Verse 21
O you who believe, do not follow in the steps of Satan, that is, his ways of making things seem attractive. For whoever follows in the steps of Satan, assuredly he, the one being followed, enjoins indecency, that is, [he enjoins] vile acts, and what is reprehensible, if followed, according to the Law. And were it not for God’s bounty to you and His mercy not one of you, O band [of accusers], would ever have grown pure, after the calumny of which you spoke, that is to say, [not one of you] would have ever been reformed or purified from this sin by repenting of it. But God purifies whom He will, from sin, by accepting his repentance from him, and God is Hearer, of what you have said, Knower, of your intentions.
Verse 22
And do not let those of you who possess bounty, the wealthy, and the affluent swear not to give to the near of kin and the poor and those who emigrate in the way of God — this was revealed regarding Abū Bakr who swore to provide no more for Mistah, his maternal cousin, a destitute Emigrant who had fought at [the battle of] Badr, because of his involvement in the calumny, when thitherto he had provided for him. And [it was revealed also regarding] certain Companions who swore not to give voluntary alms to those who had participated in [spreading] the calumny in any way. Let them forgive and excuse, them in this matter. Do you not love that God should forgive you? And God is Forgiving, Merciful, to believers. Abū Bakr said: ‘Indeed. I would love that God forgive me’, and he restored [thereafter] to Mistah what he used to expend on him.
Verse 23
Truly those who make accusations, of fornication, against honourably married, chaste, women who are unaware, of indecent acts — since it would never occur to them to commit such [acts] — who believe, in God and His Messenger, shall be cursed in this world and the Hereafter; and there will be an awful chastisement for them
Verse 24
on the day (yawma is in the accusative because of the [implicit sense of] ‘permanence’ to which lahum, ‘for them’, is semantically connected) when their tongues and their hands and their feet shall testify against them (read [feminine person] tashhadu or [masculine person] yashhadu, ‘testify’) concerning what they used to do, in terms of speech and action — this [day] is the Day of Resurrection.
Verse 25
On that day God will pay them in full their just due, He will requite them with the requital they deserve, and they shall know that God is the Manifest Truth, since He will have realised for them that requital of His whereof they had been in doubt. Among such [people] is ‘Abd Allāh b. Ubayy. The ‘honourable women’ mentioned above are the Prophet’s (s) wives, regarding whom no repentance has been mentioned [as being possible] in the case of their being falsely accused; those women regarding whom repentance has been mentioned, however, at the beginning of the sūra [verses 4-5], in the case of their being falsely accused, are women other these [wives of the Prophet].
Verse 26
Vile women, and [vile] words, are for vile men, and vile men for vile women, and the mentioned [vile words]. Good women, and as mentioned [good words], are for good men, and good men for good women, and the mentioned [good words], that is to say, what suits something vile is its like, and what suits something good is its like — such, good men and women, the like of ‘Ā’isha and Safwān, are absolved of what they say, [what] the corrupt men and women [say] about them. For them, for good men and women, will be forgiveness and a glorious provision, in Paradise. ‘Ā’isha felt honoured by some of the things [mentioned] in this [verse], namely, that she was created ‘a good woman’ and was promised ‘forgiveness and a glorious provision’.
Verse 27
O you who believe, do not enter houses other than your houses until you have [first] asked permission and greeted their occupants. So a person must say, ‘Peace be upon you, may I enter?’, as is stated in one hadīth. That is better for you, than entering without permission, that perhaps you might remember (tadhakkarūna: the second tā’ [of tatadhakkarūna] has been assimilated with the dhāl) the superiority of such [conduct] and so follow it.
Verse 28
And if you do not find anyone in them, to give you permission, [still] do not enter them until permission has been given to you. And if it is said to you, when you are seeking permission, ‘Go away,’ then go away, for this, going away, is purer, that is, better, for you, than sitting [and waiting] at the doorstep. And God knows what you do, whether you enter with permission or without it, and He will requite you for it.
