The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
۞ Nun. CONSIDER the pen, and all that they write [therewith]! 1 Thou art not, by thy Sustainer's grace, a madman! 2 Surely thou shalt have a wage unfailing; 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 You will see, and they will see, 5 Who is distracted. 6 Verily, your Lord knows better, who (among men) has gone astray from His Path, and He knows better those who are guided. 7 Therefore do not listen to the deniers. 8 Fain would they that thou shouldst be pliant, so that they will be pliant. 9 And obey thou not every mean swearer, 10 backbiter, going about with slander, 11 Hinderer of the good, transgressor, sinful, 12 [or] one who is cruel, by greed possessed, and in addition to all this, utterly useless [to his fellow-men]. 13 Because he possesses wealth and (numerous) sons. 14 that, whenever Our messages are conveyed to him, such a one says, "Fables of ancient times"? 15 Soon We will brand him on the nose. 16 Indeed, We have tried them as We tried the companions of the garden, when they swore to cut its fruit in the [early] morning 17 without saying, "If it be God's will." 18 Then there encompassed it a visitation from your Lord while they were sleeping. 19 And by morning it lay as if it had already been harvested, a barren land. 20 As the morning broke, they called out, one to another,- 21 "If you want to gather the fruits, let us go early to the plantation." 22 So off they went, whispering to one another: 23 “Make sure that no needy person enters your garden this day.” 24 And they went out early, determined in their resolve. 25 But when they saw it, they said, "We must have lost our way. 26 Rather, we have been deprived." 27 The best among them said: “Did I not say to you: why do you not give glory to (your Lord)?” 28 They said, “Purity is to our Lord – we have indeed been unjust.” 29 Some of them started to blame others. 30 They said 'Woe to us, truly we were insolent' 31 [But] it may be that our Sustainer will grant us something better instead: for, verily, unto our Sustainer do we turn with hope!" 32 Such is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the Punishment in the Hereafter,- if only they knew! 33