Surah Al-Qalam (The Pen)

نٓ ۚ وَٱلْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ

68:1 Nũn. By the pen and what everyone writes!

مَآ أَنتَ بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ بِمَجْنُونٍ

68:2 By the grace of your Lord, you ˹O Prophet˺ are not insane.

وَإِنَّ لَكَ لَأَجْرًا غَيْرَ مَمْنُونٍ

68:3 You will certainly have a never-ending reward.

وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ

68:4 And you are truly ˹a man˺ of outstanding character.

فَسَتُبْصِرُ وَيُبْصِرُونَ

68:5 Soon you and the pagans will see,

بِأَييِّكُمُ ٱلْمَفْتُونُ

68:6 which of you is mad.

إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَن ضَلَّ عَن سَبِيلِهِۦ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِٱلْمُهْتَدِينَ

68:7 Surely your Lord ˹alone˺ knows best who has strayed from His Way and who is ˹rightly˺ guided.

فَلَا تُطِعِ ٱلْمُكَذِّبِينَ

68:8 So do not give in to the deniers.

وَدُّوا۟ لَوْ تُدْهِنُ فَيُدْهِنُونَ

68:9 They wish you would compromise so they would yield ˹to you˺.

وَلَا تُطِعْ كُلَّ حَلَّافٍ مَّهِينٍ

68:10 And do not obey the despicable, vain oath-taker,

هَمَّازٍ مَّشَّآءٍۭ بِنَمِيمٍ

68:11 slanderer, gossip-monger,

مَّنَّاعٍ لِّلْخَيْرِ مُعْتَدٍ أَثِيمٍ

68:12 withholder of good, transgressor, evildoer,

عُتُلٍّۭ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ زَنِيمٍ

68:13 brute, and—on top of all that—an illegitimate child.

أَن كَانَ ذَا مَالٍ وَبَنِينَ

68:14 Now, ˹simply˺ because he has been blessed with ˹abundant˺ wealth and children,

إِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِ ءَايَـٰتُنَا قَالَ أَسَـٰطِيرُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ

68:15 whenever Our revelations are recited to him, he says, “Ancient fables!”

سَنَسِمُهُۥ عَلَى ٱلْخُرْطُومِ

68:16 We will soon mark his snout.

إِنَّا بَلَوْنَـٰهُمْ كَمَا بَلَوْنَآ أَصْحَـٰبَ ٱلْجَنَّةِ إِذْ أَقْسَمُوا۟ لَيَصْرِمُنَّهَا مُصْبِحِينَ

68:17 Indeed, We have tested those ˹Meccans˺ as We tested the owners of the garden—when they swore they would surely harvest ˹all˺ its fruit in the early morning,

وَلَا يَسْتَثْنُونَ

68:18 leaving no thought for Allah’s Will.

فَطَافَ عَلَيْهَا طَآئِفٌ مِّن رَّبِّكَ وَهُمْ نَآئِمُونَ

68:19 Then it was struck by a torment from your Lord while they slept,

فَأَصْبَحَتْ كَٱلصَّرِيمِ

68:20 so it was reduced to ashes.

فَتَنَادَوْا۟ مُصْبِحِينَ

68:21 Then by daybreak they called out to each other,

أَنِ ٱغْدُوا۟ عَلَىٰ حَرْثِكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ صَـٰرِمِينَ

68:22 ˹saying,˺ “Go early to your harvest, if you want to pick ˹all˺ the fruit.”

فَٱنطَلَقُوا۟ وَهُمْ يَتَخَـٰفَتُونَ

68:23 So they went off, whispering to one another,

أَن لَّا يَدْخُلَنَّهَا ٱلْيَوْمَ عَلَيْكُم مِّسْكِينٌ

68:24 “Do not let any poor person enter your garden today.”

وَغَدَوْا۟ عَلَىٰ حَرْدٍ قَـٰدِرِينَ

68:25 And they proceeded early, totally fixated on their purpose.

فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهَا قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّا لَضَآلُّونَ

68:26 But when they saw it ˹devastated˺, they cried, “We must have lost ˹our˺ way!

بَلْ نَحْنُ مَحْرُومُونَ

68:27 In fact, we have been deprived ˹of our livelihood˺.”

قَالَ أَوْسَطُهُمْ أَلَمْ أَقُل لَّكُمْ لَوْلَا تُسَبِّحُونَ

68:28 The most sensible of them said, “Did I not urge you to say, ‘Allah willing.’?”

قَالُوا۟ سُبْحَـٰنَ رَبِّنَآ إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَـٰلِمِينَ

68:29 They replied, “Glory be to our Lord! We have truly been wrongdoers.”

فَأَقْبَلَ بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ يَتَلَـٰوَمُونَ

68:30 Then they turned on each other, throwing blame.

قَالُوا۟ يَـٰوَيْلَنَآ إِنَّا كُنَّا طَـٰغِينَ

68:31 They said, “Woe to us! We have certainly been transgressors.

