The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate
۞ Nun. By the Pen and the (Record) which (men) write,- 1 Thou art not, for thy Lord's favour unto thee, a madman. 2 Indeed, there is an unfailing wage for you. 3 And verily, you (O Muhammad SAW) are on an exalted standard of character. 4 You will see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is the demented. 6 Verily your Lord knows those who have gone astray from His path, and He knows those who are guided on the way. 7 Do not, then, yield to those who reject the Truth, decrying it as false; 8 Their desire is that thou shouldst be pliant: so would they be pliant. 9 And do not yield to any contemptible swearer, 10 the fault-finder who goes around slandering, 11 Hinderer of the good, trespasser; sinner. 12 Ignoble, besides all that, base-born; 13 Because he is a possessor of wealth and children, 14 When Our signs are recited to him, he says, 'Fairy-tales of the ancients!' 15 We shall brand him over the nose! 16 Lo! We have tried them as We tried the owners of the garden when they vowed that they would pluck its fruit next morning, 17 But made no reservation, ("If it be Allah's Will"). 18 Thereupon a calamity from your Lord passed over it while they were asleep, 19 so that by the morrow it became barren and bleak. 20 And they cried out one unto another in the morning, 21 "Go ye to your tilth (betimes) in the morning, if ye would gather the fruits." 22 So they departed, conversing in secret low tones, (saying)- 23 “No destitute person shall enter it today.” 24 And they went out early, determined in their resolve. 25 Then when they beheld it, they said: verily we have strayed. 26 Nay, but we are desolate! 27 The best among them said, “Did I not tell you, ‘Why do you not proclaim His purity?’” 28 They said: "Glory to our Lord! Verily we have been doing wrong!" 29 Then they approached one another, blaming each other. 30 They said, 'Woe, alas for us! Truly, we were insolent. 31 “Hopefully, our Lord will give us a better replacement than this – we now incline towards our Lord.” 32 Such is the chastisement; and the chastisement of the world to come, is assuredly greater, did they but know. 33