The Pen (Al-Qalam)
Allah - beginning with the name of - the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Noon. By the Pen and that (the angels) write, 1 By your Lord's Grace, you are not afflicted with madness, 2 And indeed for you is an unlimited reward. 3 and you are certainly on the most exalted standard of moral excellence. 4 Soon you will see, as will they, 5 which of you has been afflicted by insanity. 6 Lo! thy Lord is Best Aware of him who strayeth from His way, and He is Best Aware of those who walk aright. 7 So do not yield to the rejecters. 8 They only want that you should relent, so that they may come to terms. 9 Do not yield to any contemptible swearer of oaths, 10 the backbiter who goes about slandering, 11 (Habitually) hindering (all) good, transgressing beyond bounds, deep in sin, 12 Foul mouthed, and in addition to all this, of improper lineage. 13 because he has wealth and sons. 14 When Our revelations are recited to him, he says, "These are ancient legends". 15 We will brand him on the nose. 16 We have put them [i.e., the Makkans] to test even as We put to test the owners of the orchard when they vowed that they would gather the fruit of their orchard 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 Then they called out one to another as soon as the morning broke, 21 "Go early to your farms, if you want to pluck the fruits". 22 So they set out, while lowering their voices, 23 No Miskin (poor man) shall enter upon you into it today. 24 – and early they went, strongly bent upon their purpose. 25 But when they saw it, they said: Most surely we have gone astray 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 The best among them said: Said I not unto you: Why glorify ye not (Allah)? 28 They said: Glorified be our Lord! Lo! we have been wrong-doers. 29 Then they approached one another, blaming each other. 30 They said: "Woe to us! Verily, we were Taghun (transgressors and disobedient, etc.) 31 “Hopefully, our Lord will give us a better replacement than this – we now incline towards our Lord.” 32 Such is the punishment; and indeed the punishment of the Hereafter is the greatest, if only they knew! 33