عَسَىٰ رَبُّنَآ أَن يُبْدِلَنَا خَيْرًا مِّنْهَآ إِنَّآ إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا رَٰغِبُونَ

68:32 We trust our Lord will give us a better garden than this, ˹for˺ we are indeed turning to our Lord with hope.”

كَذَٰلِكَ ٱلْعَذَابُ ۖ وَلَعَذَابُ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ أَكْبَرُ ۚ لَوْ كَانُوا۟ يَعْلَمُونَ

68:33 That is the ˹way of Our˺ punishment ˹in this world˺. But the punishment of the Hereafter is certainly far worse, if only they knew.

إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ جَنَّـٰتِ ٱلنَّعِيمِ

68:34 Indeed, the righteous will have the Gardens of Bliss with their Lord.

أَفَنَجْعَلُ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ كَٱلْمُجْرِمِينَ

68:35 Should We then treat those who have submitted like the wicked?

مَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُونَ

68:36 What is the matter with you? How do you judge?

أَمْ لَكُمْ كِتَـٰبٌ فِيهِ تَدْرُسُونَ

68:37 Or do you have a scripture, in which you read

إِنَّ لَكُمْ فِيهِ لَمَا تَخَيَّرُونَ

68:38 that you will have whatever you choose?

أَمْ لَكُمْ أَيْمَـٰنٌ عَلَيْنَا بَـٰلِغَةٌ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ ۙ إِنَّ لَكُمْ لَمَا تَحْكُمُونَ

68:39 Or do you have oaths binding on Us until the Day of Judgment that you will have whatever you decide?

سَلْهُمْ أَيُّهُم بِذَٰلِكَ زَعِيمٌ

68:40 Ask them ˹O Prophet˺ which of them can guarantee all that.

أَمْ لَهُمْ شُرَكَآءُ فَلْيَأْتُوا۟ بِشُرَكَآئِهِمْ إِن كَانُوا۟ صَـٰدِقِينَ

68:41 Or do they have associate-gods ˹supporting this claim˺? Then let them bring forth their associate-gods, if what they say is true.

يَوْمَ يُكْشَفُ عَن سَاقٍ وَيُدْعَوْنَ إِلَى ٱلسُّجُودِ فَلَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ

68:42 ˹Beware of˺ the Day the Shin ˹of Allah˺ will be bared, and the wicked will be asked to prostrate, but they will not be able to do so,

خَـٰشِعَةً أَبْصَـٰرُهُمْ تَرْهَقُهُمْ ذِلَّةٌ ۖ وَقَدْ كَانُوا۟ يُدْعَوْنَ إِلَى ٱلسُّجُودِ وَهُمْ سَـٰلِمُونَ

68:43 with eyes downcast, totally covered with disgrace. For they were ˹always˺ called to prostrate ˹in the world˺ when they were fully capable ˹but they chose not to˺.

فَذَرْنِى وَمَن يُكَذِّبُ بِهَـٰذَا ٱلْحَدِيثِ ۖ سَنَسْتَدْرِجُهُم مِّنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

68:44 So leave to Me ˹O Prophet˺ those who reject this message. We will gradually draw them to destruction in ways they cannot comprehend.

وَأُمْلِى لَهُمْ ۚ إِنَّ كَيْدِى مَتِينٌ

68:45 I ˹only˺ delay their end for a while, but My planning is flawless.

أَمْ تَسْـَٔلُهُمْ أَجْرًا فَهُم مِّن مَّغْرَمٍ مُّثْقَلُونَ

68:46 Or are you asking them for a reward ˹for the message˺ so that they are overburdened by debt?

أَمْ عِندَهُمُ ٱلْغَيْبُ فَهُمْ يَكْتُبُونَ

68:47 Or do they have access to ˹the Record in˺ the unseen, so they copy it ˹for all to see˺?

فَٱصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ وَلَا تَكُن كَصَاحِبِ ٱلْحُوتِ إِذْ نَادَىٰ وَهُوَ مَكْظُومٌ

68:48 So be patient with your Lord’s decree, and do not be like ˹Jonah,˺ the Man of the Whale, who cried out ˹to Allah˺, in total distress.

لَّوْلَآ أَن تَدَٰرَكَهُۥ نِعْمَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِۦ لَنُبِذَ بِٱلْعَرَآءِ وَهُوَ مَذْمُومٌ

68:49 Had he not been shown grace by his Lord, he would have certainly been cast onto the open ˹shore˺, still blameworthy.

فَٱجْتَبَـٰهُ رَبُّهُۥ فَجَعَلَهُۥ مِنَ ٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ

68:50 Then his Lord chose him, making him one of the righteous.

وَإِن يَكَادُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ لَيُزْلِقُونَكَ بِأَبْصَـٰرِهِمْ لَمَّا سَمِعُوا۟ ٱلذِّكْرَ وَيَقُولُونَ إِنَّهُۥ لَمَجْنُونٌ

68:51 The disbelievers would almost cut you down with their eyes when they hear ˹you recite˺ the Reminder, and say, “He is certainly a madman.”

وَمَا هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِّلْعَـٰلَمِينَ

68:52 But it is simply a reminder to the whole world.