The Galaxies (Al-Burooj)
In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate
I CALL TO witness the sky (bespangled) with the signs of the Zodiac, 1 and [then bethink thyself of] the promised Day, 2 And the witness and the witnessed, 3 Accursed be the People of the Ditch! 4 of fire fiercely burning [for all who have attained to faith]! 5 while they sat around it, 6 to watch what they were doing to the believers, 7 And they persecuted them for naught save that they believed in Allah, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy 8 God to whom belongs the Kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and God is Witness over everything. 9 Verily, as for those who persecute believing men and believing women, and thereafter do not repent, hell's suffering awaits them: yea, suffering through fire awaits them! 10 Those who believe, and do righteous deeds, for them await gardens underneath which rivers flow; that is the great triumph. 11 The vengeance of God is terribly severe. 12 Verily, He it is Who begins (punishment) and repeats (punishment in the Hereafter) (or originates the creation of everything, and then repeats it on the Day of Resurrection). 13 And He is the Forgiving, the Affectionate, 14 Lord of the Throne of Glory, 15 Always doing whatever He wills. 16 Hast thou received the story of the hosts, 17 (The armies of) Firaun and the tribe of Thamud. 18 Yet the infidels persist in denial. 19 But God surrounds them from all sides. 20 Nay! it is a glorious Quran, 21 in a guarded tablet. 22