The Hijjr Valley (Al-Hijjr)
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
۞ Alif. Lam. Ra'. These are the verses of the Book, and a Clear Qur'an. 1 Oft times would those who disbelieve fain that they had been Muslims. 2 Leave them alone; let them eat and enjoy themselves the while the hope [of vain delights] beguiles them: for in time they will come to know [the truth]. 3 We never destroyed any town without pre-ordaining the fate of its people. 4 No people can outstrip the term for its destruction nor can it delay it. 5 They say, "You to whom the Reminder [the Quran] has been sent down, you are surely possessed. 6 Why bringest thou not angels unto us if thou art of the truthtellers! 7 We do not send down angels without reason, and if the angels descend they would not get any respite! 8 Indeed We have sent down the Qur’an, and indeed We Ourselves surely are its Guardians. (This is one of the miracles of the Qur’an – no one has been able to change even one letter of its text, despite every effort. It has remained in its original form since the 6th Century (A. D) and will remain so forever. Other Holy Books such as the Torah and the Bible have lost their originality.) 9 We did send messengers before thee amongst the religious sects of old: 10 but there was never a messenger who came to them but they mocked him: 11 Thus do We make it to enter into the hearts of the guilty; 12 they believe not in it, though the wont of the ancients is already gone. 13 And if We open for them a gate in the heavens, to ascend it through the day – 14 They would certainly say: Only our eyes have been covered over, rather we are an enchanted people. 15