| | Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar rendition of Surah The Prophets(al-Anbiya`)
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| 21:1 | | The reckoning for humanity was near while they are ones who turn aside in heedlessness. |
| 21:2 | | Approaches them not a remembrance from their Lord, that which is renewed, but they listened to it while they play |
| 21:3 | | being ones whose hearts are ones that are diverted, and they kept secret, conspiring secretly those who did wrong? Is this other than a mortal like you? Then, will you approach sorcery while you perceive? |
| 21:4 | | He said: My Lord knows The Word of the heavens and the earth. And He is The Hearing, The Knowing. |
| 21:5 | | Nay! They said: Jumbled nightmares! Nay! He but devised it! Nay! He is but a poet! Let him bring us a sign as the ancient ones were sent! |
| 21:6 | | No town believed before them of whom We caused to perish. Will they, then, believe? |
| 21:7 | | And We sent not before thee but men to whom We reveal. So ask the People of the Remembrance if you had not been knowing. |
| 21:8 | | And We made them not lifeless bodies that eat not food nor had they been ones who will dwell forever. |
| 21:9 | | Again, We were sincere in the promise. So We rescued them and whom We will. We caused the ones who are excessive to perish. |
| 21:10 | | Surely, We caused a Book to descend to you in which is your Remembrance. Will you not, then, be reasonable? |
| 21:11 | | How many a town We damaged that had been one that is unjust and caused to grow after them another folk? |
| 21:12 | | Then, when they were conscious of Our might, that is when they make haste from it! |
| 21:13 | | Make not haste, but return to what you were given of ease in it and to your dwellings, so that perhaps you will be asked. |
| 21:14 | | They said: O woe to us! Truly, we had been ones who are unjust! |
| 21:15 | | Then, truly, they ceased not calling that out until We made them as stubble, ones silent and stilled. |
| 21:16 | | And We created not the heavens and the earth and what is between them as ones in play. |
| 21:17 | | If We wanted We would have taken some diversion. We would take it to Ourselves from that which proceeds from Our Presence if We had been ones who do so. |
| 21:18 | | Nay! We hurl The Truth against falsehood so it prevails over it. That is when falsehood is that which vanishes away. And woe to you for what you allege. |
| 21:19 | | And to Him belongs whoever is in the heavens and the earth. And whoever is near Him, they grow not arrogant to worship Him, nor they be weary. |
| 21:20 | | They glorify Him nighttime and daytime. They never decrease. |
| 21:21 | | Or took they gods to themselves from the earth, they, ones who revive the dead? |
| 21:22 | | If there had been gods in it—other than God— certainly, both would have gone to ruin. Then, glory be to God! Lord of the Throne! High above what they allege. |
| 21:23 | | He will not be asked as to what He accomplishes, but they will be asked. |
| 21:24 | | Or took they gods to themselves other than He? Say: Prepare your proof. This is a Remembrance for him who is with me and a Remembrance of him before me. Nay! Most of them know not The Truth, so they are ones who turn aside. |
| 21:25 | | And We sent not before thee any Messenger, but We reveal to him that there is no god but I, so worship Me. |
| 21:26 | | And they said: The Merciful took to Himself a son. Glory be to Him! Nay! Honored servants! |
| 21:27 | | They precede Him not in saying and they act by His command. |
| 21:28 | | He knows what is in advance of them and what is behind them and they intercede not but for him with whom He was content. And they are dreading Him, ones who are apprehensive. |
| 21:29 | | And whoever says of them: Truly, I am a god other than He, then, We will give recompense to him with hell. Thus, We give recompense to the ones who are unjust. |
| 21:30 | | Consider not those who were ungrateful that the heavens and the earth had been interwoven and We unstitched them? And We made every living thing of water. Will they, then, not believe? |
| 21:31 | | And We made firm mountains on the earth so that it should not vibrate with them. And We made in it ravines as ways, so that perhaps they will be truly guided. |
| 21:32 | | And We made heaven as a guarded roof. Yet they are ones who turn aside from its signs. |
| 21:33 | | And it is He Who created the nighttime and the daytime, the sun and the moon, each swimming in orbit. |
| 21:34 | | And We assigned not to any mortal before thee immortality. If thou wert to die will they be ones who dwell forever? |
| 21:35 | | Every soul is one that experiences death. And We will try you with the worst and good as a test. And to Us you will be returned. |
| 21:36 | | And when those who were ungrateful saw thee, they take thee to themselves not but in mockery: Ha! Is this he who mentions your gods? And they, for Remembrance of The Merciful, they are ones who are ungrateful. |
| 21:37 | | The human being was created of haste. I will cause you to see My signs, so seek not to hasten! |