Verse 29
You would not be at fault if you enter [without permission] uninhabited houses wherein is comfort, some benefit, for you, in the way of finding shelter and so on, as in the case of travellers inns and charitable hostels. And God knows what you disclose, [what] you do openly, and what you hide, what you do secretly when entering houses other than your own, be it for a righteous purpose or otherwise. It will be mentioned shortly that they should bid themselves peace when entering their own houses.
Verse 30
Tell believing men to lower their gaze, from what is unlawful for them to look at (min [of min absārihim, ‘their gaze’] is extra) and to guard their private parts, from doing with them what is unlawful [for them to do]. That is purer, in other words, better, for them. Truly God is Aware of what they do, with their gazes and private parts, and He will requite them for it.
Verse 31
And tell believing women to lower their gaze, away from what is not lawful for them to look at, and to guard their private parts, from what is not lawful for them to do with them, and not to display their adornment except for what is apparent, namely, the face and the hands, which may be seen by a stranger, when there is no danger of [either or both falling into] temptation — this being one of two opinions. The second [of these] is that [even] this is forbidden because there is a presumption that these [parts] will cause temptation — and this is the preferred opinion, if one must settle this topic [with a definitive opinion]; and let them draw their veils over their bosoms, that is, let them cover up their heads, necks and chests with veils, and not reveal their, hidden, adornment, namely, all that is other than the face and the hands, except to their husbands (bu‘ūl is the plural form of ba‘l, ‘male spouse’) or their fathers, or their husbands’ fathers, or their sons, or their husbands’ sons, or their brothers, or their brothers’ sons, or their sisters’ sons, or their women, or what their right hands own, all of whom are permitted to look thereat, except for the part from the navel down to the knees, which is unlawful for any other than their husbands to see; ‘their women’, however, excludes disbelieving women, for it is not permitted for Muslim women to reveal themselves to these; ‘what their right hands own’ comprises slaves; or such men who are dependant, on what food may be left over, not (ghayri, read as an adjective, or read ghayra as an exceptive) possessing any sexual desire, [not] those men who are in [sexual] need of women, so for example those whose male member cannot become erect; or children who are not yet aware of women’s private parts, in [the context of] sexual intercourse, and so to these they may reveal themselves except for that part from the navel to the knees. And do not let them thump with their feet to make known their hidden ornaments, as in a rattling anklet [and the like]. And rally to God in repentance, O believers, [repenting] of the occasions on which you may have looked at what is forbidden [to look at] of such [parts] and otherwise, so that you might be prosperous, [so that you might] be saved from such [sinful acts] when your repentance thereof is accepted — in this verse the prevalent address is to males over females.
Verse 32
And marry off the spouseless among you (ayāmā is the plural form of ayyim, namely, a spouseless female, whether she be a virgin or one previously married, or a spouseless male), this [stipulation] relates to free men and free women, and the righteous ones, the believers, among your male slaves and your female slaves (‘ibād is one plural form of ‘abd). If they, the free men, are poor, God will enrich them, through marriage, out of His bounty. God is Embracing, of [the needs of] His creatures, Knowing, of them.
Verse 33
And let those who cannot find the means to marry be continent, [those who do not have] the bridal money or the means for financial support needed for marriage, [let them restrain themselves] from fornication, until God enriches them, [until] He improves their means, out of His bounty, and they marry. And those who seek a written contract [of emancipation], from among those whom your right hand owns, of male slaves and female slaves, contract with them accordingly, if you know in them any good, such as trustworthiness and the ability to earn [income] in order to fulfil the amount stated in the written contract, which might be worded for example thus: ‘I contract you for [the amount of] two thousand to be paid over a period of two months, at one thousand a month, and if you fulfill this, you are a free man’, and the other would say, ‘I accept’; and give them — this is a command for the [slaves’] owners — out of the wealth of God which He has given you, in the measure that will help them to fulfill their commitment to you (the action of ītā’, ‘giving’, here suggests that some of the amount to which they have committed themselves should be waived). And do not compel your slave-girls, your handmaidens, to prostitution, fornication, when they desire to be chaste, to abstain therefrom (this ‘desire’ is the cause of the [act of] ‘compulsion’, so that the statement is not properly a conditional), that you may seek, through such compulsion, the transient things of the life of this world — this was revealed regarding ‘Abd Allāh b. Ubayy, who used to force his slave-girls to earn money through fornication. And should anyone compel them, then surely God, after their compulsion, will be Forgiving, to these [slave-girls], Merciful, to them.
