The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
۞ Nun. CONSIDER the pen, and all that they write [therewith]! 1 By your Lord's Grace, you are not afflicted with madness, 2 And most surely you shall have a reward never to be cut off. 3 And lo! thou art of a tremendous nature. 4 So thou shalt see, and they will see, 5 which of you is afflicted with madness. 6 Indeed, your Lord knows very well those who strayed from His Path, and those who are guided. 7 Do not give in to the deniers of truth. 8 They wish that you would soften [in your position], so they would soften [toward you]. 9 And obey not everyone who swears much, and is considered worthless, 10 A defamer, spreader abroad of slander. 11 those who hinder good, the guilty aggressor, 12 ill-mannered, and moraly corrupt 13 Because he is a possessor of wealth and children, 14 that, whenever Our messages are conveyed to him, such a one says, "Fables of ancient times"? 15 We will brand him on the nose. 16 We have tried them as we tried the owners of a certain orchard, who vowed to harvest all its fruits the next morning, 17 without saying, "If it be God's will." 18 So an envoy from your Lord completed his round upon the garden, whilst they were sleeping. 19 And it became as though reaped. 20 As the morning broke, they called out, one to another,- 21 Saying: Run unto your field if ye would pluck (the fruit). 22 So they went, while they consulted together secretly, 23 'No needy person shall set foot in it today' 24 They set out early in the morning, thinking they had the power to prevent. 25 But when they saw the (garden), they said: "Verily, we have gone astray," 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 (Whereupon) the best among them said: 'Did I not say to you to exalt (Allah)' 28 They said, "All glory belongs to God. We have certainly been unjust". 29 Then they approached one another, blaming each other. 30 They said, "O woe to us; indeed we were transgressors. 31 “Hopefully, our Lord will give us a better replacement than this – we now incline towards our Lord.” 32 Such is the chastisement, and certainly the chastisement of the hereafter is greater, did they but know! 33