| 21:38 | | And they say: When will this promise be if you had been ones who are sincere? |
| 21:39 | | If those who were ungrateful but know at the time when they will not limit the fire from their faces, nor from their backs and they will not be helped! |
| 21:40 | | Nay! It will approach them suddenly. Then, it will dumfound them so they will not be able to come back nor will they be given respite. |
| 21:41 | | And, certainly, Messengers were ridiculed before thee. Then, those who derided them were surrounded by what they had been ridiculing. |
| 21:42 | | Say: Who will guard you in the nighttime and the daytime from The Merciful? Nay! They, from the Remembrance of their Lord, are ones who turn aside. |
| 21:43 | | Or secure them their gods from Us? They are not able to help themselves, nor will they be rendered safe from Us. |
| 21:44 | | Nay! We gave enjoyment to these, their fathers until their lifetime was long for them. Consider they not that We approach the earth? We reduce it of its outlying parts. Or will they be the ones who are the victors? |
| 21:45 | | Say: I warn you only by the revelation. But hear not the unwilling to hear, the calling to them when they are warned. |
| 21:46 | | And if a breath afflicted them of punishment of thy Lord, they would, surely, say: O woe to us! Truly, we had been ones who are unjust. |
| 21:47 | | And We will lay down the balances of equity on the Day of Resurrection. Then, no soul will be wronged at all. And even if it had been the weight of a grain of a mustard seed We will bring it. And We sufficed as Ones Who Reckon. |
| 21:48 | | And, certainly, We gave Moses and Aaron the Criterion between right and wrong and an illumination and a Remembrance for the ones who are Godfearing, |
| 21:49 | | those who dread their Lord in the unseen while they are ones who are apprehensive of the Hour. |
| 21:50 | | This is a blessed Remembrance We caused to descend. Are you, then, ones who know not of it? |
| 21:51 | | Certainly, We gave Abraham his right judgment before. And We had been ones who know of him |
| 21:52 | | when he said to his father and his folk: What are these images to which you be ones who give yourselves up to? |
| 21:53 | | They said: We found our fathers as ones who are worshippers of them. |
| 21:54 | | He said: Certainly, you and your fathers had been in a clear wandering astray. |
| 21:55 | | They said: Hadst thou drawn near The Truth or art thou of the ones who play? |
| 21:56 | | He said: Nay! Your Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth, Who originated them. And I am of the ones who bear witness to this: |
| 21:57 | | And by God, I will contrive against your idols after you turn as ones who draw back. |
| 21:58 | | So he made them broken pieces—but the greatest of them—so that perhaps they will return to it. |
| 21:59 | | They said: Who accomplished this with our gods? Truly, he is of the ones who are unjust! |
| 21:60 | | They said: We heard a spiritual warrior (m) mention them. It is said he is Abraham. |
| 21:61 | | They said: Then, approach with him before the eyes of personages so that perhaps they will bear witness. |
| 21:62 | | They said: Hast thou accomplished this with our gods O Abraham? |
| 21:63 | | He said: Nay! It was accomplished by the greatest of them—this. So ask them if they had been able to speak for themselves. |
| 21:64 | | Then, they returned to one another. Then, they said: Truly, you, you are the ones who are unjust. |
| 21:65 | | Again, they were put into confusion: Certainly, thou hadst known that these speak not for themselves! |
| 21:66 | | He said: Worship you, then, other than God what neither profits you nor hurts you at all? |
| 21:67 | | Fie on you on what you worship other than God. Will you not, then, be reasonable? |
| 21:68 | | They said: Burn him and help your gods if you had been ones who do so! |
| 21:69 | | We said: O fire! Be coolness and peace for Abraham! |
| 21:70 | | And they wanted to use cunning against him, but We made them the ones who are losers. |
| 21:71 | | And We delivered him and Lot to the region which We blessed for the worlds. |
| 21:72 | | And We bestowed Isaac on him and Jacob as an unexpected gift. And We made both of them ones in accord with morality. |
| 21:73 | | And We made them leaders, guiding by Our command. And We revealed to them the accomplishing of good deeds and the performing of the formal prayer and the giving of the purifying alms. And they had been ones who worship Us. |
| 21:74 | | And to Lot We gave him critical judgment and knowledge and We delivered him from the town which had been doing deeds of corruption. Truly, they had been a reprehensible folk, ones who disobey. |
| 21:75 | | And We caused him to enter into Our Mercy. Truly, he was among the ones in accord with morality. |
| 21:76 | | And mention Noah, when he cried out before and We responded to him. And We delivered him and his people from the tremendous distress. |
| 21:77 | | And We helped him against the folk who denied Our signs. Truly, they had been a reprehensible folk. So We drowned them one and all. |
