Surah 15 of 114 · Makki · 99 ayat
Al-Hijr الحجر
The Rocky Tract
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ الٓر تِلْكَ ءَايَٰتُ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ وَقُرْءَانٍ مُّبِينٍ
PickthallAlif. Lam. Ra. These are verses of the Scripture and a plain Reading.
Yusuf AliA. L. R. These are the Ayats of Revelation,- of a Qur'an that makes things clear.
The agreed readingAlif, Lām, Rā — letters whose meaning the commentaries leave with God. These are the signs of the Book, and of a Recitation that makes things plain. The sūrah names its subject in the first line: the Book itself, which is what the people it answers were mocking.
رُّبَمَا يَوَدُّ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ لَوْ كَانُوا۟ مُسْلِمِينَ
PickthallIt may be that those who disbelieve wish ardently that they were Muslims.
Yusuf AliAgain and again will those who disbelieve, wish that they had bowed (to Allah's will) in Islam.
The agreed readingThere will come a time when those who refuse will wish they had submitted. The commentaries place the wishing on the Day of Resurrection, when they see their own state and the state of those who submitted set side by side; the wish arrives exactly when it can no longer be acted on.
ذَرْهُمْ يَأْكُلُوا۟ وَيَتَمَتَّعُوا۟ وَيُلْهِهِمُ ٱلْأَمَلُ فَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ
PickthallLet them eat and enjoy life, and let (false) hope beguile them. They will come to know!
Yusuf AliLeave them alone, to enjoy (the good things of this life) and to please themselves: let (false) hope amuse them: soon will knowledge (undeceive them).
The agreed readingLeave them to eat and enjoy themselves, and let their hopes keep them busy — they will come to know. The commentaries read the hoping as the long expectation of more time, which is what occupies a person so completely that the question of the end never gets asked.
وَمَآ أَهْلَكْنَا مِن قَرْيَةٍ إِلَّا وَلَهَا كِتَابٌ مَّعْلُومٌ
PickthallAnd We destroyed no township but there was a known decree for it.
Yusuf AliNever did We destroy a population that had not a term decreed and assigned beforehand.
The agreed readingAnd We destroyed no town without its having a decree already known. The commentaries gloss the decree as a term set and fixed for it, so that what looks like a sudden ruin was an appointment kept.
مَّا تَسْبِقُ مِنْ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلَهَا وَمَا يَسْتَـْٔخِرُونَ
PickthallNo nation can outstrip its term nor can they lag behind.
Yusuf AliNeither can a people anticipate its term, nor delay it.
The agreed readingNo community outruns its term, nor do they fall behind it. Neither haste nor delay is available; the term is not a rough estimate that pressure could move.
وَقَالُوا۟ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِى نُزِّلَ عَلَيْهِ ٱلذِّكْرُ إِنَّكَ لَمَجْنُونٌ
PickthallAnd they say: O thou unto whom the Reminder is revealed, lo! thou art indeed a madman!
Yusuf AliThey say: "O thou to whom the Message is being revealed! truly thou art mad (or possessed)!
The agreed readingAnd they said: you, to whom the Reminder has been sent down — you are possessed. The commentaries note the shape of the taunt: they address him by the very claim they are denying, calling him the one it was revealed to in order to mock the idea that it was.
لَّوْ مَا تَأْتِينَا بِٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ ٱلصَّٰدِقِينَ
PickthallWhy bringest thou not angels unto us, if thou art of the truthful?
Yusuf Ali"Why bringest thou not angels to us if it be that thou hast the Truth?"
The agreed readingWhy do you not bring us the angels, if you are telling the truth? The commentaries read it as a demand for a different kind of proof than the one already given — angels to stand beside him and confirm him — which is a demand to be convinced on their own terms.
مَا نُنَزِّلُ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ إِلَّا بِٱلْحَقِّ وَمَا كَانُوٓا۟ إِذًا مُّنظَرِينَ
PickthallWe send not down the angels save with the Fact, and in that case (the disbelievers) would not be tolerated.
Yusuf AliWe send not the angels down except for just cause: if they came (to the ungodly), behold! no respite would they have!
The agreed readingWe do not send the angels down except with the truth — and the commentaries gloss that as the punishment itself — and then they would be given no more time. The answer is that the sign they are asking for is the end of the delay they are living in.
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا ٱلذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُۥ لَحَٰفِظُونَ
PickthallLo! We, even We, reveal the Reminder, and lo! We verily are its Guardian.
Yusuf AliWe have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption).
The agreed readingIt is We who have sent down the Reminder, and it is We who guard it. Both traditions read the guarding as guarding the text — against substitution, against alteration, against anything added and anything lost. The sentence is built so that the same One does both: the sending down and the keeping.
وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ فِى شِيَعِ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ
PickthallWe verily sent (messengers) before thee among the factions of the men of old.
Yusuf AliWe did send messengers before thee amongst the religious sects of old:
The agreed readingAnd We sent messengers before you among the parties of those who went before. The commentaries gloss the parties as the factions people had already divided into, each following its own way — so no messenger ever arrived to a people that was whole.
وَمَا يَأْتِيهِم مِّن رَّسُولٍ إِلَّا كَانُوا۟ بِهِۦ يَسْتَهْزِءُونَ
PickthallAnd never came there unto them a messenger but they did mock him.
Yusuf AliBut never came a messenger to them but they mocked him.
The agreed readingAnd no messenger ever came to them without their mocking him. The commentaries read this as consolation: what is happening to Muhammad is not a new thing that has gone wrong, it is the pattern of every messenger before him.
