And certainly We gave knowledge to Dawood and Sulaiman, and they both said: Praise be to Allah, Who has made us to excel many of His believing servants. 15 And Sulaiman inherited from Daud. And he said: O mankind! Verily we have been taught the diction of birds, and we have been vcuchsafed of everything; and verily this is grace manifest. 16 We gathered to Solomon his army of jinn, humans and birds; gathered and dispersed, 17 and when they came to the Valley of the Ants, one ant said, "Ants! Go into your dwellings, in case Solomon and his hosts inadvertently crush you." 18 So [Solomon] smiled, amused at her speech, and said, "My Lord, enable me to be grateful for Your favor which You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents and to do righteousness of which You approve. And admit me by Your mercy into [the ranks of] Your righteous servants." 19 And he took a muster of the Birds; and he said: "Why is it I see not the Hoopoe? Or is he among the absentees? 20 Surely I shall torment him with a severe torment, or I shall slaughter him, unless he bringeth unto me a warranty manifest. 21 But he was not long in coming, and he said: I have found out (a thing) that thou apprehendest not, and I come unto thee from Sheba with sure tidings. 22 I found a woman ruling over them, and she has been given of everything, and she possesses a mighty throne. 23 "I found her and her people worshipping the sun instead of Allah, and Shaitan (Satan) has made their deeds fair-seeming to them, and has barred them from (Allah's) Way, so they have no guidance," 24 So that they worship not Allah, Who bringeth forth the hidden in the heavens and the earth, and knoweth what ye hide and what ye proclaim, 25 Allah - there is no deity except Him, Lord of the Great Throne." ۩ 26 ۞ Said Sulaiman, “We shall now see whether you spoke the truth or are among the liars.” 27 "Go you with this letter of mine, and deliver it to them, then draw back from them, and see what (answer) they return." 28 She said, "O eminent ones, indeed, to me has been delivered a noble letter. 29 Indeed, it is from Solomon, and indeed, it reads: 'In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful, 30 "Be you not exalted against me, but come to me as Muslims (true believers who submit to Allah with full submission)' " 31