26 The disbelievers say, ‘Do not listen to this Quran; drown it in frivolous talk: you may gain the upper hand.’ 27 We shall certainly give the disbelievers a taste of severe punishment. We shall repay them according to their worst deeds– 28 that is the reward of the enemies of God– the Fire will be their lasting home, a payment for their rejection of Our revelations. 29 The disbelievers will say, ‘Our Lord, show us those jinn and men who misled us and we shall trample them underfoot, so that they may be among the lowest of the low.’ 30 As for those who say, ‘Our Lord is God,’ and take the straight path towards Him, the angels come down to them and say, ‘Have no fear or grief, but rejoice in the good news of Paradise, which you have been promised. 31 We are your allies in this world and in the world to come, where you will have everything you desire and ask for 32 as a welcoming gift from the Most Forgiving, Most Merciful One.’
33 Who speaks better than someone who calls people to God, does what is right, and says, ‘I am one of those devoted to God’? 34 Good and evil cannot be equal. [Prophet], repel evil with what is better and your enemy will become as close as an old and valued friend, 35 but only those who are steadfast in patience, only those who are blessed with great righteousness, will attain to such goodness. 36 If a prompting from Satan should stir you, seek refuge with God: He is the All Hearing and the All Knowing.
37 The night, the day, the sun, the moon, are only a few of His signs. Do not bow down in worship to the sun or the moon, but bow down to God who created them, if it is truly Him that you worship. 38 If the disbelievers are too arrogant, [remember, Prophet, that] those who are with your Lord glorify Him tirelessly night and day. 39 Another of His signs is this: you see the earth lying desolate, but when We send water down on to it, it stirs and grows. He who gives it life will certainly give life to the dead. He has power over everything.
40 Those who distort the meaning of Our message are not hidden from Us. Is he who is hurled into the Fire better, or he who comes through safely on the Day of Resurrection? Do whatever you want, God certainly sees everything you do. 41 Those who reject the Quran when it comes to them– though it is an unassailable Scripture 42 which falsehood cannot touch from any angle, a Revelation sent down from the Wise One, Worthy of All Praise– 43 [should remember that] you [Prophet] are not told anything that the previous messengers were not told: your Lord is a Lord of forgiveness, but also of painful punishment. 44 If We had made it a foreign Quran, they would have said, ‘If only its verses were clear! What? Foreign speech to an Arab?’ Say, ‘It is guidance and healing for those who have faith, but the ears of the disbelievers are heavy, they are blind to it, it is as if they are being called from a distant place.’
How Far Astray Are You?
45 We gave the Scripture to Moses but disputes arose about it– if it were not for a decree that had already been issued from your Lord, they would already have been judged– and still they are doubtful and suspicious of it.
46 Whoever does good does it for his own soul and whoever does evil does it against his own soul: your Lord is never unjust to His creatures. 47 Knowledge of the Hour belongs solely to Him and no crop comes out of its sheath, nor does any female conceive or give birth, without His knowledge. On the Day He asks them, ‘Where are My partners?’ they will answer, ‘We admit to You that none of us can see [them]’: 48 the gods they invoked before will have vanished away; they will know that there is no escape.
49 Man never tires of asking for good, but if evil touches him he loses all hope and becomes despondent. 50 Whenever We let him taste some of Our mercy after he has been afflicted, he is sure to say, ‘This is all my own doing: I do not think the Hour will ever come, but even if I were to be taken back to my Lord, the best reward would await me with Him.’ We shall most certainly inform the disbelievers of what they have done and give them a taste of severe torment. 51 Whenever We are gracious to man, he goes away haughtily, but, as soon as evil touches him, he turns to prolonged prayer. 52 Say [Prophet], ‘Have you ever thought, what if this revelation really is from God and you still reject it? Who could be more astray than someone who cuts himself off so far [from God]?’ 53 We shall show them Our signs in every region of the earth and in themselves, until it becomes clear to them that this is the Truth. Is it not enough that your Lord witnesses everything? 54 Truly, they doubt that they will meet their Lord; truly He encompasses [a] everything.
Footnotes
a. This is muhit, a metaphor in Arabic for having full knowledge and full power over everything.
The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)
The Qur'an / a new translation by M. A. S. Abdel Haleem, copyright © 2004 Oxford World's Classics (Oxford University Press). Used by permission. All rights reserved.