68 The Pen
68:1 Nun. By the Pen and the (Record) which (men) write,-
68:2 Thou art not, by the Grace of thy Lord, mad or possessed.
68:3 Nay, verily for thee is a Reward unfailing:
68:4 And thou (standest) on an exalted standard of character.
68:5 Soon wilt thou see, and they will see,
68:6 Which of you is afflicted with madness.
68:7 Verily it is thy Lord that knoweth best, which (among men) hath strayed from His Path: and He knoweth best those who receive (true) Guidance.
68:8 So hearken not to those who deny (the Truth).
Refuse to obey the “rejecters” (Non-Muslims?) who seek compromise.
68:9 Their desire is that thou shouldst be pliant: so would they be pliant.
68:10 Heed not the type of despicable men,- ready with oaths,
68:11 A slanderer, going about with calumnies,
68:12 (Habitually) hindering (all) good, transgressing beyond bounds, deep in sin,
68:13 Violent (and cruel),- with all that, base-born,-
68:14 Because he possesses wealth and (numerous) sons.
68:15 When to him are rehearsed Our Signs, “Tales of the ancients”, he cries!
Those who consider the Quran to be “mere fables” will be branded on the nose.
68:16 Soon shall We brand (the beast) on the snout!
68:17 Verily We have tried them as We tried the People of the Garden, when they resolved to gather the fruits of the (garden) in the morning.
68:18 But made no reservation, (“If it be God’s Will”).
68:19 Then there came on the (garden) a visitation from thy Lord, (which swept away) all around, while they were asleep.
68:20 So the (garden) became, by the morning, like a dark and desolate spot, (whose fruit had been gathered).
68:21 As the morning broke, they called out, one to another,-
68:22 “Go ye to your tilth (betimes) in the morning, if ye would gather the fruits.”
68:23 So they departed, conversing in secret low tones, (saying)-
68:24 “Let not a single indigent person break in upon you into the (garden) this day.”
68:25 And they opened the morning, strong in an (unjust) resolve.
68:26 But when they saw the (garden), they said: “We have surely lost our way:
68:27 “Indeed we are shut out (of the fruits of our labour)!”
68:28 Said one of them, more just (than the rest): “Did I not say to you, ‘Why not glorify (God)?’”
68:29 They said: “Glory to our Lord! Verily we have been doing wrong!”
68:30 Then they turned, one against another, in reproach.
68:31 They said: “Alas for us! We have indeed transgressed!
68:32 “It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better (garden) than this: for we do turn to Him (in repentance)!”
68:33 Such is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the Punishment in the Hereafter,- if only they knew!
68:34 Verily, for the Righteous, are Gardens of Delight, in the Presence of their Lord.
68:35 Shall We then treat the People of Faith like the People of Sin?
“Shall We then treat the People of Faith (Muslims) like the People of Sin (non-Muslims)?”
68:36 What is the matter with you? How judge ye?
68:37 Or have ye a book through which ye learn-
68:38 That ye shall have, through it whatever ye choose?
68:39 Or have ye Covenants with Us to oath, reaching to the Day of Judgment, (providing) that ye shall have whatever ye shall demand?
68:40 Ask thou of them, which of them will stand surety for that!
68:41 Or have they some “Partners” (in Godhead)? Then let them produce their “partners”, if they are truthful!
68:42 The Day that the shin shall be laid bare, and they shall be summoned to bow in adoration, but they shall not be able,-
68:43 Their eyes will be cast down,- ignominy will cover them; seeing that they had been summoned aforetime to bow in adoration, while they were whole, (and had refused).
68:44 Then leave Me alone with such as reject this Message: by degrees shall We punish them from directions they perceive not.
68:45 A (long) respite will I grant them: truly powerful is My Plan.
68:46 Or is it that thou dost ask them for a reward, so that they are burdened with a load of debt?-
“Or is it that thou (Muhammad) dost ask them for a reward, so that they are burdened with a load of debt?”
Does Muhammad ask for a fee?
68:47 Or that the Unseen is in their hands, so that they can write it down?
68:48 So wait with patience for the Command of thy Lord, and be not like the Companion of the Fish,- when he cried out in agony.
68:49 Had not Grace from his Lord reached him, he would indeed have been cast off on the naked shore, in disgrace.
68:50 Thus did his Lord choose him and make him of the Company of the Righteous.
68:51 And the Unbelievers would almost trip thee up with their eyes when they hear the Message; and they say: “Surely he is possessed!”
When disbelievers hear the Quran, they roll their eyes and say “he [Muhammad] is indeed mad.”
68:52 But it is nothing less than a Message to all the worlds.
