the reward
of those who labor [to do good].
137How many ways of life°
have passed before your time.
Travel through the earth, and see
how it ended for those
who denied the truth.
138Here is a clear lesson for people,
guidance, and admonition for those
who are mindful of God.
139So don’t weaken, or grieve,
for you will prevail—if you believe.
140If you have suffered a wound,
[remember that] their people
have also borne a wound;°
we give such days to people in turn,
that God may know those
who believe and those
He may take as martyrs°
—God does not love those
who do wrong—
141and that God may purify
those who believe, and destroy
the disbelievers.
142Or did you think
you would enter the garden
without God knowing those
who strove so hard among you
and those who remained steadfast?
143Yes, you used to wish
for death, before you met it;
and now, you’ve seen it—staring
at it, with your own eyes.
SECTION 15
144Muhammad is no more than
a messenger, and messengers
passed away before him. If he died
or were killed, would you turn
upon your heels? Whoever so turns
can do no harm to God;
but God will reward those
who are grateful.
145Nor can a soul die
except by God’s leave,
its term decreed.
Whoever desires
the reward of this world,
We shall give it to them;
and whoever desires
the reward of the hereafter,
We shall give it to them;
and We shall reward
those who are grateful.
146And how many prophets fought,
alongside many pious men,
but they never lost heart when
calamity struck them, in God’s path,
nor did they weaken or give up.
God loves those who are steadfast.
147And the only words they spoke
were “Our Lord, forgive us our sins
and extravagances,°
make firm our feet, and help us
against the disbelievers.”
148And God gave them
the reward of this world
and the more glorious reward
of the hereafter,
for God loves those who do good.
SECTION 16
149You who believe,
if you heed the disbelievers,
they will drive you back,
on your heels, and you will
turn back, to your own loss.
150No—God is your Protector,
and He is the Best of Helpers.
151We shall cast terror
into the hearts of the disbelievers
since they joined partners with God,
for which He revealed no sanction.
Their refuge shall be the fire—
what an evil home for the wrongdoers!
152God fulfilled His promise
to you, when, by His leave,
you were routing them—until
you faltered, disputed
the Prophet’s command,
and disobeyed it, after
He brought you within sight
of what you coveted.°
Some among you craved this world
while others desired the hereafter.
Then He caused you to retreat
from them, in order to test you. Now
He has forgiven you; for God
is Ever Gracious to the believers.
153You clambered away from the foe,
without even a glance at anyone,
while the messenger was calling you
from behind. So God gave you grief
upon grief—to teach you not
to lament over what had eluded you
or what had befallen you.
For God is Aware of all that you do.
154After this grief, He sent down
calm upon you, a sleep that fell over
a group of you, while another group,
caring only about themselves,
entertained false notions of God,
notions from the age of ignorance.°
They said, “Do we have any voice
in the matter?” Prophet, tell them,
“The matter is wholly with God.”
They conceal within themselves
what they will not reveal to you.
They say, “If we had had a voice
in the matter, we would not have
been killed here.” Say, “Even if
you had stayed at home, those
for whom death was decreed
would still have gone toward
their final place of rest.”
This was so that God
could test your hearts,
and purify what was in them°
for God is Aware of whatever
lies within your hearts.
155As for those of you who
turned back on the day
the two armies clashed,
it was Satan who caused them
to backslide, for something
they had done. But God
has pardoned them. For God
is Forgiving, Forbearing.
SECTION 17
156You who believe, do not
be like the disbelievers, who say
of their brothers who journeyed
in the land or went on a raid,
“Had they stayed with us, they
would not have died or been killed,”
for God will make [such thoughts]
a source of sorrow in their hearts.
It is God who gives life
and brings death. And God
Sees whatever you do.
157And if you are killed
in the cause of God, or die,
God’s forgiveness and mercy
are better by far than
all the goods they amass.
158And if you die, or are killed, it is
to God that you will be gathered.
159It is through the mercy of God
that you dealt gently with them;
had you been rough and hard-hearted,
they would have scattered away
from you. So pardon them,
and ask forgiveness for them, and
consult with them in your affairs.
Then, when you decide on something,
place your trust in God, for God
loves those who trust in Him.
160If God helps you,
none can overcome you.
If He forsakes you, who
can help you?
So let the believers
trust in God.
161No prophet would defraud
[anyone of booty from the battle].
If anyone does defraud, he shall bring
his fraud to the day of resurrection—
then, every soul shall receive its due
for whatever it earned; and none
shall be wronged.
162Can one who seeks to please God
be like one who draws God’s wrath
upon himself, whose home
is hell, an evil end?
163They are ranked differently
in the eyes of God, and God
Sees all that they do.
