The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
۞ Nun. [These letters (Nun, etc.) are one of the miracles of the Quran, and none but Allah (Alone) knows their meanings]. By the pen and what the (angels) write (in the Records of men). 1 By your Lord's Grace, you are not afflicted with madness, 2 And verily thine shall be a hire unending. 3 Surely, you (Prophet Muhammad) are of a great morality. 4 Anon thou wilt see and they will see. 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Verily, your Lord knows better, who (among men) has gone astray from His Path, and He knows better those who are guided. 7 Do not, then, yield to those who reject the Truth, decrying it as false; 8 They wish that in some way you may yield, so they too might soften their stand. 9 And obey thou not every mean swearer, 10 backbiter, going about with slander, 11 hinderer of good, guilty aggressor, coarse-grained, 12 Violent (and cruel),- with all that, base-born,- 13 Is it because he is possessed of worldly goods and children 14 that, whenever Our messages are conveyed to him, such a one says, "Fables of ancient times"? 15 Anon We shall brand him on snout. 16 We have tried them as we tried the owners of a certain orchard, who vowed to harvest all its fruits the next morning, 17 And were not willing to set aside a portion (for the poor). 18 So an envoy from your Lord completed his round upon the garden, whilst they were sleeping. 19 Then in the morning it became as though it had been reaped. 20 Then they cried out unto each other in the morning. 21 "Go early to your tilth if you want to harvest the fruit!" 22 And so they departed, whispering to one another: 23 "Let no beggar come to the garden". 24 And they went out early, determined in their resolve. 25 But when they saw it, they said: Most surely we have gone astray 26 Rather, we have been deprived." 27 The best of them said: Did I not say to you, Why do you not glorify (Allah)? 28 They cried out: “Glory be to our Lord! Certainly we were sinners.” 29 Then they began to reproach one another. 30 They said, "Alas for us, our behaviour was beyond the pale. 31 We hope that our Lord will give us in exchange a better (garden) than this. Truly, we turn to our Lord (wishing for good that He may forgive our sins, and reward us in the Hereafter)." 32 Such is the chastisement, and certainly the chastisement of the hereafter is greater, did they but know! 33