And who could be more wicked than he who attributes his own lying inventions to God or gives the lie to His messages? Verily, such evildoers will never attain to a happy state: 21 On the Day of Judgment when We will gather all people together, We will ask the pagans, "Where are those whom you believed to be your gods?" 22 Then they will have no excuse but to say: by God our Lord, we have not been associaters. 23 Behold how they lie against themselves, and how that which they were forging has gone astray from them! 24 There are some among them who listen to you; but We have put a covering on their hearts so that they fail to understand it, and a deafness appears in their ears. Even if they saw all the signs they would not believe in them; and even when they come to you to dispute with you, the unbelievers say: "This is nothing but fables of antiquity." 25 And they forbid it, and keep afar from it, and it is only themselves they destroy, but they are not aware. 26 If you could but see when they will be held over the (Hell) Fire! They will say: "Would that we were but sent back (to the world)! Then we would not deny the Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, revelations, etc.) of our Lord, and we would be of the believers!" 27 No! They will say this merely because the Truth which they had concealed will become obvious to them; or else if they were sent back, they would still revert to what was forbidden to them. (So this plea of theirs would be a lie too) for they are just liars. 28 And they said: "There is no (other life) but our (present) life of this world, and never shall we be resurrected (on the Day of Resurrection)." 29 If you could only see when they are made to stand before their Lord! He will ask them, "Is this [second life] not the truth?" They will say, "Yes, by our Lord!" He will say, "Then, taste the punishment that comes from your having refused to acknowledge the truth!" 30