The Pen (Al-Qalam)
Allah - beginning with the name of - the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and what the scribes write. 1 you are not, because of the favor of your Lord, mad. 2 and surely yours shall be a never-ending reward, 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 Soon wilt thou see, and they will see, 5 which of you is the demented. 6 Indeed, your Lord is most knowing of who has gone astray from His way, and He is most knowing of the [rightly] guided. 7 So do not yield to the rejecters. 8 They wish that you should be pliant so they (too) would be pliant. 9 And obey thou not every mean swearer, 10 Detracter, spreader abroad of slanders, 11 Who hinders men from (doing) good, the transgressor, the iniquitous, 12 Ignoble, besides all that, base-born; 13 It is because he is possessed of wealth and children 14 and whenever Our verses are rehearsed to him, he says: “These are fairy- tales of times gone by.” 15 We will brand him on the nose. 16 Verily We! We have proved them even as We proved the fellows of a garden when they sware that they would surely reap it in the morning. 17 without saying, "If it be God's will." 18 Then a visitation from thy Lord visited it, while they were sleeping, 19 So in the morning it became as if harvested. 20 And they called one another at morning, 21 That, “Go to your fields at early morn, if you want to harvest.” 22 So they set out, while lowering their voices, 23 Let there not enter upon you today any needy man. 24 And they went in the morning with strong intention, thinking that they have power (to prevent the poor taking anything of the fruits therefrom). 25 But when they saw it, they said, "Indeed, we are lost; 26 Indeed, we are utterly ruined!" 27 The most moderate of them said: said I not unto you, wherefore hallow him ye not! 28 "Glory to our Lord," they said; we were really in the wrong." 29 Then they turned to each other reproaching. 30 Said they: O woe to us! surely we were inordinate: 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