†By the Night when she spreadeth her veil,By the Day when it appeareth in glory,By Him who made male and female;Verily your aims are indeed different!As then for him who giveth [alms] and feareth [God],And yieldeth assent to the Good,To him will We therefore make easy the path to happiness.But as to him who is covetous and bent on riches,And calleth the Good a lie,To him will We make easy the path to distress;And what shall his wealth avail him when he goeth down headlong?Truly man’s guidance is with Us,And Ours the next Life and this life Present.I warn you therefore of the flaming fire;None shall be burned at it but the most wretched,—Who hath called the truth a lie and turned his back.But the greatly God-fearing shall escape it,—Who giveth away his substance that he may become pure,And who [offereth] not favours to any one for the sake of recompense,But only as seeking the face of his Lord the Most High.And assuredly in the end he shall be well content.1(xcii.)LXVI.†What thinkest thou of him who treateth the day of judgment as a lie?It is he who thrusteth away the orphan,And stirreth not [others] up to feed the poor.Woe, then, to those who pray,Who in their prayer are careless,Who make a show [of devotion],But refuse help [to the needy].164(cvii.)
†By the Night when she spreadeth her veil,By the Day when it appeareth in glory,By Him who made male and female;Verily your aims are indeed different!As then for him who giveth [alms] and feareth [God],And yieldeth assent to the Good,To him will We therefore make easy the path to happiness.But as to him who is covetous and bent on riches,And calleth the Good a lie,To him will We make easy the path to distress;And what shall his wealth avail him when he goeth down headlong?Truly man’s guidance is with Us,And Ours the next Life and this life Present.I warn you therefore of the flaming fire;None shall be burned at it but the most wretched,—Who hath called the truth a lie and turned his back.But the greatly God-fearing shall escape it,—Who giveth away his substance that he may become pure,And who [offereth] not favours to any one for the sake of recompense,But only as seeking the face of his Lord the Most High.And assuredly in the end he shall be well content.1(xcii.)LXVI.†What thinkest thou of him who treateth the day of judgment as a lie?It is he who thrusteth away the orphan,And stirreth not [others] up to feed the poor.Woe, then, to those who pray,Who in their prayer are careless,Who make a show [of devotion],But refuse help [to the needy].164(cvii.)
†By the Night when she spreadeth her veil,By the Day when it appeareth in glory,By Him who made male and female;Verily your aims are indeed different!As then for him who giveth [alms] and feareth [God],And yieldeth assent to the Good,To him will We therefore make easy the path to happiness.But as to him who is covetous and bent on riches,And calleth the Good a lie,To him will We make easy the path to distress;And what shall his wealth avail him when he goeth down headlong?Truly man’s guidance is with Us,And Ours the next Life and this life Present.I warn you therefore of the flaming fire;None shall be burned at it but the most wretched,—Who hath called the truth a lie and turned his back.But the greatly God-fearing shall escape it,—Who giveth away his substance that he may become pure,And who [offereth] not favours to any one for the sake of recompense,But only as seeking the face of his Lord the Most High.And assuredly in the end he shall be well content.1(xcii.)
†By the Night when she spreadeth her veil,
By the Day when it appeareth in glory,
By Him who made male and female;
Verily your aims are indeed different!
As then for him who giveth [alms] and feareth [God],
And yieldeth assent to the Good,
To him will We therefore make easy the path to happiness.
But as to him who is covetous and bent on riches,
And calleth the Good a lie,
To him will We make easy the path to distress;
And what shall his wealth avail him when he goeth down headlong?
Truly man’s guidance is with Us,
And Ours the next Life and this life Present.
I warn you therefore of the flaming fire;
None shall be burned at it but the most wretched,—
Who hath called the truth a lie and turned his back.
But the greatly God-fearing shall escape it,—
Who giveth away his substance that he may become pure,
And who [offereth] not favours to any one for the sake of recompense,
But only as seeking the face of his Lord the Most High.
And assuredly in the end he shall be well content.1
(xcii.)
LXVI.
†What thinkest thou of him who treateth the day of judgment as a lie?It is he who thrusteth away the orphan,And stirreth not [others] up to feed the poor.Woe, then, to those who pray,Who in their prayer are careless,Who make a show [of devotion],But refuse help [to the needy].164(cvii.)
†What thinkest thou of him who treateth the day of judgment as a lie?
It is he who thrusteth away the orphan,
And stirreth not [others] up to feed the poor.
Woe, then, to those who pray,
Who in their prayer are careless,
Who make a show [of devotion],
But refuse help [to the needy].164
(cvii.)
LXVII.
Your turning your facesin prayertowards the east and the west is not piety: but the pious is he who believeth in God and the Last Day, and in the angels, and the Scripture, and the prophets, and who giveth money, notwithstanding his loveof it, to relations and orphans, and to the needy and the son of the road,165and to the askers and forthe freeingof slaves, and who performeth prayer and giveth the [appointed] alms, and those who perform their covenant when they covenant, and the patient in adversity and affliction and in the time of violence. These are they who have been true: and these are they who fear God.
(ii. 172.)
LXVIII.
†He only shall visit the temples of God who believeth in God and the Last Day, and observeth prayer, and payeth the [appointed] alms, and dreadeth none but God: for these are among the rightly-guided.
(ix. 18.)
LXIX.
O ye who have believed, make not your alms of no effect by reproach and harm, like him who expendeth his wealth to make a vain show unto men, and believeth not in God and the Last Day. For his likeness is as the likeness of a smooth stone upon which was earth, and a violent rain hath fallen upon it, and left it smooth and hard. [Such] cannot have aught that they have gained, and God directeth not the unbelieving people.
And the likeness of those who expend their wealth from a desire of God’s being pleased, and from assurance on their part,166is as the likeness of a garden upon a hill, on which a violent rain hath fallen, and it hath produced its fruit twofold: and if a violent rain fall not upon it, a gentle rainfalleth.
(ii. 266, 267.)
LXX.
If ye manifest alms, good will it be: but if ye conceal them and give them to the poor, it will be better for you; and it will expiatesomeof your sins.