| 21:78 | | And mention David and Solomon, when they give judgment about cultivation when a herd of the sheep of his folk strayed. And to their critical judgment We had been ones who bear witness. |
| 21:79 | | So We caused Solomon to understand it. And We gave each of them critical judgment and knowledge. And We caused to become subservient to David, the mountains and the birds to glorify God. And We had been ones who do such things. |
| 21:80 | | We taught him the art of making garments of chain mail for you to fortify you from your violence. Will you, then, be ones who are thankful? |
| 21:81 | | And to Solomon, the wind tempest runs by His command toward the earth which We blessed. We had been ones who know everything. |
| 21:82 | | Among the satans are some who dive for him and do actions other than that. And We had been ones who guard over them. |
| 21:83 | | And Job, when he cried out to his Lord: Truly, harm afflicted me and Thou art One Who is Most Merciful of the ones who are merciful. |
| 21:84 | | So We responded to him. Then, We removed his harm. And We gave him back his people and the like of others with them as a mercy from Us and as a reminder of ones who worship. |
| 21:85 | | And Ishmael and Enoch and Dhul-Kifl, all were of the ones who remain steadfast. |
| 21:86 | | And We caused them to enter into Our mercy. They are the ones in accord with morality. |
| 21:87 | | And Jonah, when he went as one who is enraged, and thought that We would never have power over him. And, then, he cried out through the shadows that: There is no god, but Thou! Glory be to Thee! Truly, I had been of the ones who are unjust. |
| 21:88 | | So We responded to him. And We delivered him from the lament. And, thus, We rescue the ones who believe. |
| 21:89 | | And mention Zechariah when he cried out to his Lord: My Lord! Forsake me not unassisted and Thou art Best of the ones who inherit. |
| 21:90 | | So We responded to him and We bestowed Yahya on him. And We made things right for his spouse and for him. Truly, they had been competing with one another in good deeds and they would call to Us with yearning and reverence. And they had been ones who are humbled before Us. |
| 21:91 | | And she who guarded her private parts, then, We breathed into her Our Spirit and We made her and her son a sign for the worlds. |
| 21:92 | | Truly, this, your community, is one community and I am your Lord so worship Me. |
| 21:93 | | But they cut asunder their affair between them. Yet all of them are ones who return to Us. |
| 21:94 | | So whoever does as the ones in accord with morality and he is one who believes, then, his endeavoring will not be rejected. And, truly, We will be One Who Inscribes it for him. |
| 21:95 | | And there is a ban on the town that We caused to perish. They will not return |
| 21:96 | | until Gog and Magog are let loose and they slide down from every slope. |
| 21:97 | | And the true promise will be near. That is when the sight will be that which fixed in horror of those who were ungrateful! O woe to us. Surely, we had been in heedlessness of this. Nay! We had been ones who were unjust. |
| 21:98 | | Truly, you and what you worship other than God are fuel material for hell. You are the ones who go down to it. |
| 21:99 | | If these had been gods, they would never have gone down to it. All are ones who will dwell in it forever. |
| 21:100 | | There will be sobbing in it for them and they, their gods, will not hear in it. |
| 21:101 | | Truly, those to whom there has preceded the fairer from Us, those are ones who are far removed from it. |
| 21:102 | | They will not hear even the low sound of it. And they, in that for which their souls lusted, will be ones who will dwell in it forever. |
| 21:103 | | The greater terror will not dishearten them and the angels will admit them: This is your day that you had been promised! |
| 21:104 | | On a Day when We roll up the heavens like the rolling up of the written scroll of manuscripts, as We began the first creation, We will cause it to return. It is a promise from Us. Truly, We had been ones who do. |
| 21:105 | | And, certainly, We wrote down in the Psalms after the Remembrance that the earth will be inherited by My servants—the ones who are in accord with morality. |
| 21:106 | | Truly, in this is the delivering of this message for the folk, ones who worship. |
| 21:107 | | And We sent thee not but as a mercy for the worlds. |
| 21:108 | | Say: It is only revealed to me that your god is One God. Will you, then, be ones who submit to God? |
| 21:109 | | But if they turned away, then, say: I proclaimed to you all equally. And I am not informed whether what you are promised is near or far. |
| 21:110 | | Truly, He knows the openly published saying and He knows what you keep back. |
| 21:111 | | And I am not informed so that perhaps it will be a test for you and an enjoyment for a while. |
| 21:112 | | He said: My Lord! Give Thou judgment between us with The Truth. And our Lord is The Merciful, He Whose help is being sought against what you allege. |
