The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the Pen and the (Record) which (men) write,- 1 Thou art not, by thy Sustainer's grace, a madman! 2 And lo! thine verily will be a reward unfailing. 3 And indeed you possess an exemplary character. 4 Soon you will see, as will they, 5 which of you is the demented. 6 Verily thy Lord! He is the best Knower of him who strayeth from His path, and He is the best Knower of the guided one. 7 Then do not obey the deniers. 8 they would like thee to be soft [with them,] so that they might be soft [with thee]. 9 And do not yield to any contemptible swearer, 10 the fault-finder who goes around slandering, 11 obstructing virtues, a sinful transgressor, 12 Gross, and therewithal ignoble. 13 or that because he may possess wealth and children. 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says, “These are stories of earlier people.” 15 We will soon singe his pig-nose. 16 Verily We! We have proved them even as We proved the fellows of a garden when they sware that they would surely reap it 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 so by morning the orchard lay as though it had been fully harvested. 20 (Then) in the morning they called out to one another, saying: 21 'Come out to your tillage if you want to reap' 22 So they departed, whispering together, 23 Saying: No poor man shall enter it today upon you. 24 And they went out betimes determined in purpose. 25 But when they saw it, they said, 'Surely we are gone astray; 26 Aye! it is we who are deprived! 27 The best among them said: "Did I not tell you: why do you not say: Insha' Allah (If Allah will)." 28 They cried out: “Glory be to our Lord! Certainly we were sinners.” 29 And they came blaming one another. 30 They said: "Alas for us! We have indeed transgressed! 31 Maybe our Lord will give us a better orchard in its place; to our Lord do we penitently turn.” 32 Such was their punishment, [in this life]. But the punishment of the life to come is much more severe, if only they knew it! 33