They await but a single blast which will not be repeated. 15 They say: "Our Lord! Hasten on for us our fate before the Day of Reckoning." 16 Bear thou with that which they say, and remember Our bondman, Da-ud, endured with strength; verily he was oft-returning onto Us. 17 We made the mountains join him in glorifying Us in the evening and in the morning. 18 And birds gathered together; they were all obedient to him. 19 And We strengthened his kingdom and gave him wisdom and discernment in speech. 20 ۞ And hath the story of the litigants come unto thee? How they climbed the wall into the royal chamber; 21 As they came upon David, and he shrank back in fear from them, they said: "Fear not! [We are but] two litigants. One of us has wronged the other: so judge thou between us with justice, and deviate not from what is right, and show [both of] us the way to rectitude. 22 This man here is my brother. He has ninety and nine ewes while I have only one. He demands that I should give him my ewe, and wants to get the better of me in argument." 23 [David] said, "He has certainly wronged you in demanding your ewe [in addition] to his ewes. And indeed, many associates oppress one another, except for those who believe and do righteous deeds - and few are they." And David became certain that We had tried him, and he asked forgiveness of his Lord and fell down bowing [in prostration] and turned in repentance [to Allah]. ۩ 24 So We forgave him this (lapse): he enjoyed, indeed, a Near Approach to Us, and a beautiful place of (Final) Return. 25 o Dawood! surely We have made you a ruler in the land; so judge between men with justice and do not follow desire, lest it should lead you astray from the path of Allah; (as for) those who go astray from the path of Allah, they shall surely have a severe punishment because they forgot the day of reckoning. 26