ENTITLED, S.; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
S.o BY the Korân full of admonition.p Verily the unbelievers are
addicted to pride and contention.
How many generations have we destroyed before them; and they cried for
mercy, but it was not a time to escape.
They wonder that a warner from among themselves hath come unto them. And
the unbelievers said, This man is a sorcerer, and a liar:
doth he affirm the gods to be but one GOD. Surely this is a wonderful
thing.
o The meaning of this letter is unknown:1 some guess it stands for
Sidk, i.e., Truth; or for Sadaka, i.e., He (viz., Mohammed) speaketh the
truth; and others propose different conjectures, all equally uncertain.
p Something must be understood to answer this oath, which the
commentators variously supply.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 46, &c.
And the chief men among them departed,q saying to one another, Go, and
persevere in the worship of your gods: verily this is the thing which is
designed.r
We have not heard anything like this in the last religion:s this is no
other than a false contrivance.
Hath an admonition been sent unto him preferable to any other among us?
Verily they are in a doubt concerning my admonition: but they have not yet
tasted my vengeance.
Are the treasures of the mercy of thy LORD, the mighty, the munificent
God, in their hands?
Is the kingdom of the heavens, and the earth, and of whatever is between
them, in their possession? If it be so, let them ascend by steps unto heaven.
10 But any army of the confederates shall even here be put to flight.
The people of Noah, and the tribe of Ad, and Pharaoh the contriver of the
stakes,t
and the tribe of Thamud, and the people of Lot, and the inhabitants of
the wood near Madian,u accused the prophets of imposture before them; these
were the confederates against the messengers of God.
All of them did no other than accuse their apostles of falsehood:
wherefore my vengeance hath been justly executed upon them.
And these wait only for one sounding of the trumpet; which there shall be
no deferring.
And they scoffingly say, O LORD, hasten our sentence unto us, before the
day of account.
Do thou patiently bear that which they utter: and remind them of our
servant David, endued with strength;x for he was one who seriously turned
himself unto God.
We compelled the mountains to celebrate our praise with him, in the
evening and at sunrise,
and also the birds, which gathered themselves together unto him:y all of
them returned frequently unto him for this purpose.
And we established his kingdom, and gave him wisdom and eloquence of
speech.
20 Hath the story of the two adversariesz come to thy knowledge; when they
ascended over the wall into the upper apartment,
q On the conversion of Omar, the Koreish being greatly irritated, the
most considerable of them went in a body to Abu Taleb, to complain to him of
his nephew Mohammed's proceedings; but being confounded and put to silence by
the prophet's arguments, they left the assembly, and encouraged one another in
their obstinacy.2
r Namely, to draw us from their worship.
s i.e., In the religion which we received from our fathers; or, in the
religion of Jesus, which was the last before the mission of Mohammed.3
t For they say Pharaoh used to tie those he had a mind to punish by the
hands and feet to four stakes fixed in the ground, and so tormented them.4
Some interpret the words, which may also be translated the lord or master of
the stakes, figuratively, of the firm establishment of Pharaoh's kingdom;
because the Arabs fix their tents with stakes;5 but they may possibly intend
that prince's obstinacy and hardness of heart.
u See chapter 15, p. 194.
x The commentators suppose that ability to undergo the frequent
practice of religious exercises is here meant. They say David used to fast
every other day, and to spend one-half of the night in prayer.1
y See chapter 21, p. 247.
z These were two angels, who came unto David in the shape of men, to
demand judgment in the feigned controversy after mentioned. It is no other
than Nathan's parable to David,2 a little disguised.
2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4 Jallalo'ddin. 5 Al
Beidâwi. 1 Idem. interp. 2 2 Sam. xii.
when they went in unto David, and he was afraid of them.a They said,
Fear not: we are two adversaries who have a controversy to be decided. The
one of us hath wronged the other: wherefore judge between us with truth, and
be not unjust; and direct us into the even way.
This my brother had ninety and nine sheep: and I had only one ewe: and he
said, Give her me to keep; and he prevailed against me in the discourse which
we had together.
David answered, Verily he hath wronged thee in demanding thine ewe as an
addition to his own sheep: and many of them who are concerned together in
business wrong one another, except those who believe and do that which is
right; but how few are they! And David perceived that we had tried him by
this parable, and he asked pardon of his LORD: and he fell down and bowed
himself, and repented.b
Wherefore we forgave him this fault; and he shall be admitted to approach
near unto us, and shall have an excellent place of abode in paradise.
O David, verily we have appointed thee a sovereign prince in the earth:
judge therefore between men with truth; and follow not thy own lust, lest it
cause thee to err from the way of GOD: for those who err from the way of GOD
shall suffer a severe punishment, because they have forgotten the day of
account.
We have not created the heavens and the earth, and whatever is between
them, in vain.c This is the opinion of the unbelievers: but woe unto those
who believe not, because of the fire of hell.