كَذَٰلِكَ نَسْلُكُهُۥ فِى قُلُوبِ ٱلْمُجْرِمِينَ
PickthallThus do We make it traverse the hearts of the guilty:
Yusuf AliEven so do we let it creep into the hearts of the sinners -
The agreed readingIn this way We let it into the hearts of the guilty — the commentaries take what is let in to be the denial itself, entering the hearts of the ones now refusing exactly as it entered the hearts of those before.
لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۦ وَقَدْ خَلَتْ سُنَّةُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ
PickthallThey believe not therein, though the example of the men of old hath gone before.
Yusuf AliThat they should not believe in the (Message); but the ways of the ancients have passed away.
The agreed readingThey do not believe in it, and the way of those before them has already gone by — a way the commentaries read as both their denial and what came of it, already on the record and available to be read.
وَلَوْ فَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَابًا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ فَظَلُّوا۟ فِيهِ يَعْرُجُونَ
PickthallAnd even if We opened unto them a gate of heaven and they kept mounting through it,
Yusuf AliEven if We opened out to them a gate from heaven, and they were to continue (all day) ascending therein,
The agreed readingAnd even if We opened a gate of heaven to them and they kept climbing up through it,
لَقَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا سُكِّرَتْ أَبْصَٰرُنَا بَلْ نَحْنُ قَوْمٌ مَّسْحُورُونَ
PickthallThey would say: Our sight is wrong - nay, but we are folk bewitched.
Yusuf AliThey would only say: "Our eyes have been intoxicated: Nay, we have been bewitched by sorcery."
The agreed readingthey would only say: our eyes have been blocked; rather, we are people under a spell. The commentaries fix on what this shows — a proof large enough to be undeniable would be explained away rather than accepted, so the fault was never in the size of the sign.
وَلَقَدْ جَعَلْنَا فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ بُرُوجًا وَزَيَّنَّٰهَا لِلنَّٰظِرِينَ
PickthallAnd verily in the heaven we have set mansions of the stars, and We have beautified it for beholders.
Yusuf AliIt is We Who have set out the zodiacal signs in the heavens, and made them fair-seeming to (all) beholders;
The agreed readingAnd We have set in the sky its great stations, and made it beautiful for those who look at it. What the commentaries hold together is the two things the āyah itself joins: that what is overhead is ordered and set in place, and that it is also made to be looked at.
وَحَفِظْنَٰهَا مِن كُلِّ شَيْطَٰنٍ رَّجِيمٍ
PickthallAnd We have guarded it from every outcast devil,
Yusuf AliAnd (moreover) We have guarded them from every cursed devil:
The agreed readingAnd We have guarded it from every outcast satan — guarded, as the commentaries gloss it, by the flames, and the word for outcast meaning one driven off and pelted away.
إِلَّا مَنِ ٱسْتَرَقَ ٱلسَّمْعَ فَأَتْبَعَهُۥ شِهَابٌ مُّبِينٌ
PickthallSave him who stealeth the hearing, and them doth a clear flame pursue.
Yusuf AliBut any that gains a hearing by stealth, is pursued by a flaming fire, bright (to see).
The agreed readingexcept one who steals a hearing, and then a clear flame pursues him. The commentaries gloss the flame as a burning star, and read the pair of āyāt together: what is above is not open to be entered and carried off.
وَٱلْأَرْضَ مَدَدْنَٰهَا وَأَلْقَيْنَا فِيهَا رَوَٰسِىَ وَأَنۢبَتْنَا فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ شَىْءٍ مَّوْزُونٍ
PickthallAnd the earth have We spread out, and placed therein firm hills, and caused each seemly thing to grow therein.
Yusuf AliAnd the earth We have spread out (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.
The agreed readingAnd the earth We have spread out, and set firm mountains in it, and made every thing grow in it in due measure — the commentaries gloss the measure as a known and appointed proportion, so that nothing that grows is arbitrary in its amount.
وَجَعَلْنَا لَكُمْ فِيهَا مَعَٰيِشَ وَمَن لَّسْتُمْ لَهُۥ بِرَٰزِقِينَ
PickthallAnd we have given unto you livelihoods therein, and unto those for whom ye provide not.
Yusuf AliAnd We have provided therein means of subsistence,- for you and for those for whose sustenance ye are not responsible.
The agreed readingAnd We have put livelihoods in it for you, and for those you do not provide for. The commentaries read the second half as covering everyone and everything in a person's care who is in fact fed by God and not by him — a correction of the account, made in passing.
وَإِن مِّن شَىْءٍ إِلَّا عِندَنَا خَزَآئِنُهُۥ وَمَا نُنَزِّلُهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِقَدَرٍ مَّعْلُومٍ
PickthallAnd there is not a thing but with Us are the stores thereof. And we send it not down save in appointed measure.
Yusuf AliAnd there is not a thing but its (sources and) treasures (inexhaustible) are with Us; but We only send down thereof in due and ascertainable measures.
The agreed readingAnd there is nothing whose stores are not with Us, and We send it down only in a known measure. The commentaries take the two halves as one argument: the supply is not short, and the portion is not accidental.
وَأَرْسَلْنَا ٱلرِّيَٰحَ لَوَٰقِحَ فَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَسْقَيْنَٰكُمُوهُ وَمَآ أَنتُمْ لَهُۥ بِخَٰزِنِينَ
PickthallAnd We send the winds fertilising, and cause water to descend from the sky, and give it you to drink. It is not ye who are the holders of the store thereof.
Yusuf AliAnd We send the fecundating winds, then cause the rain to descend from the sky, therewith providing you with water (in abundance), though ye are not the guardians of its stores.
The agreed readingAnd We send the winds bearing fertility, and send down water from the sky and give it to you to drink — and you are not the ones who hold its stores. The commentaries note the winds are named as doing the work before the rain falls, so that what looks like the whole event is only its last step.