Verse 34
And verily We have revealed to you clear verses (read mubayyanāt or mubayyināt), in this sūra, [verses] in which [if read mubayyanāt] what is mentioned is [already] clear, or which [if read mubayyināt] are clarificatory of [that which is mentioned], and an example, a curious tale, namely, that of ‘Ā’isha, of those who passed away before you, that is to say, of their kind of example, that is, [an example] of their curious tales, such as the tales of Joseph and Mary, and an admonition for those who fear God, in what He, exalted be He, has said: And do not let any pity for them overcome you in God’s religion [verse 2, above]; and, Why, when you [first] heard about it, did the believing men [and women] not think [good of themselves]… to the end [of verse 12, above]; and, And why, when you heard it, did you not say … to the end [of verse 16, above]; and, God admonishes you lest you should ever repeat [the like of it] … to the end [of verse 17, above]. This [admonition] is specifically for ‘those who fear God’ because they are the ones to benefit from such [an admonition].
Verse 35
God is the Light of the heavens and the earth, in other words, He illumines both of them with the sun and the moon. The likeness of His Light, that is, the description of it [as it resides] in the heart of a believer, is as a niche wherein is a lamp. The lamp is in a glass — this [glass] is the [case for the] lantern and the misbāh is the torch, that is, the wick that is lit; al-mishkāt is a recess that does not penetrate [to the other side], in other words, the tube inside the lantern, the glass, with the light inside it [is], as it were a glittering star, that is, a light-giving [star] (read dirrī’un or durrī’un, derived from al-dar‘, ‘to repel’, because it repels darkness; or read durriyyun, derived from al-durr, ‘pearls’) kindled, is this lamp (read past tense tawaqqada; a variant reading has the imperfect tense of awqada, in the passive voice: yūqadu; another reading has tūqadu, in which case the reference is to al-zujāja, ‘the glass’) from, the oil of, a Blessed Tree, an olive neither of the east nor of the west, but in between the two, so that no harmful cold or heat affects it; whose oil would almost glow forth [of itself], though no fire touched it, because of [the extent of] its purity. Light, by Him, upon light, by fire; the light of God is His guidance of the believer, light upon the light of faith. God guides to His Light, that is, [to] the religion of Islam, whom He will. And God strikes, He illustrates, similitudes for men, by approximating [such similitudes] to their comprehension, so that they might take heed and believe; and God is Knower of all things, including [knowledge of] how to strike similitudes.
Verse 36
In houses (fī buyūtin is semantically connected to yusabbihu, ‘glorify’, that will follow) [whose status] God has allowed to be raised, [houses He has allowed] to be venerated, and wherein His Name is remembered, through the affirmation of His Oneness, therein [they] make glorifications (read yusabbahu, ‘glorifications are made’, or yusabbihu, meaning ‘[therein] pray’) to Him in the mornings (al-ghuduww is a verbal noun, meaning al-ghadawāt, ‘the early mornings’) and the evenings, the darkness, after sunset,
Verse 37
men (rijālun, the subject of the verb yusabbihu, ‘make glorifications’; if [the passive is] read, yusabbahu, ‘glorifications are made’, it [rijālun, ‘men’] substitutes for the [impersonal] subject of lahu, ‘to Him’, so that rijālun, ‘men’, is the subject of an implied verb in response to an implied question as if one had asked: who makes glorifications to Him?) whom neither trading, purchase, nor sale distracts from the remembrance of God and the observance of prayer (the [final] hā’ of iqāmat, ‘the observance’, has been omitted to facilitate [the reading]) and payment of the alms. They fear a day when hearts and eyes will be tossed about, in fear, the hearts [tossed about] between [the hope of] deliverance and [the fear of] destruction, and the eyes to the right and to the left [out of anxiety] — this is the Day of Resurrection;
Verse 38
so that God may reward them for the best of what they did, that is, [reward them] the reward for it (ahsana means husna), and give them more out of His bounty; and God provides whomever He will without [any] reckoning (one says [of someone] yunfiqu bi-ghayri hisābin, to mean that such [a person] is so generous that it is as though he does not [need to] reckon what he spends).
