Худ 11:72–123

She said, ‘Woe to me! (yā waylatā is an expression used in [reaction to] a serious matter; the alif [suffixed in waylatā] substitutes for the yā’ of the genitive annexation [waylatī, ‘my woe’]). Shall I bear a child when I am an old woman, 99 years old, and this my husband is an old man?, 100 or 120 years old (shaykhan is in the accusative because it is a circumstantial qualifier, operated by the demonstrative import of dhā, ‘this’). Truly this is a strange thing’, that a child should be born to such an aged couple.

They said, ‘Are you astonished by God’s command?, [by] His power? The mercy of God and His blessings be upon you, O, people of the House!, the House of Abraham. Truly He is Praised, Glorious!’, Generous.

And when the awe, the fear, departed from Abraham and the good tiding came to him, of a child, he began to plead with Us, pleading with Our messengers, concerning the, matter of the, people of Lot.

Assuredly Abraham was forbearing, long-suffering, imploring, penitent, always returning [to God] in repentance: thus he said to them, ‘Would you destroy a town in which there are 300 believers?’ They said, ‘No’. He said, ‘Would you destroy a town in which there are 200 believers?’ They said, ‘No’. He said, ‘Would you destroy a town in which there are 40 believers?’ They said, ‘No’. He said, ‘Would you destroy a town in which there are 14 believers?’ They said, ‘No’. He said, ‘What if there were one believer in it?’ They said, ‘No’. He said, ‘Lot is in it’. They said, ‘We know full well who is in it’ … to the end [of the narrative].

When he had pleaded with them at length, they said: ‘O Abraham, desist from this, pleading. Truly your Lord’s command, for their destruction, has gone forth, and truly there will come upon them a chastisement which cannot be repelled’.

And when Our messengers came to Lot, he was distressed, he was grieved on their account, and felt constrained in his power to protect them, because they had handsome faces and were dressed as [visiting] guests, and so he feared for them from his people, and he said, ‘This is a distressful, a very difficult, day’.

And his people, when they became aware of them, came to him, running, hastening, towards him — and previously, before they came, they had been committing abominations, namely, penetrative sexual intercourse with men. He, Lot, said, ‘O my people! Here are my daughters, marry with them; they are purer for you. So fear God, and do not degrade me, [do not] disgrace me, before my guests. Is there not among you any upright man?’, to enjoin decency and forbid indecency?

They said, ‘You know full well that we have no right to, no need of, your daughters, and you know well what we desire’, in the way of sexual intercourse with men.

He said, ‘Would that I had strength, power, to resist you or could resort to some strong support!’, [to] some clan that would help me, I would surely fall upon you. So, when the angels saw this,

they said, ‘O Lot, truly we are messengers of your Lord. They shall not reach you, with any harm, so travel with your family during a part of the night, and let not one of you turn round, lest they see the terrible predicament that will befall them, except for your wife: (read illā imra’atuka, in the nominative, as a substitute for ahadun; a variant reading has illā imra’ataka, in the accusative, as [her being] an exception among [his] ‘family’, in other words, do no take her along when you travel) lo! she shall be smitten by that which smites them: it is said that he did not take her along with him; it is also said that she did set out [with them] and turned round, and so exclaimed, ‘Woe is my people!’, at which point a stone struck her and killed her. When he [Lot] asked them about the time of their destruction, they replied: Truly their tryst is [for] the morning, and when he said, ‘I want it to be sooner’, they said: is the morning not nigh [enough]?’

So when Our command, for their destruction, came to pass We made their uppermost, that is, their cities, the nethermost — when Gabriel raised them to the sky and dropped them upside down to the earth, and We rained upon them stones of baked clay, clay baked in fire, one after another,

marked, [each one of them] with the name of the person it would strike, with your Lord (‘inda rabbik is an adverbial qualifier for these [stones]), and they, the stones — or their lands — are not far from the evildoers, that is, [from] the people of Mecca.