وَإِنَّا لَنَحْنُ نُحْىِۦ وَنُمِيتُ وَنَحْنُ ٱلْوَٰرِثُونَ
PickthallLo! and it is We, even We, Who quicken and give death, and We are the Inheritor.
Yusuf AliAnd verily, it is We Who give life, and Who give death: it is We Who remain inheritors (after all else passes away).
The agreed readingAnd it is We who give life and give death, and We are the Inheritors — the commentaries gloss the last word as the ones who remain when everything else has gone.
وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْنَا ٱلْمُسْتَقْدِمِينَ مِنكُمْ وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْنَا ٱلْمُسْتَـْٔخِرِينَ
PickthallAnd verily We know the eager among you and verily We know the laggards.
Yusuf AliTo Us are known those of you who hasten forward, and those who lag behind.
The agreed readingAnd We know those of you who went ahead and We know those who came later. Nothing in the whole span, from the first of the line to the last, falls outside what is known.
وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ يَحْشُرُهُمْ إِنَّهُۥ حَكِيمٌ عَلِيمٌ
PickthallLo! thy Lord will gather them together. Lo! He is Wise, Aware.
Yusuf AliAssuredly it is thy Lord Who will gather them together: for He is perfect in Wisdom and Knowledge.
The agreed readingAnd it is your Lord who will gather them. He is Wise, Knowing — the commentaries attach the first name to how He does it and the second to His knowing of every one He gathers.
وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ مِن صَلْصَٰلٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ
PickthallVerily We created man of potter's clay of black mud altered,
Yusuf AliWe created man from sounding clay, from mud moulded into shape;
The agreed readingAnd We created man from dry clay that rings when struck, out of dark mud altered by time. The commentaries linger on the two words: the material is common, and it was worked.
وَٱلْجَآنَّ خَلَقْنَٰهُ مِن قَبْلُ مِن نَّارِ ٱلسَّمُومِ
PickthallAnd the jinn did We create aforetime of essential fire.
Yusuf AliAnd the Jinn race, We had created before, from the fire of a scorching wind.
The agreed readingAnd the jinn We created before that, from a fire of scorching heat — glossed in both traditions as a fire that passes through the pores, made before the making of man.
وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ إِنِّى خَٰلِقٌۢ بَشَرًا مِّن صَلْصَٰلٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ
PickthallAnd (remember) when thy Lord said unto the angels: Lo! I am creating a mortal out of potter's clay of black mud altered,
Yusuf AliBehold! thy Lord said to the angels: "I am about to create man, from sounding clay from mud moulded into shape;
The agreed readingAnd when your Lord said to the angels: I am going to create a mortal from dry clay, out of dark mud altered by time.
فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُۥ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِى فَقَعُوا۟ لَهُۥ سَٰجِدِينَ
PickthallSo, when I have made him and have breathed into him of My Spirit, do ye fall down, prostrating yourselves unto him.
Yusuf Ali"When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of My spirit, fall ye down in obeisance unto him."
The agreed readingSo when I have shaped him and breathed into him of My spirit, fall down before him in prostration. The commentaries read the attaching of the spirit to Himself as honour given to what was made of clay, and the prostration as ordered on that account.
فَسَجَدَ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ كُلُّهُمْ أَجْمَعُونَ
PickthallSo the angels fell prostrate, all of them together
Yusuf AliSo the angels prostrated themselves, all of them together:
The agreed readingSo the angels prostrated, all of them together — the commentaries note the doubled emphasis in the wording, all of them and together, so that no exception is left open by the sentence itself.
إِلَّآ إِبْلِيسَ أَبَىٰٓ أَن يَكُونَ مَعَ ٱلسَّٰجِدِينَ
PickthallSave Iblis. He refused to be among the prostrate.
Yusuf AliNot so Iblis: he refused to be among those who prostrated themselves.
The agreed readingExcept Iblis. He refused to be among those who prostrated — and the exception the previous āyah had closed off is made by an act, not by a gap in the command.
قَالَ يَٰٓإِبْلِيسُ مَا لَكَ أَلَّا تَكُونَ مَعَ ٱلسَّٰجِدِينَ
PickthallHe said: O Iblis! What aileth thee that thou art not among the prostrate?
Yusuf Ali(Allah) said: "O Iblis! what is your reason for not being among those who prostrated themselves?"
The agreed readingHe said: Iblis, what is the matter with you, that you are not among those who prostrated?
قَالَ لَمْ أَكُن لِّأَسْجُدَ لِبَشَرٍ خَلَقْتَهُۥ مِن صَلْصَٰلٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ
PickthallHe said: I am not one to prostrate myself unto a mortal whom Thou hast created out of potter's clay of black mud altered!
Yusuf Ali(Iblis) said: "I am not one to prostrate myself to man, whom Thou didst create from sounding clay, from mud moulded into shape."
The agreed readingHe said: I am not one to prostrate to a mortal You created from dry clay, out of dark mud altered by time. The commentaries read the refusal as an argument from material — he weighed what each was made of and drew a conclusion about rank from it.
قَالَ فَٱخْرُجْ مِنْهَا فَإِنَّكَ رَجِيمٌ
PickthallHe said: Then go thou forth from hence, for lo! thou art outcast.
Yusuf Ali(Allah) said: "Then get thee out from here; for thou art rejected, accursed.
The agreed readingHe said: then get out of it, for you are outcast — driven out, as the commentaries gloss it, from the place and the standing he had held.
وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكَ ٱللَّعْنَةَ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلدِّينِ
PickthallAnd lo! the curse shall be upon thee till the Day of Judgment.
Yusuf Ali"And the curse shall be on thee till the day of Judgment."
