such a paradise will they dwell,] reclining upon meadows green and carpets rich in beauty.

Which, then, of your Sustainer’s powers can you disavow?

HALLOWED be thy Sustainer’s name, full of majesty and glory!

WHEN THAT which must come to pass [at last] comes to pass,

there will be nought that could give the lie to its having come to pass,

abasing [some], exalting [others]!

When the earth is shaken with a shaking [severe],

and the mountains are shattered into [countless] shards,

so that they become as scat­tered dust –

[on that Day,] then, shall you be [divided into] three kinds.

Thus, there shall be such as will have attained to what is right: oh, how [happy] will be they who have attained to what is right!

And there shall be such as will have lost them­selves in evil: oh, how [unhappy] will be they who have lost themselves in evil!

But the foremost shall be [they who in life were] the foremost [in faith and good works]:

they who were [always] drawn close unto God!

In gardens of bliss [will they dwell] -

a good many of those of olden times,

but [only] a few of later times.

[They will be seated] on gold-encrusted thrones of happiness,

reclining upon them, facing one another [in love].

Immortal youths will wait upon them

with goblets, and ewers, and cups filled with water from unsullied springs

by which their minds will not be clouded and which will not make them drunk;

and with fruit of any kind that they may choose,

and with the flesh of any fowl that they may desire.

And [with them will be their] companions pure, most beautiful of eye,

like unto pearls [still] hidden in their shells.

[And this will be] a reward for what they did [in life].

No empty talk will they hear there, nor any call to sin,

but only the tiding of inner soundness and peace.

NOW AS FOR those who have attained to righteous­ness - what of those who have attained to righteous­ness?

[They, too, will find themselves] amidst fruit- laden lote-trees,

and acacias flower-clad,

and shade extended,

and waters gushing,

and fruit abounding,

never-failing and never out of reach.

And [with them will be their] spouses, raised high:

for, behold, We shall have brought them into being in a life renewed,

having resurrected them as virgins,

full of love, well-matched

with those who have attained to righteousness:

a good many of olden times,

and a good many of later times.

BUT AS FOR those who have persevered in evil - what of those who have persevered in evil?

[They will find themselves] in the midst of scorching winds, and burning despair,

and the shadows of black smoke -

[shadows] neither cooling nor soothing.

For, behold, in times gone by they were wont to abandon themselves wholly to the pursuit of pleasures,

and would persist in heinous sinning,

and would say, “What! After we have died and become mere dust and bones, shall we, forsooth, be raised from the dead? -

and perhaps, too, our forebears of old?”

Say: “Verily, those of olden times and those of later times

will indeed be gathered together at an appointed time on a Day known [only to God]:

and then, verily, O you who have gone astray and called the truth a lie,

you will indeed have to taste of the tree of deadly fruit,

and will have to fill your bellies therewith,

and will thereupon have to drink [many a draught] of burning despair -

drink it as the most insatiably thirsty camels drink!”

Such will be their welcome on Judgment Day!

WE who have created you, [O men:] why, then, do you not accept the truth?

Have you ever considered that [seed] which you emit?

Is it you who create it - or are We the source of its creation?

We have [indeed] decreed that death shall be [ever-present] among you: but there is nothing to prevent Us

from changing the nature of your existence and bringing you into being [anew] in a manner [as yet] unknown to you.

And [since] you are indeed aware of the [miracle of your] coming into being in the first instance - why, then, do you not bethink yourselves [of Us]?

Have you ever considered the seed which you cast upon the soil?

Is it you who cause it to grow - or are We the cause of its growth?

[For,] were it Our will, We could indeed turn it into chaff, and you would be left to wonder [and to lament],

“Verily, we are ruined!

Nay, but we have been deprived [of our livelihood]!”

Have you ever considered the water which you drink?

Is it you who cause it to come down from the clouds - or are We the cause of its coming down?

[It comes down sweet - but] were it Our will, We could make it burningly salty and bitter: why, then, do you not give thanks [unto Us]?

Have you ever considered the fire which you kindle?

Is it you who have brought into being the tree that serves as its fuel - or are We the cause of its coming into being?

