Surah Al-Qasas (The Narration)

1. Ta, Sin, Mim. Each letter is read separately; Allah alone knows its meaning.

2. These verses are those of the clear Quran that reveals matters of religion and stories of those early people. You, O Mohammad, neither invented nor fabricated it or as the unbelievers claim.

3. We have told you in all truth the stories of Moses and Pharaoh, as though you had been a present witness. Only those who believe and have a conscious spirit can draw lessons from Allah’s verses.

4. Pharaoh reigned arrogantly and tyrannically in the land of Egypt. He divided its people into many groups and sects and sowed among them hostility and hatred so that they should not agree on any matter or be united in their views. He would use some to harm others; in this way it was easy for him to dominate them. He abased the children of Israel who were people of faith at the time, and humiliated them, using them for the vilest, the most demeaning and difficult tasks. He killed their male children at birth because he feared that the children of Israel would take over the public utilities and overcome the Copts should they multiply. Pharaoh was surely among the wrongdoers who sowed corruption. (It is said that he killed them for fear that a boy would be born to them and be the cause of his destruction and the extirpation of his kingdom as some priests interpreted a dream that Pharaoh had had).

5. But there is no escape from the fate predetermined by Allah Almighty; no precaution can prevent the fulfillment of a destiny. Moses (peace be upon him) was born and raised in Pharaoh’s home and was thus saved from being killed. In this way Allah favoured the children of Israel whom Pharaoh abased in the land of Egypt. He made of them leaders, and set them as an example for the people of that period. He made them the inheritors of the holy land which He promised, through Jacob and Abraham (peace be upon them) , that they should dwell in.

6. Allah Almighty established the children of Israel in the holy land and saved them from Pharaoh’s injustice and oppression. Pharaoh, Haman and their armies set out to follow the trail of the children of Israel, to force them to return to the land of Egypt. However, Allah Almighty drowned them and gave them a taste of the calamities against which they had taken precautions: destruction and loss of their kingdom at the hand of a boy born to the children of Israel.

7. When Pharaoh stepped up the slaughter of the children of Israel, the Copts feared that the extinction of these latter would oblige them to undertake the hard labour which the children of Israel were charged with. They spoke to Pharaoh about this and he ordered the slaying of the boys on alternate years. Aaron was born in the year in which male infants were spared; Moses, however, was born in the year in which male infants were slain. His mother feared for his life for she was powerless and she loved him very much (Allah kindled love for the boy in the hearts of all those who saw him as is mentioned in another verse – see chapter 20- Ta Ha, 39). Thus Allah inspired her to place him in a chest and throw him into the water when anyone that she feared came to the house. She would attach the chest to a rope which she would draw when those she feared had gone, and she would then remove Moses from the chest. However, one day, someone she was wary of came to the house. She placed Moses in the chest but forgot to secure it with a rope and it floated on the water which carried it past Pharaoh’s house. Allah had promised Moses’s mother what would be a consolation and comfort to her, notably to safeguard Moses and return him to her so that she could nurse him, and to make him a messenger to Pharaoh the tyrant who would perish at his hands. Moses would thus save the children of Israel from their plight.

8. The female slaves picked Moses up and took him to Pharaoh’s wife, as if he were a waif. Allah kindled love in her heart for him: He had decreed that Moses should be raised in the home of Pharaoh, and on his own bed, to become the enemy of both Pharaoh and his people and a source of affliction to them. For, Pharaoh and his minister Haman, as well as their armies who had pursued the children of Israel, and who were the instruments of injustice and terrorism in the hands of Pharaoh, were sinners.

9. When Pharaoh saw Moses, he wanted to kill him for fear that he was from among the children of Israel. But his wife pleaded with him and said :“Do not kill him for he might freshen my eyes and yours. He could be useful to us, or we could adopt him and he would become our son.” For she did not have a child. Pharaoh said: “He will be a joy to your eyes, not mine.” And thus it was. They did not know when they picked him up what was Allah’s wisdom which proves His power and His grace in paving the way for what He wills.

10. Allah says that when the water had carried her son away, Moses’s mother felt that her heart had become empty of all worldly matters but the thought of him. Her love and unhappiness nearly led her to disclose that her son had been carried away by the water and to state her condition had not Allah strengthened her heart and given her patience so that she might remain among the firm believers who had faith in the truth of Allah’s promise, and know that Allah would return her son to her.

