45 Ask the prophets We sent before you: ‘Did We ever appoint any gods to be worshipped besides the Lord of Mercy?’
46 We sent Moses to Pharaoh and his courtiers and he said, ‘I am truly a messenger from the Lord of the Worlds,’ 47 but when he presented Our signs to them, they laughed, 48 even though each sign We showed them was greater than the previous one. We inflicted torment on them so that they might return to the right path. 49 They said, ‘Sorcerer, call on your Lord for us, by virtue of His pledge to you: we shall certainly accept guidance,’ 50 but as soon as We relieved their torment they broke their word. 51 Pharaoh proclaimed to his people, ‘My people, is the Kingdom of Egypt not mine? And these rivers that flow at my feet, are they not mine? Do you not see? 52 Am I not better than this contemptible wretch who can scarcely express himself? 53 Why has he not been given any gold bracelets? Why have no angels come to accompany him?’ 54 In this way he moved his people to accept and they obeyed him– they were perverse people. 55 When they provoked Us, We punished and drowned them all: 56 We made them a lesson and an example for later people.
57 When the son of Mary is cited as an example, your people [Prophet] laugh and jeer, 58 saying, ‘Are our gods [a] better or him?’– they cite him only to challenge you: they are a contentious people– 59 but he is only a servant We favored and made an example for the Children of Israel: 60 if it had been Our will, We could have made you angels, [b] succeeding one another on earth.
61 This [Quran] gives knowledge of the Hour: [c] do not doubt it. Follow Me for this is the right path; 62 do not let Satan hinder you, for he is your sworn enemy. 63 When Jesus came with clear signs he said, ‘I have brought you wisdom; I have come to clear up some of your differences for you. Be mindful of God and obey me: 64 God is my Lord and your Lord. Serve Him: this is the straight path.’ 65 Yet still the different factions among them disagreed– woe to the evildoers: they will suffer the torment of a grievous day!– 66 what are they waiting for but the Hour, which will come upon them suddenly and take them unawares? 67 On that Day, friends will become each other’s enemies. Not so the righteous– 68 ‘My servants, there is no fear for you today, nor shall you grieve’–– 69 those who believed in Our revelations and devoted themselves to Us. 70 ‘Enter Paradise, you and your spouses: you will be filled with joy.’ 71 Dishes and goblets of gold will be passed around them with all that their souls desire and their eyes delight in. ‘There you will remain: 72 this is the Garden you are given as your own, because of what you used to do, 73 and there is abundant fruit in it for you to eat.’ 74 But the evildoers will remain in Hell’s punishment, 75 from which there is no relief: they will remain in utter despair. 76 We never wronged them; they were the ones who did wrong. 77 They will cry, ‘Malik, [d] if only your Lord would finish us off,’ but he will answer, ‘No! You are here to stay.’ 78 We have brought you the Truth but most of you despise it.
God Devises a Plan
79 Have these disbelievers thought up some scheme? We too have been scheming. 80 Do they think We cannot hear their secret talk and their private counsel? Yes we can: Our messengers are at their sides, recording everything.
81 Say [Prophet], ‘If the Lord of Mercy [truly] had offspring I would be the first to worship [them], [e] but– 82 exalted be the Lord of the heavens and earth, the Lord of the Throne– He is far above their false descriptions.’ 83 Leave them to wade in deeper and play about, until they face the Day they have been promised. 84 It is He who is God in heaven and God on earth; He is the All Wise, the All Knowing; 85 Exalted is He who has control of the heavens and earth and everything between them; He has knowledge of the Hour; you will all be returned to Him. 86 Those gods they invoke besides Him have no power of intercession, unlike those [f] who bore witness to the truth and recognized it. 87 If you [Prophet] ask them who created them they are sure to say, ‘God,’ so why are they so deluded? 88 The Prophet has said, ‘My Lord, truly these are people who do not believe,’ 89 but turn away from them and say, ‘Peace’: they will come to know.
Footnotes
a. The angels, whom they worshipped as the daughters of God and superior to Jesus, whom they considered to be a god worshipped by Christians as the Son of God.
b. Just as God was able to create Jesus without a father.
c. Alternatively, the pronoun hu can also be seen to refer to Jesus: ‘[Jesus] gives knowledge of the Hour’.
d. The angel in charge of Hell.
e. Another interpretation is ‘If the Lord of Mercy had a son I would be the first to worship him’ (Razi).
f. Those who have God’s permission. Cf. 20: 109.
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.