— 44 verses
A beseecher besought the visitation of chastisement
(a chastisement meant) for the unbelievers, one which none can avert
a chastisement from Allah, the Lord of the ascending steps
by which the angels and the Spirit ascend to Him in one Day the duration of which is fifty thousand years
So, (O Prophet), persevere with gracious perseverance
Verily they think that the chastisement is far off
while We think that it is near at hand
It shall befall on a Day whereon the sky will become like molten brass
and the mountains will become like dyed tufts of wool
and no bosom friend will enquire about any of his bosom friend
although they shall be within sight of one another. The guilty one would fain ransom himself from the torment of that Day by offering his children
and his spouse and his brother
and his kinsfolk who had stood by him
and all persons of the earth, if only he could thus save himself
By no means! It will be the fierce flam
that will strip off the scalp
It shall insistently summon him who turned his back and retreated
and amassed wealth and covetously hoarded it
Verily man is impatient by nature
bewailing when evil befalls him
and tight-fisted when good fortune visits him
except those that pray
and are constant in their Prayer
and those in whose wealth there is a known right
for those that ask and those that are dispossessed
those who firmly believe in the Day of Recompense
and fear the chastisement of their Lord
surely the chastisement of their Lord is a thing none can feel secure from
and those who guard their private parts
except in regard to their spouses and those whom their right hands possess, for in regard to them they are not reproachable
but any who seeks to go beyond that, it is indeed they who are the transgressors
and those who fulfil their trusts and their covenants
and those who are upright in their testimonies
and who take due care of their Prayer
all these shall live honourably in the Gardens
But what is the matter with the unbelievers who are hurrying towards yo
in crowds, both on the right and on the left
Does everyone of them wish to enter the Garden of Bliss
By no means! They know that which We have created them from
I swear by the Lord of the easts and the wests that We have the power
to replace them by others who would be better than they; and We shall certainly not be overpowered
So leave them to engage in vain talk and to amuse themselves until they come face to face with the Day which they are promised
the Day on which they will hastily come forth from their graves, as though they were hurrying on to the altars of their deities
Their eyes will be downcast and disgrace will overwhelm them. Such is the Day that they were promised