(ii. 273.)
LXXI.
A kind speech and forgiveness are better than alms which hurt167followeth.
(ii. 265.)
LXXII.
Revile not what they invoke in preference to God,168lest they revile God evilly without knowledge.
(vi. 108.)
LXXIII.
Turn awayevilby that which is better: and lo, he between whom and thyself [was] enmity [shall become] as though he were a warm friend:
But none is endowed with this169except those who have been patient, and none is endowed with it except he who is greatly favoured.170
(xli. 34, 35.)
LXXIV.
†If ye are greeted with a greeting, then greet ye with a better greeting, or at least return it: verily God taketh count of all things.
(iv. 88.)
LXXV.
†If there be any [debtor] under a difficulty [of paying his debt], let [his creditor] wait until it be easy: but if ye remit it as alms, it will be better for you.
(ii. 280.)171
LXXVI.
†Dispute not with the people of the Scripture172unless in the kindliest173manner, except against such of them as deal evilly [with you]; and say [unto them], We believe in that which hath been sent down unto us and [that which] hath been sent down unto you, and our God and your God is one, and to Him are we self-surrendered.174
(xxix. 45.)
LXXVII.
Verily those who have believed,175and those who have become Jews, and the Christians, and the Sabians, whosoever hath believed in God and the Last Day, and hath done that which is right,—they shall have their reward with their Lord, andthere shall comeno fear upon them, neither shall they grieve.
(ii. 59.)176
LXVIII.
Whoso desireth any other religion than El-Islám, it shall not be accepted of him, and in the world to come he [shall be] of those that perish.
(iii. 79.)
LXXIX.
The likeness of those who have disbelieved177is as the likeness of him who crieth out to that which heareth not [aught] save a calling and a voice.They aredeaf, dumb, blind: therefore they do not understand.
(ii. 166.)
LXXX.
[As to] the unbelievers, their works are like a vapour178in a plain, which the thirsty imagineth to be water, until when he cometh to it he findeth it not aught:179(but he findeth God there, and He fully payeth him his account: and God is swift in reckoning:)
Or, like darknesses in a deep sea, covered by waves over waves,—over them clouds,—darknesses one over another: when [one] putteth forth his hand he is not nearly able to see it. And unto whomsoever God giveth not light, he hath no light.
(xxiv. 39, 40.)
LXXXI.
Propound unto them as a parable two men, on one of whom180We bestowed two gardens of grape-vines, and We surrounded them with palm-trees, and put corn between them; each of the gardens brought forth its fruit, and failed not thereof at all;
And We caused a river to flow between them; and he had abundance. And he said unto his companion, disputing with him, ‘I am greater than thou in wealth and more mighty in family.’
And he entered his garden, being unjust to his own soul.181He said, ‘I do not think that this will ever perish,
And I do not think that the [Last] Hour will come; and if I should be taken back unto my Lord, I shall assuredly find a better [garden] than it in return.’
His companion said unto him, disputing with him, ‘Dost thou disbelieve in Him who created thee of dust, then completely fashioned thee into a man?
God is my Lord, and I will not associate any one with my Lord.
And why when thou enteredst thy garden didst thounot say, ‘What God willeth182[cometh to pass]: there is no power but in God?’ If thou seest me to be inferior to thee in amount of wealth and in number of children,
Perhaps my Lord may give me [what will be] better than thy garden; and may send upon [thine] thunderbolts from heaven, so that it shall become a smooth and slippery ground;
Or its water may become deep-sunk [in the earth], so that thou shalt not be able to draw it.’—
And his possessions were encompassedwith destruction, and he began to turn down the palms of his hands for that which he had expended thereon; for it[s vines were] falling down upon its trellises; and he said, ‘O would that I had not associated any one with my Lord!’
And there was no party for him to assist him instead of God, nor was he able to defend himself.
In that case183protection [belongeth] unto God, the True; He is the best rewarder and the best giver of success.
(xviii. 31-42.)
LXXXII.
Thou shalt certainly find184the Jews and those who have attributed partners to God185the most violent of men in hatred of those who have believed; and thou shalt certainly find the nearest of them to friendship to those who have believed those who say, ‘We are Christians.’ This is because there are among them priests and monks, and because they are not proud.186
And when they hear that which hath been sent down unto the Apostle, thou seest their eyes overflow with tearsbecause of the truth that they know: they say, ‘O our Lord, we believe, therefore write us down among those who bear witness.’
(v. 85, 86.)
LXXXIII.
The likeness of those who were charged to bear in mind the Law [of Moses], then bore it not in mind,187is as the likeness of the ass that beareth books. Evil is the likeness of the people who have charged the signs of God with falsehood: and God directeth not the unjust people.
(lxii. 5.)
LXXXIV.
188Among men are those who say, We believe in God and in the Last Day: but they are not believers.
They try to deceive God and those who have believed; but they deceive not any except themselves, and they know [it] not.
In their hearts is a disease, and God hath increased their disease, and for them [is ordained] a painful punishment, because they have charged with falsehoodthe prophet of God.
And when it is said unto them, Corrupt not in the earth, they reply, ‘We are only rectifiers.’
Assuredly they are the corrupters; but they know [it] not.
And when it is said unto them, Believe ye asothermen have believed, they say, ‘Shall we believe as the fools have believed?’ Assuredly they are the fools; but they know it not.
And when they meet those who have believed, they say, ‘We believe:’ but when they retire privately to their devils,189they say, ‘Weholdwith you: we only mockat them.’
God will mock at them, and keep them in their exceeding wickedness, wandering about in perplexity.
These are they who have purchased error in exchange for right guidance: but their traffic hath not been profitable; and they have not been rightly guided.
Their likeness is as the likeness of those who have kindled a firein the dark, and when it hath enlightened what is around them, God taketh away their light and leaveth them in darkness, seeing not.
They aredeaf, dumb, blind: therefore they will not turn back.
Orthey arelikepeople ina storm of rain from heaven, wherein are darkness and thunder and lightning: they put their fingers in their ears because of the vehement sounds of the thunder, for fear of death. And God encompasseth the unbelievers.