Verse 39
And as for those who disbelieve, their works are like a mirage in a plain (qī‘a is the plural of qā‘, that is to say, fulāt, ‘an open space’). [A mirage is] a kind of radiation which one might observe therein at midday during extreme heat, resembling running water — which the thirsty man supposes to be water until he comes to it and finds it to be nothing, like what he had supposed. Likewise is [the case of] the disbeliever who supposes that his deeds, such as some voluntary alms, will benefit him; but when he dies and comes before his Lord he will not find his deed, in other words, it will be of no benefit to him; and he finds God there, namely, in the place of his deeds, Who pays him his account in full, that is, He requites him for it in this world; and God is swift at reckoning, that is, at requiting.
Verse 40
Or, [it is that] those who disbelieve, their evil deeds are, as the manifold darkness on a deep sea, covered by a billow, above which, that is, [above which] billow, there is [another] billow, above which, second billow, there are clouds, these being the, manifold [layers of] darkness, one on top of another, the darkness of the sea, the darkness of the first billow, the darkness of the second together with the darkness of the clouds. When he, an observer, holds out his hand, in such layers of darkness, he can scarcely see it, in other words, he would not [even] come close to seeing it. And he whom God has not granted any light has no light, that is to say, he whom God does not guide cannot be guided.
Verse 41
Have you not seen that God is glorified by all who are in the heavens and the earth, prayer being one form of glorification, and the birds (tayr is the plural of tā’ir), between the heaven and the earth, spreading their wings? (sāffātin is a circumstantial qualifier). Of each [one of them] He, God, verily knows its prayer and its glorification; and God knows what they do — the statement is predominantly directed to rational beings.
Verse 42
And to God belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, the treasuries of rain, provision and vegetation, and with God is the journey’s end, the [final] return.
Verse 43
Have you not seen how God drives the clouds, moves them along gently, then composes them, joining some with others and making scattered pieces as one, then piles them up, some on top of others, whereat you see the rain issuing from the midst of them, [from specific] outlets in them? And He sends down from the heaven out of the mountains (min jibālin: min is extra) that are therein, in the heaven (fīhā substitutes [for mina’l-samā’i, ‘from the heaven’] with the repetition of a genitive preposition) hail, that is, [He sends down] some [hail], and smites with it whom He will and turns it away from whom He will. The brilliance of its lightning, its flashing, would almost take away the eyes, that look at it, in other words, [it would almost] snatching them away.
Verse 44
God alternates the night and the day, that is, He brings one in place of the other. Surely in that, alternation, there is a lesson, an indication, for those who see, those possessing insight, [an indication] of God’s power, exalted be He.
Verse 45
And God has created every beast, that is, [every] animal, from fluid, [from] a sperm-drop. Among them are some that creep upon their bellies, such as snakes and reptiles, and among them are some that walk on two feet, such as human beings and birds, and among them are some that walk on four, such as [four-legged] beasts and cattle. God creates whatever He will. Truly God has power over all things.
Verse 46
And verily We have revealed manifest signs, namely, the Qur’ān; and God guides whomever He will to a straight path, [a straight] route, and that is the religion of Islam.
Verse 47
And they, the hypocrites, say, ‘We believe in, we affirm [the truth of], God, [of] His Oneness, and the Messenger, Muhammad (s), and we obey’, them in what rulings they [God and Muhammad] give. Then after that a party of them turn away, they are averse to it, and those, those who are averse, they are not believers, as [believers] should be, [believers] whose hearts agree with [the words of] their tongues.
Verse 48
And when they are summoned to God and His Messenger, who conveys His words, that he may judge between them, behold, a party of them are averse, to come to him.
