The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, most benevolent, ever-merciful
۞ Noon. I swear by the pen and what the angels write, 1 You are not, [O Muhammad], by the favor of your Lord, a madman. 2 And lo! thine verily will be a reward unfailing. 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 And thou wilt see and they will see 5 Which of you is afflicted with madness. 6 Your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His path and who is rightly guided. 7 Do not give in to the deniers of truth. 8 They would like you to relent to them so that they could also relent towards you. 9 Neither obey thou each feeble oath-monger, 10 The excessively insulting one, spreader of spite. 11 those who hinder good, the guilty aggressor, 12 who is ignoble and besides all that, base-born; 13 (He was so) because he had wealth and children. 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says, "Legends of the former peoples." 15 We will soon singe his pig-nose. 16 [As for such sinners,] behold, We [but] try them as We tried the owners of a certain garden who vowed that they would surely harvest its fruit on the morrow, 17 And they did not say, “If Allah wills”. 18 Then there encompassed it a visitation from your Lord while they were sleeping. 19 and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked. 20 Now when they rose at early morn, they called unto one another, 21 "Go ye to your tilth (betimes) in the morning, if ye would gather the fruits." 22 So they set out, while lowering their voices, 23 'No needy man shall enter it today against your will.' 24 They went forth early, believing that they had the power (to gather the fruit). 25 But as soon as they beheld [the garden and could not recognize] it, they exclaimed, "Surely we have lost our way!" 26 Aye! it is we who are deprived! 27 The most moderate of them said, "Did I not say to you, 'Why do you not exalt [Allah]?' " 28 They said: hallowed be Our Lord! verily we have been wrong-doers. 29 Then they turned to each other reproaching. 30 They said: "Alas for us! We have indeed transgressed! 31 It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better than it; to our Lord we humbly turn.' 32 Such is Our chastisement; and the punishment of the Hereafter will be greater, if only they knew! 33