11. She said to her daughter: “Follow your brother’s trail and trace his news.” The daughter went out for this purpose and saw at a distance her brother with Pharaoh’s female slaves. She avoided showing her concern and observed him from afar, surreptitiously. Thus, they were not aware that she was his sister and that she was following him to know his state.

12. When Moses was installed in the home of Pharaoh, he was offered several wet nurses but he refused to suckle from any of them. Thus he was taken into the market-place with the purpose of finding him some woman to nurse him. When his sister saw him in the arms of the servants, she recognized him but did not reveal this nor were they aware of her. She said to them: “Do you want me to indicate to you the people of a household who will take charge of him and look after him?”

13. Thus, Moses was restored to his mother who returned home satisfied, for Allah had reassured her and freshened her eye so that she might not grieve at the separation from him, and that she might know that the Allah’s promise, that of returning her son to her, was true. Allah does not go back on His word. However, most people do not know Allah’s wisdom in His deeds and their worthy consequences. Perhaps a hateful matter could have commendable results.

14. When Moses had reached maturity, attained the utmost degree of manhood and perfected his physical strength, Allah bestowed upon him wisdom and knowledge. This is Allah’s reward to those who do good and obey His orders.

15. And Moses entered the city of Egypt at a time when it was empty of its inhabitants (it is said he entered it in the middle of the day when people were having a siesta; it is also said that it was after sunset, when people had gone home from work), and he found two men fighting. One was an Israeli (from among his own clan) and the other a Copt (from among his foes). The Israeli appealed to him for help and Moses struck the Copt with his fist, or with a staff which he had in his hand, and killed him. Moses said: “This is the work of Satan and his adornment. He is a manifest enemy to man and one should beware of him.”

16. And he asked Allah’s pardon and said that he had wronged himself by killing a man. Allah forgave him his sin, for He is the pardoner of His servants’ sins, the merciful to them.

17. And Moses said, “Lord, forasmuch as You have bestowed on me honour and power, and accorded me Your pardon for my killing of a self, I will refrain from this wrongdoing and I will not be a partisan to criminals who deny You and disobey Your command and will never help those who sin or do wrong.”

18. Then Allah says that when Moses killed the Copt, he began to fear the shame of his deed, and to look about and await the consequences of his action. He began to seek information, asking about what people were saying concerning the killing of the Copt. Thus, going through certain roads, he beheld the Israeli who had sought his help the day before against that Copt, fighting with another Copt. As Moses passed him, he again called out to him loudly for assistance, but Moses said to him: “You are truly a quarrelsome fellow, full of evil.”

19. When Moses decided to assault the Copt, the cowardly Israeli thought that Moses was planning to assail him after the reprimands he had heard Moses direct to him. He said to defend himself: “Do you intend to kill me as you killed that Copt yesterday?” When the Copt heard these words, he went to Pharaoh to complain about Moses. Pharaoh’s wrath against Moses increased and he sent his men in his wake.

20. A believer from the House of Pharaoh, a man who hid his faith, and who knew Moses well, having heard the discussions among the dignitaries of state in Pharaoh’s presence, and that Pharaoh had sent his men to apprehend Moses, took a different road from that taken by Pharaoh’s emissaries, and, hurrying along the shorter road, he came upon Moses. He said to him: “Pharaoh and the eminent men of state are talking about killing you in payment of your killing of that Copt. Leave the city and save yourself. I mean you well and am sincere in my advice.”

21. Thus, Moses left the city of Pharaoh alone, looking about him in fear lest he be apprehended. He was not accustomed to such hardships and asked Allah to save him from Pharaoh and his men (the wrong-doers). There is no refuge for the needy but with Allah.

22. And when he came to the road leading to Madian (a town near Ababa), he was happy and said: “I hope that Allah will show me the straight path.” And Allah Almighty guided him.

23. When Moses (peace be upon him) arrived at Madian, he came to its watering place where there was a well which shepherds used to water their flocks. He found a group of men watering their cattle and two women who were keeping back their flocks from the water so that none could harm them. Moses felt pity for them and asked them why they were not approaching the water with the others. They replied that they could not jostle the shepherds and that therefore they would wait until the crowd at the well dispersed and the shepherds left with their flocks. They could then water their sheep. They did not have any male relative to carry out the task of watering the flocks and their father was too old to shoulder such an arduous undertaking. Thus, the work fell to their lot.

24. Moses thus took upon himself to water their flock; he then sat in the shade of a tree to rest. He said, “O Lord, I am in dire need for some of your bountiful generosity.” (Ibn Abbas said: “Moses was in great need of half a date. His hunger was such that his stomach was glued to his back. Relief then came to him from Allah.”)