Verse 49
But if right be on their side they would come to him willingly, hastening compliantly.
Verse 50
Is there a sickness, disbelief, in their hearts? Or are they in doubt, are they uncertain of his prophethood, or do they fear that God and His Messenger will be unjust to them?, in judgement, in other words, that they will be wronged therein? No! Rather, those, they are the wrongdoers, for shunning him.
Verse 51
All that the believers say, when they are summoned to God and His Messenger, that he may judge between them, is that they say, in other words, the saying that befits them is [to say]: ‘We hear and we obey’, by responding [to the summons]. And those, then, are the successful, the ones who will be saved.
Verse 52
And he who obeys God and His Messenger, and fears God and fears Him (read yattaqh or yattaqhi), by being obedient to Him, those, they are the winners, of Paradise.
Verse 53
And they swear by God solemn oaths that if you order them, to [participate in the] struggle, they will surely go forth. Say, to them: ‘Do not swear! Acknowledged obedience, to the Prophet is better than the oaths to which you are not true. Surely God is Aware of what you do’, when you say you will obey but act otherwise.
Verse 54
Say: ‘Obey God, and obey the Messenger.’ But if you turn away, from obedience to him (tawallaw, ‘you turn away’: one of the two tā’ letters [in tatawallaw] has been omitted; an address to them), [know that] he is only responsible for that with which he has been charged, of conveying [the Message], and you are responsible for that with which you have been charged, of obedience to him. And if you obey him, you will be [rightly] guided. And the Messenger’s duty is only to convey [the Message] clearly’.
Verse 55
God has promised those of you who believe and perform righteous deeds that He will surely make them successors in the earth, in place of the disbelievers, just as He made those, Children of Israel, who were before them successors, in place of the [ruling] tyrants ([the verb may be] read as active istakhlafa, ‘He made [them] successors’, or as passive istukhlifa, ‘were made successors’) and He will surely establish for them their religion which He has approved for them, namely, [the religion of] Islam, by making it prevail over all religions and enrich them throughout the land, so that they become masters thereof, and that He will give them in exchange (read wa-la-yubdilannahum or wa-la-yubaddilannahum) after their fear, of disbelievers, security. And God fulfilled His promise to them in the way mentioned, and He praises them with His words: ‘They worship Me, without associating anything with Me’ (ya‘budūnanī lā yushrikūna bī shay’an is an [independent] new sentence, standing as a justification [for His promise]). And whoever is ungrateful after that, bestowal of grace, from among them, [whoever is ungrateful] for it, those, they are the immoral. The first to show ingratitude for that [grace of God] were the murderers of ‘Uthmān [b. ‘Affān], may God be pleased with him, and they began to kill one another [henceforth] after having been brothers.
Verse 56
And establish prayer and pay the alms, and obey the Messenger, that perhaps you may find mercy, that is to say, [do so] hoping for mercy.
Verse 57
And do not suppose (read tahsabanna or yahsabanna, the subject of the verb being the Messenger) that those who disbelieve can escape, Us, in the land, by eluding us. For their abode will be, their return will be [to], the Fire, and it is surely an evil destination, it is an [evil] place of return.
Verse 58
O you who believe, let those whom your right hands own, of male slaves and female slaves, and those of you who have not reached puberty, from among the free men, and who have not become [sexually] aware of women, ask leave of you three times: at three times [of the day]: before the dawn prayer, and when you put off your garments at noon, and after the night prayer. [These are] three periods of privacy for you (read thalāthu [‘awrātin lakum] with nominative inflection as the predicate of an implied subject followed by a genitive annexation, with the annexed term standing in place thereof [of the predicate], in other words [the implied predicate followed by the annexation is] hiya awqāt, ‘these are times of …’; or read thalātha [‘awrātin lakum] in the accusative, the implication being that awqāta is itself in the accusative as a substitute for the [syntactical] status of what precedes it, in place of which stands the annexed term). It is because clothes are taken off that private parts are revealed during such [periods]. Neither you nor they, namely, slaves and young boys, would be at fault, in entering upon you without asking leave, at other times, that is, after the three times of day [specified]; they frequent you, to provide service, [as] some of you [do] with others (this sentence corroborates the preceding one). So, just as He has clarified what has been mentioned, God clarifies for you the signs, the rulings; and God is Knower, of the affairs of His creatures, Wise, in what He has ordained for them. It is said that the ‘permission’ verse (āyat al-isti’idhān) was abrogated; but it is also said that it was not [abrogated], but that people thought little of neglecting to seek permission [in such situations].
