The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
۞ Nun. CONSIDER the pen, and all that they write [therewith]! 1 (Muhammad), you are not insane, thanks to the bounty of your Lord. 2 Surely thou shalt have a wage unfailing; 3 Surely, you (Prophet Muhammad) are of a great morality. 4 Soon wilt thou see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Surely thy Lord knows very well those who have gone astray from His way, and He knows very well those who are guided. 7 Do not give in to the deniers of truth. 8 they wish you would compromise, then, they would compromise. 9 Furthermore, defer not to the contemptible swearer of oaths, 10 [And] scorner, going about with malicious gossip - 11 obstructing virtues, a sinful transgressor, 12 the coarse-grained, and above all mean and ignoble; 13 or that because he may possess wealth and children. 14 when Our revelations are recited to him, he says, "These are just ancient fables." 15 We shall brand him on the nose. 16 We have tried you as We tried the owners of the garden when they vowed to gather the fruits in the morning 17 And they made not the exception. 18 whereupon a visitation for thy Sustainer came upon that [garden] while they were asleep, 19 and in the morning it was if the garden had been reaped. 20 (Then) in the morning they called out to one another, saying: 21 Saying: Run unto your field if ye would pluck (the fruit). 22 So they went, while they consulted together secretly, 23 'No needy person shall set foot in it today' 24 And in the morning they went, having the power to prevent. 25 But when they saw it they said: 'We have surely gone astray. 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 Said the most moderate of them, 'Did I not say to you, "Why do you not give glory?"' 28 They said, “Purity is to our Lord – we have indeed been unjust.” 29 Then some of them drew near unto others, self-reproaching. 30 Said they: O woe to us! surely we were inordinate: 31 [But] it may be that our Sustainer will grant us something better instead: for, verily, unto our Sustainer do we turn with hope!" 32 Such is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the Punishment in the Hereafter,- if only they knew! 33