20. “For me, I have sought
Safety with my Lord
And your Lord, against
Your injuring me.

21. “If ye believe me not,
At least keep yourselves
Away from me.”

22. (But they were aggressive:)
Then he cried
To his Lord:
“These are indeed
A people given to sin.”

23. (The reply came:)
“March forth with my servants
By night: for ye are
Sure to be pursued.

24. “And leave the sea
As a furrow (divided):
For they are a host
(Destined) to be drowned.”

25. How many were the gardens
And springs they left behind,

26. And corn-fields
And noble buildings,

27. And wealth (and conveniences
Of life), wherein they
Had taken such delight!

28. Thus (was their end)!
And We made other people
Inherit (those things)!

29. And neither heaven
Nor earth shed a tear
Over them: nor were
They given a respite (again).

SECTION 2.

30. We did deliver aforetime
The Children of Israel
From humiliating Punishment,

31. Inflicted by Pharaoh, for he
Was arrogant (even) among
Inordinate transgressors.

32. And We chose them aforetime
Above the nations, knowingly,

33. And granted them Signs
In which there was
A manifest trial.

34. As to these (Quraish),
They say forsooth:

35. “There is nothing beyond
Our first death,
And we shall not
Be raised again.

36. “Then bring (back)
Our forefathers, if what
Ye say is true!”

37. What! are they better
Than the people of Tubba‘
And those who were
Before them? We destroyed
Them because they were
Guilty of sin.

38. We created not
The heavens, the earth,
And all between them,
Merely in (idle) sport:

39. We created them not
Except for just ends:
But most of them
Do not understand.

40. Verily the Day of
Sorting Out is the time
Appointed for all of them, —

41. The Day when no protector
Can avail his client
In aught, and no help
Can they receive,

42. Except such as receive
God’s Mercy: for He is
Exalted in Might, Most Merciful.

SECTION 3.

43. Verily the tree
Of Zaqqūm

44. Will be the food
Of the Sinful, —

45. Like molten brass;
It will boil
In their insides,

46. Like the boiling
Of scalding water.

47. (A voice will cry:)
“Seize ye him
And drag him
Into the midst
Of the Blazing Fire!

48. “Then pour over his head
The Penalty of Boiling Water

49. “Taste thou (this)!
Truly wast thou
Mighty, full of honour!

50. “Truly this is what
Ye used to doubt!”

51. As to the Righteous
(They will be) in
A position of Security,

52. Among Gardens and Springs;

53. Dressed in fine silk
And in rich brocade,
They will face each other;

54. So; and We shall
Join them to Companions
With beautiful, big,
And lustrous eyes.

55. There can they call
For every kind of fruit
In peace and security;

56. Nor will they there
Taste Death, except the first
Death; and He will preserve
Them from the Penalty
Of the Blazing Fire, —

57. As a Bounty from thy Lord!
That will be
The supreme achievement!

58. Verily, We have made
This (Qur-ān) easy,
In thy tongue,
In order that they
May give heed.

59. So wait thou and watch;
For they (too) are waiting.

Sūra XLV.

Jathiya, or Bowing the Knee.

In the name of God, Most Gracious,
Most Merciful.

1. Ḥā-Mīm.

2. The revelation
Of the Book
Is from God
The Exalted in Power,
Full of Wisdom.

3. Verily in the heavens
And the earth, are Signs
For those who believe.

4. And in the creation
Of yourselves and the fact
That animals are scattered
(Through the earth), are Signs
For those of assured Faith.

5. And in the alternation
Of Night and Day,
And the fact that God
Sends down Sustenance from
The sky, and revives therewith
The earth after its death,
And in the change
Of the winds, — are Signs
For those that are wise.

6. Such are the Signs
Of God, which We rehearse to thee
In truth: then in what
Exposition will they believe
After (rejecting) God
And His Signs?

7. Woe to each sinful
Dealer in Falsehoods:

8. He hears the Signs
Of God rehearsed to him,
Yet is obstinate and lofty,
As if he had not
Heard them: then announce
To him a Penalty Grievous!

9. And when he learns
Something of Our Signs,
He takes them in jest:
For such there will be
A humiliating Penalty.

10. In front of them is
Hell: and of no profit
To them is anything
They may have earned,
Nor any protectors they
May have taken to themselves
Besides God: for them
Is a tremendous Penalty.

11. This is (true) Guidance:
And for those who reject
The Signs of their Lord,
Is a grievous Penalty
Of abomination.

SECTION 2.

12. It is God Who has
Subjected the sea to you,
That ships may sail
Through it by His command,
That ye may seek
Of His Bounty, and that
Ye may be grateful.

13. And He has subjected
To you, as from Him,
All that is in the heavens
And on earth: behold,
In that are Signs indeed
For those who reflect.

14. Tell those who believe,
To forgive those who
Do not look forward
To the Days of God:
It is for Him to recompense
(For good or ill) each People
According to what
They have earned.

15. If any one does
A righteous deed,
It enures to the benefit
Of his own soul;
If he does evil,
It works against
(His own soul).
In the end will ye
(All) be brought back
To your Lord.