Verse 59
And when the children among you, O free men, reach puberty, let them seek permission, at all times, just as those, [now] older free men, sought permission before them. So God clarifies His signs for you, and God is Knower, Wise.
Verse 60
And as for menopausal women, who have ceased to menstruate or to bear children because of old age, who do not expect to marry, for that reason, they would not be at fault if they put off their clothes, such a robe, a cloak, or the facial mask over a head veil, in such a way as not to display adornment, that is hidden, such as a necklace, a bracelet or an anklet; but to refrain [from doing so], by not putting them off, is better for them; and God is Hearer, of what you say, Knower, of what is in your hearts.
Verse 61
There is no blame upon the blind, nor any blame upon the lame, nor any blame upon the sick, that they be one’s table companions, nor, any blame, upon yourselves if you eat from your own houses, that is, [from] the houses of your offspring, or your fathers’ houses, or your mothers’ houses, or your brothers’ houses, or your sisters’ houses, or the houses of your paternal uncles or the houses of your paternal aunts, or the houses of your maternal uncles or the houses of your maternal aunts, or [from] that whereof you hold the keys, [from] that which you safeguard on behalf of others, or [from] those of your [faithful] friends (sadīq is [so called] because he is ‘faithful’ (sadaqa) to you in his affection). In other words: one is permitted to eat from the houses of those mentioned, even if they are not present, provided that they consent to it. You would not be at fault whether you eat together, in a group, or separately, individually (ashtāt is the plural of shatt). This was revealed concerning those who felt inhibited about eating alone and [who] when they could not find a table companion they would refrain from eating. But when you enter houses, that are yours, [houses] wherein there is no one, bid peace to yourselves, say, ‘Peace be upon us and upon God’s righteous servants’, for the angels will return your greeting; and if there is family therein bid peace to them, with a salutation (tahiyyatan is the verbal noun from hayyā, ‘he saluted’) from God, blessed and good, and for which one is rewarded. So God clarifies the signs for you, that is to say, He sets out for you in detail the [ritual] ceremonies of your religion, that perhaps you might comprehend, in order for you to understand this.
Verse 62
Only they are believers who believe in God and His Messenger and who, when they are with him, namely, the Messenger, in a collective affair, such as [during] the Friday sermon, do not leave, when they have an excuse, until they have asked leave of him. Truly those who ask leave of you — it is they who believe in God and His Messenger. So when they ask leave of you for some affair, [some] matter, of theirs, give permission to whom you will of them, to leave, and ask God to forgive them. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful.
Verse 63
Do not, among yourselves, consider the calling of the Messenger to be like your calling of one another, by saying, ‘O Muhammad!’ (s), but say, ‘O Prophet of God’, or, ‘O Messenger of God!’ gently, respectfully and in a low voice. Verily God knows those of you who slip away surreptitiously, that is, those who leave the mosque secretly during the sermon without asking leave, hiding behind something (qad, ‘verily’, is for confirmation). So let those who contravene His command, that is, God’s command, or that of His Messenger, beware lest an ordeal, a trial, befall them, or there befall them a painful chastisement, in the Hereafter.
Verse 64
Lo! surely to God belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth, by way of possession, creation and servitude. He is ever aware of how you, O you who are obligated to [the prescriptions of] the Law, are behaving, with regard to faith or hypocrisy, and, He knows, the day when they shall be returned to Him (there is a shift here from the second person address [to that of the third person]), in other words, [He knows] when this [day] will be — He will inform them, thereupon, of what they did, of good and evil, and God is Knower of all things, which they do and otherwise.
