the All Wise.
10“Now, cast down your staff.”
But when he saw it stirring
like a snake,° he turned away,
fleeing, without returning.
“Moses,” said the voice, “Don’t fear:
messengers have no fear
in My presence.
11“As for those who do wrong,
then turn to good after evil—
I am Forgiving,
Ever Merciful.
12“Now, place your hand
by your breast,° and it will
come out gleaming white,
though unharmed.
This is among nine signs
you will take to Pharaoh
and his people—
a disobedient people.”
13But when Our signs were
shown to them, they said:
“This is obviously magic.”
14And they rejected the signs
through their iniquity and pride
though in themselves
they were convinced.
See, then, the fate
of those who wreak corruption.
SECTION 2
15We gave knowledge
to David and Solomon,
who both said,
“Praise be to God Who
has favored us over many
of His believing servants.”
16And Solomon was David’s heir.
He said, “People, we have been taught
the speech of birds,° and we have
been endowed with all things—
an evident favor from God.”
17And gathered before Solomon
were his hosts of jinn and men
and birds, all arrayed in rows.
18When at length they came
to a valley of ants, an ant said,
“Ants, disperse to your homes
or Solomon and his armies
might unwittingly crush you.”°
19Solomon smiled, laughing
at its speech, and said,
“My Lord, grant that I have strength
to give thanks for Your favor
which You have bestowed
on me and on my parents,
and grant that I may perform
righteous deeds that please you,
and bring me, through Your Mercy,
to be among your righteous servants.”
20He inspected the birds, and said,
“Why do I not see the hoopoe?°
Is he absent?
21“I’ll punish him severely,
or execute him, unless
he brings me a clear reason
[for his absence].”
22But the hoopoe, who was
not long gone
[drew near] and explained,
“I have learned something
that you don’t know,°
and I come from Sabaʾ°
with decisive news.
23“I found there a woman
ruling over them,
possessed of everything.
And she has a mighty throne.
24“I found her and her people
bowing before the sun instead of God,
for Satan has made their deeds
seem fair to them, barring them
from the path, leaving them
without guidance,
25so they don’t bow before God
Who brings forth what is hidden
in the heavens and the earth, and
Who knows what you conceal
and what you reveal.
26God—there is no god but He,
Lord of the mighty throne.”
27Solomon responded,
“Soon we shall see whether
you have told the truth or lied.
28“Go, with this letter of mine,
and deliver it to them. Then,
withdraw from them, and await
the answer they bring back.”
29The Queen said, “Counselors,
here is a royal letter, delivered to me.
30“It’s from Solomon, and it reads,
‘In the Name of God,
the All Merciful, Ever Merciful;°
31“ ‘do not exalt yourselves
above me, but come to me
in submission.’ ”°
SECTION 3
32She said, “Counselors,
advise me in this matter—
I don’t decide on any matter
without your presence.”
33They said, “Though we have
strength and great power in war,
yours is the command.
So consider what you
would like to command.”
34She said, “When kings enter a town,
they ravage it, and humiliate
its noblest inhabitants—
this is what they typically do.
35“But I will send them a gift
and see what response
my envoys bring back.”
36When the envoys came to him,
Solomon said, “What, are you
offering me wealth?
What God has granted me is better
than what He grants you.
In fact, it’s you who
rejoice in your own gift.
37“Go back to your people—
and be sure we’ll come upon them
with irresistible forces, and
expel them from there,
humiliated, and abased.”
38He said to his own men,
“Counselors, which of you can
bring me her throne before
they come to me in submission?”
39An ʿifrit among the jinn said,°
“I will bring it to you
before you rise from your place;°
I assuredly have the strength
and can be trusted to do this.”
40Another, who had knowledge
of the Book, said, “I will bring it
to you before you even blink.”°
Then, when Solomon saw it
placed before him, he exclaimed,
“This is by the grace
of my Lord to test whether
I would be grateful or ungrateful.
Whoever shows gratitude does so
only to his own gain, but whoever
is ungrateful—my Lord
is Self-Sufficient, Munificent.”
41He said, “Disguise her throne
so she won’t recognize it.
Let’s see whether she is guided
or one of those without guidance.”
42When she arrived, she was asked,
“Is your throne like this?” She answered,
“It looks like it.” [Solomon said],
“Knowledge was granted to us before her,
and we submitted to God’s will,
43“while she was prevented
by her worship of others
besides God; for she was from
a disbelieving people.”
44“Enter the palace,” she was told.
But when she saw it, she thought
its [floor] was a [shining] lake, so she
uncovered her shins. He explained,
“It is in fact a palace paved smooth
with glass.” She said, “My Lord,
I have wronged myself, and
I submit, with Solomon, to God,
Lord of the universe.”
SECTION 4
45We sent to the people of Thamud
their brother Salih,° who urged them,
“Worship God.” But they split
into two factions, quarreling.
46He said, “My people,
why do you seek to bring on evil
before good? Why not seek
forgiveness of God,
so you might be shown mercy?”
47They said, “We see you
and those with you as an ill omen.”
