The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, most benevolent, ever-merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and by that which they inscribe. 1 Thou art not, by thy Sustainer's grace, a madman! 2 And verily, for you (O Muhammad SAW) will be an endless reward. 3 And thou (standest) on an exalted standard of character. 4 So you will see, and they will realise, 5 Which of you is the afflicted [by a devil]. 6 Verily your Lord knows those who have gone astray from His path, and He knows those who are guided on the way. 7 Therefore do not listen to the deniers. 8 they would like thee to be soft [with them,] so that they might be soft [with thee]. 9 Neither obey thou each feeble oath-monger, 10 the backbiter who goes about slandering, 11 A preventer of good, transgressing and sinful, 12 the crude of low character 13 Because he is a possessor 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 shall brand him upon the muzzle! 16 [As for such sinners,] behold, We [but] try them as We tried the owners of a certain garden who vowed that they would surely harvest its fruit on the morrow, 17 and made no allowance [for the will of God]: 18 Thereupon a calamity from your Lord passed over it while they were asleep, 19 So it became as black, barren land. 20 As the morning broke, they called out, one to another,- 21 “Hurry to your orchard if you would gather its fruit.” 22 And so they departed, 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 Then when they beheld it, they said: verily we have strayed. 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 The most moderate of them said: said I not unto you, wherefore hallow him ye not! 28 They said, "Exalted is our Lord! Indeed, we were wrongdoers." 29 And they came blaming one another. 30 They said: "Woe to us! Verily, we were Taghun (transgressors and disobedient, etc.) 31 May be our Lord will give us a better orchard in its stead; we turn to Him." 32 Such is Our chastisement; and the punishment of the Hereafter will be greater, if only they knew! 33