The lightning almost snatcheth away their eyes: whenever it shineth on them they walk inthe light ofit, but when darkness cometh on them they stand still. And if God pleased He would certainly take away their ears and eyes: for God is all-powerful.
(ii. 7-19.)
LXXXV.
O ye who have believed, take not the Jews and Christians as friends. They are friends one to another; and whosoever of you taketh them as his friends, verily he isof the numberof them.
O ye who have believed, take not as friends those who have made your religion a laughing-stock and a jest, of those who have received the Scripture before you, and the unbelievers: (But fear God if ye be believers:)
Andthose whowhen ye call to prayer make it a laughing-stock and a jest. Thisthey dobecause they are a people who do not understand.
(v. 56, 62, 63.)
LXXXVI.
†The servants of the Merciful are they that walk upon the earth softly; and when the ignorant speak unto them, they reply ‘Peace!’—
And they that pass the night worshipping their Lord, prostrate and standing;—
And that say, ‘O our Lord, turn away from us the torment of Hell: verily its torment is endless; verily it is an ill abode and resting-place!’—
And those who when they spend are neither lavish nor niggard, but keep the mean;—
And those who call on no other gods with God, nor slay whom God hath forbidden to be slain, except for a just cause; nor are unchaste;—
And they who bear not witness to a lie, and when they pass by vain discourse pass it by with dignity;—
These shall be rewarded with the highest Heaven, for that they persevered, and they shall be accosted therein with ‘Welcome and Peace,’ to live therein for ever—a fair abode and resting-place!
(xxv. 64-75.)
Say ye, We believe in God, and in that which hath been sent down unto us (namely, the Ḳur-án), and what hath been sent down unto Abraham (the ten books), and Ishmael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the tribes,his children, and whatMoses received (namely, the Pentateuch), and Jesus (namely, the Gospel), and what the prophets received from their Lord (namely, books and signs): we make no separation of any of them,believing in some, and disbelieving in some, like the Jews and the Christians; and we resign ourselves unto Him.
(ii. 130.)
Remember, O Moḥammad, when thy Lord said unto the angels, I am about to place in the earth a vicegerentto act for me in the execution of my ordinances therein, namely, Adam,—they said, Wilt Thou place in it one who will corrupt in itby disobediences, and will shed blood (as did the sons of El-Jánn,191who were in it; wherefore, when they acted corruptly, God sent to them the angels, who drove them away to the islands and the mountains), when we [on the contrary] celebrate the divine perfection,occupying ourselveswith Thy praise, and extol Thy holiness?Therefore we are more worthy of the vicegerency.—Godreplied, Verily, I know that which ye know not,as to the affair of appointing Adam vicegerent, and that among his posterity will be the obedient and the rebellious, and the just will be manifest among them. And He created Adam from the surface of the earth, taking a handful of every colour that it comprised, which was kneaded with various waters; and He completely formed it, and breathed into it the soul: so it became an animated sentient being.192And He taught Adam the names of all things,infusing the knowledge of them into his heart. Then He showed them (namely, the things) to the angels, and said, Declare unto me the names of thesethings, if ye say truthin your assertion that I will not create any more knowing than ye, and that ye are more worthy of the vicegerency. They replied, [We extol] Thy perfection! We haveno knowledge excepting what Thou hast taught us; for Thou art the Knowing, the Wise.—Godsaid, O Adam, tell them their names. And when he had told them their names,Godsaid, Did I not say unto you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the earth, and know what ye revealof your words, saying, Wilt thou place in it, etc., and what ye did concealof your words, saying, He will not create any more generous towards Him than we, nor any more knowing?
(ii. 28-31.)
We created you;that is, your father Adam: then we formed you;we formed him, and you in him: then We said unto the angels, Prostrate yourselves unto Adam,by way of salutation; whereupon they prostrated themselves, except Iblees,the father of the jinn, who was amid the angels: he was not of those who prostrated themselves.Godsaid, What hath hindered thee from prostrating thyself, when I commanded thee? He answered, I am better than he: Thou hast created me of fire, and Thou hast created him of earth. [God] said, Then descend thou from it;that is, from Paradise; or, as some say, from the heavens; for it is not fit for thee that thou behave thyself proudly therein: so go thou forth: verily thou [shalt be] of the contemptible. He replied, Grant me respite until the day when they (that is, mankind) shall be raised from the dead. He said, Thou shalt be of those [who are] respited:and, in another verse[in xv. 38, it is said],until the day of the known period; that is, until the period of the first blast[of the trumpet]. [And the devil] said, Now, as Thou hast led me into error, I will surely lay wait for them (that is, for the sons of Adam) in Thy right way,the way that leadeth to Thee: then I will surely come upon them, from before them, and from behind them, and from their right hands, and from their left,and hinder them from pursuing the way(but, saith Ibn-´Abbás, he cannot come upon them above, lest he should intervene between the servant and God’s mercy), and Thou shalt not find the greater number of them grateful,or believing. [God] said, Go forth from it, despisedand driven awayfrom mercy. Whosoever of them (that is, of mankind) shall follow thee, I will surely fill hell with you all;with thee, and thy offspring, and with men.
(vii. 10-17.)
And we said, O Adam, dwell thou and thy wife (Howwá[or Eve],whom God created from a rib of his left side) in the garden, and eat ye therefrom plentifully, wherever ye will; but approach ye not this tree,to eat thereof; (and it was wheat, or the grape-vine, or some other tree;) forif ye do so, ye will be ofthe number ofthe offenders. But the devil,Iblees, caused them to slip from it,that is, from the garden, by his saying unto them, Shall I show you the way to the tree of eternity? And he swore to them by God that he was one of the faithful advisers to them: so they ate of it, and He ejected them from thatstate of delightin which they were. And We said, Descend ye193to the earth, ye two with the offspring that ye comprise[yet unborn], one of you (that is, of your offspring) an enemy to another; and there shall be for you, in the earth, a place of abode, and a provision,of its vegetable produce, for a time,until the period of the expiration of your terms of life. And Adam learned, from his Lord, words,which were these:—O Lord, we have acted unjustly to our own souls, and if Thou do not forgive us, and be merciful unto us, we shall surely be of those who suffer loss.194And he prayed in these words; and He became propitious towards him,accepting his repentance; for He is the Very Propitious, the Merciful. We said, Descend ye from it (from the garden) altogether; and if there come unto you from Me a direction (a book and an apostle), thosewho follow my direction,there shall comeno fear on them, nor shall they grievein the world to come; for they shall enter paradise: but they who disbelieve and accuse our signs195of falsehood, these shall be the companions of the fire: they shall remain therein for ever.