25. When the two women returned to their father sooner than was their wont, he asked them what had happened and they related to him what Moses had done for them. He sent one of his daughters to invite Moses back with her and she came to Moses, walking demurely (that is, she was shy and covered), and said to him politely, so that he would not think badly of her, that her father requested his attendance so that he could rearward him for helping his daughters water the sheep. Moses walked before and she walked after, until they came to her father. When Moses told him the story of his escape from Pharaoh, the man said (it was said that he was Shu’ayb): “Do not be afraid, for you have escaped Pharaoh and his unjust people. Pharaoh has no authority in this land.”

26. One of the girls told her father: “O father, hire him to tend the sheep; he is the best to carry out this task for he is strong and trustworthy.”(It was said that her father asked her: “How do you know that he is strong and trustworthy?” She replied: “He is strong because he lifted the boulder that covers the well, which ten men cannot lift, all alone. As for being worthy of trust, he requested that he walk before me so that he would not walk behind me and look at my body. If he took a wrong road, I was to throw a stone to show him the way.”)

27. Then the man told Moses that he wanted to give him one of his daughters in marriage. Her dowry would be that Moses work for him for eight years, tending the sheep; if he should volunteer to work for two more years after that, then it would be from pure generosity on his part. Otherwise, he added, eight years would suffice. The man said to him that he did not want to burden him by imposing on him the longer period, or to harm him, or to wrangle with him. He would find him, if Allah willed, among the righteous who respect their agreements and obligations.

28. Moses (peace be upon him) said to his father-in-law: “Be it as you say: you will hire me for eight years; if I should complete ten years, then I have done so voluntarily. When I have completed the shorter of the two terms, I shall be discharged from my obligations, and I shall have fulfilled the condition. No blame can then attach to me.” They then relied on Allah to confirm their pact.

29. When Moses had fulfilled his term, he proceeded with his wife and children from Madian towards Egypt to visit his family, unknown to Pharaoh. He set off on a dark, rainy and very cold night. Stopping to rest, he struck his flint with a small piece of iron several times to make a fire, but it would not spark; this surprised him. As he was attempting to start a fire, he perceived a fire burning at a distance, in the direction of Mount Tor. He said to his family: “Wait here while I go to the fire; perhaps I might inquire of those around it the way, or bring back a firebrand to start a fire with so that you may warm yourselves.”

30. When Moses came to the fire that he had seen from afar, he was called upon from the side of the valley (near the mountain to his right, the West, as is mentioned in another verse). When he drew near, he found a fire burning in a green bush at the foot of a mountain near the valley. Moses stood thunderstruck, baffled by the source of the voice. Then his Lord called him saying: “I am your Allah and Lord of all beings. I do what I will”

31. Then Allah ordered Moses, saying: “Throw down the staff in your right hand.” He threw it down and it began to quiver with a quick motion as if it were a serpent. Moses was frightened and took flight; he did not even look back. Almighty Allah said to him: “Go back to where you were standing and do not be afraid! It will not harm you for it is only your staff. We wanted to show you a great sign to assist you when you go to Pharaoh and call him to worship Allah.

32. Almighty Allah said to Moses: “Place your hand inside the front opening of your tunic, and it will come out gleaming white, without harm or disease.” Moses did so, and his hand came out white; then he put it in again and it resumed its original colour. Then Allah ordered him to draw his arm close to his side to dissipate his fear when he felt it. Allah told Moses that He had made his staff into a slithering serpent and made his hand white without disease when he introduced it into the opening of his tunic, so that it would be a sign and proof, for him from his Lord, of Allah’s might, as well as the truth of the prophecy of he at whose hands these miracles were carried out. Then Allah ordered him to proceed with these two signs to Pharaoh and his people to call them to worship Allah and to believe in Him, for they were an unjust and wicked people who disobeyed Allah.

33. Moses told his Lord that he had slain a man from among Pharaoh’s people and that he feared that should he go back to them, they would kill him in his stead.

34. Moses lisped a little and found it difficult to express himself. He told his Lord that his brother Aaron was more articulate and begged Him to send him along with him to speak for him by reason of his eloquence, to support him and confirm his prophecy if Pharaoh and his people should treat him as a liar.

35. Allah Almighty said that He would strengthen and assist him by means of his brother Aaron whom He would make a prophet as Moses had requested. He would accord them strength and invest them with unassailable authority so that neither Pharaoh nor his followers would be able to aggress them when they inform them of the signs of their Lord. Allah assured them that he and his brother, as well as those who believed them, would be victorious over Pharaoh and his people.

