even after clear signs
had come to them.
Still, We pardoned them for this,
and gave Moses clear authority.
154And We raised Mount Sinai,
towering over them,
as they took their pledge,
and We said to them:
“Enter the gate,° prostrating,” and
“Do not profane the Sabbath”—
We took from them a solemn pledge.
155Then We punished them
for breaking their pledge,
for denying the signs of God, and
for killing the prophets wrongfully,
and for saying, “Our hearts are covered”°
—no, God has sealed them
in their disbelief;
so little do they believe—
156and for their disbelief, and for
speaking great slander against Mary,
157as well as for saying,
“We killed Jesus the messiah,
son of Mary, messenger of God.”
But they did not kill him
or crucify him, though it appeared
to them as such.° And those who differ
on this are full of doubt about it,
with no knowledge beyond
the fancies they follow. Assuredly,
they did not kill him—
158no—God raised him up to Himself,°
for God is Almighty, All Wise.
159And there’s not one
among the people of the Book
who before death will not
believe in Jesus°—and on
the day of resurrection
he will be a witness against them.
160For all these wrongs of the Jews,
We made unlawful certain good things
formerly lawful for them,
and for barring people
often from the path of God—
161and for taking up usury,
which was forbidden to them,
and for wrongfully devouring
the property of people.
We have prepared a painful torment
for the disbelievers among them.
162However, We shall grant
a great reward to those
firmly rooted in knowledge
among them and the believers,
who believe in what was
revealed to you, and what was
revealed before you;
who are steadfast in prayer,
who give in charity, and
who believe in God
and the last day.
SECTION 23
163We inspired revelation in you
as We inspired Noah
and the prophets after him.
We also inspired Abraham, Ishmael,
Isaac, Jacob, and the tribes,
as well as Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron,
and Solomon. And to David
We gave the Psalms.
164We inspired some messengers
whom We have mentioned
to you before, and others
whom We have not mentioned.
And God spoke directly to Moses.
165Those messengers were
bearers of joyous news and warning,
so that after them, humankind
should have no alibi before God—
for God is Almighty, All Wise.
166God Himself bears witness
to the truth He has revealed to you:
He revealed it to you
with His knowledge.°
And the angels too bear witness,
though God suffices as Witness.
167Those who disbelieve
and bar others from the path of God
have gone far astray.
168God shall not forgive those
who disbelieve and do wrong,
nor shall He direct them to any path,
169except the path to hell,
to dwell there forever—
this is easy for God.
170Humankind, the messenger
has come to you with the truth
from your Lord. It’s better
that you believe—for even
if you disbelieve, it is to God
that all in the heavens and earth
belongs; and God
is All Knowing, All Wise.
171People of the Book,
don’t be excessive in your religion,
nor speak anything
but the truth about God.
The messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,
was but a messenger of God—
His Word, conveyed to Mary,
through His spirit.° So believe
in God and His messengers,
and refrain from talk of “trinity”—
restraint will be better for you.
God is the One God, glorified
far above the begetting of any son.
To Him belongs
all that is in the heavens
and all that is on the earth;
and God suffices as Guardian.
SECTION 24
172The messiah would never spurn
serving God, nor would
the angels close to Him.
He will gather
those who spurn His worship,
those who are proud,
before Him—all of them.
173He will grant a full reward
to those who believe
and do good deeds, giving them
ever more from His grace.
But He will give painful torment°
to those who are disdainful, proud—
they shall not find any protector
or any helper besides God.
174Humankind, conclusive proof
has come to you from your Lord,
and We have revealed to you
a Light supremely clear.
175So, God will admit
into His Mercy and grace
those who believe in Him
and hold fast to Him;
and He will guide them
to Himself on a straight path.°
176They will ask you, Prophet,
for a ruling. Say, “God gives
the ruling concerning inheritance
[for one with neither parents
nor offspring]:°
If a man dies, leaving a sister
but no child, she shall receive
half of what he leaves.
If she dies leaving no child,
her brother will inherit
everything from her.
If there are two sisters,
they shall have two-thirds
between them of what he leaves.
But if there are brothers and sisters,
the male shall get twice
the share of the female.
God makes this clear for you,
so you do not fall into error—
for God Knows all things.
SURA 5
The Table Spread (Al-Ma ʾida)
Middle and late Medinan, this sura numbers 120 verses. “The Table” refers to the table of the Last Supper (v. 114), here sent down from heaven as a sign of Jesus’ prophethood. It includes numerous regulations for believers, from injunctions and affirmations to prohibitions and exceptions. It also condemns certain pagan practices, while calling out Jewish rejection of the Prophet’s message and Christian error in ascribing partners to God. Near the end, Jesus is lauded for recognizing that he does not know what God knows—“Knower of all that is unseen” (v. 116).
In the Name of God, the All Merciful, Ever Merciful
SECTION 1
1You who believe,
honor your obligations:
it is lawful for you to use
livestock animals for food
except those cited below.
