The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
۞ Nun. By the Pen and the (Record) which (men) write,- 1 you are not, because of the favor of your Lord, mad. 2 And lo! thine verily will be a reward unfailing. 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 So thou shalt see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is the afflicted [by a devil]. 6 Verily thy Lord! He is the best Knower of him who strayeth from His path, and He is the best Knower of the guided one. 7 Hence, defer not to [the likes and dislikes of] those who give the lie to the truth: 8 they would wish you to be pliant so that they too may be pliant. 9 Furthermore, defer not to the contemptible swearer of oaths, 10 Or backbiter, calumniator, slanderer, 11 One who excessively forbids the good, transgressor, sinner. 12 the coarse-grained, and above all mean and ignoble; 13 Because he possesses wealth and sons. 14 When Our communications are recited to him, he says: Stories of those of yore. 15 Soon We will brand him on the nose. 16 Verily We have tried them as We tried the People of the Garden, when they resolved to gather the fruits of the (garden) in the morning. 17 and made no allowance [for the will of God]: 18 Then there came on the (garden) a visitation from thy Lord, (which swept away) all around, while they were asleep. 19 and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked. 20 (Then) in the morning they called out to one another, saying: 21 'Come out to your tillage if you want to reap' 22 So they went off, whispering to one another, 23 No Miskin (poor man) shall enter upon you into it today. 24 And they went forth early, determined upon their purpose. 25 But when they saw the (garden), they said: "Verily, we have gone astray," 26 rather, we are utterly ruined.” 27 Said the most right-minded among them: "Did I not tell you, 'Will you not extol God's limitless glory?'" 28 'Exaltations to Allah, our Lord' they said, 'We were truly harmdoers' 29 Then some of them drew near unto others, self-reproaching. 30 They said: “Woe to us! We had indeed transgressed. 31 [But] it may be that our Sustainer will grant us something better instead: for, verily, unto our Sustainer do we turn with hope!" 32 Such is the torment. And the torment of the Hereafter is far greater; if they but knew. 33