36. When Moses and his brother came to Pharaoh and his people and showed them the overwhelming miracles which Allah had bestowed on them, and which incontestably proved their honesty, neither Pharaoh nor his people could find means to refute Allah’s proofs and arguments. They were too proud to follow the truth and thus reverted to obstinacy and slander. They said: “That which he has brought us is only fabricated sorcery.” They said that they had never before heard of anyone having worshipped one Allah alone. Nothing that had been handed down to them by their ancestors led them to believe that this could be so.

37. Moses replied: “My Lord knows that I have come with truth and guidance from Him. He is a witness to this. He knows that the eternal dwelling place will be for His followers, His prophets and for those who believe in Him. Those who have wronged themselves through their disbelief and polytheism will never prosper, nor will they attain their requests and aims.

38. Pharaoh claimed divinity and ordered his people to worship him. When Moses and Aaron came to call him to the worship Almighty Allah, and warn him of His punishment and torture if he persisted in his disbelief and tyranny, Pharaoh said obstinately to the notables of his state that he knew of no other God besides himself for his people. In another verse, he says to Moses: “If you take a god other than me, I will certainly put you in prison”.(See chapter 26- Ash-Shu’araa (The Poets), 29). Then he ordered his minister Haman to light a fire and bake the clay to make bricks so as to construct for him a lofty palace which he could climb to see the god of Moses. Then he said that he believed Moses to be among the liars in claiming to have a god in heaven Who helped and championed him, and Who sent him to Pharaoh. In saying this, Pharaoh intended to weaken the effect of the signs which Moses and Aaron had brought on the minds of his people.

39. Pharaoh and his people and army ruled arrogantly and tyrannically in the land, sowing corruption and believing that there was no resurrection, no assembly, and no return to Allah or judgement for their evil deeds and their unclean beliefs.

40. Allah Almighty gathered Pharaoh and his army and drowned them all in the sea and not one of them was saved., Behold, therefore, you who draw lessons from the signs, what was the end of those who did not believe in Allah and who wronged themselves. This is the end of disbelief, tyranny and wrongdoing.

41. Allah made of Pharaoh and his people leaders for those who oppress, disbelieve and stray from the straight path to be guided by. They look out for evil and disobedience which lead those who commit them to hell. Allah also made hellfire the fate of those who follow them, are guided by their disbelief and their denial of the messengers. They will find none to save them from Allah’s torment on Judgement Day. They will be doubly humiliated, in this here life and in the hereafter.

42. Allah imposed on Pharaoh and his people ignominy and expulsion from His mercy in this world. He then destined them for destruction and degradation, followed by another malediction on Judgement Day. He will pile on them humiliation upon humiliation, perpetually, from which there is no escape for them.

43. Allah Almighty revealed the Torah to Moses (peace be upon him) after He had destroyed the deniers among the earlier nations so that it could enlighten their darkened hearts. For, these nations had expunged the features of the laws brought to them by earlier prophets and, as a result, corruption reigned on earth and evil spread among men. Thus, men needed new legislations to reform their wrong beliefs and corrupt deeds by instituting the principles of those laws so that they would endure forever, and arranging the branches of those laws so that they would change according to times and the conditions of men. In the Torah is a reminder of the state of past nations so that it could be an example to all men; perchance they will draw a lesson from what happened to the former and renounce their disbelief and denial.

44. Allah Almighty draws the attention of men to the proof of Mohammad’s prophecy, for he spoke of matters which had taken place in the past and which the Arabs ignored. The noble Messenger (peace be upon him) related them in detail although he was an illiterate man who could neither read nor write. Allah referred to this matter after having narrated in the Quran a number of stories related to previous nations and their prophets. Such were the stories of Noah, Mary, and Joseph. Here, Allah says to His prophet (peace be upon him) : “You, O Mohammad, were not on the western side of the valley when Allah spoke to Moses from a tree on the bank of the valley; neither were you a witness to anything that occurred. But Allah revealed it to you and informed you of it so that it could be an argument for and proof of your prophecy.”

