ENTITLED, THE TROOPS;x REVEALED AT MECCA.y
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE revelation of this book is from the mighty, the wise GOD.
Verily we have revealed this book unto thee with truth: wherefore serve
GOD, exhibiting the pure religion unto him.
Ought not the pure religion to be exhibited unto GOD?
But as to those who take other patrons besides him, saying, We worship
them only that they may bring us nearer unto GOD; verily GOD will judge
between them concerning that wherein they disagree.
Surely GOD will not direct him who is a liar, or ungrateful.
If GOD had been minded to have had a son, he had surely chosen what he
pleased out of that which he hath created.z But far be such a thing from him!
He is the sole, the almighty God.
He hath created the heavens and the earth with truth: he causeth the
night to succeed the day, and he causeth the day to succeed the night, and he
obligeth the sun and the moon to perform their services; each of them
hastening to an appointed period. Is not he the mighty, the forgiver of sins?
He created you of one man, and afterwards out of him formed his wife: and
he hath bestoweda on you four pair of cattle.b He formeth you in the wombs of
your mothers, by several gradual formations,c within three veils of darkness.d
This is GOD, your LORD: his is the kingdom: there is no GOD but he. Why
therefore are ye turned aside from the worship of him to idolatry?
u See chapter 7, p. 106, and chapter 15, p. 192, &c.
x This title is taken from the latter end of the chapter, where it is
said the wicked shall be sent to hell, and the righteous admitted into
paradise by troops.
y Except the verse beginning, Say, O my servants, who have transgressed
against your own souls, &c.1
z Because, says Al Beidâwi, there is no being besides himself but what
hath been created by him, since there cannot be two necessarily-existent
beings; and hence appears the absurdity of the imagination here condemned,
because no creature can resemble the Creator, or be worthy to bear the
relation of a son to him.
a Literally, He hath sent down; from which expression some have
imagined that these four kinds of beasts were created in paradise, and thence
sent down to earth.2
b See chapter 6, p. 102.
c See chapter 22, p. 250.
d i.e., The belly, the womb, and the membranes which enclose the
embryo.
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 2 Al Zamakh.
If ye be ungrateful, verily GOD hath no need of you; yet he liketh not
ingratitude in his servants: but if ye be thankful, he will be well pleased
with you. A burdened soul shall not bear the burden of another; hereafter
shall ye return unto your LORD, and he shall declare unto you that which ye
have wrought, and will reward you accordingly;
10 for he knoweth the innermost parts of your breasts.
When harm befalleth a man, he calleth upon his LORD, and turneth unto
him: yet afterwards, when God hath bestowed on him favor from himself, he
forgetteth that Being which he invoked before,e and setteth up equals unto
GOD, that he may seduce men from his way. Say unto such a man, Enjoy this
life in thy infidelity for a little while; but hereafter shalt thou surely be
one of the inhabitants of hell fire.
Shall he who giveth himself up to prayer in the hours of the night,
prostrate, and standing, and who taketh heed as to the life to come, and
hopeth for the mercy of his LORD, be dealt with as the wicked unbeliever?
Say, Shall they who know their duty and they who know it not, be held equal?
Verily the men of understanding only will be warned.
Say, O my servants who believe, fear your LORD. They who do good in this
world shall obtain good in the next;f and GOD'S earth is spacious:g verily
those who persevere with patience shall receive their recompense without
measure.
Say, I am commanded to worship GOD, and to exhibit the pure religion unto
him: and I am commanded to be the first Moslem.h
Say, Verily I fear, if I be disobedient unto my LORD, the punishment of
the great day.
Say, I worship GOD, exhibiting my religion pure unto him;
but do ye worship that which ye will, besides him. Say, Verily they will
be the losers, who shall lose their own souls, and their families, on the day
of resurrection: is not this manifest loss?
Over them shall be roofs of fire, and under them shall be floors of fire.
With this doth GOD terrify his servants: wherefore, oh my servants, fear him.
But those who eschew the worship of idols, and are turned unto GOD, shall
receive good tidings. Bear good tidings therefore unto my servants, who
hearken unto my word, and follow that which is most excellent therein: these
are they whom GOD directeth, and these are men of understanding.