And, We sent, to Midian their brother Shu‘ayb. He said, ‘O my people, worship God!, affirm His Oneness. You have no god other than He. And diminish not the measure or the weight. I see you in prosperity, [enjoying] a grace which precludes any need for stinting [people]; and I fear for you, should you not believe, the chastisement of a besetting day, [besetting] you, destroying you (the attribution of this term [‘besetting’] to ‘a day’ [as opposed to ‘the chastisement’] is figurative, for it [the chastisement] will take place thereupon).

O my people, give full measure and weight, fulfil [the due of] both of these, in justice, and do not defraud people in respect of their goods, do not diminish anything of their due, and do not be degenerate in the land, working corruption, by killing or otherwise ([lā ta‘thaū] derives from ‘athiya, meaning afsada, ‘he corrupted’; mufsidīn, ‘working corruption’, is a circumstantial qualifier reiterating the import of the term operating it, ta‘thaū, ‘[do not] be degenerate’).

The remainder [which is] from God, that provision of His which remains for you after you have given full measure and weight, is better for you, than fraud, if you are believers; and I am not a guardian over you’, a watcher, that I should requite you for your deeds: I was sent only as a warner.

They said, to him mockingly: ‘O Shu‘ayb, does your [way of] prayer command you, with the obligation [to make sure], that we should leave what our fathers [used to] worship, of idols, or, that we should cease, to do as we will with our goods?, meaning that such a command is an absurdity which no person calling to good would commend. You are indeed the forbearing, the right-guided’: they said this in mockery.

He said, ‘O my people, have you considered that I might be [acting] upon a clear proof from my Lord and that He has provided me with fair, wholesome, sustenance from Him?, should I then blemish it with what is unlawful, in the way of fraud or stinting? And I do not desire to be inconsistent, and then partake, in what I forbid you, thus committing the same. I desire only to set things right, in your case, by way of [enjoining] justice, so far as I am able. My success, my ability to do this [successfully] and [to enjoin] other acts of obedience, is only with God. In Him I trust and to Him I turn, I return, [repentant].

And, O my people, let not the breach with me, the dispute [you have] with me (shiqāqī, ‘the breach with me’, is the subject of the verb yajrimannakum, ‘make you deserve’, in which the [suffixed] pronoun [-kum, ‘you’] constitutes the first direct object, the second being [what follows]) make you deserve, earn you [as punishment], that there befall you the like of what befell the people of Noah, or the people of Hūd, or the people of Sālih, in the way of chastisement; and the people of Lot, that is, their dwelling-places or the era in which they were destroyed, are not far away from you, so take heed [of this].

And ask forgiveness of your Lord, then repent to Him. Truly my Lord is Merciful, to believers, Affectionate’, loving towards them.

They said, in proclamation of their lack of concern: ‘O Shu‘ayb, we do not understand much of what you say. Truly we see you are weak, abject, among us, and were it not for your clan, we would have stoned you; for you are not, too, powerful, [too] venerable, for us’, to stone, but it is your clan that is powerful.

He said, ‘O my people, is my clan more venerable in your sight than God?, such that you refrain from killing me because of them, instead of [your] protecting me for [being the Messenger of] God? And do you put Him, God, behind you, neglected?, rejected, behind your backs, not mindful of Him? Truly my Lord encompasses, in knowledge, what you do, and will requite you.

And, O my people, act according to your ability, your circumstances, lo! I [too] am acting, according to mine. You will soon know upon whom (man is the relative particle introducing the direct object of [the action of] ‘knowing’) will come the chastisement that will abase him, and who is a liar. And sit in watch, wait for the consequence of your affair: I too will be with you watching’, waiting.

And when Our command came, for their destruction, We delivered Shu‘ayb and those who believed with him by a mercy from Us; and the Cry seized those who were evildoers — Gabriel cried at them — and they ended up lying lifeless prostrate in their habitations, keeled over on their knees, dead,

as if (ka-an is softened, in other words [understand it as] ka-annahum) they had never dwelt there: ‘Lo! Away with Midian, just as Thamūd was done away with!’