Verse 1
Blessed, exalted, is He Who revealed the Criterion (al-furqān), the Qur’ān — called thus [al-furqān] because it has discriminated (faraqa) between truth and falsehood — to His servant, Muhammad (s), that he may be to all the worlds, [to] mankind and the jinn, but not the angels, a warner, a threatening of God’s chastisement.
Verse 2
He to Whom belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and Who has not taken a son, nor has He any partner in sovereignty; and He created everything, which was meant to be created, and then determined it in a precise measure, He fashioned it in a balanced form.
Verse 3
Yet they, the disbelievers, have taken besides Him, that is, [besides] God, in other words, other than Him, gods, from among the idols, who create nothing but have themselves been created, and who possess no harm for themselves, that is, [the power] to repel it, nor any benefit, that is, [the power] to attract it, nor do they possess [any power over] death or life, that is, [nor do they have the power] to make a person die or to give him life, or resurrection, that is, [nor do they have power] to raise the dead.
Verse 4
And those who disbelieve say, ‘This, Qur’ān, is nothing but a calumny, a lie, that he, Muhammad (s), has invented, and other folk have helped him with it’, who [according to the disbelievers] were from among the People of the Scripture. God, exalted be He, says: Verily thus they have committed wrong and [spoken] falsehood, [they have come with] disbelief and mendacity.
Verse 5
And they say, that it [the Qur’ān] is also, ‘Fables, their lies (asātir is the plural of ustūra) of the ancients which he has had written down, that he has had someone from among those people copy it down for him, so that they are read to him, for him to memorise, morning and evening’. God, exalted be He, responds to them saying:
Verse 6
Say: ‘It has been revealed by Him Who knows the secret, the Unseen, of the heavens and the earth. Truly He is ever Forgiving, of believers, Merciful’, to them.
Verse 7
And they also say, ‘What is it with this Messenger that he eats food and walks about in the marketplaces? Why has an angel not been sent down to him so as to be a warner along with him?, and confirm his truthfulness.
Verse 8
Or a treasure thrown down to him, from the heaven, for him to spend from so as not to be in need of walking through the marketplaces in order to earn his livelihood. Or he has a garden, an orchard, for him to eat from?’, that is, [to eat] from its fruits and satisfy himself therewith (a variant reading [for ya’kulu, ‘for him to eat’] has na’kulu, ‘for us to eat’) and thus possess because of that [garden] an advantage over us. The wrongdoers, namely, the disbelievers, say, to the believers: ‘You are just following a man bewitched!’, one duped, his mind overcome. God, exalted be He, says:
Verse 9
See how they strike similitudes for you, of [the fact that the Prophet is] a person bewitched and one in need of something to expend [from] and of an angel to help him carry out the task [of delivering the Message], so that they go astray, thereby from guidance, and are unable to find a way, a means thereto [to guidance].
Verse 10
Blessed is He, abundant is the good of God, Who, if He will, will give you better than that, treasure or orchard which they mentioned — gardens underneath which rivers flow, in this world, for He has already willed to give him such things in the Hereafter, and will give (read apocopated form wa-yaj‘al) you palaces, as well (a variant reading [of the apocopated yaj‘al] is yaj‘alu, ‘He will give’, beginning a new sentence).
Verse 11
Nay, but they deny the [coming of the] Hour, the Resurrection, and We have prepared for those who deny the Hour a blaze (sa‘īr), a fire that has been set ablaze (musa‘‘ara), in other words, an intense [fire].
Verse 12
When it sees them from a distant place, they will hear it raging, boiling like an enraged person when his heart boils with anger, and roaring, [producing] a powerful noise. Alternatively, what is meant by their ‘hearing it raging’ is their vision of it and awareness of it.
