Or, is darkness the same as light?”
Do they join other gods with God
who have created, in their eyes,
a creation like His? Then say,
“God is Creator of all things—
He is the One, Omnipotent.”
17He sends down water from the sky,
flowing through valleys,
each to its own depth, and the torrents
bear away the rising foam,
just as foam erupts when heating ore
to forge ornaments and utensils.
This is how God exhibits
truth and falsehood:
the froth passes away, worthless,
but what profits humankind
remains in the earth.
This is how God coins parables.
18Those who respond to their Lord
shall have all that is good; but those
who don’t respond—they would give
as ransom all that is in the earth, and
as much more, if they owned it—
theirs shall be a terrible reckoning,
and their home shall be hell,
a wretched place of rest.
SECTION 3
19Is someone who knows the truth
of your Lord’s revelation to you
the same as someone who is blind?
Only those with insight take heed,
20those who fulfill their trust
with God, and do not fail
in their pledge,
21those who join together what
God has commanded to be joined,
those who fear their Lord,
and hold in awe
the terrible reckoning;
22and those who are patient,
seeking the Face of their Lord,
who are steadfast in prayer,
who spend in charity, both
secretly and openly,
from what We have given them,
who repel evil with good.
Theirs, in the end, shall be
the everlasting home,
23eternal gardens, which they
shall enter, along with the righteous
among their ancestors, spouses,
and descendants; the angels
shall greet them at every gate:
24“Peace be with you,
for you showed patience.
How excellent is your
everlasting home!”
25But those who break God’s trust
after giving their pledge,
and who sever what God
commanded to be joined,
and who sow corruption
on the earth—they shall be cursed,
and theirs shall be a wretched home.
26God enlarges or constricts
His provision for whom He will.
People delight in the life of the world;
yet this life is but a fleeting fancy
when set beside the hereafter.
SECTION 4
27Unbelievers say, “Why is no sign
sent down to him from his Lord?”
Say, “God lets stray whom He will,
and He guides to Himself those
who turn to Him in repentance,
28“those who believe,
whose hearts find rest
in remembrance of God—
it is only in remembering God
that hearts find rest;
29“those who believe
and do good deeds
shall have bliss,
and will return
to a beautiful place.”
30We have sent you to a people
—before whom many peoples
passed away—that you might recite
to them what We inspired in you;
but they denied the All Merciful.
Say, “He is my Lord—
there is no god but Him.
In Him I trust, and to Him I return.”
31If there were a Quran by which
mountains could be moved,
or the earth cleaved apart,
or the dead made to speak,
[this would be it].
God’s command rules in all things.
Don’t the believers realize
that God could have guided
all humankind, had He willed?
As for the unbelievers,
calamity will never cease
to strike them for their deeds,
or lie close to their homes,
God’s promise is fulfilled—
God never fails in His promise.
SECTION 5
32Messengers before you, Prophet,
were mocked, though I gave respite
to the unbelievers. Finally,
I seized them—
how Severe was My Requital!
33Is He Who stands over
every soul, noting its deeds
[like the other gods they worship]?
Yet they join other gods with God.
Say, “Name them,” or “Can you
inform Him of something
He does not know on earth?
Or is this a mere show of words?”
The schemes of the unbelievers
are made to seem pleasing to them,
and they are barred from the path.
And those whom God leaves to stray
shall have no guide.
34They shall face torment
in the life of this world;
but harsher is the torment
of the hereafter.
And they shall have none
to defend them against God.
35This is the parable of the garden
—promised to those mindful of God—
rivers flow beneath it,
and its food is eternal,
as is its shade. This is the fate
of those mindful of God; the fate
of disbelievers is fire.
36Those to whom We gave the Book
rejoice in what is revealed to you;
but some factions deny part of it.
Say, “I was commanded only
to worship God, and not to join
other gods with Him. To Him I call,
and to Him is my return.”
37We revealed the Quran to render
judgment in the Arabic tongue;
were you to follow their desires, after
the knowledge that has come to you,
there would be none to protect you
against God, or defend you.
SECTION 6
38We sent messengers before you,
and gave them wives and children.
But it was not for any messenger
to bring a sign without God’s leave.
There has been a Book for every age.°
39God annuls or confirms
what He will; and with Him
is the origin of the Book.
40Whether We show you part
of the punishment We promised them
or cause you to die beforehand,
your part is to convey the message—
Ours is the reckoning.
41Don’t they see how We came
to scale back the borders
of their land? When God judges,
none can undo His judgment;
and He is Swift in Reckoning.
42Those before them also schemed;
but the ultimate scheme is God’s.
He knows what each soul earns;
and the unbelievers shall soon know
who finally has the [best] home.
43The unbelievers say,
“You are no messenger.”
Say, “God suffices as a Witness
between me and you—and those
with knowledge of the Book.”