The agreed readingAnd the curse is on you until the Day of Judgement — the commentaries take the naming of a limit here as pointing forward to what comes after it rather than as an ending of it.
قَالَ رَبِّ فَأَنظِرْنِىٓ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ
PickthallHe said: My Lord! Reprieve me till the day when they are raised.
Yusuf Ali(Iblis) said: "O my Lord! give me then respite till the Day the (dead) are raised."
The agreed readingHe said: my Lord, then give me time until the day they are raised. What he asks for is not pardon but postponement.
قَالَ فَإِنَّكَ مِنَ ٱلْمُنظَرِينَ
PickthallHe said: Then lo! thou art of those reprieved
Yusuf Ali(Allah) said: "Respite is granted thee
The agreed readingHe said: then you are among those given time. The request is granted, and the commentaries note that it is granted in the same words it was asked in, but not to the term that was asked for.
إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلْوَقْتِ ٱلْمَعْلُومِ
PickthallTill the Day of appointed time.
Yusuf Ali"Till the Day of the Time appointed."
The agreed readingUntil the day of the appointed time — a term the commentaries identify as a fixed moment known to God, and not the raising of the dead that had been asked for.
قَالَ رَبِّ بِمَآ أَغْوَيْتَنِى لَأُزَيِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
PickthallHe said: My Lord! Because Thou hast sent me astray, I verily shall adorn the path of error for them in the earth, and shall mislead them every one,
Yusuf Ali(Iblis) said: "O my Lord! because Thou hast put me in the wrong, I will make (wrong) fair-seeming to them on the earth, and I will put them all in the wrong,-
The agreed readingHe said: my Lord, because You let me go astray, I will make what is in the earth seem fine to them, and I will lead them all astray. The commentaries read his method as named in his own words: not force, but making things look good.
إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ ٱلْمُخْلَصِينَ
PickthallSave such of them as are Thy perfectly devoted slaves.
Yusuf Ali"Except Thy servants among them, sincere and purified (by Thy Grace)."
The agreed readingExcept Your servants among them who have been made sincere — the one exception he concedes himself, before anything is said to him about it.
قَالَ هَٰذَا صِرَٰطٌ عَلَىَّ مُسْتَقِيمٌ
PickthallHe said: This is a right course incumbent upon Me:
Yusuf Ali(Allah) said: "This (way of My sincere servants) is indeed a way that leads straight to Me.
The agreed readingHe said: this is a straight way, binding upon Me. The commentaries read the way as the rule stated in the next breath and held to by God Himself, with no deviation in it: that over His own servants there is no authority to be had.
إِنَّ عِبَادِى لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَٰنٌ إِلَّا مَنِ ٱتَّبَعَكَ مِنَ ٱلْغَاوِينَ
PickthallLo! as for My slaves, thou hast no power over any of them save such of the froward as follow thee,
Yusuf Ali"For over My servants no authority shalt thou have, except such as put themselves in the wrong and follow thee."
The agreed readingover My servants you have no authority, except those who follow you of the ones who go astray. The commentaries read the two together as fixing the limit exactly: what he has is invitation, and the following is the follower's own act.
وَإِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ لَمَوْعِدُهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
PickthallAnd lo! for all such, hell will be the promised place.
Yusuf AliAnd verily, Hell is the promised abode for them all!
The agreed readingAnd Hell is the promised place for all of them together. The commentaries attach the last words to the followers named just before, so that the promise runs to the one who followed and not only to the one who called.
لَهَا سَبْعَةُ أَبْوَٰبٍ لِّكُلِّ بَابٍ مِّنْهُمْ جُزْءٌ مَّقْسُومٌ
PickthallIt hath seven gates, and each gate hath an appointed portion.
Yusuf AliTo it are seven gates: for each of those gates is a (special) class (of sinners) assigned.
The agreed readingIt has seven gates, and to each gate belongs an assigned portion of them. Both traditions carry the report of the seven gates, and read the assigning as meaning that entry is not undifferentiated: each gate takes its own.
إِنَّ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ فِى جَنَّٰتٍ وَعُيُونٍ
PickthallLo! those who ward off (evil) are among gardens and watersprings.
Yusuf AliThe righteous (will be) amid gardens and fountains (of clear-flowing water).
The agreed readingThose who guard themselves are among gardens and springs. The commentaries note where the sentence is placed — directly after the gates of Hell and their assigned portions — so that the two endings are read against each other.
ٱدْخُلُوهَا بِسَلَٰمٍ ءَامِنِينَ
Pickthall(And it is said unto them): Enter them in peace, secure.
Yusuf Ali(Their greeting will be): "Enter ye here in peace and security."
The agreed readingEnter them in peace, secure — the commentaries gloss the two words as covering everything that could be lost and everything that could be feared, so that nothing is left to be anxious about.
وَنَزَعْنَا مَا فِى صُدُورِهِم مِّنْ غِلٍّ إِخْوَٰنًا عَلَىٰ سُرُرٍ مُّتَقَٰبِلِينَ
PickthallAnd We remove whatever rancour may be in their breasts. As brethren, face to face, (they rest) on couches raised.
Yusuf AliAnd We shall remove from their hearts any lurking sense of injury: (they will be) brothers (joyfully) facing each other on thrones (of dignity).
The agreed readingAnd We take out whatever rancour was in their breasts; brothers, on couches, facing one another. The commentaries note that what is removed is removed rather than forgiven by them, and that facing one another means no one sits behind anyone's back.
لَا يَمَسُّهُمْ فِيهَا نَصَبٌ وَمَا هُم مِّنْهَا بِمُخْرَجِينَ
PickthallToil cometh not unto them there, nor will they be expelled from thence.
Yusuf AliThere no sense of fatigue shall touch them, nor shall they (ever) be asked to leave.