And verily We sent Moses with Our signs and a clear warrant, a manifest and evident proof,

to Pharaoh and his council; but they followed Pharaoh’s command, and Pharaoh’s command was not right-guided, appropriate.

He will go before his people on the Day of Resurrection, and they will follow him, as they did in this world, and he will lead them, he will admit them, to the Fire — an evil place, it is, for those entering it!

And a curse was made to follow them in this [world], as well as, a curse, on the Day of Resurrection — evil is the assistance offered!, in their case.

That, which is mentioned (dhālika is the subject, the predicate of which [follows]), is [something] of the tidings of the towns, which We relate to you, O Muhammad (s). Some of them, that is, [of] the towns, are standing, only its inhabitants having been destroyed, and some, of them, have been cut down, destroyed together with its inhabitants, such that there are no vestiges thereof, much like crops harvested with sickles.

And We did not wrong them, destroying them for not having committed any sins, but they wronged themselves, through idolatry. Their gods did not avail, defend, them in any way (min shay’in: min is extra), those [gods] upon whom they called, [whom] they worshipped, besides God, that is, other than Him, when the command of your Lord, His chastisement, came; and they [their gods] — through their [the disbelievers’] worship of these [gods], did not increase them in anything but ruin, [but] loss.

Such, like that seizing, is the seizing of your Lord when He seizes the towns, meaning its inhabitants, while they are doing wrong, by way of sins: in other words, nothing can avail them in any way when He seizes them. Truly His seizing is painful, severe. The two Shaykhs [Bukhārī and Muslim] reported [by way of an isnād] from Abū Mūsā al-Ash‘arī that he said, ‘The Prophet (s) said, “God gives [extended] respite to the evildoer, but when He seizes him there is no escape for him”, whereupon the Prophet (s) recited the verse: Such is the seizing of your Lord [Q. 11:102, above]’.

There is indeed in that, which is mentioned of stories, a sign, a lesson, for him who fears the chastisement of the Hereafter: that, in other words, the Day of Resurrection, is a day to which, on which, mankind will be gathered, and that is a day witnessed, witnessed by all creatures.

And We do not defer it but to a term [already] reckoned, [but] to a time predetermined by God.

The day it, that day, comes, no soul shall speak (takallamu: one of the tā’ letters [of tatakallamu] has been omitted) except by His permission, exalted be He. Some of them, that is, [some] creatures, will be wretched, and [some], of them, joyous, each having been determined [to be thus] from pre-eternity.

As for those who are damned, according to God’s [prior] knowledge, they will be in the Fire; their lot therein will be wailing, which is a loud sound, and sighing, which is a faint sound;

abiding therein for as long as the heavens and the earth endure, that is, [for] the length of the duration of both in this world, except, other than, what your Lord may will, in the way of adding to the duration of these two, such that it [their abiding] becomes indefinite: meaning that they will abide therein forever. Truly your Lord is Doer of what He desires.

And as for those who are fortunate (read sa‘idū or su‘idū) they shall be in Paradise, abiding therein for as long as the heavens and the earth endure except, other than, what your Lord may will — as mentioned already [of increasing the duration], which in their case is indicated by His words, an endless bounty, [one not] to be cut off. The interpretation given above seems to be the clear and obvious one, devoid of affectation, but God knows best what it means.

So do not be, O Muhammad (s), in doubt, in uncertainty, concerning what these [folk] worship, of idols: We will indeed chastise them as We did those before them — this is intended as solace for the Prophet (s). They worship only as their fathers worshipped — that is, in the same way — before, and indeed We chastised them; and We shall surely pay them, like those [fathers of theirs], their whole due, their portion of the chastisement, undiminished, that is, in full.

And We verily gave Moses the Scripture, the Torah, but differences arose concerning it, some believing, others denying, just as [is the case] with the Qur’ān; and were it not for a word that went forth from your Lord, to defer the reckoning and the requital for creatures to the Day of Resurrection, the case would have been decided between them, in this world, regarding that over which they differed; and truly they, that is, those who deny it, are in grave doubt concerning it, [doubt] creating [great] uncertainty.