It is We who have made it a means to remind [you of Us], and a comfort for all who are lost and hungry in the wilderness [of their lives].

Extol, then, the limitless glory of thy Sus­tainer’s mighty name!

NAY, I call to witness the coming-down in parts [of this Qur’an]

and, behold, this is indeed a most solemn affirmation, if you but knew it!

Behold, it is a truly noble discourse,

[conveyed unto man] in a well-guarded divine writ

which none but the pure [of heart] can touch:

a revelation from the Sustainer of all the worlds!

Would you, now, look down with disdain on a tiding like this,

and make it your daily bread [as it were] to call the truth a lie?

Why, then, when [the last breath] comes up to the throat [of a dying man],

the while you are [helplessly] looking on -

and while We are closer to him than you, although you see [Us] not -:

why, then, if [you think that] you are not truly dependent [on Us],

can you not cause that [ebbing life] to return - if what you claim is true?

[ALL OF YOU are destined to die.] Now if one happens to be of those who are drawn close unto God,

happiness [awaits him in the life to come], and inner fulfillment, and a garden of bliss.

And if one happens to be of those who have attained to righteousness,

[he, too, will be wel­comed into paradise with the words,] “Peace be unto thee [that art] of those who have attained to right­eousness!”

But if one happens to be of those who are wont to call the truth a lie, and [thus] go astray,

a welcome of burning despair [awaits him in the life to come,]

and the heat of a blazing fire!

Verily, this is indeed the truth of truths!

Extol, then, the limitless glory of thy Sus­tainer’s mighty name!

ALL THAT IS in the heavens and on earth extols God’s limitless glory: for He alone is almighty, truly wise!

His is the dominion over the heavens and the earth; He grants life and deals death; and He has the power to will anything.

He is the First and the Last, and the Outward as well as the Inward: and He has full knowledge of everything.

He it is who has created the heavens and the earth in six aeons, and is established on the throne of His almightiness. He knows all that enters the earth, and all that comes out of it, as well as all that descends from the skies, and all that ascends to them. And He is with you wherever you may be; and God sees all that you do.

His is the dominion over the heavens and the earth; and all things go back unto God [as their source].

He makes the night grow longer by shortening the day, and makes the day grow longer by shortening the night; and He has full knowledge of what is in the hearts [of men].

BELIEVE in God and His Apostle, and spend on others out of that of which He has made you trus­tees: for, those of you who have attained to faith and who spend freely [in God’s cause] shall have a great reward.

And why should you not believe in God, seeing that the Apostle calls you to believe in [Him who is] your Sustainer, and [seeing that] He has taken a pledge from you? [Why should you not believe in Him] if you are able to believe [in anything]?

It is He who bestows from on high clear mes­sages unto [this] His servant, to lead you out of the deep darkness into the light: for, behold, God is most compassionate towards you, a dispenser of grace.

And why should you not spend freely in the cause of God, seeing that God’s [alone] is the heritage of the heavens and the earth? Not equal are those of you who spent and fought [in God’s cause] before the Victory [and those who did not do so]: they are of a higher rank than those who would spend and fight [only] after it - although God has promised the ultimate good to all [who strive in His cause]. and god is aware of that you do.

WHO IS IT that will offer up unto God a goodly loan, which He will amply repay For, such [as do so] shall have a noble reward

on the Day when thou shalt see all believing men and believing women, with their light spreading rapidly before them and on their right, [and with this wel­come awaiting them:] “A glad tiding for you today: gardens through which running waters flow, therein to abide! This, this is the triumph supreme!”

On that Day shall the hypocrites, both men and women, speak [thus] unto those who have attained to faith: “Wait for us! Let us have a [ray of] light from your light!” [But] they will be told: “Turn back, and seek a light [of your own]!” And thereupon a wall will be raised between them [and the believers], with a gate in it: within it will be grace and mercy, and against the outside thereof, suffering.