20 Him, therefore, on whom the sentence of eternal punishment shall be
justly pronounced, canst thou, O Mohammed, deliver him who is destined to
dwell in the fire of hell?
But for those who fear their LORD will be prepared high apartments in
paradise, over which shall be other apartments built; and rivers shall run
beneath them: this is the promise of GOD; and GOD will not be contrary to the
promise.
Dost thou not see that GOD sendeth down water from heaven, and causeth
the same to enter and form sources in the earth; and produceth thereby corn of
various sorts? Afterwards he causeth the same to wither; and thou seest it
become yellow: afterwards he maketh it crumble into dust. Verily, herein is
an instruction to men of understanding.
e Or, He forgetteth the evil which he before prayed against.
f Or, They who do good, shall obtain good even in this world.
g Wherefore let him who cannot safely exercise his religion where he
was born or resides, fly to a place of liberty and security.1
h i.e., The first of the Koreish who professeth the true religion, or
the leader in chief of the Moslems.
1 Al Beidâwi
Shall he, therefore, whose breast GOD hath enlarged to receive the
religion of Islam, and who followeth the light from his LORD, be as he whose
heart is hardened? But woe unto those whose hearts are hardened against the
remembrance of GOD! they are in a manifest error.
GOD hath revealed a most excellent discourse; a book conformable to
itself, and containing repeated admonitions. The skins of those who fear
their LORD shrink for fear thereat; afterwards their skins grow soft, and
their hearts also, at the remembrance of their LORD. This is the direction of
GOD: he will direct thereby whom he pleaseth; and whomsoever GOD shall cause
to err, he shall have no director.
Shall he therefore who shall be obliged to screen himself with his face
from the severity of the punishment on the day of resurrection, be as he who
is secure therefrom? And it shall be said unto the ungodly, Taste that which
ye have deserved.
Those who were before them accused their apostles of imposture; wherefore
a punishment came upon them from whence they expected it not:
and GOD caused them to take shame in this present life; but the
punishment of the life to come will certainly be greater. If they were men of
understanding, they would know this.
Now have we proposed unto mankind, in this Koran, every kind of parable;
that they may be warned:
an Arabic Koran, wherein there is no crookedness; that they may fear God.
30 GOD propoundeth as a parable a man who hath several companions which are
at mutual variance, and a man who committeth himself wholly to one person:l
shall these be held in equal comparison? GOD forbid! But the greater part of
them do not understand.
Verily thou, O Mohammed, shalt die, and they also shall die:
and ye shall debate the matterm with one another before your LORD, at the
day of resurrection.
Who is more unjust than he who uttereth a lie concerning GOD, and denieth
the truth when it cometh unto him? Is there not a dwelling provided in hell
for the unbelievers?
But he who bringeth the truth, and giveth credit thereto,n these are they
who fear God;
they shall obtain whatever they shall desire, in the sight of their LORD:
this shall be the recompense of the righteous;
that GOD may expiate from them the very worst of that which they have
wrought, and may render them their reward according to the utmost merit of the
good which they have wrought.
i For his hands shall be chained to his neck, and he shall not be able
to oppose anything but his face to the fire.1
k i.e., No contradiction, defect, or doubt.
l This passage represents the uncertainty of the idolater, who is
distracted in the service of different masters; and the satisfaction of mind
which attends the worshipper of the only true GOD.2
m For the prophet will represent his endeavours to reclaim them from
idolatry, and their obstinacy; and they will make frivolous excuses, as that
they obeyed their chiefs, and kept to the religion of their fathers, &c.3
n i.e., Mohammed and his followers. Some suppose that by the latter
words Abu Becr is particularly intended, because he asserted the prophet's
veracity in respect to his journey to heaven.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
Is not GOD a sufficient protector of his servant? yet they will attempt
to make thee afraid of the false deities which they worship besides GOD.o But
he whom GOD shall cause to err, shall have none to direct him:
and he whom GOD shall direct, shall have none to mislead him. Is not GOD
most mighty, able to avenge?
If thou ask them who hath created the heavens and the earth, they will
surely answer, GOD. Say, Do ye think, therefore, that the deities which ye
invoke besides GOD, if GOD be pleased to afflict me, are able to relieve me
from his affliction? or if he be pleased to show mercy unto me, that they are
able to withhold his mercy? Say, GOD is my sufficient support: in him let
those put their trust, who seek in whom to confide.
