The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the Pen and the (Record) which (men) write,- 1 You (O Muhammad SAW) are not, by the Grace of your Lord, a madman. 2 You will certainly receive a never-ending reward. 3 You have attained a high moral standard. 4 You will see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is the afflicted [by a devil]. 6 Indeed your Lord well knows those who have strayed from His path, and He well knows those who are upon guidance. 7 Therefore, do not obey those who belie, 8 They wish that you should be pliant so they (too) would be pliant. 9 Furthermore, defer not to the contemptible swearer of oaths, 10 back-biting, gossiping, 11 those who hinder good, the guilty aggressor, 12 ill-mannered, and moraly corrupt 13 (He was so) because he had wealth and children. 14 When you recite Our revelations to him, he says: "These are fables of long ago." 15 Soon shall We brand him on his snout. 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 making exception. 18 Then a visitation from thy Lord visited it, while they were sleeping, 19 So the (garden) became, by the morning, like a dark and desolate spot, (whose fruit had been gathered). 20 (Then) in the morning they called out to one another, saying: 21 'Come forth betimes upon your tillage, if you would pluck!' 22 So they went, while they consulted together secretly, 23 “No destitute person shall enter it today.” 24 And they went forth early, determined upon their purpose. 25 But when they saw it, they said, "We must have lost our way. 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 The most moderate of them said: said I not unto you, wherefore hallow him ye not! 28 "Glory to our Lord," they said; we were really in the wrong." 29 Then some of them drew near unto others, self-reproaching. 30 They said: "Alas for us! We have indeed transgressed! 31 May be our Lord will give us a better orchard in its stead; we turn to Him." 32 Such was their punishment, [in this life]. But the punishment of the life to come is much more severe, if only they knew it! 33