OH, THE LAYING-BARE of the truth
How awesome that laying-bare of the truth
And what could make thee conceive what that laying-bare of the truth will be
THE LIE gave [the tribes of] Thamud and ‘Ad to [all tidings of] that sudden calamity
Now as for the Thamud - they were destroyed by a violent upheaval [of the earth]
and as for the ‘Ad - they were destroyed by a storm wind furiously raging
which He willed against them for seven nights and eight days without cease, so that in the end thou couldst see those people laid low [in death], as though they were so many [uprooted] trunks of hollow palm trees
and dost thou now see any remnant of them
And there was Pharaoh, too, and [many of] those who lived before him, and the cities that were overthrown - [all of them] indulged in sin upon si
and rebelled against their Sustainer's apostles: and so He took them to task with a punishing grasp exceedingly severe
[And] behold: when the waters [of Noah's flood] burst beyond all limits, it was We who caused you to be borne [to safety] in that floating ark
so that We might make all this a [lasting] reminder to you all, and that every wide-awake ear might consciously take it in
Hence, [bethink yourselves of the Last Hour,] when the trumpet [of judgment] shall be sounded with a single blast
and the earth and the mountains shall be lifted up and crushed with a single stroke
And so, that which must come to pass will on that day have come to pass
and the sky will be rent asunder - for, frail will it have become on that Day -
and the angels [will appear] at its ends, and, above them, eight will bear aloft on that Day the throne of thy Sustainer’s almightiness…
On that Day you shall be brought to judgment: not [even] the most hidden of your deeds will remain hidden
Now as for him whose record shall be placed in his right hand, he will exclaim: "Come you all!" Read this my record
Behold, I did know that [one day] I would have to face my account
And so he will find himself in a happy state of life
in a lofty paradise
with its fruits within easy reach
[And all who are thus blest will be told:] "Eat and drink with good cheer in return for all [the good deeds] that you have sent ahead in days gone by!"
But as for him whose record shall be placed in his left hand, he will exclaim: "Oh, would that I had never been shown this my record
and neither known this my account
Oh, would that this [death of mine] had been the end of me
Of no avail to me is all that I have [ever] possessed
[and] all my power of argument has died away from me!"
Thereupon the command will go forth:] "Lay hold of him, and shackle him
and then let him enter hell
and then thrust him into a chain [of other sinners like him - a chain] the length whereof is seventy cubits
for, behold, he did not believe in God, the Tremendous
and did not feel any urge to feed the needy
and so, no friend has here today
nor any food save the filt
which none but the sinners eat!"
BUT NAY! I call to witness an that you can see
as well as all that you cannot see
Behold, this [Qur’an] is indeed the [inspired] word of a noble apostle
and is not – however little you may [be prepared to] believe it - the word of a poet
and neither is it - however little you may [be prepared to] take it to heart - the word of a soothsayer
[it is] a revelation from the Sustainer of all the worlds
Now if he [whom We have entrusted with it] had dared to attribute some [of his own] sayings unto Us
We would indeed have seized him by his right hand
and would indeed have cut his life-vein
and none of you could have saved him
And, verily, this [Qur’an] is a reminder to all the God-conscious
And, behold, well do We know that among you are such as will give the lie to it
yet, behold, this [rejection] will indeed become a source of bitter regret for all who deny the truth [of God's revelation] –
for, verily, it is truth absolute
Extol, then the limitless glory of thy Sustainer's mighty name