The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, most benevolent, ever-merciful
۞ Nun. By the Pen, and what they inscribe, 1 Thou art not, by the Grace of thy Lord, mad or possessed. 2 And verily, thine shall be a reward neverending 3 You have attained a high moral standard. 4 You will see, and they will see, 5 which of you is the demented. 6 Surely your Lord best knows him who errs from His way, and He best knows the followers of the right course. 7 Wherefore obey not thou the beliers. 8 Their desire is that thou shouldst be pliant: so would they be pliant. 9 Do not yield to one persistent in swearing, 10 [And] scorner, going about with malicious gossip - 11 those who hinder good, the guilty aggressor, 12 Gross, and therewithal ignoble. 13 Is it because he is possessed of worldly goods and children 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says, "Legends of the former peoples." 15 We will brand him upon the snout. 16 We have tested them in the same way as we tested the dwellers of the garden (in Yemen) when they swore to pluck all the fruits of the garden in the morning, 17 without making any allowance (for the will of Allah). 18 Thereupon a calamity from your Lord passed over it while they were asleep, 19 and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked. 20 Then they called out one to another as soon as the morning broke, 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 They were resolved to repel the beggars. 25 But when they saw it, they said, 'Surely we are gone astray; 26 Indeed, we are utterly ruined!" 27 The most moderate of them said, "Did I not say to you, 'Why do you not exalt [Allah]?' " 28 They said: "Glory to Our Lord! Verily, we have been Zalimun (wrong-doers, etc.)." 29 Then they approached one another, blaming each other. 30 They said: "Woe to us! Verily, we were Taghun (transgressors and disobedient, etc.) 31 Maybe our Lord will give us better than this. We turn to our Lord in supplication." 32 Such is Our chastisement; and the punishment of the Hereafter will be greater, if only they knew! 33