(ii. 33-37.)
Recite,O Moḥammad, unto them (that is, to thy people) the history of the two sons of Adam,namely, Abel and Cain,196with truth. When they offered [their] offeringto God197(Abel’s being a ram, and Cain’s being produce of the earth), and it was accepted from one of them (that is, from Abel; for fire descended from heaven, and devoured his offering), and it was not accepted from the other,Cain was enraged; but he concealed his envy until Adam performed a pilgrimage, whenhe saidunto his brother, I will assuredly slay thee.Abel said, Wherefore? Cain answered, Because of the acceptance of thine offering to the exclusion of mine.Abelreplied, God only accepteth from the pious. If thou stretch forth to me thy hand to slay me, I will not stretch forth to thee my hand to slay thee; for I fear God, the Lord of the worlds. I desire that thou shouldst bear the sin [which thou intendest to commit] against me,by slaying me, and thy sinwhich thou hast committed before, andthou wilt be of the companions of the fire.—And that is the recompense of the offenders.—But his soul suffered him to slay his brother: so he slew him; and he became of [the number of] those who suffer loss.And he knew not what to do with him; for he was the first dead person upon the face of the earth of the sons of Adam. So he carried him upon his back.And God sent a raven, which scratched up the earthwith its bill and its talons and raised it over a dead raven that was with it until it hid it, to show him how he should hide the corpse of his brother. He said, O my disgrace! Am I unable to be like this raven, and to hide the corpse of my brother?—And he became of [the number of] the repentant.And he digged[a grave]for him, and hid him.—On account of thiswhich Cain didWe commanded the children of Israel that he who should slay a soul (not forthe latter’s having slaina soul orcommittedwickedness in the earth,such as infidelity, or adultery, or intercepting the way, and the like) [should be regarded] as though he had slain all mankind; and he who saveth it alive,by abstaining from slaying it, as though he had saved alive all mankind.
v. 30-35.
We formerly sent Noah [Nooḥ] unto his people,saying, Verily I am unto you a plain admonisher that ye worship not [any] but God. Verily I fear for you,if ye worship any other, the punishment of an afflictive dayin this world and in the world to come.—But the chiefs who disbelieved among his people replied, We see thee not to be other than a man, like unto us; and we see not any to have followed thee except the meanest of us,as the weavers and the cobblers, at first thought (or rashly), nor do we see you to have any excellence above us: nay, we imagine you to be liarsin your claim to the apostolic commission. He said, O my people, tell me, if I have an evident proof from my Lord and He hath bestowed on me mercy (the gift of prophecy) from Himself which is hidden from you, shall we compel you toreceiveit when ye are averse thereto?We cannot do so.And, O my people, I ask not of you any riches for it;namely, for delivering my message. My reward is not due from any but God; and I will not drive away those who have believedas ye have commanded me[because they are poor people]. Verily they shall meet their Lordat the resurrection, and He will recompense them, and will exact for them[reparation]from those who have treated them with injustice, and driven them away. But I see you [to be] a people who are ignorantof the end of your case. And, O my people, who will defend me against God if I drive them away? Will ye not then consider? And I do not say unto you, I have the treasures of God; nor [do I say], I know the things unseen; nor do I say, Verily I am an angel; nor do I say, of those whom your eyescontemn, God will by no means bestow on them good: (God best knoweth what is in their minds:) verily I should in that case be [one] of the offenders.—They replied, O Noah, thou hast disputed with us and multiplied disputes with us: now bring upon us thatpunishmentwherewith thou threatenest us, if thou be of those that speak truth. He said, Only God will bring it upon you, if He pleaseto hasten it unto you; for it is His affair, not mine; and ye shall not escapeGod: nor will my counsel profit you, if I desire to counsel you, if God desire to lead you into error. He is your Lord; and unto Him shall ye be brought back.
(xi. 27-36.)
And it was said by revelation unto Noah, Verily there shalt not believe of thy people [any] but they who have already believed; therefore be not grieved for that which they have done.
(xi. 38.)
And he uttered an imprecation upon them, saying, O my Lord, leave not upon the earth any one of the unbelievers; for if Thou leave them, they will lead Thy servants into error, and will not beget [any] but a wicked, ungrateful [offspring]. O my Lord, forgive me and my parents (for they were believers), and whomsoever entereth my house (my abode, or my place of worship), being a believer, and the believing men, and the believing women, (to the day of resurrection), and add not to the offenders [aught] save destruction.
(lxxi. 27-29.)
