The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
۞ Noon. I swear by the pen and what the angels write, 1 By your Lord's Grace, you are not afflicted with madness, 2 There is surely reward unending for you, 3 And most surely you conform (yourself) to sublime morality. 4 You shall see and they will see 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Your Lord knows best who has fallen by the wayside, and who has remained on the true path. 7 Then do not obey the deniers. 8 Their desire is that thou shouldst be pliant: so would they be pliant. 9 And yield not to any mean swearer 10 backbiter, going about with slander, 11 [or] the withholder of good, [or] the sinful aggressor, 12 Cruel, moreover, and an illegitimate pretender. 13 because he has wealth and sons. 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 them as We tried the owners of the garden who had sworn that in the morning they would reap it, 17 without saying, "If it be God's will." 18 Then a visitation from thy Lord visited it, while they were sleeping, 19 Then in the morning it became as though it had been reaped. 20 Then they cried out unto each other in the morning. 21 Saying: Go early to your tilth if you would cut (the produce). 22 So off they went, whispering to one another: 23 "Indeed, no needy person shall enter it today [and come] upon you [unawares,]" 24 And they left at early morn, assuming they were in control of their purpose. 25 But as soon as they beheld the orchard, (they cried out): “We have certainly lost the way; 26 rather, we are utterly ruined.” 27 Said one of them, more just (than the rest): "Did I not say to you, 'Why not glorify (Allah)?'" 28 They said, 'Glory be to God, our Lord; truly, we were evildoers.' 29 Then some of them advanced against others, blaming each other. 30 [In the end] they said: "Oh, woe unto us! Verily, we did behave outrageously! 31 Maybe our Lord will give us a better orchard in its place; to our Lord do we penitently turn.” 32 Such is the torment. And the torment of the Hereafter is far greater; if they but knew. 33