40 Say, O my people, do ye act according to your state; verily I will act
according to mine: hereafter shall ye know
on which of us will be inflicted a punishment that shall cover him with
shame, and on whom a lasting punishment shall fall.
Verily we have revealed unto thee the book of the Koran, for the
instruction of mankind, with truth. Whoso shall be directed thereby shall be
directed to the advantage of his own soul; and whoso shall err, shall only err
against the same: and thou art not a guardian over them.
GOD taketh unto himself the souls of men at the time of their death; and
those which die not he also taketh in their sleep:p and he withholdeth those
on which he hath passed the decree of death,q but sendeth back the others till
a determined period.r Verily herein are signs unto the people who consider.
Have the Koreish taken idols for their intercessors with God? Say, What,
although they have not dominion over anything, neither do they understand?
Say, Intercession is altogether in the disposal of GOD:s his is the
kingdom of heaven and earth; and hereafter shall ye return unto him.
When the one sole GOD is mentioned, the hearts of those who believe not
in the life to come, shrink with horror: but when the false gods, which are
worshipped besides him, are mentioned, behold they are filled with joy.
Say, O GOD, the creator of heaven and earth, who knowest that which is
secret, and that which is manifest; thou shalt judge between thy servants
concerning that wherein they disagree.
If those who act unjustly were masters of whatever is in the earth, and
as much more therewith, verily they would give it to ransom themselves from
the evil of the punishment, on the day of resurrection: and there shall appear
unto them, from GOD, terrors which they never imagined;
and there shall appear unto them the evils of that which they shall have
gained; and that which they mocked at shall encompass them.
o The Koreish used to tell Mohammed that they feared their gods would
do him some mischief, and deprive him of the use of his limbs, or of his
reason, because he spoke disgracefully of them. It is thought by some that
this passage was verified in Khâled Ebn al Walîd; who, being sent by Mohammed
to demolish the idol al Uzza, was advised by the keeper of her temple to take
heed what he did, because the goddess was able to avenge herself severely; but
he was so little moved at the man's warning, that he immediately stepped up to
the idol, and broke her nose. To support the latter explication, they say
that what happened to Khâled is attributed to Mohammed, because the former was
then executing the prophet's orders.1 A circumstance not much different from
the above mentioned is told of the demolition of Allat.2
p That is, seemingly and to outward appearance, sleep being the image
of death.
q Not permitting them to return again into their bodies.
r viz., Into their bodies, when they awake.3
s For none can or dare presume to intercede with him, unless by his
permission.
1 Idem. 2 Vide Gagnier, not. in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 127.
3 Al Beidâwi.
50 When harm befalleth man, he calleth upon us; yet afterwards, when we
have bestowed on him favor from us, he saith, I have received it merely
because of God's knowledge of my deserts.t On the contrary, it is a trial;
but the greater part of them know it not.
Those who were before them said the same:u but that which they had
gained, profited them not:
and the evils which they had deserved, fell upon them. And whoever of
these Meccans shall have acted unjustly, on them likewise shall fall the evils
which they shall have deserved;x neither shall they frustrate the divine
vengeance.
Do they not know that GOD bestoweth provision abundantly on whom he
pleaseth, and is sparing unto whom he pleaseth? Verily herein are signs unto
people who believe.
Say, O my servants who have transgressed against your own souls, despair
not of the mercy of GOD: seeing that GOD forgiveth all sins,y for he is
gracious and merciful.
And be turned unto your LORD, and resign yourselves unto him, before the
threatened punishment overtake you; for then ye shall not be helped.
And follow the most excellent instructions which have been sent down unto
you from your LORD, before the punishment come suddenly upon you, and ye
perceive not the approach thereof;
and a soul say, Alas! for that I have been negligent in my duty to GOD;
verily I have been one of the scorners:
or say, If GOD had directed me, verily I had been one of the pious:
or say, when it seeth the prepared punishment, If I could return once
more into the world, I would become one of the righteous.
60 But God shall answer, My signs came unto thee heretofore, and thou didst
charge them with falsehood, and wast puffed up with pride; and thou becamest
one of the unbelievers.
On the day of resurrection, thou shalt see the faces of those who have
uttered lies concerning GOD, become black: is there not an abode prepared in
hell for the arrogant?