And God answered his prayer, and said, Construct the ark in our sight and according to our revelation, and speak not unto Me concerning those who have offended,to beg Me not to destroy them; for they [shall be] drowned. And he constructed the ark; and whenever a company of his people passed by him, they derided him. He said, If ye deride us, we will deride you, like as ye deride,when we are saved and ye are drowned, and ye shall know on whom shall come a punishment which shall render him vile, and whom shall befall a lasting punishment. [Thus he was employed] until when Our decreefor their destructioncameto pass, and thebaker’soven overflowedwith water198(for this was a signal unto Noah), We said, Carry into it (that is, into the ark) of every pair,male and female, of each of these descriptions, two (and it is related that God assembled for Noah the wild beasts and the birds and other creatures, and he proceeded to put his hands upon each kind, and his right hand fell always upon the male, and his left upon the female, and he carried them into the ark), and thy family (excepting him upon whom the sentenceof destructionhath already been pronounced,namely, Noah’s wife, and his son Canaan: but Shem and Ham and Japheth and their three wives he took), and those who have believed; but there believed not with him save a few:they were six men and their wives: and it is said that all who were in the ark were eighty, half of whom were men and half women. AndNoahsaid, Embark ye therein. In the name of God [be] its course and its mooring.199Verily my Lord is very forgiving[and] merciful.—And it moved along with them amid waves like mountains; and Noah called unto his son,Canaan, who was apartfrom the ark, O my child, embark with us, and be not with the unbelievers! He replied, I will betake me to a mountain which will secure me from the water. [Noah] said, There is nought that will secure to-day from the decree of God [any] but him on whom He hath mercy. And the waves intervened between them; so he became [one] of the drowned. And it was said, O earth, swallow up thy water (whereupon it drank it up, except what had descended from heaven, which became rivers and seas), and, O heaven, ceasefrom raining;—and the water abated, and the decree was fulfilled, and it (namely, the ark) rested on El-Joodee (a mountain of El-Jezeereh, near El-Mósil); and it was said, Perdition to the offending people!200
(xi. 38-46.)
And Noah called upon his Lord, and said, O my Lord, verily my son is of my family,and Thou hast promised me to save them, and verily Thy promise is true, and Thou art the most just of those who exercise judgment.Godreplied, O Noah, verily he is not of thy familywho should be saved, or of the people of thy religion. Verily it (namely, thine asking me to save him) is not a righteous act;for he was an unbeliever, and there is no safety for the unbelievers; therefore ask not of me that wherein thou hast no knowledge. I admonish thee, lest thou become [one] of the ignorant.—Noahsaid, O my Lord, I beg Thee to preserve me from asking Thee that wherein I have no knowledge; and if Thou do not forgive me and have mercy upon me, I shall be of those who suffer loss.—It was said, O Noah, descendfrom the ark,201with peace from Us, and blessings,upon thee and upon peoples [that shall proceed] from those who are with theein the ark(that is, their believing posterity); but peoples [that shall proceed]from those who are with theeWe will permit to enjoythe provisions of this world; then a painful punishment shall befall them from Us,in the world to come; they being unbelievers.
xi. 47-50.
Andwe sentuntothe former[tribe of] ´Ád202their brother Hood.203He said, O my people, worship God:assert His unity. Ye have no other deity than Him. Will ye not then fearHim, and believe?—The chiefs who disbelieved among his people answered, Verily we see thee to be in a foolish way, and verily we esteem thee one of the liarswith respect to the apostolic commission. He replied, O my people, there is no folly in me; but I am an apostle from the Lord of the worlds. I bring unto you the messages of my Lord, and I am unto you a counsellor, intrustedwith the apostolic office. Do ye wonder that an admonition hath come unto you from your Lord bythe tongue ofa man from among you, that he may warn you? And remember how He hath appointed you vicegerentsin the earthafter the people of Noah, and increased you in tallness of stature. (For the tall among them was a hundred cubits, and the short among them sixty.) Remember, then, the benefits of God, that ye may prosper. They said, Art thou come unto us that we may worship God alone, and relinquish what our fathers worshipped? Then bring upon us thatpunishmentwith which thou threatenest us, if thou be of those who speak truth.—He replied, Punishment and indignationfrom your Lord have become necessary for you. Do ye dispute with me concerning names which ye and your fathers have givento idols which ye worship, concerning which (that is, the worship of which) God hath not set down any convincing proof? Then await yethe punishment. I am with you, of those who awaitthat, for your accusing me of falsehood. And the unprofitable wind was sent upon them.But We delivered him (namely, Hood) and them who were with him (of the believers) by Our mercy; and We cut off the uppermost part of those who charged Our signs with falsehood and who were not believers.
(vii. 63-70.)
AndWe sentuntothe tribe ofThamood204their brother Ṣáliḥ. He said, O my people, worship God. Ye have no other deity than Him. Amiraculousproofof my veracityhath come unto you from your Lord, this she-camel of God being a sign unto you. [He had caused her, at their demand, to come forth from the heart of a rock.] Therefore let her feed in God’s earth, and do her no harm, lest a painful punishment seize you. And remember how He hath appointed you vicegerentsin the earthafter [the tribe of] ´Ád, and given you a habitation in the earth: ye make yourselves, on its plains, pavilionswherein ye dwell in summer, and cut the mountains into houseswherein ye dwell in winter. Remember then the benefits of God, and do not evil in the earth, acting corruptly.—The chiefs who were elated with pride, among his people, said unto those who were esteemed weak,namely, to those who had believed among them, Do ye know that Ṣáliḥ hath been sentunto youfrom his Lord? They answered,Yea: verily we believe in that wherewith he hath been sent. Those who were elated with pride replied, Verily we disbelieve in that wherein ye have believed.—And the she-camel had a day to water; and they had a day; and they became weary ofthis.And they hamstrung the she-camel (Ḳudár[the son of Sálif]doing so by their order and slaying her with the sword);205and they impiously transgressed the command of their Lord,206and said, O Ṣáliḥ, bring upon us thatpunishmentwith which thou threatenest usfor killing her, if thou be [one] of the apostles. And the violent convulsion (a great earthquake, and a cry from heaven207) assailed them, and in the morning they were in their dwellings prostrateand dead. So he turned away from them, and said, O my people, I have brought unto you the message of my Lord and given you faithful counsel; but ye loved not faithful counsellors.
(vii. 71-77.)