Shall we deal with those who believe and do good works, as with those who
act corruptly in the earth? Shall we deal with the pious as with the wicked?
A blessed book have we sent down unto thee, O Mohammed, that they may
attentively meditate on the signs thereof, and that men of understanding may
be warned.
And we gave unto David Solomon; how excellent a servant! for he
frequently turned himself unto God.
30 When the horses standing on three feet, and touching the ground with the
edge of the fourth foot, and swift in the course, were set in parade before
him in the evening,d
he said, Verily I have loved the love of earthly good above the
remembrance of my LORD: and have spent the time in viewing these horses, until
the sun is hidden by the veil of night;
bring the horses back unto me. And when they were brought back, he began
to cut off their legs and their necks.
a Because they came suddenly upon him, on a day of privacy: when the
doors were guarded, and no person admitted to disturb his devotions. For
David, they say, divided his time regularly, setting apart one day for the
service of GOD, another day for rendering justice to his people, another day
for preaching to them, and another day for his own affairs.3
b The crime of which David had been guilty, was the taking the wife of
Uriah, and ordering her husband to be set in the front of the battle to be
slain.4
Some suppose this story was told to serve as an admonition to Mohammed,
who, it seems, was apt to covet what was another's.
c So as to permit injustice to go unpunished, and righteousness
unrewarded.
d Some say that Solomon brought these horses, being a thousand in
number, from Damascus and Nisibis, which cities he had taken; others say that
they were left him by his father, who took them from the Amalekites; while
others, who prefer the marvellous, pretend that they came up out of the sea,
and had wings. However, Solomon, having one day a mind to view these horses,
ordered them to be brought before him, and was so taken up with them that he
spent the remainder of the day, till after sunset, in looking on them; by
which means he neglected the prayer, which ought to have been said at that
time, till it was too late; but when he perceived his omission, he was so
greatly concerned at it, that ordering the horses to be brought back, he
killed them all as an offering to GOD, except only a hundred of the best of
them. But GOD made him ample amends for the loss of these horses, by giving
him dominion over the winds.5
3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem. 5 Al Beidâwi, al
Zamakh., Yahya.
We also tried Solomon, and placed on his throne a counterfeit body:e
afterwards he turned unto God,
and said, O LORD, forgive me, and give me a kingdom which may not be
obtained by any after me;f for thou art the giver of kingdoms.
And we made the wind subject to him; it ran gently at his command,
whithersoever we directed.
And we also put the devils in subjection under him; and among them such
as were every way skilled in building, and in diving for pearls:g
and others we delivered to him bound in chains,
saying, This is our gift: therefore be bounteous, or be sparing unto whom
thou shalt think fit,h without rendering an account.
And he shall approach near unto us, and shall have an excellent abode in
paradise.
40 And remember our servant Job,i when he cried unto his LORD, saying,
Verily Satan hath afflicted me with calamity and pain.
And it was said unto him, Strike the earth with thy foot; which when he
had done, a fountaink sprang up, and it was said to him, This is for thee to
wash in, to refresh thee, and to drink.
And we restored unto him his family, and as many more with them, through
our mercy; and for an admonition unto those who are endued with understanding.
And we said unto him, Take a handful of rodsl in thy hand, and strike thy
wife therewith;m and break not thine oath.n Verily we found him a patient
person:
how excellent a servant was he! for he was one who frequently turned
himself unto us.
Remember also our servants Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, who were men
strenuous and prudent.
e The most received exposition of this passage is taken from the
following Talmudic fable.1
Solomon, having taken Sidon, and slain the king of that city, brought
away his daughter Jerâda, who became his favourite; and because she ceased not
to lament her father's loss, he ordered the devils to make an image of him for
her consolation: which being done, and placed in her chamber, she and her
maids worshipped it morning and evening, according to their custom. At length
Solomon being informed of this idolatry, which was practised under his roof,
by his vizir Asâf, he broke the image, and having chastised the woman, went
out into the desert, where he wept and made supplications to GOD; who did not
think fit, however, to let his negligence pass without some correction. It
was Solomon's custom, while he eased or washed himself, to entrust his signet,
on which his kingdom depended, with a concubine of his named Amîna: one day,
therefore, when she had the ring in her custody, a devil, named Sakhar, came
to her in the shape of Solomon, and received the ring from her; by virtue of
which he became possessed of the kingdom, and sat on the throne in the shape
which he had borrowed, making what alterations in the law he pleased.
