Ан-Нур 24:55–64

God has promised those of you who believe and perform righteous deeds that He will surely make them successors in the earth, in place of the disbelievers, just as He made those, Children of Israel, who were before them successors, in place of the [ruling] tyrants ([the verb may be] read as active istakhlafa, ‘He made [them] successors’, or as passive istukhlifa, ‘were made successors’) and He will surely establish for them their religion which He has approved for them, namely, [the religion of] Islam, by making it prevail over all religions and enrich them throughout the land, so that they become masters thereof, and that He will give them in exchange (read wa-la-yubdilannahum or wa-la-yubaddilannahum) after their fear, of disbelievers, security. And God fulfilled His promise to them in the way mentioned, and He praises them with His words: ‘They worship Me, without associating anything with Me’ (ya‘budūnanī lā yushrikūna bī shay’an is an [independent] new sentence, standing as a justification [for His promise]). And whoever is ungrateful after that, bestowal of grace, from among them, [whoever is ungrateful] for it, those, they are the immoral. The first to show ingratitude for that [grace of God] were the murderers of ‘Uthmān [b. ‘Affān], may God be pleased with him, and they began to kill one another [henceforth] after having been brothers.

And establish prayer and pay the alms, and obey the Messenger, that perhaps you may find mercy, that is to say, [do so] hoping for mercy.

And do not suppose (read tahsabanna or yahsabanna, the subject of the verb being the Messenger) that those who disbelieve can escape, Us, in the land, by eluding us. For their abode will be, their return will be [to], the Fire, and it is surely an evil destination, it is an [evil] place of return.

O you who believe, let those whom your right hands own, of male slaves and female slaves, and those of you who have not reached puberty, from among the free men, and who have not become [sexually] aware of women, ask leave of you three times: at three times [of the day]: before the dawn prayer, and when you put off your garments at noon, and after the night prayer. [These are] three periods of privacy for you (read thalāthu [‘awrātin lakum] with nominative inflection as the predicate of an implied subject followed by a genitive annexation, with the annexed term standing in place thereof [of the predicate], in other words [the implied predicate followed by the annexation is] hiya awqāt, ‘these are times of …’; or read thalātha [‘awrātin lakum] in the accusative, the implication being that awqāta is itself in the accusative as a substitute for the [syntactical] status of what precedes it, in place of which stands the annexed term). It is because clothes are taken off that private parts are revealed during such [periods]. Neither you nor they, namely, slaves and young boys, would be at fault, in entering upon you without asking leave, at other times, that is, after the three times of day [specified]; they frequent you, to provide service, [as] some of you [do] with others (this sentence corroborates the preceding one). So, just as He has clarified what has been mentioned, God clarifies for you the signs, the rulings; and God is Knower, of the affairs of His creatures, Wise, in what He has ordained for them. It is said that the ‘permission’ verse (āyat al-isti’idhān) was abrogated; but it is also said that it was not [abrogated], but that people thought little of neglecting to seek permission [in such situations].

And when the children among you, O free men, reach puberty, let them seek permission, at all times, just as those, [now] older free men, sought permission before them. So God clarifies His signs for you, and God is Knower, Wise.

And as for menopausal women, who have ceased to menstruate or to bear children because of old age, who do not expect to marry, for that reason, they would not be at fault if they put off their clothes, such a robe, a cloak, or the facial mask over a head veil, in such a way as not to display adornment, that is hidden, such as a necklace, a bracelet or an anklet; but to refrain [from doing so], by not putting them off, is better for them; and God is Hearer, of what you say, Knower, of what is in your hearts.

There is no blame upon the blind, nor any blame upon the lame, nor any blame upon the sick, that they be one’s table companions, nor, any blame, upon yourselves if you eat from your own houses, that is, [from] the houses of your offspring, or your fathers’ houses, or your mothers’ houses, or your brothers’ houses, or your sisters’ houses, or the houses of your paternal uncles or the houses of your paternal aunts, or the houses of your maternal uncles or the houses of your maternal aunts, or [from] that whereof you hold the keys, [from] that which you safeguard on behalf of others, or [from] those of your [faithful] friends (sadīq is [so called] because he is ‘faithful’ (sadaqa) to you in his affection). In other words: one is permitted to eat from the houses of those mentioned, even if they are not present, provided that they consent to it. You would not be at fault whether you eat together, in a group, or separately, individually (ashtāt is the plural of shatt). This was revealed concerning those who felt inhibited about eating alone and [who] when they could not find a table companion they would refrain from eating. But when you enter houses, that are yours, [houses] wherein there is no one, bid peace to yourselves, say, ‘Peace be upon us and upon God’s righteous servants’, for the angels will return your greeting; and if there is family therein bid peace to them, with a salutation (tahiyyatan is the verbal noun from hayyā, ‘he saluted’) from God, blessed and good, and for which one is rewarded. So God clarifies the signs for you, that is to say, He sets out for you in detail the [ritual] ceremonies of your religion, that perhaps you might comprehend, in order for you to understand this.

Only they are believers who believe in God and His Messenger and who, when they are with him, namely, the Messenger, in a collective affair, such as [during] the Friday sermon, do not leave, when they have an excuse, until they have asked leave of him. Truly those who ask leave of you — it is they who believe in God and His Messenger. So when they ask leave of you for some affair, [some] matter, of theirs, give permission to whom you will of them, to leave, and ask God to forgive them. Truly God is Forgiving, Merciful.

Do not, among yourselves, consider the calling of the Messenger to be like your calling of one another, by saying, ‘O Muhammad!’ (s), but say, ‘O Prophet of God’, or, ‘O Messenger of God!’ gently, respectfully and in a low voice. Verily God knows those of you who slip away surreptitiously, that is, those who leave the mosque secretly during the sermon without asking leave, hiding behind something (qad, ‘verily’, is for confirmation). So let those who contravene His command, that is, God’s command, or that of His Messenger, beware lest an ordeal, a trial, befall them, or there befall them a painful chastisement, in the Hereafter.

Lo! surely to God belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth, by way of possession, creation and servitude. He is ever aware of how you, O you who are obligated to [the prescriptions of] the Law, are behaving, with regard to faith or hypocrisy, and, He knows, the day when they shall be returned to Him (there is a shift here from the second person address [to that of the third person]), in other words, [He knows] when this [day] will be — He will inform them, thereupon, of what they did, of good and evil, and God is Knower of all things, which they do and otherwise.