And assuredly (read wa-in or wa-inna) to each, that is, to all creatures, verily (la-mā: the mā is extra and the lām is in the place of an implied oath or a separator; a variant reading has lammā, with the sense of illā, ‘but’, making the [preceding] in for negation), your Lord will pay for his works, that is, the requital thereof, in full. Truly He is Aware of what they do, knowing the inner and outer aspects thereof.

So remain upright, acting in accordance with the commandment of your Lord and supplicating Him, as you have been commanded, and, let him also remain upright, he who repents, [who] believes, with you; and do not transgress, [do not] overstep the bounds of God. Truly He sees what you do, and will requite you for it.

And do not incline toward the evildoers, through affection or adulation, or [by showing] satisfaction with their actions, lest the Fire touch, smite, you, and you have, besides God, other than Him, no protectors (min awliyā’: min is extra), to guard you from Him; and then you will not be helped, you will [not] be protected from His chastisement.

And establish prayer at the two ends of the day, at first light and before sunset, that is, [pray] in the morning, at noon, and in the afternoon, and in some watches (zulafan is the plural of zulfa), a portion, of the night, that is, at sunset and late evening. Indeed good deeds, such as the five prayers, annul misdeeds, minor sins: this was revealed regarding one who kissed a female stranger and told the Prophet (s) about it, and then asked him, ‘Is this [verse true] for me?’ and the Prophet said to him, ‘It is [so] for every person of my community’, as reported by the two Shaykhs [Bukhārī and Muslim]. That is a remembrance for the mindful, an admonition for those who heed them.

And be patient, O Muhammad (s), in [enduring] the harm inflicted [upon you] by your people, or in [performing] prayer, for indeed God does not waste the wage of those who are virtuous, by patiently enduring through [acts of] obedience [to God].

If only there had been among the generations, past communities, before you men possessing a remnant [of good sense], men of religion and virtue, forbidding corruption in the earth (this [statement] is intended to be a negation, in other words, ‘there never were such [men] among them’), except, but, a few of those whom (mimman: min is explicative) We delivered from among them, did forbid [corruption] and were thus delivered. But those who did wrong, through corruption and neglecting to forbid, followed that by which they were made profligate, and were sinners.

Yet your Lord would never destroy the towns through injustice, on His part, against them, while their inhabitants were righteous, that is, believers.

Had your Lord willed, He would have made mankind one community, people of one religion, but they continue to differ, in religion,

except those on whom your Lord has mercy, [those] for whom He desires good, and so they do not differ in it — and that is why He created them, that is, [He created] those of difference for that [in other words, so that they should differ] and those deserving mercy for that [in other words, so that they should receive mercy]. And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled, namely: ‘I will surely fill Hell with jinn and mankind together’.

And all that (kullān is in the accusative because [it is the direct object] of naqussu, ‘We relate’; and the nunation compensates for a [missing] genitive annexation), that is, all that is necessary, We relate to you of the accounts of the messengers, that (mā substitutes for kullan, ‘all that’) with which We might strengthen, reassure, your heart. And in these, accounts, or verses, there has come to you the Truth and an admonition and a reminder to the believers: they are specifically mentioned here because they are the ones to benefit from them, through their belief [in them], in contrast to [the case with] the disbelievers.

And say to those who do not believe: ‘Act according to your ability, [according] to your status, we are acting, according to our status — [this is] a threat for them.

And wait, for the consequence of your affair, we are also waiting’, for this.

And to God belongs the Unseen of the heavens and the earth, that is, the knowledge of what is concealed within them, and to Him all matters are returned (read active yarji‘u, meaning ‘return’, or passive yurja‘u, meaning ‘[are] returned’) and He will exact retribution from those who were disobedient. So worship Him, affirm His Oneness, and rely on Him, trust in Him, for He is sufficient for you, and your Lord is not heedless of what they do, but He defers [dealing with] them until their [appointed] time (a variant reading has ta‘malūn, ‘[what] you do’).