16. We did aforetime
Grant to the Children
Of Israel the Book,
The Power of Command,
And Prophethood; We gave
Them, for Sustenance, things
Good and pure; and We
Favoured them above the nations.

17. And We granted them
Clear Signs in affairs
(Of Religion): it was only
After knowledge had been
Granted to them that they
Fell into schisms, through
Insolent envy among themselves
Verily thy Lord will judge
Between them on the Day
Of Judgment as to those
Matters in which they
Set up differences.

18. Then we put thee
On the (right) Way
Of Religion: so follow
Thou that (Way),
And follow not the desires
Of those who know not.

19. They will be of no
Use to thee in the sight
Of God: it is only
Wrong-doers (that stand as)
Protectors, one to another:
But God is the Protector
Of the Righteous.

20. These are clear evidences
To men, and a Guidance
And Mercy to those
Of assured Faith.

21. What! do those who
Seek after evil ways
Think that We shall
Hold them equal with
Those who believe and
Do righteous deeds, — that
Equal will be their
Life and their death?
Ill is the judgment
That they make.

SECTION 3.

22. God created the heavens
And the earth for
Just ends, and in order
That each soul may find
The recompense of what
It has earned, and none
Of them be wronged.

23. Then seest thou such
A one as takes
As his god his own
Vain desire? God has,
Knowing (him as such),
Left him astray, and sealed
His hearing and his heart
(And understanding), and put
A cover on his sight.
Who, then, will guide him
After God (has withdrawn
Guidance)? Will ye not
Then receive admonition?

24. And they say: “What is
There but our life
In this world?
We shall die and we live,
And nothing but Time
Can destroy us.” But
Of that they have no
Knowledge: they merely conjecture:

25. And when Our Clear
Signs are rehearsed to them,
Their argument is nothing
But this: they say, “Bring
(Back) our forefathers, if
What ye say is true!”

26. Say: “It is God Who
Gives you life, then
Gives you death; then
He will gather you together
For the Day of Judgment
About which there is
No doubt”: but most
Men do not understand.

SECTION 4.

27. To God belongs
The dominion of the heavens
And the earth, and
The Day that the Hour
Of Judgment is established, —
That Day will the dealers
In Falsehood perish!

28. And thou wilt see
Every sect bowing the knee:
Every sect will be called
To its Record: “This Day
Shall ye be recompensed
For all that ye did!

29. “This Our Record speaks
About you with truth:
For We were wont
To put on record
All that ye did.”

30. Then, as to those who
Believed and did righteous
Deeds, their Lord will
Admit them to His Mercy:
That will be the Achievement’s
For all to see.

31. But as to those who
Rejected God, (to them
Will be said): “Were not
Our Signs rehearsed to you?
But ye were arrogant,
And were a people
Given to sin!

32. And when it was said
That the promise of God
Was true, and that the Hour —
There was no doubt
About its (coming), ye
Used to say, “We
Know not what is
The Hour: we only think
It is an idea, and we
Have no firm assurance.”

33. Then will appear to them
The evil (fruits) of what
They did, and they will be
Completely encircled by that
Which they used to mock at!

34. It will also be said:
“This Day We will forget
You as ye forgot
The meeting of this Day
Of yours! And your
Abode is the Fire, and
No helpers have ye!

35. “This, because ye used
To take the Signs of God
In jest, and the life
Of the world deceived you:”
(From) that Day, therefore,
They shall not be taken out
Thence, nor shall they be
Received into Grace.

36. Then Praise be to God,
Lord of the heavens
And Lord of the earth, —
Lord and Cherisher
Of all the worlds!

37. To Him be Glory
Throughout the heavens
And the earth: and He
Is Exalted in Power,
Full of Wisdom!

Sūra XLVI.

Aḥqāf, or Winding Sand-tracts.

In the name of God, Most Gracious,
Most Merciful.

1. Hā-Mīm.

2. The revelation
Of the Book
Is from God
The Exalted in Power,
Full of Wisdom.

3. We created not
The heavens and the earth
And all between them
But for just ends, and
For a term appointed:
But those who reject Faith
Turn away from that
Whereof they are warned.

4. Say: “Do ye see
What it is ye invoke
Besides God? Show me
What it is they
Have created on earth,
Or have they a share
In the heavens?
Bring me a Book
(Revealed) before this,
Or any remnant of knowledge
(Ye may have), if ye
Are telling the truth!”

5. And who is more astray
Than one who invokes,
Besides God, such as will
Not answer him to the Day
Of Judgment, and who
(In fact) are unconscious
Of their call (to them)?

6. And when mankind
Are gathered together
(At the Resurrection),
They will be hostile
To them and reject
Their worship (altogether)!

7. When Our Clear Signs
Are rehearsed to them,
The Unbelievers say,
Of the Truth
When it comes to them:
“This is evident sorcery!”

8. Or do they say,
“He has forged it”?
Say: “Had I forged it,
Then can ye obtain
No single (blessing) for me
From God. He knows best
Of that whereof ye talk
(So glibly)! Enough is He
For a witness between me
And you! And He is
Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”

9. Say: “I am no bringer
Of new-fangled doctrine
Among the apostles, nor
Do I know what will
Be done with me or
With you. I follow
But that which is revealed
To me by inspiration;
I am but a Warner
Open and clear.”