He replied, “Your ill omen
is a matter for God; and you are
a people undergoing trial.”
48There were in the city
nine [heads of families],
spreading corruption in the land,
and they would not reform.
49They said, “Swear to one another
an oath by God that we’ll launch
a night attack on him and his family,
and that we’ll say to his heir [when
he seeks vengeance], ‘We never saw
the destruction of his family,
and we’re speaking the truth.’ ”
50So they plotted and planned,
but We also planned,
though they were not aware.
51See, then, the outcome
of their plot—We destroyed
them and all their people.
52These were their houses—
now in utter ruin, for they were
wrongdoers. In this is a sign
for people with knowledge.
53And We saved those
who believed and were
mindful of God.
54We also sent Lot, who said
to his people, “How can you
commit such indecency,
which you can clearly see [is wrong].
55“Would you really lust after
men rather than women?
What an ignorant people you are!”°
56But the only response
of his people was “Drive out
the family of Lot from your town!
They are truly people
who fancy themselves pure!”
57But We saved him
and his family, except his wife
whom We destined to be
among those left behind.
58And We rained down on them
a rain of brimstone°—
on those who had been warned.
SECTION 5
59Say, “Praise be to God,
and peace be upon His servants,
whom He has chosen.”
Who is better—God, or the gods
they join with Him?
60Who created the heavens and earth,
and sends down upon you water
from the sky? With it, We grow
gardens of beauty and delight.
It is not in your power
to grow their trees.
Is there any god besides God? No.
Yet they are a people
who ascribe equals to Him;
61Who made the earth a secure home,
and wrought rivers in its midst,
and made firm mountains for it, placing
between the two seas a barrier?°
Is there any god besides God?
Yet most of them do not know;
62Who answers the distressed person
calling on Him, relieves their anguish,
and makes you regents on the earth?
Is there any god besides God?
How little you remember!
63Who guides you through
the darkness of land and sea?
Who sends the winds as joyous news,
heralding His mercy?
Is there any god besides God?
Exalted is God, above
the gods they join with Him.
64Who brings about Creation,
then renews it, Who sustains you
from the heavens and the earth?
Is there any god besides God?
Say, “Bring your proof
if what you say is true.”
65Say, “None in the heavens
or on the earth knows the unseen
except God, nor can they fathom
when their resurrection will come.”
66Even less can their knowledge
reach into the hereafter: they remain
in doubt over it, blind to it.
SECTION 6
67The unbelievers ask,
“What, when we are dust, with our fathers,
will be really be brought back?
68“Yes, we’ve been promised this
before—we and our fathers. But these
are merely tales of the ancients.”
69Say, “Wander through the earth
to see what was the fate of the sinful.”
70But don’t grieve on their account,
nor let their plotting distress you.
71And if they ask,
“When will this promise come to pass,
if what you say is true?”
72Say, “It may be that
some of the things
you seek to hasten
are close behind you.”
73And your Lord is Full of Favor
toward humankind,
though most of them are ungrateful.
74And your Lord knows
what their hearts conceal
and what they reveal.
75Nor is there anything hidden
in the heavens and the earth
that is not [recorded] in a clear Book.
76This Quran explains
to the children of Israel
most of the things
about which they differ.
77It is a guide and a mercy
for the believers.
78Your Lord will decide
between them, with His judgment,
for He is Almighty, All Knowing.
79So, trust in God—you stand
upon the clear truth.
80You cannot make the dead hear
or the deaf hear the call,
when they turn away, recoiling.
81Nor can you guide the blind
from their straying;
you can only make those hear
who believe in Our signs,
those who submit to Our will.
82And when the sentence
is passed on them,
We shall bring forth for them
a beast° from the earth
to tell them that
humankind was uncertain
about Our signs.
SECTION 7
83On that day, We shall gather
from every people a troop of those
who denied Our signs, in ranks.
84Then, when they come
to judgment, God will say,
“Did you deny My signs,
without knowledge of them—
what were you doing?”
85And the sentence will be passed
on them, for they did wrong,
and they will be unable to speak.
86Do they not see that
We made the night,
in which they might rest,
and the day, bringing light
to the eyes? In this are signs
for a people who believe.
87On the day the trumpet
is sounded, all in the heavens
and all upon the earth
shall be filled with terror,
except some by the will of God.
And all shall come
before Him, humbled.
88You see the mountains
and think them firmly fixed;
but they shall pass,
like the passing clouds—
this is the artistry of God,
Who brings all things
to their perfection.
He is Aware of all that you do.
89Those who come bringing good
shall receive even better,°
and they will be safe from
the terror of that day.
90Those who come bringing evil—
their faces shall be cast into the fire,
“Are you not rewarded precisely
for what you have done?”
91I have been commanded only
to worship the Lord of this city,
the One Who has sanctified it,
to Whom all things belong.
I have been commanded to be among
those who submit to God’s will,°
92and to recite the Quran.
Whoever takes guidance
takes it only for his own good;
and say to whoever strays,
“I am only one of those who warn.”
93And say, “Praise be to God
Who will soon show you His