The agreed readingNo weariness will touch them in it, and they will never be put out of it. Two things are ruled out that would spoil anything else: it does not tire, and it does not end.
نَبِّئْ عِبَادِىٓ أَنِّىٓ أَنَا ٱلْغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ
PickthallAnnounce, (O Muhammad) unto My slaves that verily I am the Forgiving, the Merciful,
Yusuf AliTell My servants that I am indeed the Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful;
The agreed readingTell My servants that I am the Forgiving, the Merciful. The commentaries note that the command is to announce it: the mercy is not left to be worked out or hoped for, it is to be carried and told.
وَأَنَّ عَذَابِى هُوَ ٱلْعَذَابُ ٱلْأَلِيمُ
PickthallAnd that My doom is the dolorous doom.
Yusuf AliAnd that My Penalty will be indeed the most grievous Penalty.
The agreed readingand that My punishment is the painful punishment. The commentaries read the pair as deliberately joined: the announcement of mercy is not made alone, and neither is the warning.
وَنَبِّئْهُمْ عَن ضَيْفِ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ
PickthallAnd tell them of Abraham's guests,
Yusuf AliTell them about the guests of Abraham.
The agreed readingAnd tell them of Abraham's guests — identified in the commentaries as angels, and the telling is ordered for the same reason as the rest of the sūrah, which is to set out what happened to those who refused and those who did not.
إِذْ دَخَلُوا۟ عَلَيْهِ فَقَالُوا۟ سَلَٰمًا قَالَ إِنَّا مِنكُمْ وَجِلُونَ
Pickthall(How) when they came in unto him, and said: Peace. He said: Lo! we are afraid of you.
Yusuf AliWhen they entered his presence and said, "Peace!" He said, "We feel afraid of you!"
The agreed readingwhen they came in to him and said: peace. He said: we are afraid of you. The commentaries explain the fear by what happened between the two sentences: food was set before them and they did not eat it.
قَالُوا۟ لَا تَوْجَلْ إِنَّا نُبَشِّرُكَ بِغُلَٰمٍ عَلِيمٍ
PickthallThey said: Be not afraid! Lo! we bring thee good tidings of a boy possessing wisdom.
Yusuf AliThey said: "Fear not! We give thee glad tidings of a son endowed with wisdom."
The agreed readingThey said: do not be afraid; we bring you good news of a boy who will have knowledge. The good news is given here as the āyah gives it — a son, and knowledge named as the thing he will be given.
قَالَ أَبَشَّرْتُمُونِى عَلَىٰٓ أَن مَّسَّنِىَ ٱلْكِبَرُ فَبِمَ تُبَشِّرُونَ
PickthallHe said: Bring ye me good tidings (of a son) when old age hath overtaken me? Of what then can ye bring good tidings?
Yusuf AliHe said: "Do ye give me glad tidings that old age has seized me? Of what, then, is your good news?"
The agreed readingHe said: do you bring me good news when old age has already reached me? Then what is this good news you bring? The question is read as wonder rather than doubt.
قَالُوا۟ بَشَّرْنَٰكَ بِٱلْحَقِّ فَلَا تَكُن مِّنَ ٱلْقَٰنِطِينَ
PickthallThey said: We bring thee good tidings in truth. So be not thou of the despairing.
Yusuf AliThey said: "We give thee glad tidings in truth: be not then in despair!"
The agreed readingThey said: we bring you good news in truth, so do not be one of those who despair.
قَالَ وَمَن يَقْنَطُ مِن رَّحْمَةِ رَبِّهِۦٓ إِلَّا ٱلضَّآلُّونَ
PickthallHe said: And who despaireth of the mercy of his Lord save those who are astray?
Yusuf AliHe said: "And who despairs of the mercy of his Lord, but such as go astray?"
The agreed readingHe said: and who despairs of his Lord's mercy except those who have gone astray? The commentaries gloss the going astray as not knowing what God's mercy and power actually extend to — despair is treated as a mistake about God, not a mood.
قَالَ فَمَا خَطْبُكُمْ أَيُّهَا ٱلْمُرْسَلُونَ
PickthallHe said: And afterward what is your business, O ye messengers (of Allah)?
Yusuf AliAbraham said: "What then is the business on which ye (have come), O ye messengers (of Allah)?"
The agreed readingHe said: then what is your errand, you who have been sent? The commentaries note that he asks only once the good news is settled, and that he now addresses them as messengers, having understood who they were.
قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّآ أُرْسِلْنَآ إِلَىٰ قَوْمٍ مُّجْرِمِينَ
PickthallThey said: We have been sent unto a guilty folk,
Yusuf AliThey said: "We have been sent to a people (deep) in sin,
The agreed readingThey said: we have been sent to a guilty people — named in the commentaries as the people of Lot. The wording puts the sending before the naming, so what they are is stated before who they are.
إِلَّآ ءَالَ لُوطٍ إِنَّا لَمُنَجُّوهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
Pickthall(All) save the family of Lot. Them we shall deliver every one,
Yusuf Ali"Excepting the adherents of Lut: them we are certainly (charged) to save (from harm),- All -
The agreed readingExcept the family of Lot; we will deliver all of them. The commentaries gloss the deliverance as granted them for their belief, so the exception rests on a ground rather than on favour.
إِلَّا ٱمْرَأَتَهُۥ قَدَّرْنَآ إِنَّهَا لَمِنَ ٱلْغَٰبِرِينَ
PickthallExcept his wife, of whom We had decreed that she should be of those who stay behind.
Yusuf Ali"Except his wife, who, We have ascertained, will be among those who will lag behind."
The agreed readingexcept his wife. We decreed that she would be among those who stay behind. The commentaries gloss staying behind as remaining with the people who were destroyed.
