God knows what every female bears, and the wombs' shrinking and swelling; everything with Him has its measure -- 8 He knows both what is hidden and what is manifest. He is the Supreme One, the Most High. 9 Alike (to Him) among you is he who conceals (his) words and he who speaks them openly, and he who hides himself by night and (who) goes forth by day. 10 For each (person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him. They guard him by the Command of Allah. Verily! Allah will not change the good condition of a people as long as they do not change their state of goodness themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allah). But when Allah wills a people's punishment, there can be no turning back of it, and they will find besides Him no protector. 11 He it is Who causes you to see lightning that inspires you with both fear and hope, and He it is Who whips up heavy clouds. 12 The thunder sings His praises, and the angels too, for awe of Him. He sends thunder-bolts and strikes whosoever He will with them: Even then it is God they contend about! But mighty is He in (His) power. 13 To Him alone should all prayer be addressed, for those to whom they do address their prayers beside Him are altogether powerless to respond to them. The example of praying to any other than Allah is that of a man who stretches out his hands to water, asking it to reach his mouth, although water has no power to reach his mouth. The prayers of the unbelievers are a sheer waste. 14 All in the heavens and the earth prostrate themselves before God, either of their own free will or by force, just as do their shadows in the mornings and evenings. ۩ 15 Say: 'Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth' Say: 'Allah' Say: 'Why then have you chosen guardians other than Him, even though they have neither the power to benefit nor harm themselves' Say: 'Are the blind and the seeing equal? Are darkness and light equal? Or, have they ascribed to Allah associates who create as He creates so that all creation is alike to them?" Say: 'Allah is the Creator of everything. He is the One, the Conqueror' 16 He sends down water from the cloud, then watercourses flow (with water) according to their measure, and the torrent bears along the swelling foam, and from what they melt in the fire for the sake of making ornaments or apparatus arises a scum like it; thus does Allah compare truth and falsehood; then as for the scum, it passes away as a worthless thing; and as for that which profits the people, it tarries in the earth; thus does Allah set forth parables. 17 For those who answer their Lord is a most fine reward. But for those who do not answer Him if they possessed all that the earth contains, and as much besides, they would offer it for their ransom. Theirs shall be an evil reckoning. Gehenna (Hell) shall be their refuge, an evil cradling! 18