The Hidden Secret (Al-Muddath-thir)
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
O THOU [in thy solitude] enfolded! 1 Arise and deliver thy warning! 2 proclaim the greatness of your Lord, 3 thy robes purify 4 And pollution shun. 5 And do not confer favor to acquire more 6 but unto thy Sustainer turn in patience. 7 Then when the horn shall be blown, 8 that Day will be a hard and distressing Day. 9 for the unbelievers not easy. 10 Leave Me (to deal) with him whom I created lonely, 11 And gave him vast wealth. 12 and children as [love's] witnesses, 13 And I adjusted affairs for him adjustably; 14 Yet is he greedy-that I should add (yet more);- 15 By no means! He has been stubbornly hostile to Our revelation: 16 I will constrain him to a hard ascent. 17 He reflected, and then determined 18 Ruin seize him, how did he hatch a scheme? 19 Again, death seize him, how he determined! 20 He looked (at others); 21 And frowned and puckered his brow, 22 and in the end he turns his back [on Our message,] and glories in his arrogance, 23 and said: “This (Qur'an) is merely a sorcery of yore; 24 Naught is this but the word of Man. 25 Him shall I soon roast in Hell. 26 Would that you really knew what hell is! 27 It neither leaves, nor spares. 28 scorching the flesh; 29 over it are nineteen. 30 We have made only angels as the keepers of the fire (for they are the strongest in carrying out Our commands). Our informing (people) of the numbers of these angels is a trial for the disbelievers. It gives more certainty to the people of the Book and strengthens the faith of the believers. The people of the Book and the believers have no doubt about it. We have fixed the number to make the disbelievers and those whose hearts are sick say, "What does God mean by such a parable?" Thus, God guides and causes to go astray whomever He wants. No one knows about the army of your Lord except He Himself. This parable is a reminder for mankind. 31