Ta Seen Meem,
these are the verses of the Book that make everything clear.
Perhaps, [Prophet] you punish yourself with grief because they will not believe.
If We So will, We can send down from heaven a miracle that will force their necks to remain bowed in humility.
Whenever a new Reminder comes to them from the Merciful-to-all, they turn away from it.
They have already denied the truth, but the news of what they used to ridicule will come back to [hunt] them.
Do not they see the Earth, and how many kinds of noble pairs of plants We have caused to grow in it?
There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Indeed your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
When your Lord called on Moses, [saying], “Go to the unjust people,
the people of Pharaoh. Will they not be mindful of Me?”
He said, “My Lord, I fear that they will call me a liar,
and that my breast will tighten, and my tongue will be tied, so send for Aaron.
Besides, they have a charge against me, so I fear that they will kill me.”
[God] said, “No. Go both of you with Our signs; We are with you, listening.
Go to Pharaoh and say, “We are messengers from the Lord of the worlds,
let the Children of Israel go with us.”
[Pharaoh] said, “Did we not raise you among us as a child, and did you not live among us for many years?
[Then] you committed that crime of yours; you were So ungrateful.”
[Moses] said, “At the time I did it, I was of the misguided.
So I fled from you because I feared you. Then my Lord gave me wisdom and made me one of the Messengers.
As for that favor of which you remind me, was it not because you enslaved the Children of Israel?”
Pharaoh said, “But what is the Lord of the worlds?”
He said, “The Lord of the heavens and Earth and all that is between them if you only knew.”
[Pharaoh] said to those around him, “Do you hear [what he said]?”
[Moses went on], “Your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers.”
[Pharaoh] said, “This messenger who has been sent to you is really mad.”
[Moses] said, “Lord of the east and the west and that between them, if you [would just use your] reason.”
[Pharaoh] said, “If you take a god other than me, I will surely imprison you.”
[Moses] said, “Even if I show you undeniable proof?”
[Pharaoh] said, “Bring it, then, if you are telling the truth.”
So [Moses] threw down his staff, and behold, it was an undeniable snake.
Then he drew out his hand, and behold- it was [shining] white for all to see.
[Pharaoh] said to the notables around him, “This is a skilled magician.
He wants to drive you out of your land with his magic, so what do you recommend?”
They said, “Let him and his brother wait for a while, and [meanwhile] send marshals to all the cities
to bring every skilled magician.”
So the magicians were assembled at the appointed time on the appointed day.
It was said to the People, “Have you assembled
So that we might follow the magicians if they win?”
When the magicians arrived, they said to Pharaoh, “Is there a reward for us if we win?”
He said, “Yes. You will be in my inner circle.”
Moses said to them, “Throw whatever you will throw.”
So they threw their ropes and their staffs, and said, “By the reverence of Pharaoh, We will surely win.”
Then Moses threw down his staff, and it devoured their deceptions.
And down fell the magicians in prostration [to God],
saying, “We believe in the Lord of the Worlds,
the Lord of Moses and Aaron.”
[Pharaoh] said, “How dare you believe in Him before I have given you permission? He [Moses] must be your leader who has taught you magic. But soon, you will know. I will cut off your hands and feet on opposite sides, and I will crucify all of you.”
They said, “We do not care! We will be returning to our Lord.
We hope that our Lord will forgive us our sins because we were the first believers.”
We later revealed to Moses, “Travel by night with My worshipers, for you will be pursued.”
Then Pharaoh sent his marshals to the cities,
[saying], “[The Children of Israel] are a small band,
but they are offending us,
and we are a vigilant Society.”
So We expelled them from [their] gardens and springs
treasures and honored estates.
Thus it was. [In time], We caused the Children of Israel to inherit all of this.
So, they [the Egyptians] pursued them at sunrise,
and when the two sides sighted one another, Moses’ companions said, “We will be overtaken!”
[Moses] said, “No! my Lord is with me; He will guide me.”
Then, We revealed to Moses, “Strike with your staff the sea.” It parted, and each part looked like a mountain.
We brought the pursuers right into it
and We saved Moses and all who were with him
and We drowned the others.
There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Truly your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
Tell them the story of Abraham
when he asked his father and his people, “What do you worship?”
They said, “We worship idols, and we always attend to them.”
He asked, “Do they hear you when you call on them?
Or do they benefit you, or harm you?”
They said, “But this is what we found our fathers doing.”
He said, “Have you really thought about what You have been worshipping,
you and your forefathers?
They are enemies to me. [I worship none] except the Lord of the worlds,
Who created me. It is He Who guides me.
and He who feeds me and gives me drink,
and He who heals me when I am ill,
and He who will cause me to die and then bring me back to life,
and who, I hope, will forgive my sins on the Day of Judgment.”
[Abraham then said], “My Lord, grant me wisdom and allow me to join with the righteous,
and grant me a lasting mention as one who told the truth among later generations.
And make me among those who will inherit the Garden of Bliss.
Forgive my father, for he has been of those who were misguided,
and do not disgrace me on the Day they are [all] resurrected,
the Day when neither wealth nor children will benefit [anyone]
except the one who comes to God with a flawless heart.”
[On that day], Paradise will be brought near to those who were mindful of God
and Hell will be brought forth for those who were misled.
It will be said to them, “Where are those you used to worship
other than God? Can they help you or help themselves?”
So They will be hurled into Hell with those who misled them
with Iblis’ helpers, all together.
While bickering with each other they will say,
“By God, we were obviously misguided
when we equated you with the Lord of the worlds.
No one misguided us except those who forced us to reject God’s messages.
So now we have no intercessors,
nor a devoted friend.
If we can only go back [to the world), we will be believers.”
