And say to My servants, that they say words that are kindlier. For surely Satan provokes strife between them, and Satan is ever a manifest foe to man. 53 Your Lord knows you best. He will have mercy on you if He wills and chastise you if He wills. We have not sent you, (O Muhammad), as an overseer over them. 54 And your Lord best knows those who are in the heavens and the earth; and certainly We have made some of the prophets to excel others, and to Dawood We gave a scripture. 55 Say thou: call upon those whom ye fancy beside Him; they are able neither to remove the distress from you nor to work a turning off. 56 Those whom they call upon do desire (for themselves) means of access to their Lord, - even those who are nearest: they hope for His Mercy and fear His Wrath: for the Wrath of thy Lord is something to take heed of. 57 there is not a town [community] but We shall destroy or sternly punish it before the Day of Judgement. That is recorded in the Book. 58 And naught hindered Us from sending the signs except that the ancients belied them. And We vouchsafed unto Thamud a she-camel as an illumination, but they did her wrong. And We send not the signs save to frighten. 59 And when We proclaimed to you, “Indeed all mankind is within the control of your Lord”; and We did not create the spectacle* which We showed you except to try mankind, and the Tree** which is cursed in the Qur’an; and We warn them – so nothing increases for them except extreme rebellion. (* The Ascent of the Holy Prophet to the heavens and beyond, which the disbelievers denied as just a dream. ** The Zakkum tree which will grow in hell and be the food for its inhabitants.) 60