SURA 14
Abraham (Ibrahim)
Among the last of the Meccan revelations, this sura is named after its central focus, the “Prayer of Abraham” (vv. 35–41). It totals 52 verses, opening with reference to Moses along with Noah, ʿAd and Thamud, then ending with the threat of torment to wrongdoers (vv. 42–52).
In the Name of God, the All Merciful, Ever Merciful
SECTION 1
1Alif. Lam. Ra.°
This is a Book We revealed to you,
that you might bring humankind
from darkness into light,
with their Lord’s assent,
to the path of the Almighty,
the Praiseworthy—
2God, to Whom belongs
all that is in the heavens and earth.
The unbelievers shall know
the sorrow of severe torment°—
3those who prefer the life
of this world to the hereafter,
and bar people from God’s path,
seeking to make it crooked—
they have gone far astray.
4We never sent a messenger
who did not speak the language
of his people, to make things
clear to them. But God
leaves to stray whom He will
and guides whom He will,
for He is Almighty, All Wise.
5We sent Moses with Our signs,
saying, “Bring out your people
from darkness into light, and
remind them of the days of God.”
In this are signs for all
who are patient and grateful.
6Then Moses said to his people,
“Remember God’s favor to you when
He saved you from Pharaoh’s people,
who inflicted dire torments on you,
killing your sons, and sparing
only your women—a terrible trial
from your Lord.”
SECTION 2
7When your Lord declared,
“If you are thankful,
I will grant you increase,
but if you are ungrateful,
My punishment will be severe”—
8Moses said, “If you are ungrateful,
you and all those on the earth,
know that God is Self-Sufficient,
Praiseworthy.”
9Haven’t you heard the story
of those who came before you,
the people of Noah, ʿAd, and Thamud,°
and those who came after them?
None but God knows about them all.
Messengers came to them with clear proofs,
But, biting their hands [out of spite],°
they cried, “We don’t believe in the message
sent with you, and we have grave doubts
about what you’re calling us to do.”
10Their messengers asked,
“Can there be doubt about God,
Creator of the heavens and the earth?
He calls you, that He might
forgive you for your sins, and
give you respite for a decreed time.”
They answered, “You’re just a human,
like us—you want to divert us from
what our fathers worshipped—
bring us some clear sanction for this.”
11Their messengers answered,
“Yes, we’re just humans, like you;
but God grants His grace
to whom He will of His servants.
And we can’t bring you sanction
without His leave—
so let all who believe trust in God.
12“Why should we not trust in God
Who guided us to this path of ours?
And we will bear with patience
whatever harm you inflict on us—
So let all who trust, trust in God.”°
SECTION 3
13Unbelievers told their messengers,
“Be sure that we’ll drive you
from our land, if you don’t return
to our creed.” But their Lord
revealed to the messengers,
“Be sure that We
will destroy the wrongdoers.
14“And We’ll leave you [believers]
living in the land after them.
This is the reward for those
who fear they will stand before Me,
and those who fear My threat.”
15° [The messengers]
prayed for victory,° and
every stubborn tyrant came to grief.
16Ahead of [each of them] lies hell,
and they will drink putrid water.°
17They will try to gulp it down
but shall scarcely swallow it.
Death will close in on them
from every side, though
they will not die—still ahead of them
lies severe torment.
18Here is a parable
of those who deny their Lord:
their deeds are ashes that the wind
blows wildly on a stormy day;
they have no power at all
over anything they’ve gained—
this is to go far astray.
19Do you not see that God
created the heavens and the earth
with true purpose?° If He wishes,
He can remove you and replace
you with a new creation.
20This would hardly be
a huge task for God.
21They will all be exposed together
before God; then the weak will say
to those who were in power,
“We followed you, but can you now
help us against God’s punishment
in any way?”
They’ll reply, “Had God guided us,
we would have guided you.”
It’s the same now, whether we rage
or endure with patience—
we have no escape.”
SECTION 4
22When all is decided, Satan will say,
“God made you a promise that was true;
I too made a promise, but I failed you.
I had no authority over you; all I could do
was to call you—yet you responded to me.
So don’t blame me—blame yourselves.
I can’t help you, nor can you help me.
In fact, I denounce how you partnered me
with God before. The wrongdoers
shall face a painful punishment.”
23Those who believed
and did good deeds
will be ushered into gardens,
beneath which rivers flow,
to live there forever,
by their Lord’s leave.
There, they’ll be greeted
with “Peace.”
24Do you not see how God
coins a parable: a good word
is like a good tree, with roots
anchored firm, while its branches
soar into the sky?
25It yields its fruit in every season
by its Lord’s leave. In this way
God coins parables for humankind,
that they might be reminded.
26And a bad word
is like a bad tree—
uprooted from the face
of the earth, unstable.
27God will anchor those who believe
with the Word that stands firm,
in this worldly life and the hereafter.
But He will let the wrongdoers stray.
God does all that He will.
SECTION 5
28Prophet, do you not see those
who bartered God’s favor
