The Pen (Al-Qalam)
Allah - beginning with the name of - the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the Pen, and what they inscribe, 1 thou art not, by the blessing of thy Lord, a man possessed. 2 Surely thou shalt have a wage unfailing; 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 Anon thou wilt see and they will see. 5 Which of you is the afflicted [by a devil]. 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 Wherefore obey not thou the beliers. 8 they would like thee to be soft [with them,] so that they might be soft [with thee]. 9 Nor ever listen to any excessive oath maker, ignoble person. 10 [or to] the slanderer that goes about with defaming tales, 11 hinderer of good, guilty aggressor, coarse-grained, 12 the coarse-grained, and above all mean and ignoble; 13 Because he is a possessor of wealth and children, 14 When to him are rehearsed Our Signs, "Tales of the ancients", he cries! 15 We shall brand him upon the muzzle! 16 We have indeed tested them the way We had tested the owners of the garden when they swore that they would reap its harvest the next morning. 17 and they added not the saving words. 18 whereupon a visitation for thy Sustainer came upon that [garden] while they were asleep, 19 and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked. 20 At daybreak they called to each other: 21 'Come out to your tillage if you want to reap' 22 So they went off, while whispering to one another. 23 Saying: No poor man shall enter it today upon you. 24 They set out early in the morning, thinking they had the power to prevent. 25 But as soon as they beheld [the garden and could not recognize] it, they exclaimed, "Surely we have lost our way!" 26 (Then they said): "Nay! Indeed we are deprived of (the fruits)!" 27 The most moderate of them said, "Did I not say to you, 'Why do you not exalt [Allah]?' " 28 They said, "Glory be to God, our Lord. We have surely done wrong." 29 and then they turned upon one another with mutual reproaches. 30 They said: woe unto us! verily we! we have been arrogant. 31 Maybe, our Lord will give us instead one better than it; surely to our Lord do we make our humble petition. 32 Such is the punishment; and indeed the punishment of the Hereafter is the greatest, if only they knew! 33