The Night Journey (Al-Isra)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
۞ Purity is to Him Who took His bondman in a part of the night from the Sacred Mosque to the Aqsa Mosque around which We have placed blessings, in order that We may show him Our great signs; indeed he is the listener, the beholder. (This verse refers to the physical journey of Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him – to Al Aqsa Mosque and from there to the heavens and beyond. The entire journey back to Mecca was completed within a small part of the night.) 1 We gave Moses the Book, and made it a Guide to the Children of Israel, (commanding): "Take not other than Me as Disposer of (your) affairs." 2 O descendants of those We carried [in the ship] with Noah. Indeed, he was a grateful servant. 3 And We decreed for the Children of Israel in the Scripture: Ye verily will work corruption in the earth twice, and ye will become great tyrants. 4 So when the first of those promises came, We sent upon you Our extremely militant bondmen – they therefore entered the cities pursuing you; and this was a promise that had to be fulfilled. 5 Then We gave back to you a return victory over them. And We reinforced you with wealth and sons and made you more numerous in manpower 6 (And We said): "If you do good, you do good for your ownselves, and if you do evil (you do it) against yourselves." Then, when the second promise came to pass, (We permitted your enemies) to make your faces sorrowful and to enter the mosque (of Jerusalem) as they had entered it before, and to destroy with utter destruction all that fell in their hands. 7 It may be that your Lord may (yet) show Mercy unto you; but if ye revert (to your sins), We shall revert (to Our punishments): And we have made Hell a prison for those who reject (all Faith). 8 VERILY, this Qur'an shows the way to all that is most upright, and gives the believers who do good deeds the glad tiding that theirs will be a great reward; 9 And to those who believe not in the Hereafter, (it announceth) that We have prepared for them a Penalty Grievous (indeed). 10