47:1  The “good actions” of the disbelievers, who pave any other way but the path of their Lord, will not please God

47:2  God will forgive the sins of those who accept the Oneness of God, do good things and believe that what is revealed to Mohammad is God’s word. The Lord promises to improve these believers’ condition

47:3  The reason for such an attitude of God is that the disbelievers are following the wrong path and the believers follow their Lord’s order. God is using these examples to bring to the attention of the people the result of their actions and attitudes

47:4  If you are engaged in a war with disbelievers, fight with them bravely and strike their necks. When the war is over, you may chose to free the captives or ask for a ransom for their freedom. Know that if God wanted, he would have made you victorious without any fight. The Lord simply wants to test you by one another to prove to you how sincere you are in your belief. Be sure that God will never forget the sacrifice of those who offered their lives as a proof of their belief to their Creator

47:5  God hereby promises to guide His true believers and improve their conditions

47:6  And will admit them to the Paradise with which they are already familiar [through the word of God]

47:7  Know that, if the believers help God [how generous of the One Who does not need help to consider a person’s move toward Him as help], God will help them in return and will strengthen their foothold

47:8  As to disbelievers, their “good” deeds will be fruitless and for them there is nothing but misery in reserve

47:9  That is because, they denied the word of God [and preferred the existing corrupt order] and in return God did not accept their charitable actions [As a matter of fact paying “charity” so that a man stays a pagan is not only a charity but a bribe]

47:10  Have they not traveled to see the unfortunate destiny of those nations who challenged their Creator? God destroyed their works; their destiny is a good example for what is waiting for the disbelievers

47:11  Know that God is the Protector and Helper of the believers; the disbelievers do not have neither any protector nor a helper

47:12  God will admit those who believe and do good deeds into the Gardens where the river flows beneath them. As to the disbelievers, they are enjoying an animalistic life and will end up in the Hell

47:13  I (God) destroyed many stronger nations, than the one which made you to leave your hometown; there was none to save them

47:14  Are those, who are enlightened by God, equal to those who think that their wrongdoings [as defined by God Himself] are the best possible deed and follow none but their low desires

47:15  Think of the promised Paradise to the righteous ones as a place with unpolluted rivers of water, streams of fresh milk, as well as clear honey, and the canals of delightful wine. In Paradise there will be fruits of every kind for the (successful) ones and [perhaps the greatest blessing] they will be forgiven by God [and their forgiven sins will never be brought up to their attention to make them feel bad amidst such a pleasant place]. Can such (successful) people be equal to the permanent residents of the Fire whose intestines will be torn up by the boiling water that they drink

47:16  Some disbelievers listen to your sermons and, after they leave, they jokingly, ask: “What in the Heaven was he talking about?” God [in response to their jokes] seals their heart and, in consequence, they will follow their lowly desires

47:17  As for those who [listen to your sermons and] get guidance, God guides them further and leads them to the righteousness

47:18  Are they waiting till their resurrection [when they will have no time to repent]? They are only one step away from it. When they are resurrected, what chance will they find to listen and take advantage of the God’s message

47:19  Know it well that there is none worthy of worship but God. Ask forgiveness for your sins, as well as the sins of the believing men and women. God is watching you in public and in the privacy of your own homes

47:20  The believers were used to ask, “Why God does not send a verse to let us fight [to protect ourselves]?” But when a decisive verse about the right to fight was sent down, you saw, those who harbored doubt in their hearts, looking at you as though the shadow of death is hanging over them

47:21  Obedient and righteous by word! If they knew how beneficial it would have been for them to fight when God asked them to do so

47:22  [Now that you are questioning the Lord’s commands,] What else is next? Turning back to the days of ignorance, starting mischief on earth and mistreating your relatives

47:23  These [hypocrites] deserve the curse of God. That is why God has made them deaf and blind [to the truth]

47:24  Why do they not study Qur’an carefully? Do their brains not functioning

47:25  The fact of the matter is that Satan has enticed those who turn back to the ignorance, after having exposed to the Divine Guidance

47:26  That is why they said to those who hate God’s message that: “We agree with some of your ideas.” They can not hid their secret conspiracies from God

47:27  When the Angles take their souls, they will beat them on their faces and kick their rear ends

47:28  That is because, they turned away from the things that pleases God and adapted a way of life that made God angry at them. All their deeds therefore turned fruitless

47:29  Those who have a disease [of doubt] in their hearts, do they really think that God will not expose them

47:30  If I (God) will, I can mark their faces to be recognizable. However, you can easily recognize them by the way that they argue. God is aware of what you all do

47:31  I will certainly put you to the test so that you may have an opportunity to show your real selves; so that you show your patience and struggle in the way of God

47:32  Those who embraced Islam and then denied the truth, prevented the others to walk on the way of their Lord and disputed with the Prophet of God, can in no way harm God. On the contrary, God will render their deeds null

47:33  O’ you who have believed, obey God and His Prophet; otherwise all your deeds will be fruitless

47:34  As for those who choose the disbelief, prevent the others [physically, verbally or psychologically] to follow the way of God and die in the state of disbelief, God will never forgive them

47:35  Do not surrender for the sake of peace as God has guaranteed the victory for you. God is with you; He will never let your struggle to go in vain

47:36  Know that the life of this world is nothing but a game and an entertainment. If you believe and lead a righteous life, God will reward you without asking a price for it

47:37  If God had ever asked for an excessive charity from you, you might have turned stingy and showed your evil side

47:38  You are invited to spend [as generously as you can] in the way of God. Among you they are some who are stingy. The stingy ones are indeed stingy toward their own soul. Know that God is rich: It is you who are poor. If you turn away, God will replace you by another people and they will definitely will not be like you