They (namely, the Jews) will ask thee concerning Dhu-l-Ḳarneyn.208(His name was El-Iskender, and he was not a prophet.) Answer, I will recite unto you an account of him. We gave him ability in the earth,by facilitating his journeying therein, and gave him a way toattaineverythingthat he required. And he followed a waytowards a place where the sun setteth, until, when he came to the place where the sun setteth, he found that it set in a spring of black mud,as it appeared to the eye; but really that spring was greater than the world; and he found near it a peoplewho were unbelievers.209We said,by inspiration, O Dhu-l-Ḳarneyn, either punishthe people by slaughter, or proceed against them gently,taking them captive. He said, As to him who offendethby polytheism, we will punish himby slaughter: then he shall be taken back to his Lord, and He will punish him with a severe punishment,in the fire ofhell. But as to him who believeth, and doeth that which is right, he shall have as a reward paradise, and We will say unto him, in Our command,that which will beeasyunto him.—Then he followed a waytowards the place where the sun riseth, until, when he came to the place where the sun riseth, he found that it rose upon a people (namely, the Zenj) unto whom We had not given anything wherewith to shelter themselves therefrom,neither clothing nor roof; for their land bore no building; but they had subterranean dwellings, into which they retired at sunrise, and they came forth when the sun was high. Thuswas the case; and We comprehended with Our knowledge what were with him (namely, Dhu-l-Ḳarneyn),of weapons and forces and other things.—Then he followed a way until, when he came between the two barriers (or mountains, at the confines of the country of the Turks, between which is the barrier of El-Iskender, as will be related presently), he found before them a people who could scarce understand speech. They said, O Dhu-l-Ḳarneyn, verily Yájooj and Májooj [Gog and Magog210] are corrupting in the earth,by plunder and tyranny, when they came forth unto us. Shall we therefore pay thee tribute, on the condition that thou make a barrier between us and them?—He answered, The ability which my Lord hath given me,by wealth and other things, is betterthan your tribute, which I need not. I will make the barrier for you gratuitously: but assist me strenuouslyby doing that which I desire: I will make between you and them a strong barrier. Bring me pieces of ironof the size of the blocks of stone used in building.—And he built with them, and placed amid them firewood and charcoal, until, when it [the mass]filled up the space between the upper parts of the two mountains,and he had put the bellows and fire around that mass, he said, Blow ye [with the bellows].So they blewuntil, when he had made it (that is, the iron)likefire, he said, Bring me molten brass, that I may pour upon it.And he poured the molten brass upon the heated iron, so that it entered between its pieces and the whole became one mass.And they (namely, Yájooj and Májooj) were not able to ascend to its topby reason of its height and smoothness; nor were they able to perforate itby reason of its hardness and thickness.Dhu-l-Ḳarneynsaid, This (namely, the barrier, or the gift of the ability to construct it) is a mercy from my Lord: but when the promise of my Lord,as to the eruption of Yájooj and Májooj shortly before the resurrection, shall cometo be fulfilled, He will reduce it (namely, the barrier) to dust; and the promise of my Lord concerningtheir eruption and other eventsis true. And We will suffer some of them, on that day (the day of their eruption), to pour tumultuously among others: and the trumpet shall be blownfor the resurrection, and We will gather them (namely, all creatures) together in a body,in one place. And We will set hell, on that day,nearbefore the unbelievers, whose eyes have been veiled from my admonition (the Ḳur-án),and who, being blind, have not been directed by it, and who could not hearwhat the prophet recited unto them, by reason of their hatred of him; wherefore they believed not in him.
xviii. 82-101.
Rememberwhen Abraham [Ibráheem] said to his father A´zar (this was the surname of Terah), Dost thou take images as deities?211Verily I see thee and thy people to be in a manifest error.—(And thus,as We showed him the error of his father and his people, did We show Abraham the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and [We did so] that he might be of [the number of] those who firmly believe.) And when the night overshadowed him, he saw a star (it is said that it was Venus), [and] he saidunto his people, who were astrologers, This is my Lord,according to your assertion.—But when it set, he said, I like not those that set,to take them as Lords, since it is not meet for a Lord to experience alteration and change of place, as they are of the nature of accidents.Yet this had no effect upon them.And when he saw the moon rising, he saidunto them, This is my Lord.—But when it set, he said, Verily if my Lord direct me not (if He confirm me not in the right way), I shall assuredly be of the erring people.—This was a hint to his people that they were in error; but it had no effect upon them.And when he saw the sun rising, he said, This is my Lord. This is greaterthan the star and the moon.—But when it set,and the proof had been rendered more strong to them, yet they desisted not, he said, O mypeople, verily I am clear of the [things] which ye associatewith God; namely, the images and the heavenly bodies.So they said unto him, What dost thou worship?He answered, Verily I direct my face unto Him who hath created the heavens and the earth, following the right religion, and I am not of the polytheists.—And his people argued with him; [but] he said, Do ye argue with me respecting God, when He hath directed me, and I fear not what ye associate with Him, unless my Lord willthataughtdispleasing should befall me? My Lord comprehendeth everything byHisknowledge. Will ye not therefore consider? And wherefore should I fear what ye have associatedwith God, when ye fear not for your having associated with God that of which He hath not sent down unto you a proof? Then which of the two parties is the more worthy of safety?Are we, or you?If ye knowwho is the more worthy of it, follow him.—God saith, They who have believed, and not mixed their belief with injustice (that is, polytheism), for these shall be safetyfrom punishment, and they are rightly directed.
(vi. 74-82.)
Relateunto them, in the book (that is, the Ḳur-án),the history ofAbraham. Verily he was a person of great veracity, a prophet. When he said unto his fatherA´zar, who worshipped idols, O my father, wherefore dost thou worship that which heareth not, nor seeth, nor averteth from thee aught,whether of advantage or of injury? O my father, verily [a degree] of knowledge hath come unto me, that hath not come unto thee: therefore follow me: I will direct thee into a right way. O my father, serve not the devil,by obeying him in serving idols; for the devil is very rebellious unto the Compassionate. O my father, verily I fear that a punishment will betide thee from the Compassionate,if thou repent not, and that thou wilt be unto the devil an aider,and a companion in hell-fire.—He replied, Art thou a rejector of my Gods, O Abraham,and dost thou revile them? If thou abstain not, I will assuredly assail theewith stones or with ill words; therefore beware ofme, and leave me for a long time.—Abrahamsaid, Peacefrom mebe on thee! I will ask pardon for thee of my Lord; for He is gracious unto me: and I will separate myself from you and from what ye invoke instead of God; and I will call upon my Lord: perhaps I shall not be unsuccessful in calling upon my Lord,as ye are in calling upon idols.—And when he had separated himself from them, and from what they worshipped instead of God,by going to the Holy Land, We gave himtwo sons, that he might cheer himself thereby, namely, Isaac and Jacob; and each [of them] We made a prophet; and We bestowed upon them (namely, the three), of our mercy,wealth and children; and We caused them to receive high commendation.
