And had not a command of your Lord been passed, then the punishment would have gripped them – and had a term not been appointed. 129 Hence, bear with patience whatever they [who deny the truth] may say, and extol thy Sustainer's limitless glory and praise Him before the rising of the sun and before its setting; and extol His glory, too, during some of the hours of the night as well as during the hours of the day, so that thou might attain to happiness. 130 Do not regard with envy the worldly benefits We have given some of them, for with these We seek only to test them. The provision of your Lord is better and more lasting. 131 Enjoin Prayer on your household, and do keep observing it. We do not ask you for any worldly provision; rather, it is We Who provide you, and ultimately the pious will end up the best. 132 NOW THEY [who are blind to the truth] are wont to say: "If [Muhammad] would but produce for us a miracle from his Sustainer! [But] has there not come unto them a clear evidence [of the truth of this divine writ] in what is [to be found] in the earlier scriptures? 133 And had We destroyed them with chastisement before this, they would certainly have said: O our Lord! why didst Thou not send to us an apostle, for then we should have followed Thy communications before that we met disgrace and shame. 134 Say, "Each [of us] is waiting; so wait. For you will know who are the companions of the sound path and who is guided." 135