The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful
۞ Noon. I swear by the pen and what the angels write, 1 You are not demented by the grace of your Lord. 2 Surely thou shalt have a wage unfailing; 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 Soon you will see, as will they, 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Verily thy Lord! He is the best Knower of him who strayeth from His path, and He is the best Knower of the guided one. 7 So do not comply with those who deny: 8 They only want that you should relent, so that they may come to terms. 9 And obey thou not every mean swearer, 10 Detracter, spreader abroad of slanders, 11 [or] the withholder of good, [or] the sinful aggressor, 12 Cruel, after all that base-born (of illegitimate birth), 13 Simply because he possesses wealth and children. 14 that, whenever Our messages are conveyed to him, such a one says, "Fables of ancient times"? 15 We shall brand him over the nose! 16 Now We have tried them, even as We tried the owners of the garden when they swore they would pluck in the morning 17 without adding ("if God wills"). 18 Then there encompassed it a visitation from your Lord while they were sleeping. 19 and the garden was turned into a barren desert. 20 So they called out to each other at the break of dawn, 21 'Come forth betimes upon your tillage, if you would pluck!' 22 So they went off, saying one unto another in low tones: 23 'No needy man shall enter it today against your will.' 24 They went betimes, strong in (this) purpose. 25 When they saw (and did not recognise it) they said: "Surely we have lost the way. 26 No. In fact we have been deprived of it." 27 The best among them said: Said I not unto you: Why glorify ye not (Allah)? 28 They said: Glory be to our Lord, surely we were unjust. 29 Then they started blaming one another, 30 They said: woe unto us! verily we! we have been arrogant. 31 Perhaps our Lord will substitute for us [one] better than it. Indeed, we are toward our Lord desirous." 32 Such is the punishment (in this life), but truly, the punishment of the Hereafter is greater, if they but knew. 33