(xix. 42-51.)
We gave unto Abraham his direction formerly,before he had attained to manhood; and We knew himto be worthy of it. When he said unto his father and his people, What are these images, tothe worship ofwhich ye are devoted?—they answered, We found our fathers worshipping them,and we have followed their example. He saidunto them, Verily ye and your fathers have been in a manifest error. They said, Hast thou come unto us with truthin saying this, or art thou of those who jest? He answered, Nay, your Lord (the being who deserveth to be worshipped) is the Lord of the heavens and the earth, who created them,not after the similitude of anything pre-existing; and I am of those who bear witness thereof. And, by God, I will assuredly devise a plot against your idols after ye shall have retired, turning your backs.—So,after they had gone to their place of assembly, on a day when they held a festival, he brake them in pieceswith an axe, except the chief of them,upon whose neck he hung the axe; that they might return unto it (namely, the chief)and see what he had done with the others. They said,after they had returned and seen what he had done, Who hath done this unto our gods? Verily he is of the unjust.—And some of themsaid, We heard a young man mention themreproachfully: he is called Abraham. They said, Then bring him before the eyes of the people, that they may bear witnessagainst him of his having done it. They saidunto him, when he had been brought, Hast thou done this unto our gods, O Abraham? He answered, Nay, this their chief did it: and ask ye them, if they [can] speak. And they returned unto themselves,upon reflection, and saidunto themselves, Verily ye are the unjust,in worshipping that which speaketh not. Then they reverted to their obstinacy,and said, Verily thou knowest that these speak not:then wherefore dost thou order us to ask them?He said, Do ye then worship, instead of God, that which doth not profit you at all, nor injure youif ye worship it not? Fy on you, and on that which ye worship instead of God! Do ye not then understand?—They said, Burn ye him, and avenge your gods, if ye will doso.So they collected abundance of firewood for him, and set fire to it; and they bound Abraham, and put him into an engine, and cast him into the fire.But, saith God, We said, O fire, be thou cold, and a security unto Abraham!So nought of him was burned save his bonds: the heat of the fire ceased, but its light remained; and by God’s saying, Security,—Abraham was saved from dying, by reason of its cold.And they intended against him a plot; but he caused them to be the sufferers.212And We delivered him and Lot,the son ofhis brother Haran, from El-´Eráḳ, [bringing them] unto the land which we blessed for the peoples,by the abundance of its rivers and trees, namely, Syria. Abraham took up his abode in Palestine, and Lot in El-Mu-tekifeh, between which is a day’s journey.Andwhen Abraham had asked a son, We gave unto him Isaac, and Jacob as an additional gift,beyond what he had asked, being a son’s son; and all of them We made righteous personsand prophets. And We made them models of religion who directedmenby Our commandunto Our religion; and We commanded them by inspiration to do good works and to perform prayer and to give the appointed alms; and they served Us. And unto Lot We gave judgment and knowledge; and We delivered him from the city which committed filthy actions; for they were a people of evil, shameful doers; and We admitted him into our mercy; for he was [one] of the righteous.
(xxi. 52-75.)
Hast thou not considered him who disputed with Abraham concerning his Lord, because God had given him the kingdom?And he was Nimrod.When Abraham said, (upon his saying unto him, Who is thy Lord, unto whom thou invitest us?), My Lord is He who giveth life and causeth to die,—he replied, I give life and cause to die.—And he summoned two men, and slew one of them, and left the other. So when he saw that he understood not, Abraham said, And verily God bringeth the sun from the east: now do thou bring it from the west.—And he whodisbelieved was confounded; and God directeth not the offending people.
(ii. 260.)
And Our messengers came formerly unto Abraham with good tidingsof Isaac and Jacob, who should be after him. They said, Peace. He replied,Peace be on you. And he tarried not, but brought a roasted calf. And when he saw that their hands touched it not, he disliked them and conceived a fear of them. They said, Fear not: for we are sent unto the people of Lot,that we may destroy them. And his wifeSarahwas standingserving them, and she laughed,rejoicing at the tidings of their destruction. And we gave her good tidings of Isaac [Isḥáḳ]; and after Isaac, Jacob [Yaạḳoob]. She said, Alas! shall I bear a child when I am an old woman,of nine and ninety years, and when this my husband is an old man,of a hundred or a hundred and twenty years? Verily this [would be] a wonderful thing.—They said, Dost thou wonder at the command of God? The mercy of God and His blessings be on you, O people of the house (of Abraham)! for He is praiseworthy, glorious.—And when the terror had departed from Abraham, and the good tidings had come unto him, he disputed with Us (that is, with Our messengers) respecting the people of Lot; for Abraham was gentle, compassionate, repentant.And he said unto them, Will ye destroy a city wherein are three hundred believers? They answered, No. He said, And will ye destroy a city wherein are two hundred believers? They answered, No. He said, And will ye destroy a city wherein are forty believers? They answered, No. He said, And will ye destroy a city wherein are fourteen believers? They answered, No. He said, And tell me, if there be in it one believer? They answered, No. He said, Verily in it is Lot. They replied, We know best who is in it. And when their dispute had become tedious, they said, O Abraham, abstain from thisdisputation; for the command of thy Lord hath comefor their destruction, and a punishment not [to be] averted is coming upon them.
xi. 72-78.
And when Our decree forthe destruction of the people of Lotcame [to be executed], We turned them (that is, their cities) upside-down;for Gabriel raised them to heaven, and let them fall upside-down to the earth;213and We rained upon them stones of baked clay, sent one after another, marked with thy Lord,each with the name of him upon whom it should be cast: and they [are] not far distant from the offenders;that is, the stones are not, or the cities of the people of Lot were not, far distant from the people of Mekkeh.
(xi. 84.)