45. But Allah Almighty created many generations whose lives lasted long; thus they forgot the pacts and agreements they had made with Allah. As a result, the sciences were effaced and the laws deformed which required sending Mohammad (peace be upon him) to men to bring them out from the darkness to the light with their Lord’s permission. Allah revealed to him the stories of the prophets and the news of preceding nations which He had destroyed; this would thus be proof of the truth of his prophecy. For, he was an illiterate man who knew neither how to read nor to write; besides, his people were also illiterate and did not know any of these stories. Thus, that the Prophet should have recounted the stories in the way that they happened is proof they were revealed to him by Allah. Then Allah says to His Prophet that he had not resided among the people of Madian so that he should follow their news and learn from them the news of Shu’ayb and his people with the purpose of recounting his story exactly as it took place, in its minute details.

46. Nor were you, O Mohammad, on the side of Mount Tor when We called Moses; nor did you witness any of what happened to allow you to recount to your people as if you were an expert and sage what had taken place. But Allah revealed it to you and informed you of it as a mercy upon you and upon men; for He sent you to a people, the Arabs, to whom no herald had come before you, perhaps they might be guided by what you bring to them from Allah Almighty.

47. We did not wish to punish your people before We had sent a prophet to call them to Allah and show them Allah’s laws and orders so that they would not protest that they had had neither herald nor prophet and say: “O Allah! If You had only sent a messenger to clarify matters to us, we would have followed him, believed in You, and had faith in Your messenger.”

48. But when Allah sent Mohammad (peace be upon him) as a messenger to them, these unbelievers said, almost with obstination and disbelief: “Why didn’t he bring us a miracle like that which Moses brought (such as the staff, the white hand, …)? However, Moses came with all these great signs to Pharaoh and his people but they did not believe; they disbelieved and waxed arrogant just as many people disbelieved in those signs brought by Moses and said to him and to Aaron: “You are two sorcerers who mutually assist and support each other! And each believes the other.” Then they announced their disbelief in the signs brought to them by Moses and Aaron. (It is said that they meant by their words ‘two sorceries mutually assisting and supporting each other’ the Torah and the Quran; it also said that they meant Moses and Mohammad).

49. Allah Almighty often links His allusion to the Torah with that to the Quran. Here He addresses His prophet saying: “Say, O Mohammad to those who treat you as a liar, ‘Bring forth a book from Allah which is a better guide than the Quran and the Torah and I will leave them and follow it; that is if you are sincere in what you say that Allah had revealed a better book, one that is clearer and more detailed than them.’

50. “But if they do not do as you ask, namely to bring forth a better guide than the Torah and the Quran, and they do not follow truth, then know that they only follow their own passions and discuss without any argument drawn from the Book of Allah. Almighty Allah does not guide an unjust people, nor does He assist them to follow the path of truth and guidance.”

51. Allah Almighty gave them detailed verses and revealed the Quran successively to them, according to necessity. He also informed them of what He had done to those deniers before them and what He would do to them if they persisted in their disbelief and obstinacy. Perhaps then they would draw lessons and return to the truth.

52. Those among the people of the Book who believed in the Torah and Bible, and who were contemporary with Mohammad (peace be upon him) , believe in the Quran because they found in their Books the announcement of his coming and an accurate description of him. When the Quran was recited to them, they said: “We sincerely believe that this is revealed by Allah.” (Sa’eed ibn Jabeer said: “This verse was revealed in connection to seventy priests who were sent by Al-Najashi’s (to the prophet). When they approached him, he recited to them the chapter of Yassin; they wept and embraced Islam).

53. And when the verses of the Quran are recited to them they say: “We believe that this is the truth from our Lord and we submit to Allah; for we have believed in His oneness and have been faithful to Him even before we heard the Quran. For we have found in our Books a description of Mohammad and his Book and have thus believed in him before his arrival.

54. Allah will reward twofold those who believed in the first Book, then believed in the Quran: once for their perseverance in following the truth and their belief in their Book, and once for believing in the Quran. For to follow the truth is a difficult task for the soul. Those believers do not return evil for evil but forgive and forget; they expend from the licit wealth which Allah gave them in the interest of the poor and of their relatives and they pay their legal alms.

55. They do not hold company with frivolous people who sit and conduct idle and vain talk or enter into useless discussions concerning religion and life. They do not mix with them but turn their backs on them and avoid being present at their gatherings. If anyone treats them disrespectfully and speaks improper words to them, they turn away and do not meet him with equally ugly words for only good words come from them. They say to he who is rude to them: “Peace be upon you, a farewell peace! We do not want to follow the path of the insolent ignorant.” (This verse was revealed in connection with a delegation of Christian Ethiopians who had embraced Islam. They were intercepted by the unbelievers of Quraish who abused them and accused them of stupidity. They answered them saying: “Peace be upon you. We do not befriend the ignorant. We are what we are and you are what you are.”) (It was also said that this verse was revealed in relation to a delegation of Christians from Najran in Yemen).

