The Hidden Secret (Al-Muddath-thir)
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
Cloaked one, 1 arise, and warn! 2 And your Lord do magnify, 3 Purify your inner self, 4 And banish all trepidation. 5 do not bestow a favour in the expectation of receiving more in return; 6 And for the good-will of thy Lord be thou patient. 7 When the Trumpet is sounded, 8 That, at that time, shall be a difficult day, 9 For the unbelievers, anything but easy. 10 Leave Me alone [to deal] with him whom I have created alone, 11 And then bestowed upon him ample means, 12 And sons always present by his side, 13 And made life smooth and comfortable for him! 14 Yet he desireth that I should give more. 15 Never will he receive more. He has been hostile to Our revelations. 16 I shall soon constrain him to a hard ascent. 17 For lo! he did consider; then he planned - 18 And woe to him! How he plotted!- 19 Yea, Woe to him; How he plotted!- 20 Then he considered [again]; 21 and then he frowns and glares, 22 and he turned his back and behaved arrogantly 23 said, "This (the Quran) is nothing but magic, inherited from ancient magicians. 24 'this is nothing but mortal speech.' 25 Him shall I fling unto the burning. 26 And what will explain to thee what Hell-Fire is? 27 It lets nothing remain and leaves nothing [unburned], 28 It strips away the hide of man. 29 over it are nineteen. 30 We have made only angels as the keepers of the fire (for they are the strongest in carrying out Our commands). Our informing (people) of the numbers of these angels is a trial for the disbelievers. It gives more certainty to the people of the Book and strengthens the faith of the believers. The people of the Book and the believers have no doubt about it. We have fixed the number to make the disbelievers and those whose hearts are sick say, "What does God mean by such a parable?" Thus, God guides and causes to go astray whomever He wants. No one knows about the army of your Lord except He Himself. This parable is a reminder for mankind. 31