20:1  Ţā Hā,

20:2  We did not bestow this Qur'ān on you from on high to cause you distress,

20:3  but only as an admonition to the God-fearing.

20:4  It is a revelation from Him who has created the earth and the high heavens,

20:5  the Most Merciful, established on the throne of His almightiness.

20:6  To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and on earth, as well as all that is between them, and underneath the soil.

20:7  If you say anything aloud, then [know that] He knows all that is secret, as well as all that is yet more hidden.

20:8  [He is] God; there is no deity other than Him. His alone are all the attributes of perfection.

20:9  Have you learnt the story of Moses?

20:10  When he saw a fire, he said to his family: 'Wait here! I perceive a fire. Perhaps I can bring you a lighted torch, or find some guidance at the fire.'

20:11  But when he came close to it, a voice called out to him: 'Moses,

20:12  I am your Lord! Take off your sandals, for you are in the sacred valley of Å¢uwā.

20:13  Know that I have chosen you. Listen, then, to what is being revealed.

20:14  Indeed, I alone am God; there is no deity other than Me. So, worship Me alone, and establish regular prayer to celebrate My praise.

20:15  Although I have chosen to keep it hidden, the Last Hour is bound to come, so that every soul may be rewarded in accordance with what it strove for.

20:16  Hence, let not anyone who does not believe in its coming and follows only his own desires turn your thoughts from it, lest you perish.

20:17  Now, what is this in your right hand, Moses?'

20:18  He answered: 'It is my staff; upon it I lean, and with it I beat down the leaves for my sheep; and other uses have I for it.'

20:19  Said He: 'Throw it down, Moses.'

20:20  So he threw it down, and thereupon it was a snake, moving rapidly.

20:21  Said He: 'lake it up and have no fear. We shall restore it to its former state.

20:22  Now put your hand under your armpit. It will come out [shining] white, without blemish: another sign.

20:23  We shall show you some of Our most wondrous signs.

20:24  Go to Pharaoh; for he has indeed transgressed all bounds.'

20:25  Said [Moses]: 'My Lord, open up my heart [to Your light],

20:26  and make my mission easy for me,

20:27  and free my tongue from its impediment,

20:28  so that people may understand what I say.

20:29  Appoint for me a helper from among my kinsmen,

20:30  Aaron, my brother.

20:31  Grant me strength through him,

20:32  and let him share my task,

20:33  so that together we may extol Your limitless glory

20:34  and remember You always.

20:35  You are surely watching over us.'

20:36  Said He: 'You are granted all that you have asked for, Moses.

20:37  And indeed We bestowed Our favour upon you in a time gone by,

20:38  when We inspired your mother, saying:

20:39  “Place [your child] in a chest and throw it into the river. The river will cast him ashore, and one who is an enemy to Me and an enemy to him will pick him up.” I lavished My love on you, so that you may be reared under My watchful eye.

20:40  Then your sister went forth and said [to Pharaoh's people]: “Shall I direct you to one who might take care of him?” Thus did We restore you to your mother, so that her mind might he set at ease and that she might not grieve. And [when you came of age,] you killed a man; but We saved you from all grief, although We tested you with various trials. You then stayed for years among the people of Madyan; and now you have come here, Moses, as ordained [by Me];

20:41  for I have chosen you for Myself.

20:42  Go forth, then, you and your brother, with My signs, and never slacken in remembering Me.

20:43  Go forth, both of you, to Pharaoh; for he has transgressed all bounds of equity!

20:44  But speak to him mildly, so that he may yet take heed, or may be filled with apprehension.'

20:45  They said: 'Our Lord! We fear lest he hasten with insolence or tyranny against us.'

20:46  Answered He: 'Have no fear. I shall be with you. I hear all and see all.

20:47  Go, then, you two to him and say, “We are the emissaries of your Lord. Let the Children of Israel go with us, and oppress them no more. We have now come to you with a message from your Lord. Peace to all who follow [God's] guidance.

20:48  It has been revealed to us that the suffering shall befall those who deny the truth and turn away from it.”

20:49  [Pharaoh] said: 'Who, now, is this Lord of you two, Moses?'

20:50  He replied: 'Our Lord is He who gives everything its distinctive nature and form, and further guides them.'

20:51  Said [Pharaoh]: 'And what of all the past generations?'

20:52  [Moses] answered: 'Knowledge of that rests with my Lord alone, recorded in a Book. My Lord does not err, and neither does He forget.

20:53  He it is who has made the earth your cradle, and has traced on it paths for you to walk on, and who sends down waters from the sky with which We bring forth diverse pairs of plants.

20:54  Eat, then, and graze your cattle. In all this there are signs for those who are endowed with reason.

20:55  Out of this [earth] have We created you, and into it shall We return you, and out of it shall We bring you forth once again.

20:56  And, indeed, We showed Pharaoh all Our signs, but he denied them and refused [to take heed].

20:57  He said: 'Have you, Moses, come to drive us out of our land with your magic?

20:58  In that case, we shall most certainly produce for you magic to match it. Set, then, for us an appointment which neither we nor you shall fail to keep, at a suitable, open place.'