But GOD shall deliver those who shall fear him, and shall set them in
their place of safety: evil shall not touch them, neither shall they be
grieved.
GOD is the creator of all things, and he is the governor of all things.
His are the keys of heaven and earth: and they who believe not in the signs of
GOD, they shall perish.
Say, Do ye therefore bid me to worship other than GOD, oh ye fools?
since it hath been spoken by revelation unto thee, and also unto the
prophets who have been before thee, saying, Verily if thou join any partners
with God, thy work will be altogether unprofitable, and thou shalt certainly
be one of those who perish:
wherefore rather fear GOD, and be one of those who give thanks.
But they make not a due estimation of GOD:z since the whole earth shall
be but his handful, on the day of resurrection; and the heavens shall be
rolled together in his right hand. Praise be unto him! and far be he exalted
above the idols which they associate with him!
t Or by means of my own wisdom.
u As did Karûn in particular.1
x As it happened accordingly: for they were punished with a sore famine
for seven years and had the bravest of their warriors cut off at the battle of
Bedr.2
y To those who sincerely repent and profess his unity: for the sins of
idolaters will not be forgiven.3
z See chapter 6, p. 97, note a.
1 See cap. 28, p. 295. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See p.
10, note h.
the trumpet shall be sounded,a and whoever are in heaven, and whoever are
on earth, shall expire; except those whom GOD shall please to exempt from the
common fate.b Afterwards it shall be sounded again; and behold, they shall
arise and look up.
And the earth shall shine by the light of its LORD: and the book shall be
laid open,c and the prophets and the martyrs shall be brought as witnesses;
and judgment shall be given between them with truth, and they shall not be
treated unjustly.
70 And every soul shall be fully rewarded, according to that which it shall
have wrought; for he perfectly knoweth whatever they do.
And the unbelievers shall be driven unto hell by troops, until, when they
shall arrive at the same, the gates thereof shall be opened: and the keepers
thereofd shall say unto them, Did not apostles from among you come unto you,
who rehearsed unto you the signs of your LORD, and warned you of the meeting
of this your day? They shall answer, Yea: but the sentence of eternal
punishment hath been justly pronounced on the unbelievers.e
It shall be said unto them, Enter ye the gates of hell, to dwell therein
forever; and miserable shall be the abode of the proud!
But those who shall have feared their LORD shall be conducted by troops
towards paradise, until they shall arrive at the same: and the gates thereof
shall be ready set open; and the guards thereof shall say unto them, Peace be
on you! ye have been good: wherefore enter ye into paradise, to remain therein
forever.
And they shall answer, Praise be unto GOD, who hath performed his promise
unto us, and hath made us to inherit the earth,f that we may dwell in paradise
wherever we please! How excellent is the reward of those who work
righteousness!
And thou shalt see the angels going in procession round the throne,
celebrating the praises of their LORD: and judgment shall be given between
them with truth; and they shall say, Praise be unto GOD, the LORD of all
creatures!
a The first time, says Al Beidâwi; who consequently supposes there will
be no more than two blasts (and two only are distinctly mentioned in the
Korân), though others suppose there will be three.1
b These, some say, will be the angels Gabriel, Michael, and Israfil,
and the angel of death, who yet will afterwards all die, at the command of
GOD;2 it being the constant opinion of the Mohammedan doctors, that every
soul, both of men and of animals, which live either on land or in the sea, and
of the angels also, must necessarily taste of death:3 others suppose those who
will be exempted are the angels who bear the throne of GOD,4 or the black-eyed
damsels, and other inhabitants of paradise.5
The space between these two blasts of the trumpet will be forty days,
according to Yahya and others; there are some, however, who suppose it will be
as many years.6
c See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 68.
d See chapter 74, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72.
e See chapter 7, p. 106; chapter 11, p. 169, &c. It seems as if the
damned, by these words, attributed their ruin to GOD'S decree of
predestination.
f This is a metaphorical expression, representing the perfect security
and abundance which the blessed will enjoy in paradise.
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65. 2 Al Beidâwi, Yahya.
3 Vide Pocock. not. in Port. Mosis. p. 266.
4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Jallalo'ddin 6 See the Prelim. Disc. ubi
sup.