56. Allah Almighty tells His Prophet (peace be upon him) : “You cannot guide those you wish to guide. This is not up to you. You are a messenger, whose duty is to inform people; Allah guides whomsoever He pleases and He knows best those who have been guided and those who have strayed from the straight path. (It is said that this verse was revealed in connection with Abi Taleb. When he was on the threshold of death, the Prophet said, “Uncle! Say: There is no god but Allah and I will be a witness for you before Allah on Judgement Day.” His uncle said: “But for the people of Quraish reproaching me and saying that it was only my fear of death which compelled me to embrace Islam, I would have been happy to please you.”

57. Allah speaks of the excuse advanced to the Prophet concerning their reluctance to believe in his message by some of the polytheists among whom was Al-Hareth bnu Othman bni Nawfal bni Abd-Munaf. He came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said to him: “We know that you are on the true path but we fear that should we follow you and dissent from the Arabs, they would evict us from our land, and conquer us, we who are a minority.” Allah answers these people saying that their excuse is false because He has installed them in a safe land, a holy place, magnificent and secure from the time of its constitution. How can this sanctuary be safe for them now when they are unbelieving idolaters and not be so when they convert to Islam and follow the true path? Allah then says that He has facilitated the arrival of all kinds of fruit, goods and provisions from all places to those who live in the holy place through His grace and care; but most of them are ignorant and do not know wherein lie their good and happiness. It is for this reason that they speak thus.

58. Allah reproves the inhabitants of Makkah and draws their attention to His destruction of cities and villages whose inhabitants were unjust idolaters who were ungrateful for Allah’s gifts. He destroyed them totally and left none of their inhabitants alive. Nothing remained of these villages and cities but ruined and deserted houses which were tenanted by no one after their inhabitants except travellers who dwelled in them for short periods as they passed through. Since not one of their inhabitants remained to claim them, the inheritance of these cities and villages reverted to Allah.

59. Allah speaks of His justice and says that He does not destroy anyone who is unjust to Him until after an argument has been established against him. Nor will He destroy the towns surrounding Makkah for their disbelief and wrong-doing until after He has sent to the mother-city (Makkah) a messenger to call them to Allah, show them the path of guidance and recite to them Allah’s verses. He will not destroy these towns unless its people are unjust, having treated the Prophet as a liar and refused to follow him or accept his call. (One understands from this verse that the Messenger of Allah was sent to all men without exception and not specifically to the inhabitants of Makkah.)

60. Every false ornament, ephemeral flower, wealth and children is but a trivial and fleeting pleasure compared to the eternal bliss which Allah has prepared for His faithful believing servants in the hereafter. Do not be turned away, O servants, by the ephemeral offers of this here life from the eternal bliss in the other. Be guided by your reason in your affairs rather than by your passions if you wish to succeed. (In a Hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) says: “What is earthly life compared to the Hereafter but as drops of water which remain on the finger after having plunged it in the sea and removed it.”)

61. There is no equality between he who believes in Allah and in the promises made to His faithful servants of great reward for their belief and good deeds which deserve Allah’s fair promise of paradise, and he who disbelieves and denies the encounter with Allah, His promises and threats, His paradise and hell; for he enjoys this here life and its ornaments for a very few days and then, on the Day of Resurrection, he will be arraigned for judgement and punished.

62. Remember, O Messenger, when Allah will scold the erring polytheists on Judgement day and ask them saying: “Where are those divinities that you worshipped in your lifetime such as the idols, peers and demons? Will they be able to protect you today or intercede for you?”

63. The leaders of straying who call to disbelief, and who deserve Allah’s anger, say: “The followers whom we led astray just as we strayed, followed us willingly; we only whispered to them and tempted them but we did not oblige them to do what they did not wish to. They chose to accept their convictions and undertook to do these deeds. We are innocent of them today and of the disbelief they chose in their life on earth. They did not worship us but worshipped their own whims and obeyed their own desires.”

64. On that day – Judgement Day – it will be said to those polytheists who denied Allah in their life on earth and worshipped others with Him: “Call your gods whom you claimed were Allah’s associates to save you from your plight as you hoped that they would do in this here life.” They called them but did not receive an answer for their gods were incapable of answering. Then those who called and those who were called upon realized that they would inevitably be placed in the fire. They wished that they had been among those guided in this life so that they would not be placed in hellfire.