Solomon, in the meantime, being changed in his outward appearance, and known
to none of his subjects, was obliged to wander about, and beg alms for his
subsistence; till at length, after the space of forty days, which was the time
the image had been worshipped in his house, the devil flew away, and threw the
signet into the sea: the signet was immediately swallowed by a fish, which
being taken and given to Solomon, he found the ring in its belly, and having
by this means recovered the kingdom, took Sakhar, and tying a great stone to
his neck, threw him into the lake of Tiberias.2
f i.e., That I may surpass all future princes in magnificence and
power.
g See chapter 21, p. 247; chapter 27, p. 284, &c.
h Some suppose these words to relate to the genii, and that Solomon is
thereby empowered to release or to keep in chains such of them as he pleased.
i See chapter 21, p. 247.
k Some say there were two springs, one of hot water, wherein he bathed;
and the other of cold, of which he drank.3
l The original not expressing what this handful was to consist of, one
supposes it was to be only a handful of dry grass or of rushes, and another
that it was a branch of a palm-tree.4
m The commentators are not agreed what fault Job's wife had committed
to deserve this chastisement: we have mentioned one opinion already.5 Some
think it was only because she stayed too long on an errand.
n For he had sworn to give her a hundred stripes if he recovered.
1 Vide Talm. En Jacob, part ii. et Yalkut in lib. Reg. p. 182.
2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Abulfeda. 3 Al Beidâwi.
4 See the notes to cap. 21, p. 247. 5 See ibid.
Verily we purified them with a perfect purification, through the
remembrance of the life to come;o
and they were in our sight, elect and good men.
And remember Ismael, and Elisha,p and Dhu'lkefl:q for all these were good
men.
This is an admonition. Verily the pious shall have an excellent place to
return unto,
50 namely, gardens of perpetual abode, the gates whereof shall stand open
unto them.
As they lie down therein, they shall there ask for many sorts of fruits,
and for drink;
and near them shall sit the virgins of paradise, refraining their looks
from beholding any besides their spouses, and of equal age with them.r
This is what ye are promised, at the day of account.
This is our provision, which shall not fail.
This shall be the reward of the righteous. But for the transgressors is
prepared an evil receptacle,
namely, hell: they shall be cast into the same to be burned, and a
wretched couch shall it be.
This let them taste, to wit, scalding water, and corruption flowing from
the bodies of the damned,
and divers other things of the same kind.
And it shall be said to the seducers, This troop which was guided by you
shall be thrown, together with you, headlong into hell: they shall not be
bidden welcome: for they shall enter the fire to be burned.
60 And the seduced shall say to their seducers, Verily ye shall not be
bidden welcome: ye have brought it upon us; and a wretched abode is hell.
They shall say, O LORD, doubly increase the torment of him who hath
brought this punishment upon us, in the fire of hell.
And the infidels shall say, Why do we not see the men whom we numbered
among the wicked,
and whom we received with scorn? Or do our eyes miss them?
Verily this is a truth; to wit, the disputing of the inhabitants of hell
fire.
Say, O Mohammed, unto the idolaters, Verily I am no other than a warner:
and there is no god, except the one only GOD, the Almighty,
the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatsoever is between them; the
mighty, the forgiver of sins.
Say, it is a weighty message,
from which ye turn aside.
I had no knowledge of the exalted princes,s when they disputed concerning
the creation of man:
70 (it hath been revealed unto me only as a proof that I am a public
preacher:)
when thy LORD said unto the angels, Verily I am about to create man of
clay:
when I shall have formed him, therefore, and shall have breathed my
spirit into him, do ye fall down and worship him.t
And all the angels worshipped him, in general,
except Eblis, who was puffed up with pride, and became an unbeliever.
God said unto him, O Eblis, what hindereth thee from worshipping that
which I have created with my hands?
Art thou elated with vain pride? Or art thou really one of exalted
merit?
He answered, I am more excellent than he: thou hast created me of fire,
and thou hast created him of clay.
o Or, as the words may be interpreted, according to al Zamakhshari, We
have purified them, or peculiarly destined and fitted them for paradise.
p See chapter 6, p. 96.
q See chapter 21, p. 248. Al Beidâwi here takes notice of another
tradition concerning this prophet, viz., that he entertained and took care of
a hundred Israelites, who fled to him from certain slaughter, from which
action he probably had the name of Dhu'lkefl given him, the primary
signification of the verb cafala being to maintain or take care of another.
If a conjecture might be founded on this tradition, I should fancy the person
intended was Obadiah, the governor of Ahab's house.6
r i.e., About thirty or thirty-three.1
s That is, the angels.
t See chapter 2, p. 4.
6 See I Kings xviii. 4. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect.
IV. p. 77.
God said unto him, Get thee hence therefore; for thou shalt be driven
away from mercy;
and my curse shall be upon thee, until the day of judgment.
80 He replied, O LORD, respite me, therefore, until the day of
resurrection.
God said, Verily thou shalt be one of those who are respited
until the day of the determined time.
Eblis said, By thy might do I swear, I will surely seduce them all,
except thy servants who shall be peculiarly chosen from among them.
God said, It is a just sentence; and I speak the truth: I will surely
fill hell with thee, and with such of them as shall follow thee, altogether.u
Say unto the Meccans, I ask not of you any reward for this my preaching:
neither am I one of those who assume a part which belongs not to them.
The Koran is no other than an admonition unto all creatures:
and ye shall surely know what is delivered therein to be true, after a
season.
________