Verse 13
And when they are flung into a narrow place thereof (read dayyiqan or dayqan, ‘narrow’, such that it constricts them; minhā, ‘thereof’, is a circumstantial qualifier referring to makānan, ‘place’, because it is actually an adjectival qualification of it) bound together, shackled, with their hands bound to their necks in chains (the use of the intensive form muqarranīna [as opposed to muqranīna] is meant to indicate a large number), they will at that point pray for [their own] annihilation, and it will be said to them:
Verse 14
‘Do not pray for a single annihilation on this day, but pray for many annihilations!’, which will be [the nature of] your chastisement.
Verse 15
Say: ‘Is that, which is mentioned of the threat of chastisement and the description of the Fire, better, or the Garden of Immortality which has been promised to the God-fearing, which will be, in God’s knowledge, exalted be He, their requital, [their] reward, and journey’s end?’, [their] place of return.
Verse 16
In it they shall have what they wish, abiding [therein] — an irrevocable state — it, the promise to them of what is mentioned, is a promise binding on your Lord, [a promise] much besought, requested by those who have been promised it [as is clear from the following]: Our Lord, grant us what You have promised us through Your messengers [Q. 3:194], or requested on their behalf by the angels [who say]: Our Lord, and admit them into the Gardens of Eden which You have promised them [Q. 40:8].
Verse 17
And on the day when He will assemble them (yahshuruhum; a variant reading has nahshuruhum, ‘We assemble them’) and that which they worship besides God, that is, other than Him, such as the angels, Jesus, Ezra and the jinn, and will say, exalted be He, (fa-yaqūlu; a variant has fa-naqūlu, and We shall say’) to those who were worshipped, as a way of establishing the argument against the worshippers [of the former]: ‘Was it you (read a-antum pronouncing both hamzas, or by substituting the second one with an alif, or not pronouncing this [last] and inserting an alif between the one not pronounced and the former, or without [such an insertion]) who misled these servants of Mine, causing them to fall into error by commanding them to worship you, or did they go astray from the way?, the path of truth, by themselves?
Verse 18
They will say, ‘Glory be to You — exalted be You above what does not befit You! It was not, it would [not] have been right, for us to take any guardians besides You, that is, other than You (min awliyā’a, the first direct object, the min being extra, [added] to emphasise the negation; the preceding [min dūnika, ‘besides You’] is the second [direct object]). So how can we command that we be worshipped? But You gave them and their fathers, before them, ease [of living], by granting [them] long life and abundant provision, until they forgot the Remembrance, [until] they became remiss about admonitions and belief in the Qur’ān, and became a lost folk’, [a folk] destroyed. God, exalted be He, says:
Verse 19
Thus they will deny you, that is, the ones who were worshipped denied those who worshipped [them], in what you allege, namely, that they are gods, and they will neither be able to (read yastatī‘ūna, or [second person plural] tastatī‘ūna) in other words, neither they nor you will be able to, circumvent, ward off the chastisement from you, nor help, nor protect you from it. And whoever of you does evil, [whoever] ascribes partners to God, We shall make him taste an awful, a severe, chastisement, in the Hereafter.
Verse 20
And We did not send before you any messengers but that they ate food and walked in the marketplaces, and so you are like them in this respect, and truly what was said to them is being said to you. And We have made some of you a trial for others:, a test, trying the rich with the poor, the healthy with the sick, the honourable with the vulgar, in each case the latter would say, ‘Why can I not be like the other person?’ Will you be steadfast?, [and endure] what you hear from those with whom you are tried? (the interrogative is meant as an imperative, in other words, ‘Be steadfast!’. And your Lord is ever Watchful, of those who remain steadfast and those who become miserable.
Verse 21
And those who do not expect to encounter Us, [those] who have no fear of the Resurrection, say, ‘Why have the angels not been sent down to us, to act as messengers to us, or why do we not see our Lord?’, so that we might be informed [by Him] that Muhammad (s) is [truly] His Messenger? God, exalted be He, says: Assuredly they are full of arrogance within their souls and have become terribly insolent, in demanding to see God, exalted be He, in this world (read ‘utuwwan, ‘insolence’ with the wāw, according to the original root form, as opposed to ‘itiyyan with the [yā’] substitution as in [sūrat] Maryam [Q. 19:8]).