65. Allah Almighty then calls the polytheists and asks them what their response was to the call of the messengers sent to them, and how they behaved to them when the latter called them to believe in Allah’s message.

66. They will find no answer to the question and will thus remain silent. They will no longer have any argument or knowledge which was useful to them in their life on earth. They will not ask each other questions for they will all be equally ignorant of all news, incapable of answering.

67. But he among the polytheists who repents of his polytheism, sins and violation of prohibitions, then believes sincerely in his Lord and His Messenger and does good deeds in this life, can, on Judgement Day, hope to be, among those who have gained the satisfaction of Allah.

68. Allah says that He alone creates and chooses; none can rival Him in this or oppose His judgement. What He decides will be and what He does not decide will not be. All matters whether good or bad are in His hand. He chooses a people to accomplish His mission and guide His creatures. He distinguishes among men and grants some more privileges than others. His creatures, however, cannot choose anyone in His place for the choice is His alone; they can only follow the one Allah has chosen. Allah is above being associated with anyone. Hallowed be His name.

69. And your Lord, O Mohammad, is He Who knows all that is concealed in the breasts and all that is revealed. His choice of those He has chosen to believe, is built on His knowledge of what they hide and what they reveal. He chooses the good people for the good and favours them and the evil people for the evil and leaves them to it. (The meaning could be as follows: your Lord, O Mohammad, knows the animosity concealed in the hearts of the polytheists and the opposition which their tongues reveal against your being chosen to carry the message.)

70. And your Lord, O Messenger, is Allah, there is no god but He. He is the only Divinity; no other Allah but He should be worshipped. He is the only Allah. Praise be to Him in all that He does, in this here life as in the hereafter. He is the just One and He has absolute judgement. No one can oppose His power, His supremacy, His judgement and His mercy. To Him return all creatures on Judgement day and He will reward each for his deeds whether good or evil. Nothing is hidden from Him.

71. Allah reminds men of His favours, for having created for them day and night. In the daytime, they earn their living and in the night they rest. If Allah had made night permanent and continuous until Judgement Day, men would be harmed and the spirits wearied. No idol or statue which the polytheists worship could bring them light to see by and be comforted by what they see. Do they not hear what is said to them and understand it?

72. If Allah wished to make the day perpetual for men until Judgement Day, they would be harmed, and their bodies would be fatigued from too much movement and work. None of the idols and statues can then bring them a single night so that men can rest. Will they not see with their own eyes what Allah has created and how He has organized the universe?

73. It is of His mercy that He created night with its darkness for you to rest, and day full of light for you to work and earn your living and travel. Allah reminds you of His bounty and favours to you so that you can thank Him by praying to him night and day and praising Him sincerely.

74. On Judgement day, Allah calls the polytheists before witnesses and reprimands them saying: “Where are those whom you claimed in your life on earth to be my associates? Have you called them to come to your assistance today to save you from your plight?”

75. On Judgement Day, Allah Almighty will draw from each nation a witness who is its prophet and who will testify to what his nation answered him when he called it to Allah and communicated Allah’s messages to it. Allah will say to renegades among them: “Produce what argument and proof you have concerning your claim that Allah has partners.” Only then will they know that there is no Allah but Allah, the true one; there is no other truth but He. They will be silent, unable to answer the question of the great Lord. Their falsehood will vanish as well as all the associates they attributed to Allah.

76. Allah points out to the notables of Quraish who were proud of their wealth and who, as a result, were insolent to the prophet and his followers, that wealth is a fading worldly good, and counts for nothing in Allah’s scale on the day of judgement in the hereafter. The wealth of these polytheists of Quraish is nothing compared with the wealth Allah gave to Korah. Then Allah made the earth swallow him and his home up because he waxed arrogant, insolent and vainglorious and did not seek with his wealth Allah’s mercy with his reward in the hereafter. Allah Almighty says that Korah was of the children of Israel (some interpreters said that he was a relative of Moses). Allah bestowed upon him such wealth that a group of people could hardly carry the keys of his treasure chests because they were so very numerous. He became so tyrannical and oppressive, ungrateful and arrogant that his people said to him, counseling him: “Do not be ungrateful; do not exult in your wealth and blessings for Almighty Allah does not like those who are ungrateful and insolent and who do not thank Him for His favours and blessings, and whom life on earth makes oblivious of the hereafter.

