The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen, and all that they write! 1 By the grace of your Lord, you are not a mad man. 2 And lo! thine verily will be a reward unfailing. 3 And most surely you conform (yourself) to sublime morality. 4 You will see and they will also see 5 which of you has been afflicted by insanity. 6 Surely your Lord knows well those who have strayed from His Way just as He knows well those who are on the Right Way. 7 So hearken not to those who deny (the Truth). 8 They wish that you should compromise (in religion out of courtesy) with them, so they (too) would compromise with you. 9 Furthermore, defer not to the contemptible swearer of oaths, 10 A slanderer, going about with calumnies, 11 Hinderer of the good, trespasser; sinner. 12 Cruel, moreover, and an illegitimate pretender. 13 because he has wealth and sons. 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 Without saying: Insha' Allah (If Allah will). 18 Then, a visitation from your Lord came down upon it while they slept, 19 and so by morning the orchard lay as though it had been fully harvested. 20 And they called one another at morning, 21 “Hurry to your orchard if you would gather its fruit.” 22 They all left, whispering to one another, 23 'No needy man shall enter it today against your will.' 24 And in the morning they went, having the power to prevent. 25 When they saw the garden, they said, "Surely we have lost our way. 26 [and then,] "Nay, but we have been rendered destitute!" 27 The best of them said: Did I not say to you, Why do you not glorify (Allah)? 28 They cried out: “Glory be to our Lord! Certainly we were sinners.” 29 So they came towards each other, blaming. 30 They said: "Woe to us! Verily, we were Taghun (transgressors and disobedient, etc.) 31 Perhaps our Lord will replace it with a better garden. We turn in repentance to our Lord". 32 Such is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the Punishment in the Hereafter,- if only they knew! 33