O you assembly of jinns and men, did not apostles come to you from among you, communicating My signs to you, bringing warnings of this your day (of Doom)?" They will answer: "We bear witness to our sins." They were surely deluded by the life of the world, and bore witness against themselves because they were unbelievers. 130 This is because thy Lord destroyeth not the townships arbitrarily while their people are unconscious (of the wrong they do). 131 And all have degrees according to what they do; and your Lord is not heedless of what they do. 132 Your Lord is the self-sufficient One, the merciful. If He wills, He can take you away and replace you by anyone He pleases, just as He raised you from the offspring of other people. 133 Indeed, what you are promised is coming, and you will not cause failure [to Allah]. 134 Say (O Muhammad): O my people! Work according to your power. Lo! I too am working. Thus ye will come to know for which of us will be the happy sequel. Lo! the wrong-doers will not be successful. 135 They set aside a share of the left-overs of their farming produce and cattle saying, "This is for God and that is for the idols." God does not receive the share of the idols but the share of God is given totally to the idols. How terrible is their decision! 136 And in like manner, their associate gods have made killing their children seem fair to many pagans, so that they may ruin them and cause confusion in their religion. Had God pleased, they would not have done so; so leave them to their false inventions. 137 And they say: Such cattle and crops are forbidden. No-one is to eat of them save whom we will - in their make-believe - cattle whose backs are forbidden, cattle over which they mention not the name of Allah. (All that is) a lie against Him. He will repay them for that which they invent. 138 They have also said, "Whatever exists in the wombs of these animals belongs to our people alone and it is not lawful for our women." However, if they are born dead, then everyone will have a share. God will give them what they deserve for (their unjust laws). God is All-merciful and All-knowing. 139 Lost, indeed, are they who, in their weak-minded ignorance, slay their children and declare as forbidden that which God has provided for them as sustenance, falsely ascribing [such prohibitions] to God: they have gone astray and have not found the right path. 140