فَلَمَّا جَآءَ ءَالَ لُوطٍ ٱلْمُرْسَلُونَ
PickthallAnd when the messengers came unto the family of Lot,
Yusuf AliAt length when the messengers arrived among the adherents of Lut,
The agreed readingSo when the messengers came to the family of Lot — coming, as the commentaries note, in the form of young men, which is why what follows happens at all.
قَالَ إِنَّكُمْ قَوْمٌ مُّنكَرُونَ
PickthallHe said: Lo! ye are folk unknown (to me).
Yusuf AliHe said: "Ye appear to be uncommon folk."
The agreed readinghe said: you are people I do not know. The commentaries read the words as a man's guard going up at strangers arriving in a town like that one, before he knows who they are.
قَالُوا۟ بَلْ جِئْنَٰكَ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ فِيهِ يَمْتَرُونَ
PickthallThey said: Nay, but we bring thee that concerning which they keep disputing,
Yusuf AliThey said: "Yea, we have come to thee to accomplish that of which they doubt.
The agreed readingThey said: rather, we have come to you with the very thing they kept disputing about — the punishment they had been treating as a story.
وَأَتَيْنَٰكَ بِٱلْحَقِّ وَإِنَّا لَصَٰدِقُونَ
PickthallAnd bring thee the Truth, and lo! we are truth-tellers.
Yusuf Ali"We have brought to thee that which is inevitably due, and assuredly we tell the truth.
The agreed readingAnd we have brought you the truth, and we are telling you the truth. The commentaries note the doubling: that what is brought is true, and that the ones bringing it are truthful, are two claims and not one.
فَأَسْرِ بِأَهْلِكَ بِقِطْعٍ مِّنَ ٱلَّيْلِ وَٱتَّبِعْ أَدْبَٰرَهُمْ وَلَا يَلْتَفِتْ مِنكُمْ أَحَدٌ وَٱمْضُوا۟ حَيْثُ تُؤْمَرُونَ
PickthallSo travel with thy household in a portion of the night, and follow thou their backs. Let none of you turn round, but go whither ye are commanded.
Yusuf Ali"Then travel by night with thy household, when a portion of the night (yet remains), and do thou bring up the rear: let no one amongst you look back, but pass on whither ye are ordered."
The agreed readingSo travel with your household in a part of the night, and follow behind them, and let none of you look back, and go on to where you are ordered. The commentaries read the order to walk last as making him the one who sees that nobody falls behind.
وَقَضَيْنَآ إِلَيْهِ ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْأَمْرَ أَنَّ دَابِرَ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ مَقْطُوعٌ مُّصْبِحِينَ
PickthallAnd We made plain the case to him, that the root of them (who did wrong) was to be cut at early morn.
Yusuf AliAnd We made known this decree to him, that the last remnants of those (sinners) should be cut off by the morning.
The agreed readingAnd We made that decree clear to him: that the last of these people would be cut off by morning.
وَجَآءَ أَهْلُ ٱلْمَدِينَةِ يَسْتَبْشِرُونَ
PickthallAnd the people of the city came, rejoicing at the news (of new arrivals).
Yusuf AliThe inhabitants of the city came in (mad) joy (at news of the young men).
The agreed readingAnd the people of the city came, delighted — the city the commentaries of both traditions name as Sodom — and what they were delighted about was the guests.
قَالَ إِنَّ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ ضَيْفِى فَلَا تَفْضَحُونِ
PickthallHe said: Lo! they are my guests. Affront me not!
Yusuf AliLut said: "These are my guests: disgrace me not:
The agreed readingHe said: these are my guests, so do not disgrace me. The commentaries gloss the disgrace as falling on the host himself through what is done to the guest under his roof.
وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَلَا تُخْزُونِ
PickthallAnd keep your duty to Allah, and shame me not!
Yusuf Ali"But fear Allah, and shame me not."
The agreed readingand be mindful of God, and do not shame me. The commentaries note what he appeals to: the obligation of a host, which in that place he was the only one still holding.
قَالُوٓا۟ أَوَلَمْ نَنْهَكَ عَنِ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ
PickthallThey said; Have we not forbidden you from (entertaining) anyone?
Yusuf AliThey said: "Did we not forbid thee (to speak) for all and sundry?"
The agreed readingThey said: did we not forbid you from taking in anyone at all? The commentaries read this as showing the practice was already a rule of the town — hospitality itself had been made an offence.
قَالَ هَٰٓؤُلَآءِ بَنَاتِىٓ إِن كُنتُمْ فَٰعِلِينَ
PickthallHe said: Here are my daughters, if ye must be doing (so).
Yusuf AliHe said: "There are my daughters (to marry), if ye must act (so)."
The agreed readingHe said: here are my daughters, if you must — offering them in marriage, as the commentaries read it, which is the lawful way he was putting in front of them.
لَعَمْرُكَ إِنَّهُمْ لَفِى سَكْرَتِهِمْ يَعْمَهُونَ
PickthallBy thy life (O Muhammad) they moved blindly in the frenzy of approaching death.
Yusuf AliVerily, by thy life (O Prophet), in their wild intoxication, they wander in distraction, to and fro.
The agreed readingBy your life, they were wandering blindly in their intoxication. Both traditions read this as an oath sworn by the life of Muhammad, and note that it is sworn by the one being addressed.
فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ ٱلصَّيْحَةُ مُشْرِقِينَ
PickthallThen the (Awful) Cry overtook them at the sunrise.
Yusuf AliBut the (mighty) Blast overtook them before morning,
The agreed readingSo the Cry seized them at sunrise — a cry both traditions identify as Gabriel's.