10. Say: “See ye?
If (this teaching) be
From God, and ye reject it,
And a witness from among
The Children of Israel testifies
To its similarity
(With earlier scripture),
And has believed
While ye are arrogant,
(How unjust ye are!)
Truly, God guides not
A people unjust.”

SECTION 2.

11. The Unbelievers say
Of those who believe:
“If (this Message) were
A good thing, (such men)
Would not have gone
To it first, before us!”
And seeing that they
Guide not themselves thereby,
They will say, “This is
An (old,) old falsehood!”

12. And before this, was
The Book of Moses
As a guide and a mercy:
And this Book confirms (it)
In the Arabic tongue;
To admonish the unjust,
And as Glad Tidings.
To those who do right.

13. Verily those who say,
“Our Lord is God,”
And remain firm
(On that Path),
On them shall be no fear,
Nor shall they grieve.

14. Such shall be Companions
Of the Garden, dwelling
Therein (for aye): a recompense
For their (good) deeds.

15. We have enjoined on man
Kindness to his parents:
In pain did his mother
Bear him, and in pain
Did she give him birth.
The carrying of the (child)
To his weaning is
(A period of) thirty months.
At length, when he reaches
The age of full strength
And attains forty years,
He says, “O my Lord!
Grant me that I may be
Grateful for Thy favour
Which Thou hast bestowed
Upon me, and upon both
My parents, and that I
May work righteousness
Such as Thou mayest approve;
And be gracious to me
In my issue. Truly
Have I turned to Thee
And truly do I bow
(To Thee) in Islām.”

16. Such are they from whom
We shall accept the best
Of their deeds and pass by
Their ill deeds: (they shall
Be) among the Companions
Of the Garden: a promise!
Of truth, which was
Made to them
(In this life).

17. But (there is one)
Who says to his parents,
“Fie on you! Do ye
Hold out the promise
To me that I
Shall be raised up,
Even though generations
Have passed before me
(Without rising again)?”
And they two seek
God’s aid, (and rebuke
The son): “Woe to thee!
Have Faith! For the promise
Of God is true.”
But he says, “This is
Nothing but tales
Of the ancients!”

18. Such are they against whom
Is proved the Sentence
Among the previous generations
Of Jinns and men, that have
Passed away; for they will
Be (utterly) lost.

19. And to all
Are (assigned) degrees
According to the deeds
Which they (have done),
And in order that (God)
May recompense their deeds,
And no injustice be done
To them.

20. And on the Day that
The Unbelievers will be
Placed before the Fire,
(It will be said to them):
“Ye received your good things
In the life of the world,
And ye took your pleasure
Out of them: but to-day
Shall ye be recompensed
With a Penalty of humiliation:
For that ye were arrogant
On earth without just cause,
And that ye (ever) transgressed.”

SECTION 3.

21. Mention (Hūd)
One of ‘Ād’s (own) brethren:
Behold, he warned his people
About the winding Sand-tracts:
But there have been Warners
Before him and after him:
“Worship ye none other
Than God: truly I fear
For you the Penalty
Of a Mighty Day.”

22. They said: “Hast thou come
In order to turn us aside
From our gods? Then bring
Upon us the (calamity)
With which thou dost
Threaten us, if thou
Art telling the truth!”

23. He said: “The Knowledge
(Of when it will come)
Is only with God: I
Proclaim to you the mission
On which I have been sent:
But I see that ye
Are a people in ignorance!”…

24. Then, when they saw
The (Penalty in the shape of)
A cloud traversing the sky,
Coming to meet their valleys,
They said, “This cloud
Will give us rain!”
“Nay, it is the (calamity)
Ye were asking to be
Hastened! — a wind
Wherein is a Grievous Penalty!

25. “Everything will it destroy
By the command of its Lord!”
Then by the morning they —
Nothing was to be seen
But (the ruins of) their houses!
Thus do We recompense
Those given to sin!

26. And We had firmly established
Them in a (prosperity and) power
Which We have not given
To you (ye Quraish!)
And We had endowed them
With (faculties of)
Hearing, seeing, heart and intellect
But of no profit to them
Were their (faculties of)
Hearing, sight, and heart
And intellect, when they
Went on rejecting the Signs
Of God; and they were
(Completely) encircled
By that which they
Used to mock at!

SECTION 4.

27. We destroyed aforetime
Populations round about you;
And We have shown
The Signs in various ways,
That they may turn (to Us).

28. Why then was no help
Forthcoming to them from those
Whom they worshipped as gods,
Besides God, as a means
Of access (to God)? Nay,
They left them in the lurch:
But that was their
Falsehood and their invention.

29. Behold, We turned
Towards thee a company
Of Jinns (quietly) listening
To the Qur-ān: when they
Stood in the presence
Thereof, they said, “Listen
In silence!” When the (reading)
Was finished, they returned
To their people, to warn
(Them of their sins).