They [who will remain without] will call out to those [within], “Were we not with you?” - [to which] the others will answer: “So it was! But you allowed yourselves to succumb to temptation, and you were hesitant [in your faith], and you were doubtful [of resurrection]; and your wishful thinking beguiled you until God’s command came to pass: for, [indeed, your own] deceptive thoughts about God deluded you

“And so, no ransom shall be accepted today from you, and neither from those who were [openly] bent on denying the truth. Your goal is the fire: it is your [only] refuge - and how evil a journey’s end!”

IS IT NOT time that the hearts of all who have attained to faith should feel humble at the remem­brance of God and of all the truth that has been bestowed [on them] from on high, lest they become like those who were granted revelation aforetime, and whose hearts have hardened with the passing of time so that many of them are [now] depraved?

[But] know that God gives life to the earth after it has been lifeless! We have indeed made Our messages clear unto you, so that you might use your reason.

Verily, as for the men and women who accept the truth as true and who [thus] offer up unto God a goodly loan, they will be amply repaid, and shall have a noble reward [in the life to come].

For, they who have attained to faith in God and His Apostle - it is they, they who uphold the truth, and they who bear witness [thereto] before God: [and so] they shall have their reward and their light! But as for those who are bent on denying the truth and on giving the lie to Our messages - it is they who are destined for the blazing fire!

KNOW [O men] that the life of this world is but a play and a passing delight, and a beautiful show, and [the cause of] your boastful vying with one another, and [of your] greed for more and more riches and children. Its parable is that of [life-giving] rain: the herbage which it causes to grow delights the tillers of the soil; but then it withers, and thou canst see it turn yellow; and in the end it crumbles into dust. But [the abiding truth of man’s condition will become fully apparent] in the life to come: [either] suffering severe, or God’s forgiveness and His goodly acceptance: for the life of this world is nothing but an enjoyment of self-delusion.

[Hence,] vie with one another in seeking to attain to your Sustainer’s forgiveness, and [thus] to a paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth, which has been readied for those who have attained to faith in God and His Apostle: such is the bounty of God which He grants unto whomever He wills - for God is limitless in His great bounty.

NO CALAMITY can ever befall the earth, and nei­ther your own selves, unless it be [laid down] in Our decree before We bring it into being: verily, all this is easy for God.

[Know this,] so that you may not despair over whatever [good] has escaped you nor exult [unduly] over whatever [good] has come to you: for, God does not love any of those who, out of self-conceit, act in a boastful manner –

those who are niggardly [with God’s bounty] and bid others to be niggardly! And he who turns his back [on this truth ought to know that], verily, God alone is self-sufficient, the One to whom all praise is due!

Indeed, [even aforetime] did We send forth Our apostles with all evidence of [this] truth; and through them We bestowed revelation from on high, and [thus gave you] a balance [wherewith to weigh right and wrong], so that men might behave with equity; and We bestowed [upon you] from on high [the ability to make use of] iron, in which there is awesome power as well as [a source of] benefits for man: and [all this was given to you] so that God might mark out those who would stand up for him and His Apostle, even though He [Himself] is beyond the reach of human perception. Verily, God is powerful, almighty!

And, indeed, [to the same end] We sent forth Noah and Abraham [as Our message-bearers], and established prophethood and revelation among their descendants; and some of them were on the right way, but many were iniquitous.

And thereupon We caused [other of] Our apostles to follow in their footsteps; and [in the course of time] We caused them to be followed by Jesus, the son of Mary, upon whom We bestowed the Gospel; and in the hearts of those who [truly] followed him We engendered compassion and mercy. But as for monastic asceticism - We did not enjoin it upon them: they invented it themselves out of a desire for God’s goodly acceptance. But then, they did not [always] observe it as it ought to have been observed: and so We granted their recompense unto such of them as had [truly] attained to faith, whereas many of them became iniquitous.

O YOU who have attained to faith! Remain con­scious of God, and believe in His Apostle, [and] He will grant you doubly of His grace, and will light for you a light wherein you shall walk, and will forgive you [your past sins]: for God is much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace.

And the followers of earlier revelation should know that they have no power whatever over any of God’s bounty, seeing that all bounty is in God’s hand [alone]: He grants it unto whomever He wills - for God is limitless in His great bounty.