Maryam 19:73–98

And when Our manifest, evident (bayyinātin, ‘manifest’, is a circumstantial qualifier) signs, in the Qur’ān, are recited to them, namely, [to] the believers and the disbelievers, those who disbelieve say to those who believe, ‘Which of the two parties — us or you — is better in station, in lodging and abode (read as maqāman, it is [derived] from [the first form] qāma, ‘he stood’; read as muqāman, it is [derived] from the [fourth form] aqāma, ‘he took up residence’) and more excellent in assembly?’ (nadiyyan, meaning the place in which a folk assemble and converse). They [the disbelievers] mean ‘we [are the better of the two parties]’, and so we will fare better than you. God, exalted be He, says:

And how many — in other words, many — a generation, that is, a community from among the communities of the past, have We destroyed before them, who were superior in [their possession of] gear, in wealth and chattel, and in appearance, [superior] as a sight (ri’yan derives from [the infinitive] al-ru’ya). Thus in the same way that We destroyed those [ones] because of their disbelief, We will destroy these [ones also].

Say: ‘As for him who is in error (man kāna fī’l-dalālati, a conditional clause, the response to which is [fa’l-yamdud, ‘He shall prolong’ and what follows it]) the Compassionate One shall defer (fa’l-yamdud, functions in the sense of a predicate) him, from chastisement by [granting him] some respite, in this world, drawing him on [to his eventual chastisement] gradually, until, when they catch sight of that which they were promised, whether it be chastisement [in this world], by being killed or taken captive, or the Hour, the Resurrection that comprises Hell, they will enter it. Then they will surely know who is worse in [respect of] position and weaker in [respect of the number of] hosts’, in [respect of the number of] supporters, themselves or the believers? Their hosts will be the devils, while the hosts of the believers against them will be the angels.

And God increases in guidance those who found [right] guidance, through faith, [increasing them] by way of the signs He reveals to them; and the enduring things, the righteous deeds — namely, obedience [the reward of] which endures for that person — are better in your Lord’s sight in [terms of] reward, and better in [terms of the] return, that is, as something which will be repaid and returned to him [the believer], in contrast to the deeds of the disbelievers. The [use of the qualification] khayr, ‘better’, here is meant to counter [the use of the same in] their statement, ‘Which of the two parties is better in station?’ [above, Q. 19:73].

Have you seen him who disbelieves in Our signs, namely, al-‘Ās b. Wā’il, and says, to Khabbāb b. al-Aratt — who had said to him, ‘You will be resurrected after death!’, and who had requested from him repayment of money — ‘I shall assuredly be given, on the supposition that there is [such a thing as] resurrection, wealth and children?’, and so I will repay you [then]. God, exalted be He, says:

Has he come to learn [something] of the Unseen, that is, has he been given [some] knowledge of it and [of the fact] that he will be given what he has mentioned (here the interrogative hamza [of a-ittala‘a, ‘has he come to learn?’] suffices in place of the conjunctive hamza, which has therefore been omitted) or has he made a covenant with the Compassionate One?, to [the effect that he] be given what he claims?

Nay, he shall not be given [any of] that, but We will assuredly write down, We shall command that it be written down, that which he says and prolong for him the chastisement endlessly, We shall give him because of that [claim] an extra chastisement, in addition to the chastisement for his disbelief;

and We shall take over from him that which he talks about, of wealth and children, and he shall come to Us, on the Day of Resurrection, alone, with neither wealth nor children.

And they, namely, the disbelievers of Mecca, have taken besides God, graven images [as], [other] gods, for them to worship, that they may be for them a [source of] might, [that they may be] intercessors before God, so that they will not be chastised.

Nay, that is to say, there is none to prevent their being chastised, but they, namely, the [idol] gods, shall reject their worship, that is, they will deny it — as [is stated] in another verse: It was not us that they used to worship [Q. 28:63]) — and they shall be [pitted] against them as opponents, enemies, supporting one another [against them].

Have you not regarded that We unleash the devils against, We have set them upon, the disbelievers to urge them, to incite them to [commit] acts of disobedience, impetuously?

So do not make haste against them, to demand [that they receive] chastisement. Indeed We are only counting for them, the days and the nights, or [their] every breath, carefully, until the time [arrives] for their chastisement.

Mention, the day on which We shall gather those who fear God, by their [adherence to] faith, to the Compassionate One, [honoured] on mounts (wafdan, the [accusative] plural of wāfid, meaning ‘mounted’);

and drive the guilty, [guilty] on account of their disbelief, into Hell, a thirsty herd (wirdan, the [accusative] plural of wārid, meaning ‘one who is thirsty and on foot).

They, namely, mankind, will not have the power to intercede, save him who has made a covenant with the Compassionate One, [the covenant being] the profession of lā ilāha illā’Llāh wa-lā hawla wa-lā quwwata illā bi’Llāh, ‘there is no god but God, and there is no power or strength except in God’.

And they say, that is, the Jews and the Christians and those who claim that the angels are God’s daughters, ‘The Compassionate One has taken a son’. [But] God, exalted be He, says to them:

Truly you have uttered something hideous, that is, a great abomination.

The heavens are almost (read takādu, or yakādu) rent (read takādu tatafattarna), by being torn apart (a variant reading has yanfatirna), because of it and the earth [is almost] split asunder, and the mountains [almost] fall down crashing, collapsing on top of them, because of [the fact]:

that they have ascribed a son to the Compassionate One. God, exalted be He, says:

when it is not meet for [the Majesty of] the Compassionate One to take a son, that is to say, such a thing does not befit Him.

There is none in the heavens and the earth but he comes to the Compassionate One as a servant, servile, submissive, on the Day of Resurrection, including [individuals such as] Ezra and Jesus.

Verily He knows their number and has counted them precisely, and therefore [the knowledge of] their total number does not elude Him, not even [the knowledge] of one of them.

And each one of them will come to Him on the Day of Resurrection, [each one] alone, without wealth or any helper to protect him.

Truly those who believe and perform righteous deeds — for them the Compassionate One shall appoint love, between them, so that they have mutual love and affection, and God, exalted be He, will love them.

Indeed We have made it easy, namely, the Qur’ān, in your tongue, only that you may bear good tidings therewith to the God-fearing, those who will be prosperous because of their faith, and warn, threaten, therewith a folk [who are] contumacious (luddan, the [accusative] plural of aladd), in other words, [extremely] disputatious, [using] false arguments — and they are the disbelievers of Mecca.

And how many — in other words, many — a generation, namely, [how many] a community from among the communities of the past, We have destroyed before them, for their denial of [Our] messengers. Can you see, [can] you find, [so much as] one of them, or hear from them [so much as] the faintest sound? No, indeed! So, just as We destroyed those [folk], We shall destroy these [Meccans].