The Pen (Al-Qalam)
Allah - beginning with the name of - the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Noon. I swear by the pen and what the angels write, 1 Thou art not, through the grace of thy Lord, mad. 2 And verily thine shall be a hire unending. 3 And verily thou art of a high and noble disposition. 4 Soon wilt thou see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Verily, thy Sustainer alone is fully aware as to who has strayed from His path, Just as He alone is fully aware of those who have found the right way. 7 Then do not obey the deniers. 8 They wish that you should compromise (in religion out of courtesy) with them, so they (too) would compromise with you. 9 Do not heed a contemptible swearer, 10 Detracter, spreader abroad of slanders, 11 (Habitually) hindering (all) good, transgressing beyond bounds, deep in sin, 12 [or] one who is cruel, by greed possessed, and in addition to all this, utterly useless [to his fellow-men]. 13 It is because he is possessed of wealth and children 14 When Our revelations are rehearsed unto him, he saith: fables of the ancients. 15 Anon We shall brand him on snout. 16 Verily, We have tried them as We tried the people of the garden, when they swore to pluck the fruits of the (garden) in the morning, 17 without making any allowance (for the will of Allah). 18 So an envoy from your Lord completed his round upon the garden, whilst they were sleeping. 19 So the (garden) became black by the morning, like a pitch dark night (in complete ruins). 20 And they called one another at morning, 21 Saying: Go early to your tilth if you would cut (the produce). 22 So they went off, while whispering to one another. 23 Let there not enter upon you today any needy man. 24 – and early they went, strongly bent upon their purpose. 25 But when they saw it, they said, "We must have lost our way. 26 [and then,] "Nay, but we have been rendered destitute!" 27 Said one of them, more just (than the rest): "Did I not say to you, 'Why not glorify (Allah)?'" 28 They said, "Glory be to God, our Lord. We have surely done wrong." 29 Then they turned, one against another, in reproach. 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