فَجَعَلْنَا عَٰلِيَهَا سَافِلَهَا وَأَمْطَرْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ حِجَارَةً مِّن سِجِّيلٍ
PickthallAnd We utterly confounded them, and We rained upon them stones of heated clay.
Yusuf AliAnd We turned (the cities) upside down, and rained down on them brimstones hard as baked clay.
The agreed readingAnd We turned it upside down and rained on them stones of baked clay. The commentaries take what was overturned to be their towns, lifted and brought down inverted.
إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَـَٔايَٰتٍ لِّلْمُتَوَسِّمِينَ
PickthallLo! therein verily are portents for those who read the signs.
Yusuf AliBehold! in this are Signs for those who by tokens do understand.
The agreed readingIn that there are signs for those who read signs — the commentaries gloss them as people who look closely enough to take the lesson, rather than people who merely see.
وَإِنَّهَا لَبِسَبِيلٍ مُّقِيمٍ
PickthallAnd lo! it is upon a road still uneffaced.
Yusuf AliAnd the (cities were) right on the high-road.
The agreed readingAnd it lies on a road still in use. The commentaries note that the ruins sat on the route the people of Mecca themselves travelled, so the evidence was not remote from the ones being addressed.
إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَـَٔايَةً لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
PickthallLo! therein is indeed a portent for believers.
Yusuf AliBehold! in this is a sign for those who believed.
The agreed readingIn that there is a sign for those who believe. The commentaries note the narrowing between the two āyāt: signs for those who read signs, then a sign for those who believe.
وَإِن كَانَ أَصْحَٰبُ ٱلْأَيْكَةِ لَظَٰلِمِينَ
PickthallAnd the dwellers in the wood indeed were evil-doers.
Yusuf AliAnd the Companions of the Wood were also wrong-doers;
The agreed readingAnd the people of the Thicket were wrongdoers — a wooded place near Midian, and its people the people to whom Shuayb was sent.
فَٱنتَقَمْنَا مِنْهُمْ وَإِنَّهُمَا لَبِإِمَامٍ مُّبِينٍ
PickthallSo we took vengeance on them; and lo! they both are on a high-road plain to see.
Yusuf AliSo We exacted retribution from them. They were both on an open highway, plain to see.
The agreed readingSo We took retribution from them, and both of them lie on a road plain to see. The commentaries take both to be the towns of Lot's people and the Thicket, and the road to be the one still travelled.
وَلَقَدْ كَذَّبَ أَصْحَٰبُ ٱلْحِجْرِ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ
PickthallAnd the dwellers in Al-Hijr denied (Our) messengers.
Yusuf AliThe Companions of the Rocky Tract also rejected the messengers:
The agreed readingAnd the people of al-Hijr denied the messengers — a valley on the way from Medina towards Syria, and its people Thamud, who are named as denying all the messengers because they denied the one sent to them.
وَءَاتَيْنَٰهُمْ ءَايَٰتِنَا فَكَانُوا۟ عَنْهَا مُعْرِضِينَ
PickthallAnd we gave them Our revelations, but they were averse to them.
Yusuf AliWe sent them Our Signs, but they persisted in turning away from them.
The agreed readingAnd We gave them Our signs, and they turned away from them — the commentaries name the she-camel among them, given and then not thought about.
وَكَانُوا۟ يَنْحِتُونَ مِنَ ٱلْجِبَالِ بُيُوتًا ءَامِنِينَ
PickthallAnd they used to hew out dwellings from the hills, (wherein they dwelt) secure.
Yusuf AliOut of the mountains did they hew (their) edifices, (feeling themselves) secure.
The agreed readingAnd they used to carve out houses from the mountains, feeling secure — secure, as the commentaries read it, in the very solidity of what they had cut.
فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ ٱلصَّيْحَةُ مُصْبِحِينَ
PickthallBut the (Awful) Cry overtook them at the morning hour,
Yusuf AliBut the (mighty) Blast seized them of a morning,
The agreed readingSo the Cry seized them in the morning — the same word used of Lot's people a few āyāt earlier, and the commentaries note the repetition: two peoples, two mornings, one end.
فَمَآ أَغْنَىٰ عَنْهُم مَّا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ
PickthallAnd that which they were wont to count as gain availed them not.
Yusuf AliAnd of no avail to them was all that they did (with such art and care)!
The agreed readingand what they had been earning was of no use to them at all — the commentaries name the fortresses they had cut and the wealth they had gathered, so that what failed them was exactly what they had trusted.
وَمَا خَلَقْنَا ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَآ إِلَّا بِٱلْحَقِّ وَإِنَّ ٱلسَّاعَةَ لَـَٔاتِيَةٌ فَٱصْفَحِ ٱلصَّفْحَ ٱلْجَمِيلَ
PickthallWe created not the heavens and the earth and all that is between them save with truth, and lo! the Hour is surely coming. So forgive, (O Muhammad), with a gracious forgiveness.
Yusuf AliWe created not the heavens, the earth, and all between them, but for just ends. And the Hour is surely coming (when this will be manifest). So overlook (any human faults) with gracious forgiveness.
The agreed readingAnd We did not create the heavens and the earth and what is between them except in truth. And the Hour is certainly coming, so overlook with a gracious overlooking — glossed as turning away without complaint and without rebuke.
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ ٱلْخَلَّٰقُ ٱلْعَلِيمُ
PickthallLo! Thy Lord! He is the All-Wise Creator.
Yusuf AliFor verily it is thy Lord who is the Master-Creator, knowing all things.
The agreed readingYour Lord is the Creator of all, the Knowing — the commentaries attach the first to everything He made and the second to everything He made it out of and for.
وَلَقَدْ ءَاتَيْنَٰكَ سَبْعًا مِّنَ ٱلْمَثَانِى وَٱلْقُرْءَانَ ٱلْعَظِيمَ
PickthallWe have given thee seven of the oft-repeated (verses) and the great Qur'an.