It is not lawful to hunt
while you are on pilgrimage.
God decrees what He will.
2You who believe,
don’t violate the sanctity
of the rites of God,
nor those of the sacred month,
nor of the animals garlanded
for sacrifice,°
nor of those arriving
at the Sacred House,°
striving for the grace
and pleasure of their Lord.
But when you are finished
with the pilgrimage,
you may resume hunting.
And don’t let hatred of those who
barred you from the sacred mosque
incite you to transgress.
Help one another
to be righteous,
to be mindful of God,
and not to sin and transgress.
Be mindful of God,
for God is Severe in Retribution.°
3Forbidden to you are carrion,
blood, and the flesh of swine,
and anything killed invoking
some other name than God’s,
as well as anything that has died
by strangling, beating, falling, or
being gored, or being eaten
by a beast of prey—unless
you can kill it [in the correct way]—
or what is sacrificed on stone altars,
or divided by divining arrows,°
which is grave impiety.
This day, those who disbelieve
have despaired of [making you
abandon] your religion,
so do not fear them but fear Me.
This day I have perfected
your religion for you, and
I have completed My favor to you,
and I have chosen as your religion
submission to My will.°
But if someone is constrained
by hunger [to eat what’s unlawful],
without meaning to sin—
they will find God Forgiving, Ever Merciful.
4They ask you what is lawful
for them. Say, “It’s lawful for you
to eat things that are good and pure,
and the things you’ve taught
your hunting animals [to catch],
as God has taught you.
So eat what they catch for you,
pronouncing God’s Name on it,
and be mindful of God—
God is Swift in Reckoning.”
5This day all good things
have been made lawful for you.
The food of those given the Book°
is lawful for you, and
yours is lawful for them.
Also lawful are chaste women
among the believers and among
those given the Book before you—
provided you give them their dowries,
as chaste men, with no lewdness,
not taking them as lovers.
The work of those who deny faith
will be in vain—and in the hereafter,
they will be among those in loss.
SECTION 2
6You who believe,
before you stand in prayer,
wash your faces and your arms
to the elbow, and wipe your heads,
and wash your feet to the ankles.
If you’re in a condition
of major ritual impurity,
purify yourselves by ritual bathing.
And if you’re ill
or on a journey, or if any of you
have just relieved yourselves or
had contact with women
and do not find water, then
find for yourself clean sand
and wipe your faces with it
and your hands.
God does not want hardship for you;
rather, He intends to purify you
and to complete His favor to you,
that you might be grateful.
7And remember God’s favor to you
and the pledge he took from you
when you declared, “We hear and obey.”
And be mindful of God, for He Knows
what your hearts enclose.
8You who believe, be steadfast for God,
as witnesses for justice,
and don’t allow hatred of anyone
to stop you from acting justly.
Be just—for that is close to piety.
And be mindful of God,
for He is Aware of all that you do.
9God has promised
forgiveness and a great reward
for those who believe
and do good deeds.
10Those who disbelieve
and deny Our signs
shall be inmates of hellfire.
11You who believe, remember
the favor God showed you,
when a certain people schemed°
to raise their hands against you,
and He restrained them.
So be mindful of God,
and let the believers trust in God.
SECTION 3
12God made a covenant
with the children of Israel,
and We appointed from them
twelve captains. And God said,
“I am with you, if you are steadfast
in prayer, practice charity, and
believe in my messengers,
honoring them, and if you
lend to God a beautiful loan;°
then I will expiate your bad deeds,
and admit you into gardens
beneath which rivers flow.
But whoever disbelieves after this
has strayed from the right path.”
13But because they broke the covenant,
We cursed them and made hard their hearts.
They distort the context of words,
and forget part of the message recalled to them.
Nor will you cease to find treachery
among all but a few of them.
But pardon them,
and overlook their misdeeds,
for God loves those who do good.
14And We made a covenant
with those who say,
“We are Christians,” but they forgot
part of the message recalled to them,
so We aroused among them
enmity and hatred,
until the day of resurrection—
then God shall inform them
of all that they have done.
15People of the Book,
Our messenger has come to you,
making clear many things
that you concealed in the Book,
and overlooking many errors.
A new light has come to you
from God—and a clarifying Book—
16by which God guides
those who seek to please Him
to the paths of peace.
He leads them
out of darkness into light,
by His leave; and He guides them
to a straight path.
17Those who proclaim,
“God is the messiah, son of Mary”
are disbelievers. Say,
“Who would have any power
against God if He wished to destroy
the messiah, son of Mary, and
his mother, and all upon the earth?”
To God belongs dominion
over the heavens and the earth
and all that lies between them.
He creates what He will—
God has Power over all things.
18Jews and Christians both claim,
“We are the children of God,
and loved by Him.”
Say, “Why then does He
punish you for your sins?
No—you are merely human beings,
from
