The Pen (Al-Qalam)
Allah - beginning with the name of - the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and that which they write (therewith), 1 By the grace of your Lord you are not mad. 2 Indeed, there is an unfailing wage for you. 3 And indeed you possess an exemplary character. 4 Soon you will see, as will they, 5 which of you has been afflicted by insanity. 6 Indeed your Lord well knows those who have strayed from His path, and He well knows those who are upon guidance. 7 Then do not obey the deniers. 8 They wish that thou shouldst compromise, then they would compromise. 9 And obey not everyone who swears much, and is considered worthless, 10 or to any defamer or one who spreads slander, 11 Forbidder of good, outstepping the limits, sinful, 12 Crude, and above all, mean and infamous, 13 Because he is a possessor of wealth and children, 14 When Our Verses (of the Quran) are recited to him, he says: "Tales of the men of old!" 15 We shall mark him upon his nose! 16 Now We have tried them, even as We tried the owners of the garden when they swore they would pluck in the morning 17 without adding ("if God wills"). 18 Then there passed by on the (garden) something (fire) from your Lord at night and burnt it while they were asleep. 19 and so by morning the orchard lay as though it had been fully harvested. 20 At daybreak they called to each other: 21 "Go early to your tilth if you want to harvest the fruit!" 22 And so they departed, whispering to one another: 23 "Be sure to stop any poor person from entering the orchard today." 24 And in the morning they went, having the power to prevent. 25 But when they saw it, they said, 'Surely we are 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 They cried out: “Glory be to our Lord! Certainly we were sinners.” 29 Then some of them advanced against others, blaming each other. 30 They said, "O woe to us; indeed we were transgressors. 31 Perhaps our Lord will replace it with a better garden. We turn in repentance to our Lord". 32 Such is the punishment; and indeed the punishment of the Hereafter is the greatest, if only they knew! 33