Yusuf AliAnd We have bestowed upon thee the Seven Oft-repeated (verses) and the Grand Qur'an.
The agreed readingAnd We have given you the seven oft-repeated and the great Qur'an. Both traditions identify the seven with al-Fātiḥa, repeated in every unit of the prayer, and the sūrah's answer to those mocking the revelation is to name what its hearer has already been given.
لَا تَمُدَّنَّ عَيْنَيْكَ إِلَىٰ مَا مَتَّعْنَا بِهِۦٓ أَزْوَٰجًا مِّنْهُمْ وَلَا تَحْزَنْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَٱخْفِضْ جَنَاحَكَ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
PickthallStrain not thine eyes toward that which We cause some wedded pairs among them to enjoin, and be not grieved on their account, and lower thy wing (in tenderness) for the believers.
Yusuf AliStrain not thine eyes. (Wistfully) at what We have bestowed on certain classes of them, nor grieve over them: but lower thy wing (in gentleness) to the believers.
The agreed readingDo not strain your eyes towards what We have let certain kinds of them enjoy, and do not grieve over them, and lower your wing to the believers. The commentaries gloss lowering the wing as gentleness — the same movement a bird makes to cover what is under it.
وَقُلْ إِنِّىٓ أَنَا ٱلنَّذِيرُ ٱلْمُبِينُ
PickthallAnd say: Lo! I, even I, am a plain warner,
Yusuf AliAnd say: "I am indeed he that warneth openly and without ambiguity,"-
The agreed readingAnd say: I am the plain warner. The commentaries gloss the word as describing the warning rather than the warner — what is being said is made plain, whatever is made of the one saying it.
كَمَآ أَنزَلْنَا عَلَى ٱلْمُقْتَسِمِينَ
PickthallSuch as We send down for those who make division,
Yusuf Ali(Of just such wrath) as We sent down on those who divided (Scripture into arbitrary parts),-
The agreed readingAs We sent down on those who divided it up — the commentaries read the āyah as promising the deniers of Mecca what already came to an earlier people who had done the same thing with what they were given.
ٱلَّذِينَ جَعَلُوا۟ ٱلْقُرْءَانَ عِضِينَ
PickthallThose who break the Qur'an into parts.
Yusuf Ali(So also on such) as have made Qur'an into shreds (as they please).
The agreed readingthose who made the Recitation into pieces. The commentaries read them as taking some of what was sent down and refusing the rest, which is why the naming is about dividing rather than about denying outright.
فَوَرَبِّكَ لَنَسْـَٔلَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
PickthallThem, by thy Lord, We shall question, every one,
Yusuf AliTherefore, by the Lord, We will, of a surety, call them to account,
The agreed readingSo by your Lord, We will question them all — an oath, and the commentaries note that the questioning is said to cover every one of them, with no one left outside it.
عَمَّا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
PickthallOf what they used to do.
Yusuf AliFor all their deeds.
The agreed readingabout what they used to do — a questioning the commentaries take as rebuke rather than enquiry, since the answer is already known.
فَٱصْدَعْ بِمَا تُؤْمَرُ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ
PickthallSo proclaim that which thou art commanded, and withdraw from the idolaters.
Yusuf AliTherefore expound openly what thou art commanded, and turn away from those who join false gods with Allah.
The agreed readingSo proclaim openly what you are commanded, and turn away from those who set up partners with God. The commentaries read this as the end of a period of concealment: what had been said quietly was now to be said out loud.
إِنَّا كَفَيْنَٰكَ ٱلْمُسْتَهْزِءِينَ
PickthallLo! We defend thee from the scoffers,
Yusuf AliFor sufficient are We unto thee against those who scoff,-
The agreed readingWe are enough for you against the mockers. The commentaries read the promise as taking the matter out of his hands entirely: he is told to proclaim, and the answering of the mockery is not his work.
ٱلَّذِينَ يَجْعَلُونَ مَعَ ٱللَّهِ إِلَٰهًا ءَاخَرَ فَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ
PickthallWho set some other god along with Allah. But they will come to know.
Yusuf AliThose who adopt, with Allah, another god: but soon will they come to know.
The agreed readingthose who set up another god beside God. They will come to know. The commentaries name a specific group of ringleaders who were dealt with, and the promise is made in the plainest terms: this is Ours, not yours.
وَلَقَدْ نَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ يَضِيقُ صَدْرُكَ بِمَا يَقُولُونَ
PickthallWell know We that thy bosom is oppressed by what they say,
Yusuf AliWe do indeed know how thy heart is distressed at what they say.
The agreed readingAnd We know that your breast is tightened by what they say. The commentaries gloss what they say as the mockery and the denial, and note that the āyah states the fact plainly before anything is offered for it.
فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَكُن مِّنَ ٱلسَّٰجِدِينَ
PickthallBut hymn the praise of thy Lord, and be of those who make prostration (unto Him).
Yusuf AliBut celebrate the praises of thy Lord, and be of those who prostrate themselves in adoration.
The agreed readingSo glorify your Lord with praise, and be among those who prostrate. The commentaries read the answer given for a tightened chest as an instruction rather than a consolation: what to do, not what to feel.
وَٱعْبُدْ رَبَّكَ حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِيَكَ ٱلْيَقِينُ
PickthallAnd serve thy Lord till the Inevitable cometh unto thee.
Yusuf AliAnd serve thy Lord until there come unto thee the Hour that is Certain.
The agreed readingAnd serve your Lord until the certainty comes to you — which both traditions gloss as death. Service is not a stage that is passed through and left behind; the only term set for it is the end of the life itself.