There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Truly your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
The people of Noah denied the Messengers
when their brother Noah said to them, “Will you not be mindful of God?
I am a trustworthy messenger to you.
So be mindful of God and obey me.
I ask no reward from you for doing this; my reward comes only from the Lord of the worlds.
So be mindful of God, and obey me.”
They said, “How can we believe you when you are followed mostly by the lowest [class of people]?”
He said, “What do I know about what they have been doing?
It is for my Lord alone to bring them to account if you [could] only understand.
I am not one to drive away the believers.
I am only a clear warner.”
They said, “If you do not desist, Noah, you will surely be stoned.”
He said, “My Lord, my people have denied me.
Judge between us decisively, and save me and the believers with me.”
So We saved him and those with him in the laden ark,
and then We drowned the rest.
There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Truly your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
[The people of] Aad denied the Messengers
when their brother Hud said to them, “Will you not be mindful of God?
I am a trustworthy messenger to you,
So be mindful of God and obey me.
I ask no reward from you for doing this; my reward is only from the Lord of the worlds.
Do you build a tower on every hill just to amuse yourselves,
and construct for yourselves mighty castles hoping to live there eternally?
And when you attack, why do you attack like tyrants.
So be mindful of God, and obey me,
and be mindful of Him Who provided you with everything you know
grazing livestock and children,
gardens and springs.
I fear for you the punishment of a terrible day.”
They said, “It is all the same to us whether you preach or not;
this is only what our forefathers used to do.
We will not be punished.”
They denied him, So We destroyed them. There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Truly your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
[The people of] Thamud denied the Messengers
when their brother Salih said to them, “Will you not be mindful of God?
I am a trustworthy messenger to you,
So be mindful of God and obey me.
I ask no reward from you for doing this; my reward [comes) only from the Lord of the worlds.
Do you think that you will be left secure in what you have here,
[your] gardens and springs,
fields of crops and palm trees with Softened fruit?
And the fine homes that you skillfully carved out of the mountains?
Be mindful of God and obey me,
and do not obey those given to excess,
who spread corruption on Earth and do not set things right.”
They said, “You are bewitched.
You are only a man like us, so bring a sign if you are telling the truth.”
He said, “This is a camel. She will have time to drink, and you will have a time, [each) on an appointed day.
Do not harm her unless you want to be seized by the punishment of a terrible day.”
But they hamstrung her and woke up fully regretful
and the punishment seized them. There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Truly your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
The People of Lot denied the Messengers
When their brother Lot said to them, “Will you not be mindful of God?
I am a trustworthy messenger to you,
So be mindful of God, and obey me.
I ask no reward from you for doing this; my reward comes only from the Lord of the worlds.
Why do you get intimate with men
and leave the mates your Lord has created for you? You people have transgressed all bounds.”
They said, “If you do not stop this, Lot, you will surely be kicked out.”
He said, “I despise your actions.
My Lord, save my family and me from (the consequence of] what they do.”
So We saved him and his family, all of them
except for an old woman who stayed behind.
Then, We destroyed the others.
We poured upon them a rain of destruction. How terrible is such rain on those who had been forewarned?
There is a sign in this, but most of them would not believe.
Truly, your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
The woods-dwellers denied the Messengers
When Shu‘ayb said to them, “Will you not be mindful of God?
I am a trustworthy messenger to you,
So be mindful of God and obey me.
I ask no reward from you for doing this; my reward comes only from the Lord of the worlds.
Give full measure, and do not cheat.
Weigh with an even scale
and do not mislead people into thinking that their goods are worth less than their real value, and do not spread corruption on Earth.
Fear Him who created you and the former generations.”
They said, “You are surely bewitched.
You are a man like us, and we think you are a liar.
Make a fragment of the sky fall on us if you are telling the truth.”
He said, “My Lord knows best what you are doing.”
But they did not believe him, and the punishment of the day of shadow seized them truly, the punishment of a terrible day.
There is a sign in this, but most of them will not believe.
Truly your Lord is the Revered, the Mercy Giver.
This [Book] is sent down from the Lord of the worlds,
and brought gradually by The Trustworthy Spirit
to your heart, that you may (Prophet] be among the warners
in a clear perfected [Arabic] tongue.
It is mentioned in the scriptures of the ancients.
Is it not a sign that the scholars of the Children of Israel knew it?
Yet even if We had revealed it to a non-Arab,
and he had recited it to them, they would still not believe in it.
This is how We make it go unheeded through the hearts of those who force others to reject Our messages;
they will not believe until they see the painful punishment
that will come upon them suddenly when they do not expect it.
They will say, “May we have more time?”
Why do they ask that we hasten Our punishment?
Do you see that, if We gave them years of enjoyment,
then inflicted the punishment as promised,
what good would the years of enjoyment be to them?
We have never destroyed a town without sending messengers to warn
and remind it, for We have never been unjust.
The devils did not bring it [this Qur’an] down.
They are not able, nor are they capable.
As they are indeed barred from hearing [what goes on around the throne of His majesty].
So do not invoke another deity besides God, or you will incur punishment.
Warn your closest relatives,
and be humble and kind to the believers who follow you,
but, if they disobey you, then say, “I am not responsible for what you are doing.”
And rely upon The Mighty/Dear, the Mercy Giver,
Who sees you when you arise
and when you move among those who prostrate themselves.
He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.
Shall I inform you upon whom the devils descend?
They descend upon every sinful liar
who readily lends an ear, but most of them are liars.
As for the poets, [only] the perverse follow them;
Do you not see that they wander aimlessly in every valley
and say what they do not do?
But except those [poets) who believe, do righteous deeds, remember God often, and defend themselves after they were wronged. Those who do wrong will Soon know the kind of reversal they will receive!