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| 1. * | Nun. [1]1 CONSIDER the pen, and all that they write [therewith]! [2]2 |
| 2. * | Thou art not, by thy Sustainer's grace, a madman! [3]3 |
| 3. * | And, verily, thine shall be a reward neverending - |
| 4. * | for, behold, thou keepest indeed to a sublime way of life; [4]4 |
| 5. * | and [one day] thou shalt see, and they [who now deride thee] shall see, |
| 6. * | which of you was bereft of reason. |
| 7. * | Verily, thy Sustainer alone is fully aware as to who has strayed from His path, Just as He alone is fully aware of those who have found the right way. |
| 8. * | Hence, defer not to [the likes and dislikes of] those who give the lie to the truth: |
| 9. * | they would like thee to be soft [with them], so that they might be soft [with thee]. [5]5 |
| 10. * | Furthermore, [6]6 defer not to the contemptible swearer of oaths, |
| 11. * | [or to] the slanderer that goes about with defaming tales, |
| 12. * | [or] the withholder of good, [or] the sinful aggressor, |
| 13. * | [or] one who is cruel, by greed possessed, [7]7 and, in addition to all this, utterly useless [to his fellow-men]. [8]8 |
| 14. * | Is it because he is possessed of worldly goods and children |
| 15. * | that, whenever Our messages are conveyed to him, such a one says, "Fables of ancient times"? [9]9 |
| 16. * | [For this] We shall brand him with indelible disgrace! [10]10 |
| 17. * | [As for such sinners,] behold, We [but] try them [11]11 as We tried the owners of a certain garden who vowed that they would surely harvest its fruit on the morrow, |
| 18. * | and made no allowance [for the will of God]: [12]12 |
| 19. * | whereupon a visitation for thy Sustainer came upon that [garden] while they were asleep, |
| 20. * | so that by the morrow it became barren and bleak. |
| 21. * | Now when they rose at early morn, they called unto one another, |
| 22. * | "Go early to your tilth if you want to harvest the fruit!" |
| 23. * | Thus they launched forth, whispering unto one another, |
| 24. * | "Indeed, no needy person shall enter it today [and come] upon you [unawares]," [13]13 |
| 25. * | - and early they went, strongly bent upon their purpose. |
| 26. * | But as soon as they beheld [the garden and could not recognize] it, they exclaimed, "Surely we have lost our way!" |
| 27. * | - [and then,] "Nay, but we have been rendered destitute!" |
| 28. * | Said the most right-minded among them: "Did I not tell you, 'Will you not extol God's limitless glory?'" [14]14 |
| 29. * | They answered: "Limitless in His glory is our Sustainer! Verily, we were doing wrong!" |
| 30. * | - and then they turned upon one another with mutual reproaches. |
| 31. * | [In the end] they said: "Oh, woe unto us! Verily, we did behave outrageously! |
| 32. * | [But] it may be that our Sustainer will grant us something better instead: [15]15 for, verily, unto our Sustainer do we turn with hope!" |
| 33. * | SUCH is the suffering [with which We try some people in this world]; [16]16 but greater by far will be the suffering [which sinners shall have to bear] in the life to come - if they but knew it! |
| 34. * | For, behold, it is the God-conscious [alone] whom gardens of bliss await with their Sustainer: |
| 35. * | or should We, perchance, treat those who surrender themselves unto Us [17]17 as [We would treat] those who remain lost in sin? |
| 36. * | What is amiss with you? [18]18 On what do you base your judgment [of right and wrong]? |
| 37. * | Or have you, perchance, a [special] divine writ which you study, |
| 38. * | and in which you find all that you may wish to find? [19]19 |
| 39. * | Or have you received a solemn promise, binding on Us till Resurrection Day, that yours will assuredly be whatever you judge [to be your rightful due]? |
| 40. * | Ask them which of them is able to vouch for this! |
| 41. * | Or have they, perchance, anys ages to support their views? [20]20 Well, then, if they are sincere in this their claim, let them produce those supporters of theirs |
| 42. * | on the Day when man's very being shall be bared to the bone, [21]21 and when they [who now deny the truth] shall be called upon to prostrate themselves [before God], [22]22 and shall be unable to do so: |
| 43. * | downcast will be their eyes, with ignominy overwhelming them - seeing that they had been called upon [in vain] to prostrate themselves [before Him] while they were yet sound [and alive]. |
| 44. * | Hence, leave Me alone with such as give the lie to this tiding. [23]23 We shall bring them low, step by step, without their perceiving how it has come about: [24]24 |
| 45. * | for, behold, though I may give them rein for a while, My subtle scheme is exceedingly firm! [25]25 |
| 46. * | Or is it that [they fear lest] thou ask them for a reward, [O Prophet,] so that they would be burdened with debt [if they listened to thee]? |
| 47. * | Or [do they think] that the hidden reality [of all that exists] is within their grasp, so that [in time] they can write it down? [26]26 |
| 48. * | BEAR THEN with patience thy Sustainer's will and be not like him of the great fish, who cried out [in distress] after having given in to anger. [27]27 |
| 49. * | [And remember:] had not grace from his Sustainer reached him, [28]28 he would indeed have been cast forth upon that barren shore in a state of disgrace: [29]29 |
| 50. * | but [as it was,] his Sustainer had elected him and placed him among the righteous. |
| 51. * | Hence, [be patient,] even though they who are bent on denying the truth would all but kill thee with their eyes whenever they hear this reminder, and [though] they say, "[As for Mubammad,] behold, most surely he is a madman!" |
| 52. * | [Be patient:] for this is nought else but a reminder [from God] to all mankind. |