164God granted a favor to the
believers when He sent to them
a messenger from their own people,
reciting His verses to them,
purifying them, and teaching them
the Book and wisdom; for
before this, they were clearly astray.
165Why do you say, when
misfortune strikes you—even though
you have struck your foes with twice
as much—“Where is this from?”
Say, “It is from yourselves—
God has Power over all things.”
166What happened to you
on the day the two armies met
happened with God’s leave,
that He might know
who were the true believers,
167and who were the hypocrites.
They were told, “Come, fight
in the cause of God, or at least
defend yourselves.” They replied,
“If we knew how to fight,
we would have followed you.”
That day, they were closer
to unbelief than belief.
They say with their mouths
what is not in their hearts; and God
knows best what they conceal.
168As for those who sat idly behind
and said of their brothers, “If only
they had heeded us, they would not
have been killed,” tell them, “Then
avert death from yourselves,
if you speak the truth.”
169Do not think that those
killed in the cause of God
are dead—no, they are living,
with their Lord, enjoying
what He has provided for them,
170rejoicing in what God
has given them from His grace
and joyful that those left behind
who have not yet joined them
shall neither fear nor grieve.
171They rejoice in the grace of God
and His favor, knowing that
God will never forfeit the reward
of the believers.
SECTION 18
172Those who answered the call
of God and the messenger,
even after suffering hurt—
those of them who do good,
and are mindful of God,
shall have a great reward;
173those whose faith was only
strengthened when people told them,
“The people have amassed
a great army against you—
you should fear them.”
They responded, “God is enough
for us—He is the best Custodian
of all affairs.”
174And they returned, through
God’s grace and favor, unharmed,
for they sought to please God—
and God is Most Gracious.°
175It is Satan who fills you
with fear of his allies. But
do not fear them—fear Me,
if you are true believers.
176And do not be grieved by those
who hasten to unbelief. They can
never harm God in any way.
God intends to give them
no share in the hereafter, and they
shall face great torment.
177Those who exchange faith for unbelief
can never do any harm to God, and
they shall face painful torment.
178Don’t let the unbelievers think
that when We grant them respite,
it is good for them. We grant respite
only for them to grow in sin,
and they shall face disgraceful torment.
179God will not leave you believers
as you are, without setting apart
the good from the bad.
God will not disclose to you
the unseen, but He chooses
as His messengers whom He will
[to give this knowledge]. So believe
in God and His messenger; and if
you believe, and are mindful of God,
yours shall be a great reward.
180And don’t let those who
greedily withhold what God
has given them through His grace
think that this is good for them—no,
it is bad for them. What they withheld
shall be hung around their necks
on the day of resurrection; it is God
Who shall inherit the heavens
and the earth, and God
is Aware of all that you do.
SECTION 19
181God has heard those who taunt,
“God is poor, while we are rich.”
We shall record what they say,
as well as their unjust killing
of the prophets; and We shall say,
“Taste the punishment
of the searing fire.”
182“This is for the bad deeds
you accrued, with your own hands—
God never wrongs His servants.”
183As for those who say,
“God took from us a pledge
that we should not believe
in any messenger until He sent to us
a sacrifice that fire consumes,”
say to them, “Messengers have
come to you before me,
with clear signs, including
what you speak of, so why did you
kill them—if you are speaking the truth?”
184If they deny you, know that
messengers before you were denied,
even though they came with clear signs,
scriptures, and an enlightening Book.
185Every soul shall taste death,
and only on the day of resurrection
shall you receive your recompense.
Whoever is drawn out from
the fire and brought into
the garden shall have triumphed.
For the life of this world gives
but illusory pleasure.
186You will surely be tested
through your possessions and
your lives, and you shall hear
much that is harmful from
those given the Book before you
and those who are polytheists.
Resoluteness in all things
rests on patience
and mindfulness of God.
187When God made a covenant
with those given the Book—
“Make it known to the people,
and don’t hide it”—they
threw it behind their backs,
and traded it for a paltry price.
How wretched was their bargain!
188Don’t think, Prophet, that
those who rejoice in what
they have brought about
and love to be praised
for what they do not do—
don’t think that they will escape
punishment; for they
shall face painful torment.
189To God belongs dominion
of the heavens and the earth;
and God has Power over all things.
SECTION 20
190In the creation of the heavens
and the earth, in the revolving
of night and day, are signs
for those with understanding,
191those who remember God
while standing, sitting, or lying
on their sides, pondering on the
creation of the heavens and the earth,
“Our Lord, You did not create all this
in vain; glory be to You, and
save us from the torment of fire.
192“Our Lord, You cover with shame
those You cast into the fire—
and the wrongdoers shall find
none to help them.
193“Our Lord, we have heard the