SECTION 4
51“Messengers, eat food
that is wholesome and good,
and do good works,
for I Know all that you do.
52“This community of yours
is one community,
and I am your Lord,
so be mindful of Me.”
53But they split up their religion,
among themselves, into sects,
each faction happy with its own beliefs.°
54So leave them,
in their confusion,
for a while.
55Do they think that, because
We gave them wealth and sons,
56We will hasten to grant them
all good things?
No—but they don’t know it.
57Those who live in awe,
fearing their Lord,
58those who believe
in the signs of their Lord,
59those who don’t join
other gods with their Lord,
60and those who give in charity
with hearts trembling, knowing
they will return to their Lord°—
61they are the ones who hasten
to do good deeds, foremost in this.
62We never burden any soul
beyond its capacity.
And We have before Us a Book
that speaks the truth,
so they shall never be wronged.
63But the hearts of disbelievers
are confused over this,
they perform other [evil] deeds—
64until We seize and punish
those among them mired in wealth;
then they will cry out for help.
65But they will be told,
“Don’t cry for help—
you shall never get help from Us.
66“Whenever My signs
were recited to you, you would
turn back, on your heels,
67“conversing by night, in your pride,
indulging in idle jokes about the Book.”
68Do they not ponder over the Word?
Has something new come to them
that never came to their ancestors?
69Or is it that they don’t recognize
their messenger, and so deny him?
70Or do they say, “He’s possessed”?
No. He has brought them the truth,
but most of them hate the truth.
71If the truth had complied
with their desire,
then the heavens, the earth,
and all within them
would be in ruins.
We gave them their reminder,
yet they turn away from it.
72Prophet, do you ask of them
any recompense? The recompense
of your Lord is better—
He is the Best of Providers.
73Though you call them
to a straight path,
74those who don’t believe
in the hereafter
veer from that path.
75Even if We showed mercy to them
and removed their distress,
they would keep transgressing
wandering blindly around.
76We seized and punished them,
yet still they would not submit
to their Lord, nor will they
humble themselves
77until We open for them
a door to severe torment—
then they’ll be in despair.
SECTION 5
78It is He Who engendered in you
hearing, and sight, and feeling—
but seldom are you grateful.
79It is He Who multiplied you
through the earth, and to Him
you shall be gathered.
80It is He Who gives life and death,
and rules the cycle of night and day—
Will you not, then, use reason?
81No—like ancient peoples, they say,
82“What? Once we’re dead,
and turned to dust and bones,
will we be raised up again?
83“Such promises were made before
to us and our ancestors—they are
nothing but tales of the ancients.”
84Say, “To whom
does the earth belong,
and all those upon it—
if you truly know?”
85They will answer, “To God.”
Say, “Then will you not take heed?”
86Say, “Who is Lord
of the seven heavens,
and Lord of the mighty throne?”
87They will say, “God.”
Say, “Will you not, then,
be filled with awe?”
88Say, “In whose hand
lies the dominion of all things,
Who protects all,
Who is the One against Whom
there is no protection—
say, if you know?”
89They will reply, “God.”
Say, “Why, then, are you deluded?”
90We did bring them the truth,
but they are lying.
91Nor did God beget a child,
for there is no god besides Him—
else each god would take
what he had created
and some would overpower others.
May God be glorified above
what they ascribe to Him!
92Knower of the unseen
and the seen, may He be exalted
above the gods they join with Him.
SECTION 6
93Say, “My Lord, if you
must show me° what [torment]
they are promised,
94then do not, my Lord, place me
among the wrongdoers.”
95We are quite Able to show you
the torment We have promised them.
96Repel whatever is wicked
with whatever is most excellent;
We know best
what they ascribe to Us.
97And say, “My Lord,
I seek refuge with you
against the devils’ promptings,
98“and I seek refuge with you,
my Lord, should they be near me.”
99And when death comes
to any of them, they plead,
“My Lord, send me back
100“so I can do the good deeds
I left undone.” Never.
These are mere words they speak.
Behind such people shall remain
a barrier—until the day they are raised.
101On the day the trumpet sounds
all bonds between them will be gone,
and none will ask about another.
102Those whose balance is heavy
—they shall flourish.
103But those whose balance is light—
they shall have lost their souls,
and they shall stay in hell forever.
104The fire will burn their faces,
grimacing with twisted lips.
105“Were my verses not recited
to you—which you kept denying?”
106They will say, “Our Lord,
our perversity overcame us, and
we were a people gone astray.
107“Our Lord, take us out of here,
and if we relapse,
we’ll indeed be wrongdoers.”
108He will say, “Stay there,
and do not address Me.
109“When a group of My servants
would pray, ‘Our Lord, we believe,
so forgive us, and show us mercy,
for You are the Most Merciful of all,’°
110“you mocked them—
so much so, that you forgot
to remember Me
as you laughed at them.
111“This day I have rewarded them
for their patience—and they
are the ones who will triumph.”
112He will say, “How many years
did you stay on the earth?”