And [Abraham] said [after his escape from Nimrod], Verily I am going unto my Lord, who will direct meunto the place whither He hath commanded me to go, namely, Syria. And when he had arrived at the Holy Land, he said, O my Lord, give mea son[who shall be one] of the righteous. Whereupon We gave him the glad tidings of a mild youth. And when he had attained to the age when he could work with him (as some say, seven years; and some, thirteen), he said, O my child, verily I have seen in a dream that I should sacrifice thee (and the dreams of prophets are true; and their actions, by the command of God); therefore consider what thou seest advisablefor me to do. He replied, O my father, do what thou art commanded: thou shalt find me, if God please, [of the number] of the patient. And when they had resigned themselves, and he had laid him down on his temple,in[the valley of]Mind, and had drawn the knife across his throat(but it produced no effect, by reason of an obstacle interposed by the divine power), We called unto him, O Abraham, thou hast verified the vision. Verily thus do We reward the well-doers. Verily this was the manifest trial. And We ransomed himwhom he had been commanded to sacrifice(and he was Ishmȧel[Ismá´eel]or Isaac; for there are two opinions)214with an excellent victim,a ram from Paradise, the same that Abel had offered: Gabriel(on whom be peace!)brought it, and the lord Abraham sacrificed it, saying, God is most great!And We leftthis salutation[to be bestowed] on him by the latter generations, Peace [be] on Abraham! Thus do We reward the well-doers: for he was of our believing servants.
(xxxvii. 97-111.)
Rememberwhen Abraham said, O my Lord, show me how Thou will raise to life the dead.215—He said, Hast thou not believed? He answered, Yea: butI have asked Theethat my heart may be at ease. He replied, Then take four birds and draw them towards thee,and cut them in pieces and mingle together their flesh and their feathers; then place upon each mountainof thy landa portion of them, then call themunto thee: they shall come unto thee quickly: and know thou that God is mighty [and] wise.—And he took a peacock and a vulture and a raven and a cock, and did with them as hath been described, and kept their heads with him, and called them; whereupon the portions flew about, one to another, until they became complete: then they came to their heads.
(ii. 262.)
Rememberwhen his Lord had tried Abraham by [certain] words,commands and prohibitions, and he fulfilledthem,Godsaidunto him, I constitute thee a model of religion unto men.216He replied, And of my offspringconstitute models of religion. [God] said, My covenant doth not apply to the offenders,the unbelievers among them.—And when We appointed the house (that is, the Kaạbeh) to be a place for the resort of men, and a place of security (a man would meet the slayer of his father there and he would not provoke him[to revenge],) and [said], Take,O men, the station of Abraham (the stone upon which he stood at the time of building the House) as a place of prayer,that ye may perform behind it the prayers of the two rek´ahs217[which are ordained to be performed after the ceremony]of the circuiting[of the Kaạbeh].—And We commanded Abraham and Ishmael, [saying], Purify my House (rid it of the idols) for those who shall compass [it], and those who shall abidethere, and those who shall bow down and prostrate themselves.—And when Abraham said, O my Lord, make thisplacea secure territory (and God hath answered his prayer, and made it a sacred place, wherein the blood of man is not shed, nor is any one oppressed in it, nor is its game hunted[or shot],nor are its plants cut or pulled up), and supply its inhabitants with fruitswhich hath been done by the transporting of Eṭ-Ṭáïf from Syria thither, when it[that is, the territory of Mekkeh]was desert, without sown land or water,218such of them as shall believe in God andthe last day.—He mentioned them peculiarly in the prayer agreeably with the saying of God, My covenant doth not apply to the offenders.—Godreplied, AndI will supplyhim who disbelieveth: I will make him to enjoya supply of food in this world, a littlewhile: then I will force him,in the world to come, to the punishment of the fire; and evil shall be the transit.
(ii. 118-120.)
Andrememberwhen Abraham was raising the foundations of the House219(that is, building it), together with Ishmael,and they said, O our Lord, accept of usour building; for Thou art the Hearerof what is said, the Knowerof what is done. O our Lord, also make us resigned220unto Thee, andmakefrom among our offspring a people resigned unto Thee, and show us our rites (the ordinances of our worship, or our pilgrimage), and be propitious towards us; for Thou art the Very Propitious, the Merciful. (They begged Him to be propitious to them, notwithstanding their honesty, from a motive of humility, and by way of instruction to their offspring.) O our Lord, also send unto them (that is, the people of the House) an apostle from among them (and God hath answered their prayer by sending Moḥammad), who shall recite unto them Thy signs (the Ḳur-án), and shall teach them the book (the Ḳur-án), and the knowledgethat it containeth, and shall purify themfrom polytheism; for Thou art the Mighty, the Wise.—And who will be averse from the religion of Abraham but he who maketh his soul foolish,who is ignorant that it is God’s creation, and that the worship of Him is incumbent on it; or who lightly esteemeth it and applieth it to vile purposes; when We have chosen him in this worldas an apostle and a friend, and he shall be in the world to come one of the righteousfor whom are high ranks?—Andrememberwhen his lord said unto him, Resign thyself:—he replied, I resign myself unto the Lord of the worlds.—And Abraham commanded his children to follow it (namely, the religion); and Jacob,his children; saying, O my children, verily God hath chosen for you the religionof El-Islám;221therefore die not without your being Muslims.—It was a prohibition from abandoning El-Islám and a command to persevere therein unto death.
(ii. 121-126.)
When the Jews said, Abraham was a Jew, and we are of his religion,—and the Christians said the like, [the following]was revealed:—O people of the Scripture, wherefore do ye argue respecting Abraham,asserting that he was of your religion, when the Pentateuch and the Gospel were not sent down but after hima long time? Do ye not then understand thefalsity of your saying? So ye, O people, have argued respecting that of which ye have knowledge,concerning Moses and Jesus, and have asserted that ye are of their religion: then wherefore do ye argue respecting that of which ye have no knowledge,concerning Abraham? But God knowethhis case, and ye knowitnot. Abraham was not a Jew nor a Christian: but he was orthodox, a Muslim [or one resigned],a unitarian, and he was not of the polytheists.
(iii. 58-60.)