The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and by that which they inscribe. 1 You are not insane, by the munificence of your Lord. 2 And verily, thine shall be a reward neverending 3 And lo! thou art of a tremendous nature. 4 And thou wilt see and they will see 5 which of you was bereft of reason. 6 Lo! thy Lord is Best Aware of him who strayeth from His way, and He is Best Aware of those who walk aright. 7 So obey thou not those who cry lies. 8 They want you to make concessions to them and then they will reciprocate. 9 And obey thou not every mean swearer, 10 Defamer, going about with slander 11 [or] the withholder of good, [or] the sinful aggressor, 12 Cruel, after all that base-born (of illegitimate birth), 13 Because he is owner of riches and children. 14 and whenever Our verses are rehearsed to him, he says: “These are fairy- tales of times gone by.” 15 Anon We shall brand him on snout. 16 We have put them [i.e., the Makkans] to test even as We put to test the owners of the orchard when they vowed that they would gather the fruit of their orchard in the morning, 17 And they did not say, “If Allah wills”. 18 Then a calamity from your Lord fell upon it, but they remained fast asleep. 19 and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked. 20 And they called one another at morning, 21 [Saying], "Go early to your crop if you would cut the fruit." 22 So they departed, whispering together, 23 No needy man shall enter it to-day against you. 24 They set out early in the morning, thinking they had the power to prevent. 25 When they saw the garden, they said, "Surely we have lost our way. 26 (Then they said): "Nay! Indeed we are deprived of (the fruits)!" 27 The best among them said: "Did I not tell you: why do you not say: Insha' Allah (If Allah will)." 28 They said, 'Glory be to God, our Lord; truly, we were evildoers.' 29 And they advanced one upon another, blaming each other. 30 They said, "O woe to us; indeed we were transgressors. 31 May be our Lord will give us a better orchard in its stead; we turn to Him." 32 Such is the punishment [of this world]. And the punishment of the Hereafter is greater, if they only knew. 33