20:59  Answered Moses: 'Your appointment shall be the day of the Festival; and let the people assemble when the sun is risen high.'

20:60  Thereupon Pharaoh withdrew and put together the artful scheme which he would pursue; and then turned up.

20:61  Moses said to them: 'Woe betide you! Do not invent any falsehood against God, lest He afflict you with most grievous suffering. He who contrives such a lie is sure to come to grief.'

20:62  So they debated among themselves as to what to do; but they kept their counsel secret.

20:63  They said: 'These two are surely sorcerers intent on driving you away from your land by their sorcery, and on doing away with your exemplary way of life.

20:64  Hence, decide on the scheme you will pursue, and then come forward in one single body. For, indeed, he who prevails today shall ever be successful.'

20:65  Said [the sorcerers]: 'Moses! Either you throw [first], or we shall be the first to throw.'

20:66  He answered: 'You throw first!' And by virtue of their sorcery, their ropes and staffs seemed to him to be moving rapidly.

20:67  And in his heart Moses became apprehensive.

20:68  But We said [to him]: 'Have no fear! It is you who shall certainly prevail.

20:69  Now throw that which is in your right hand and it shall swallow up all that they have wrought. For, they have wrought nothing but a sorcerer's deceitful trick; and sorcerers can never come to any good, whatever they may do.'

20:70  So down fell the sorcerers, prostrating themselves, and declared: 'We do believe in the Lord of Aaron and Moses.'

20:71  Said [Pharaoh]: 'Do you believe in him before I have given you permission? Surely, he must be your master who has taught you witchcraft! I shall most certainly cut off your hands and feet on opposite sides, and I shall most certainly crucify you on the trunks of the palm trees. You will then come to know for certain which of us can inflict a more severe and longer lasting punishment.'

20:72  They answered: 'Never shall we prefer you to all the evidence of the truth that has come to us, nor to Him who has brought us into being! Decree, then, whatever you are going to decree. You can only decree on what pertains to this worldly life.

20:73  As for us, we have come to believe in our Lord, hoping that He may forgive us our faults and all that magic to which you have forced us. God is certainly the best and He is Everlasting.'

20:74  He who shall appear before his Lord [on Judgement Day] laden with sin shall be consigned to hell, where he shall neither die nor live.

20:75  But he who shall appear before Him as a believer, having done righteous deeds, shall be exalted to the highest ranks,

20:76  abiding in the gardens of Eden, through which running waters flow. Such shall be the recompense of those who keep themselves pure.

20:77  Then We thus inspired Moses: 'Go forth with My servants by night, and strike out for them a dry path through the sea. Have no fear of being overtaken, and dread nothing.'

20:78  Pharaoh pursued them with his hosts, but they were overwhelmed by the power of the sea.

20:79  For Pharaoh had led his people astray and had not guided them aright.

20:80  Children of Israel! We saved you from your enemy, and then We made a covenant with you on the right flank of Mount Sinai. We sent down manna and quails for you.

20:81  Eat of the wholesome things which We have provided for you and do not transgress, lest you should incur My wrath. He that incurs My wrath has indeed thrown himself into utter ruin;

20:82  but I certainly forgive all sins for anyone who repents, believes and does righteous deeds, and thereafter keeps to the right path.

20:83  [And God said]: 'Now what has caused you, Moses, to leave your people behind in so great a haste?'

20:84  He answered: 'They are treading in my footsteps, while I have hastened to You, my Lord, so that You might be well-pleased with me.'

20:85  Said He: 'Then [know that] in your absence We have put your people to a test, and the Sāmiriy has led them astray.'

20:86  Thus Moses returned to his people full of wrath and sorrow: 'My people,' he said, 'Did not your Lord hold out a goodly promise to you? Did, then, [the fulfilment of] this promise seem to you too long in coming? Or are you determined to see your Lord's condemnation fall upon you, and so you broke your promise to me?'

20:87  They answered: 'We did not break our promise to you of our own free-will, but we were loaded with the burdens of the [Egyptian] people's ornaments, and so we threw them [into the fire], and likewise this Sāmiriy threw.'

20:88  Thus he produced for them the effigy of a calf, which made a lowing sound. 'This,' they said, 'is your deity and the deity of Moses; but he has forgotten.'

20:89  Why! Did they not see that it could not give them any response, and that it could neither harm nor benefit them?

20:90  And, indeed, Aaron had said to them earlier: 'My people! You are but being tempted to evil by this calf. Your only Lord is the Most Merciful! Follow me, then, and do as I bid you.'

20:91  But they had replied: 'By no means shall we cease worshipping it until Moses comes back to us.'

20:92  [Moses] said: Aaron! What has prevented you, when you saw that they had gone astray,

20:93  from following me? Why have you disobeyed me?'

20:94  'Son of my mother,' he replied, 'do not seize me by my beard, or by my head! I was afraid that you might say, “You have caused a split among the Israelites and did not wait for my orders.”'

20:95  Said [Moses]: 'What is then your case, Sāmiriy?'

20:96  He answered: 'I have gained insight into something which they were unable to see; and so I took a handful of dust from the trail of the messenger and flung it away; for thus has my mind prompted me to act.'