77. “Seek through the great wealth and bountiful favours which Allah has bestowed upon us to obey Him and come closer to Him; but do not forget your share of this life which Allah has legitimized for His creatures like food, drink, clothing and other things. Allah has a right over you and so does your soul. Therefore give each his rights. Be good to Allah’s creatures as Allah was good to you, and do not seek to spread corruption in the land for Allah does not love those who corrupt.”

78. Korah replied to those among his people who gave him advice, that he did not need their counsel for Allah had given him his wealth because He knew that he merited it and because he liked him. Allah responds to him saying that there were many people who were wealthier than Korah, but that He had not given them their wealth because of His love for them. On the contrary, He had destroyed them because of their ingratitude and disbelief. On Judgment Day, Allah will not ask the criminals about their sins and their magnitude and nature, nor will He reproach them for these sins but will hurl them into hell without asking them any question.

79. One day, Korah went out among his people bedecked grandly and radiantly. When those who desired earthly life and were attracted by its adornment and glitter saw him, they wished that they had been given as much wealth as Korah, for he certainly had been endowed with a generous portion in this world.

80. When the people of good learning heard the words of those who wished to be given as much wealth as Korah’s, they told them: “Woe unto you for your wish! The reward that Allah has in store for His worthy worshippers in the hereafter is far better than what you see. Only those who are patient for love of Allah and who desire the afterlife will gain the bliss of Paradise in the hereafter.

81. While Korah, in all his adornment, was strutting vainly and acting arrogantly with his people, Allah caused the earth to engulf him and his house. No trace remained of him, his house, his money or his coffers and he found none to save him from Allah’s devastation and punishment. Neither his wealth nor his people and servants could save him; no one could turn away from him Allah’s wrath and His torment.

82. When those who had longed for Korah’s wealth and his treasures saw what had happened to him and his money, they said: “Do you not know that Allah extends His provision to whom He chooses and measures it also? But for His kindness to us, He would have given us what we requested then done to us what He did to Korah by having the earth swallow us up. Korah disbelieved in Allah; and unbelievers can never prosper in their deliverance from Allah’s punishment.

83. That final abode, paradise whose qualities you have heard about earlier, Allah has reserved as a pure dwelling place for His humble and faithful servants who wish neither to behave superciliously to Allah’s creatures, or to be disdainful or tyrannical to them, nor to sow corruption on earth. The happy ending, which is paradise, Allah reserves for those whose hearts are full of piety and who evade His punishment by obeying Him and avoiding His prohibitions.

84. Whoever comes on Judgement Day with the good deeds he has earned in this life, Allah will multiply his reward as a sign of His favour and generosity; and whoever comes with the evil deeds he has amassed, Allah will punish him only for the deeds he has committed as a sign of His justice and mercy.

85. Allah addresses His noble Prophet and says: “He who ordered you to follow the laws of the Quran will restore you to Makkah, victorious, just as He took you away from it.” This occurred after the conquest of Makkah. (It was said that the meaning of this verse is as follows: He who revealed the Quran to you, will take you back to an appointed date – Judgement Day – to settle between you and those who treated you as a liar). It is told that when the prophet Mohammad emigrated from Makkah to Medina, he entered Juhfa which he knew was on the Makkah road and he longed for Makkah when he remembered his birth and that of his father in it. Then Gabriel came down to him and said: “Do you miss your country and your birthplace?” The Prophet replied: “Yes”. So Gabriel told him that Allah Almighty tells him: “He who ordained…..” (And he quoted this verse.)

86. You did not expect, O Mohammad, before it happened that the revelation would be descended on you. In consequence, you were able to know the stories of the nations before you, what would happen after you, and the laws which regulate life and bring happiness to men both in their earthly life and in the hereafter, all of which you then recited to your people. Allah revealed the Quran to you out of mercy for you and His creatures. Since Allah has privileged you with this great blessing, do not lend your support to the polytheists but reject and oppose them.

87. Do not allow the polytheists to keep you from communicating the verses which Allah has revealed to you to your people; and do not refrain from inviting the polytheists to worship Allah alone without associate. For, if you stop calling them to the faith, you would be associating yourself to them by disobeying Allah and opposing His commands.

88. Worship should be dedicated to Allah alone. Worship Him sincerely and do not worship another Allah with Him. He alone will remain eternally. Everything in this existence except Allah will perish. There is no Allah but He. To Him belong judgement, supreme power, and the authority of disposal in both this life and the next. No one can contest His decision. To him men return on Judgement Day and He will reward them for their deeds both good and evil.