By those who line themselves in ranks
And so are strong in repelling harm
And so proclaim the message
Indeed your God is one
Lord of the heavens and of the earth, and all between them, and Lord of every point at the rising of the Sun
We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty in the stars
For beauty and to guard against all rebellious devils
They should not strain their ears in the direction of the exalted assembly, but shall be cast away from every side
Repulsed, for they are under a perpetual penalty
Except those that snatch away something by stealth, and they are pursued by a flaming fire of piercing brightness
Just ask their opinion. Are they more difficult to create, or the other beings We have created? We have created them out of wet clay
Indeed you marvel while they ridicule
And though they are advised, they pay no heed
And when they see a sign, they turn it into mockery
And say, “This is nothing but evident deception
“What, when we die and become dust and bones, will we be raised up
“And also our ancestors?
Say, “Yes, and you will then be humiliated.
Then there will be a single cry, and behold, they will begin to see
They will say, “Woe to us, this is the Day of Accountability!
This is the day of sorting out, the truth you once denied
“Bring up,” it will be said, “The wrongdoers and their partners, and the things they worshipped
“Besides God, and lead them to the way of the fire
“But stop them, for they must be asked
“What is the matter with you that you did not help each other?
No, but that day they will submit
And they will turn to one another, and question each other
They will say, “It was you who used to come to us from the right.
They will reply, “No, you yourselves had no faith
“Nor had we any authority over you. No, it was you who were a people in obstinate rebellion
“So now has been proved true against us, the word of our Lord, so we will indeed taste it
“We led you astray, for indeed we were ourselves astray.
Indeed that day, they will all share in the penalty
Indeed that is how We will deal with the wrong-doers
For they, when they were told that there is no god except God, would puff themselves up with pride
And say, “What, will we give up our gods for the sake of a poet possessed?
No, he has come with the truth, and he confirms the messengers
You will indeed taste the terrible penalty
But it will be no more than retribution for what you did
But the sincere servants of God
For them is sustenance determined
They will enjoy fruits, and honor and dignity
In gardens of felicity
Facing each other on thrones
Round will be passed to them a cup from a clear-flowing fountain
White, of a taste delicious to those who drink of it
Free from harm, nor will they suffer intoxication from it
And with them will be companions of modest gaze and beautiful eyes
Like delicate eggs closely guarded
Then they will turn to one another and question each other
One of them will start the conversation by saying, “I had a friend
“Who used to say, ‘What, are you among those who bear witness to the truth
“When we die and become dust and bones, will we indeed receive rewards and punishments?
A voice said, “Would you like to look down?
He looked down and saw him in the middle of the fire
He said, “By God, you were just short of bringing me to perdition
“Had it not been for the grace of my Lord, I would certainly have been among those sent there
“Is it the case that we will not die
“Except our first death, and that we will not be punished?
Indeed this is the greatest achievement
For the like of this let all strive who wish to strive
Is that the better entertainment or the Tree of Zaqqum
For We have truly made it a trial for the wrongdoers
For it is a tree that springs out of the bottom of hellfire
The shoots of its fruit-stalks are like the heads of devils
Truly they will eat of it and fill their stomachs
Then indeed on top of that they will be given a mixture made of boiling water
Then their return will be to the fire
Truly they found their parents on the wrong path
So they were rushed down on their footsteps
And truly before them, many of the ancients went astray
But We sent among them, people to advise them
Then see what was the end of those who were advised
Except the sincere servants of God
Noah called to Us, and We are the best to hear prayers
And We delivered him and his people from the Great Calamity
And made his progeny to endure
And We left for him generations to come in later times
Peace and salutation to Noah among the nations
Indeed we reward those who do right
For he was one of our believing servants
Then the rest we overwhelmed in the flood
Indeed among those who followed his way was Abraham
Behold, he approached his Lord with a pure heart
Behold, he said to his father and to his people, “What is it you worship
“Is it false gods instead of God that you desire
“Then what is your idea about the Lord of the worlds?