113They will answer, “We stayed
a mere day or part of a day—but ask
those who are tasked with reckoning.”
114He will say, “You stayed only
a short while—if only you knew.
115“Did you think
We created you in vain,
and that you would not
be brought back to Us?”
116Exalted be God, the true King—
there is no god but Him,
Lord of the glorious throne.
117Whoever calls on any god
beyond the One God
—for which they have no proof—
shall face their reckoning
with their Lord.
The disbelievers shall never flourish.
118Say, then, “My Lord,
show forgiveness and mercy,
for You are the Most Merciful of all.”
SURA 24
Light (Al-Nur)
Medinan, this sura numbers 64 verses, highlighted by the mystical verses (vv. 35–40), but also includes ethical mandates for slander and fornication, deriving from the rumor concerning the prophet’s wife ʿAʾisha (vv. 11–20). The obligation to be mindful of slaves, children, women, the blind, and the sick concludes this litany of divine signs (vv. 58–61), with the reminder of God’s surveillance and omniscience (vv. 63–64).
In the Name of God, the All Merciful, Ever Merciful
SECTION 1
1We have revealed this sura,
whose decrees are binding.
We have revealed in it clear signs,
so that you might take heed.
2Give the adulteress and
adulterer a hundred lashes each.
Don’t let pity for them keep you
from the judgment of God
if you believe in God
and the last day;
and let a group of believers
witness their punishment.
3The adulterer shall marry
only an adulteress, or a polytheist;
and the adulteress only an
adulterer or a polytheist—
this is forbidden for believers.°
4As for those who accuse
chaste women without then
bringing four witnesses—
give them eighty lashes,
and reject their testimony
ever after; they are transgressors—
5except those who then repent,
and amend themselves,
for God is Forgiving, Ever Merciful.
6Let those who accuse their wives
of adultery, with no witnesses
but themselves, each bear witness
four times before God
that he is being truthful,
7and the fifth time,
that the curse of God
be upon him if he is lying.
8But the wife shall suffer
no punishment if she bears witness
four times before God
that he is lying,
9and the fifth time,
that the wrath of God
be upon her if he is being truthful.°
10If not for God’s grace
upon you and His mercy, and
that God is Relenting, All Wise.°
SECTION 2
11It was a group among you
who propagated the lie°—don’t
think of it as a bad thing for you.
No, it was for your good:
every one of them
will answer for his sin, and the one
who played the major part
will incur great torment.
12When you heard the lie,
why didn’t believing men and women
think better of their own people
and declare, “This is an obvious lie”?
13Why didn’t the accusers
bring four witnesses to vouch for it?
Since they didn’t, it is they
who are liars in the eyes of God.
14If not for the grace
of God upon you, and His mercy
in this world and the hereafter,
immense punishment would have
struck you for indulging [such calumny],
15when you took it on your tongues°
and spewed from your mouths
what you did not know—
you took lightly
what was weighty with God.
16And when you heard it,
why didn’t you say,
“It’s not for us to speak of this.
Glory be to You—
this is a great slander”?
17God warns you
not to repeat the like of this
—ever—if you are believers.
18And God makes the signs
clear for you,
for God is Knowing, Wise.
19Those who enjoy spreading
lewdness among the believers
shall face a painful punishment
in this life and the hereafter;
for God knows—and you do not.
20If not for the grace
of God upon you, and His mercy,
and that God is Most Kind,
Ever Merciful.
SECTION 3
21You who believe, do not follow
in the footsteps of Satan,
for he incites those who do so
to indecency and evil.
Were it not for the grace
of God upon you and His mercy,
not one of you would be pure, ever;
but God purifies whom He will,
for God is All Hearing, All Knowing.
22Let those among you blessed
with bounty and largesse not refuse
to help their kin, the needy, and those
who left their homes in God’s cause.
Let them forgive and pardon—
would you not like God to forgive you?
God is Forgiving, Ever Merciful.
23Those who accuse chaste women,
who are believing but careless,
are cursed in this life
and in the hereafter, and
shall face great punishment
24on the day when their tongues,
their hands, and their feet
shall bear witness against them
for all their deeds.
25On that day God will give them
their due recompense in full,
and they will know that
God is the clarifying Truth.
26Lewd women are for lewd men
and lewd men for lewd women;
good women are for good men
and good men for good women—
they are innocent of what
people say about them;
they shall be shown forgiveness
and a noble provision.
SECTION 4
27You who believe, do not
enter houses other than your own
without asking permission
and greeting those within—
this is better for you,
so that you might be heedful.
28If you find no one
in the house, don’t enter it
without permission,
and if you are told, “Go away,” go—
this is more decent° for you,
and God Knows all that you do.
29There is no blame on you
if you enter uninhabited houses
that you can use—
for God knows what you reveal
and what you conceal.
30Tell believing men
to lower their gaze
and preserve their chastity;
that is more decent for them,
and God is Aware
of all that they do.
31And tell believing women
to lower their gaze,
to preserve