20:97  Said [Moses]: 'Begone, then! It shall be your lot to say throughout your life, “Do not touch me.” But you shall be faced with a destiny from which you shall have no escape. Now look at this deity of yours to whose worship you have become so devoted: we shall most certainly burn it, and then scatter it far and wide over the sea.'

20:98  Your only deity is God, other than whom there is no deity. His knowledge encompasses all things.

20:99  Thus do We relate to you some of the history of past events; and thus have We given you, out of Our grace, a reminder.

20:100  All who shall turn away from it will certainly bear a heavy burden on the Day of Resurrection.

20:101  For ever shall they bear it; and grievous for them will be its weight on the Day of Resurrection,

20:102  the day when the Trumpet is blown. For on that day We shall assemble all the guilty ones, their eyes dimmed [by terror],

20:103  whispering to one another, 'You have spent but ten days on earth.'

20:104  We know best what they will be saying when the most perceptive of them shall say: 'You have spent there but one day!'

20:105  They ask you about the mountains. Say: 'My Lord will scatter them far and wide,

20:106  and leave the earth level and bare,

20:107  with no curves or ruggedness to be seen.

20:108  On that day, all will follow the summoning voice from which there will be no escape. All sounds will be hushed before the Most Merciful, and you will hear nothing but a faint sough in the air.

20:109  On that day, intercession will be of no avail to any except a person in whose case the Most Merciful will have granted permission, and whose word He will have accepted.

20:110  He knows all that lies open before them and all that is hidden from them, whereas they cannot have thorough knowledge of Him.

20:111  All faces shall be humbled before the Ever- Living, the Self- Subsisting Lord; and undone shall be he who is burdened with evildoing;

20:112  but anyone who will have done righteous deeds, being a believer, need have no fear of being wronged or deprived.

20:113  And thus have We bestowed from on high the Qur'ān in the Arabic tongue, and have given in it many facets to all manner of warnings, so that they may be God-fearing or that it may be for them a source of remembrance.

20:114  Sublimely exalted is God, the Ultimate Sovereign, the Ultimate Truth. Be not in haste with the Qur'ān before it has been revealed to you in full, but always say: 'My Lord, increase my knowledge.'

20:115  Long ago, We made a covenant with Adam; but he forgot it, and We found him lacking in firmness of purpose.

20:116  And when We said to the angels, 'Prostrate yourselves before Adam,' they all prostrated them- selves; except IblÄ«s, who refused.

20:117  'Adam,' We said, 'this is indeed a foe to you and your wife; so let him not drive the two of you out of the Garden, for then you will be plunged into affliction.

20:118  It is guaranteed that you shall not hunger here or feel naked,

20:119  and you shall not thirst here or suffer from the blazing sun.'

20:120  But Satan whispered to him, saying: 'Adam, shall I lead you to the tree of life eternal, and to a kingdom that will never decay?'

20:121  They both ate of its fruit; and thereupon their shameful parts became visible to them, and they began to cover themselves with pieced-together leaves from the Garden. Thus did Adam disobey his Lord, and thus did he stray into error.

20:122  Then his Lord elected him [for His grace], accepted his repentance, and bestowed His guidance upon him.

20:123  'Get down, both of you, and be out of it;' He said, 'each of you shall be an enemy to the other. When guidance shall come to you from Me, he who follows My guidance will not go astray, nor will he suffer misery;

20:124  but he who turns away from My message shall have a straitened life and We shall raise him up blind on the Day of Resurrection.'

20:125  'Lord,' he will say, 'why have You raised me up blind, while I was endowed with sight?'

20:126  He will reply: 'Thus it is: Our revelations were brought to you, but you were oblivious to them. So today shall you be consigned to oblivion.'

20:127  For thus shall We reward him who transgresses and does not believe in his Lord's revelations. Indeed the suffering in the life to come shall be most severe and most enduring.

20:128  Can they not see how many generations We have destroyed before their time? They walk about in the very places where they dwelt. In this there are signs for people of wisdom.

20:129  Now, were it not for a decree from your Lord already gone forth, setting a term, their destruction would have been inescapable.

20:130  Hence, bear with patience whatever they may say, and extol your Lord's limitless glory and praise Him before the rising of the sun and before its setting; and extol His glory, too, during the hours of the night as well as during the hours of the day, so that you may attain a state of contentment.

20:131  Do not turn your eyes covetously towards whatever splendour of this world's life We have allowed many of them to enjoy in order that We may test them thereby. Whatever provisions your Lord may give are indeed better and longer lasting.

20:132  Enjoin prayer on your people, and be diligent in its observance. We do not ask you for any provisions. It is We who provide for you. The future belongs to the God-fearing.

20:133  They say: 'Why does he not bring us a sign from his Lord?' Has there not come to them a clear evidence of the truth in the earlier scriptures?

20:134  Had We destroyed them with a calamity before his coming, they would have said, 'Our Lord, if only You had sent us a Messenger, we would have followed Your revelations rather than be humiliated and disgraced.'

20:135  Say: 'Everyone is hopefully waiting; so wait, if you will. You will certainly come to know who has followed the even path, and who has been rightly guided.'