Then he cast a glance at the stars
And he said, “I am indeed sick.
So they turned away from him, and departed
Then he turned to their gods and said, “Will you not eat
“What is the matter with you that you do not speak?
Then did he turn to them, striking them with the right hand
Then they came with hurried steps, and faced him
He said, “You worship that which you have carved
“But God has created you and that which you make.
They said, “Build him a furnace, and throw him into the blazing fire.
They then sought another strategy against him, but We made them the ones most humiliated
He said, “I will go to my Lord, He will surely guide me
“O my Lord, grant me one from the righteous.
So We gave him the good news of a child ready to sacrifice and forbear
Then when he reached the age of work he said, “O my son, I see in a vision that I offer you in sacrifice. Now tell me what you see?” The son said, “O my father, do as you are asked. You will find me, God willing, one practicing patience and constancy.
So when they both submitted their wills, and he laid him prostrate on his forehead
We called out to him “O Abraham,
“You have already fulfilled the vision.” Indeed We reward those who do right
For this was a challenge
And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice
And We left this blessing for him among generations to come
“Peace and salutation to Abraham.
Indeed We reward those who do right
For he was one of our believing servants
And We gave him the good news of Isaac, a prophet, one of the righteous
We blessed him and Isaac, but of their progeny are some who do right and some who do wrong, to their own souls
Again We bestowed Our favor on Moses and Aaron
And We delivered them and their people from great calamity
And We helped them, so they overcame
And We gave them the Clear Books
And We guided them to the straight way
And We left this blessing for them among generations to come
“Peace and salutation to Moses and Aaron.
So indeed We reward those who do right
For they were two of our believing servants
Elias was also among those sent by Us
Behold, he said to his people, “Will you not be conscious
“Will you call upon Baal and abandon the Best of Creators
“Your Lord and the Lord of your ancestors?
But they rejected him, and they will certainly be called up
Except the sincere and devoted servants of God
And We left this blessing for him among generations to come
“Peace be upon Elias.
Then indeed do We reward those who do right
For he was one of our believing servants
Lot was also among those sent by Us
Behold, We delivered him and all his adherents
Except an old woman who was among those who lagged behind
Then We caused the rest to perish
Indeed you pass by their sites, by day
And by night. Then will you not use reason
Jonah was also among those sent by Us
When he ran away to the ship fully stocked
He cast lots, and he was condemned
Then the fish swallowed him. He had done things worthy of blame
Had it not been that he glorified God
He would certainly have remained inside the fish until the Day of Resurrection
But We cast him up on the naked shore in a state of sickness
And We caused to grow over him a spreading plant of the gourd kind
And We sent him to a hundred thousand people or more
And they believed. So We permitted them to enjoy their time
Then ask them, do the females belong to God and the males to you
Or did you see Us create the angels female
Is it not that they say falsely
“God has children”? But they are liars
Did He choose daughters over sons
What is the matter with you? How judge you
Will you not then receive advice
Or have you an authority manifest
Then bring your book if you are truthful
And they have created a blood relationship between Him and the jinn. But the jinn know that they have indeed to appear
Glory be to God, He is free from the things they ascribe to Him
Not so the servants of God, sincere and devoted
Indeed neither you nor those you worship
Can lead any into temptation concerning God
Except those whom are themselves heading to the blazing fire
“Not us, only for him is a place known
“And indeed we are arranged in ranks
“And we are indeed those who declare God's glory.
And there were those who said
“If only we had before us a message from those in the past
“We would certainly have been servants of God, sincere.
So they reject it, but soon will they know
Our word has already been passed on before to Our servants sent by Us
So that they would certainly be assisted
And that Our forces surely must conquer
So turn away from them for a little while
And watch them, and they soon will see
Do they wish to rush our punishment
But when it descends into the open space before them, terrible will be the morning for those who were warned
So turn away from them for a little while
And watch and they soon will see
Glory to your Lord, the Lord of Honor and Power, free from what they ascribe to Him
And peace on the messengers
And praise God, the Guardian Evolver of all the worlds