The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, most benevolent, ever-merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and by what you write, 1 You are not demented by the grace of your Lord. 2 And verily thine shall be a hire unending. 3 And most surely you conform (yourself) to sublime morality. 4 Soon wilt thou see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is afflicted with madness. 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 do not comply with those who deny: 8 Their desire is that thou shouldst be pliant: so would they be pliant. 9 Furthermore, defer not to the contemptible swearer of oaths, 10 backbiter, going about with slander, 11 hinderer of good, guilty aggressor, coarse-grained, 12 Greedy therewithal, intrusive. 13 Because he possesses wealth and (numerous) sons. 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says: 'They are but fairytales of the ancients' 15 We shall brand him on the nose. 16 We have tested them in the same way as we tested the dwellers of the garden (in Yemen) when they swore to pluck all the fruits of the garden in the morning, 17 Without saying: Insha' Allah (If Allah will). 18 whereupon a visitation for thy Sustainer came upon that [garden] while they were asleep, 19 And by morning it lay as if it had already been harvested, a barren land. 20 In the morning they called out to one another, 21 [Saying], "Go early to your crop if you would cut the fruit." 22 So they set out, while lowering their voices, 23 No needy man shall enter it to-day against you. 24 They were resolved to repel the beggars. 25 But when they saw it they said: 'We have surely gone astray. 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 A reasonable one among them said, "Did I not tell you that you should glorify God?" 28 They said, “Purity is to our Lord – we have indeed been unjust.” 29 Then they began to reproach one another. 30 They said 'Woe to us, truly we were insolent' 31 "It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better (garden) than this: for we do turn to Him (in repentance)!" 32 Such is Our chastisement; and the punishment of the Hereafter will be greater, if only they knew! 33