The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the Name of Allah, the Merciful, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and by that which they inscribe. 1 thou art not, by the blessing of thy Lord, a man possessed. 2 Most surely, you will have a never ending reward. 3 For you are verily born of sublime nature. 4 So you will soon see, and they too will see, 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Your Lord knows best who has fallen by the wayside, and who has remained on the true path. 7 Do not yield to those who reject the Truth. 8 They want you to make concessions to them and then they will reciprocate. 9 Do not heed a contemptible swearer, 10 the backbiter who goes about slandering, 11 (Habitually) hindering (all) good, transgressing beyond bounds, deep in sin, 12 who is ignoble and besides all that, base-born; 13 Because he is a possessor of wealth and children, 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says, “These are stories of earlier people.” 15 We will brand him upon the snout. 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 making any allowance (for the will of Allah). 18 Then a visitation from thy Lord visited it, while they were sleeping, 19 and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked. 20 In the morning they called to one another, 21 "If you want to gather the fruits, let us go early to the plantation." 22 So they went, while they consulted together secretly, 23 "Indeed, no needy person shall enter it today [and come] upon you [unawares,]" 24 They left early in the morning bent on this purpose. 25 But as soon as they beheld the orchard, (they cried out): “We have certainly lost the way; 26 rather, we are utterly ruined.” 27 The most moderate of them said: said I not unto you, wherefore hallow him ye not! 28 They cried out: “Glory be to our Lord! Certainly we were sinners.” 29 So they came towards each other, blaming. 30 They said, 'Woe, alas for us! Truly, we were insolent. 31 It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better than it; to our Lord we humbly turn.' 32 Such was their punishment. But the punishment of the Everlasting Life is much greater, if they but knew. 33