- Nun. By the pen and that which they write (therewith),
- Thou art not, for thy Lord's favour unto thee, a madman.
- And lo! thine verily will be a reward unfailing.
- And lo! thou art of a tremendous nature.
- And thou wilt see and they will see
- Which of you is the demented.
- Lo! thy Lord is Best Aware of him who strayeth from His way,
and He is Best Aware of those who walk aright.
- Therefor obey not thou the rejecters
- Who would have had thee compromise, that they may compromise.
- Neither obey thou each feeble oath-monger,
- Detracter, spreader abroad of slanders,
- Hinderer of the good, transgressor, malefactor
- Greedy therewithal, intrusive.
- It is because he is possessed of wealth and children
- That, when Our revelations are recited unto him, he saith:
Mere fables of the men of old.
- We shall brand him on the nose.
- Lo! We have tried them as We tried the owners of the garden
when they vowed that they would pluck its fruit next morning,
- And made no exception (for the Will of Allah);
- Then a visitation from thy Lord came upon it while they slept
- And in the morning it was as if plucked.
- And they cried out one unto another in the morning,
- Saying: Run unto your field if ye would pluck (the fruit).
- So they went off, saying one unto another in low tones:
- No needy man shall enter it to-day against you.
- They went betimes, strong in (this) purpose.
- But when they saw it, they said: Lo! we are in error!
- Nay, but we are desolate!
- The best among them said: Said I not unto you: Why glorify ye
not (Allah) ?
- They said: Glorified be our Lord! Lo! we have been
wrong-doers.
- Then some of them drew near unto others, self-reproaching.
- They said: Alas for us! In truth we were outrageous.
- It may be that our Lord will give us better than this in place
thereof. Lo! we beseech our Lord.
- Such was the punishment. And verily the punishment of the
Hereafter is greater if they did but know.
- Lo! for those who keep from evil are gardens of bliss with
their Lord.
- Shall We then treat those who have surrendered as We treat the
guilty ?
- What aileth you ? How foolishly ye judge!
- Or have ye a scripture wherein ye learn
- That ye shall indeed have all that ye choose ?
- Or have ye a covenant on oath from Us that reacheth to the Day
of Judgment, that yours shall be all that ye ordain ?
- Ask them (O Muhammad) which of them will vouch for that!
- Or have they other gods ? Then let them bring their other gods
if they are truthful
- On the day when it befalleth in earnest, and they are ordered
to prostrate themselves but are not able,
- With eyes downcast, abasement stupefying them. And they had
been summoned to prostrate themselves while they were yet unhurt.
- Leave Me (to deal) with those who give the lie to this
pronouncement. We shall lead them on by steps from whence they know
not.
- Yet I bear with them, for lo! My scheme is firm.
- Or dost thou (Muhammad) ask a fee from them so that they are
heavily taxed ?
- Or is the Unseen theirs that they can write (thereof) ?
- But wait thou for thy Lord's decree, and be not like him of
the fish, who cried out in despair.
- Had it not been that favour from his Lord had reached him he
surely had been cast into the wilderness while he was reprobate.
- But his Lord chose him and placed him among the righteous.
- And lo! those who disbelieve would fain disconcert thee with
their eyes when they hear the Reminder, and they say: Lo! he is indeed
mad;
- When it is naught else than a Reminder to creation.