۞ And assuredly We gave David grace from Us, (saying): O ye hills and birds, echo his psalms of praise! And We made the iron supple unto him, 10 Saying: "Make you perfect coats of mail, balancing well the rings of chain armour, and work you (men) righteousness. Truly, I am AllSeer of what you do." 11 AND UNTO Solomon [We made subservient] the wind: its morning course [covered the distance of] a month's journey, and its evening course, a month's journey. And We caused a fountain of molten copper to flow at his behest; and [even] among the invisible beings there were some that had [been constrained] to labour for him by his Sustainer's leave and whichever of them deviated from Our command, him would We let taste suffering through a blazing flame: 12 They worked for him whatsoever he pleased of lofty halls and statues and basins like cisterns and cauldrons standing firm. Work ye, house of Da'ud! with thanksgiving; few of My bondmen are thankful. 13 When We executed Our decree of death on Solomon, nothing indicated to the jinn that he was dead except a worm eating away his staff. So when Solomon fell down, the jinn realised that had they known what lies in the realm beyond perception, they would not have continued to be in this humiliating chastisement. 14 Certainly there was a sign for Saba in their abode; two gardens on the right and the left; eat of the sustenance of your Lord and give thanks to Him: a good land and a Forgiving Lord! 15 But they turned away [from Us,] and so We let loose upon them a flood that overwhelmed the dams, and changed their two [expanses of luxuriant] gardens into a couple of gardens yielding bitter fruit, and tamarisks, and some few [wild] lote-trees: 16 That was the Requital We gave them because they ungratefully rejected Faith: and never do We give (such) requital except to such as are ungrateful rejecters. 17 And We set, between them and the towns which We had blessed, towns easy to be seen, and We made the stage between them easy, (saying): Travel in them safely both by night and day. 18 But now they would say: "Long has our Sustainer made the distance between our journey-stages!" - for they had sinned against themselves. And in the end We caused them to become [one of those] tales [of things long past,] and scattered them in countless fragments. Herein, behold, there are messages indeed for all who are wholly patient in adversity and deeply grateful [to God]. 19 And assuredly Iblis found his conjecture true concerning them; and they followed him all save a party of the believers. 20 He did not have any authority over them except to the extent that would allow Us to know who had faith in the life to come and who had doubts about it. Your Lord is a Guard over all things. 21