The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate
۞ Nun. By the pen and what they inscribe, 1 (Muhammad), you are not insane, thanks to the bounty of your Lord. 2 And verily thine shall be a hire unending. 3 For you are truly of a sublime character. 4 and [one day] thou shalt see, and they [who now deride thee] shall see, 5 Which of you is the afflicted [by a devil]. 6 Verily, thy Sustainer alone is fully aware as to who has strayed from His path, Just as He alone is fully aware of those who have found the right way. 7 Therefore do not listen to the deniers. 8 They wish that you should compromise (in religion out of courtesy) with them, so they (too) would compromise with you. 9 Do not yield to one persistent in swearing, 10 [And] scorner, going about with malicious gossip - 11 obstructing virtues, a sinful transgressor, 12 Foul mouthed, and in addition to all this, of improper lineage. 13 just because he has wealth and sons, 14 and whenever Our verses are rehearsed to him, he says: “These are fairy- tales of times gone by.” 15 [For this] We shall brand him with indelible disgrace! 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 and they added not the saving words. 18 A calamity from your Lord befell the orchard as they slept. 19 And by morning it lay as if it had already been harvested, a barren land. 20 So they called out to each other at the break of dawn, 21 "Go ye to your tilth (betimes) in the morning, if ye would gather the fruits." 22 They all left, whispering to one another, 23 'No needy person shall set foot in it today' 24 They set out early in the morning, thinking they had the power to prevent. 25 But when they saw the (garden), they said: "We have surely lost our way: 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 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 Zalimun (wrong-doers, etc.)." 29 Then they turned, one against another, in reproach. 30 They said, "Woe to us. We have been arrogant. 31 It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better than it; to our Lord we humbly turn.' 32 Such is the chastisement; and the chastisement of the Hereafter is assuredly even greater, if only they knew. 33