LVI. ENTITLED, THE INEVITABLE; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the inevitables day of judgment shall suddenly come, no soul shall charge the prediction of its coming with falsehood: it will abase some, and exalt others. When the earth shall be shaken with a violent shock; and the mountains shall be dashed in pieces, and shall become as dust scattered abroad; and ye shall be separated into three distinct classes: the companions of the right hand; (how happy shall the companions of the right hand be!) and the companions of the left handt (how miserable shall the companions of the left hand be!),
q For the inferior classes of the inhabitants of paradise. r From hence, says al Beidâwi, it may be inferred that these gardens will chiefly produce herbs or the inferior sorts of vegetables, whereas the former will be planted chiefly with fruit-trees. The following part of this description also falls short of that of the other gardens, prepared for the superior classes. s The original word, the force whereof cannot well be expressed by a single one in English, signifies a calamitous accident, which falls surely and with sudden violence, and is therefore made use of here to design the day of judgment. t That is, the blessed and the damned; who may be thus distinguished here, because the books wherein their actions are registered will be delivered into the right hands of the former and into the left hands of the latter,1 thought he words translated right hand and left hand do also signify happiness and misery.
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
10 and those who have preceded others in the faith shall precede them to paradise.u These are they who shall approach near unto God: they shall dwell in gardens of delight: (There shall be many of the former religions; and few of the last.x) Reposing on couches adorned with gold and precious stones; sitting opposite to one another thereon.y Youths which shall continue in their bloom forever, shall go round about to attend them, with goblets, and beakers, and a cup of flowing wine: their heads shall not ache by drinking the same, neither shall their reason be disturbed: 20 and with fruits of the sorts which they shall choose, and the flesh of birds of the kind which they shall desire. And there shall accompany them fair damsels having large black eyes; resembling pearls hidden in their shells: as a reward for that which they shall have wrought. They shall not hear therein any vain discourse, or any charge of sin; but only the salutation, Peace! Peace! And the companions of the right hand (how happy shall the companions of the right hand be!) shall have their abode among lote-trees free from thorns, and trees of mauzz loaded regularly with their produce from top to bottom; under an extended shade, 30 near a flowing water,a and amidst fruits in abundance, which shall not fail, nor shall be forbidden to be gathered: and they shall repose themselves on lofty beds.b Verily we have created the damsels of paradise by a peculiar creation;c and we have made them virgins,d beloved by their husbands, of equal age with them; for the delight of the companions of the right hand. There shall be many of the former religions, and many of the latter.e
u Either the first converts to Mohammedism, or the prophets, who were the respective leaders of their people, or any persons who have been eminent examples of piety and virtue, may be here intended. The original words literally rendered are, The leaders, the leaders: which repetition, as some suppose, was designed to express the dignity of these persons and the certainty of their future glory and happiness.2 x i.e., There shall be more leaders, who have preceded others in faith and good works, among the followers of the several prophets from Adam down to Mohammed, than of the followers of Mohammed himself.3 y See chapter 25, p. 193, note a. z The original word Talh is the name, not only of the mauz,1 but also of a very tall and thorny tree, which bears abundance of flowers of an agreeable smell,2 and seems to be the Acacia. a Which shall be conveyed in channels to such places and in such manner as every one shall desire.3 Al Beidâwi observes that the condition of the few who have preceded others in faith and good works, is represented by whatever may render a city life agreeable; and that the condition of the companions of the right hand, or the generality of the blessed, is represented by those things which make the principal pleasure of a country life; and that this is done to show the difference of the two conditions. b The word translated beds, signifies also, by way of metaphor, wives or concubines; and if the latter sense be preferred, the passage may be rendered thus, And they shall enjoy damsels raised on lofty couches, whom we have created, &c. c Having created them purposely of finer materials than the females of this world, and subject to none of those inconveniences which are natural to the sex.4 Some understand this passage of the beatified women; who, though they died old and ugly, shall yet be restored to their youth and beauty in paradise.5 d For how often soever their husbands shall go in unto them, they shall always find them virgins. e Father Marracci thinks this to be a manifest contradiction to what is said above, There shall be many of the former and few of the latter: but al Beidâwi obviates such an objection, by observing that the preceding passage speaks of the leaders only, and those who have preceded others in faith and good works; and the passage before us speaks of the righteous of inferior merit and degree; so that though there be many of both sorts, yet there may be few of one sort, comparatively speaking, in respect to the other.
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 1 See p. 338. 2 Vide J. Leon. Descript. Africæ, l. 2. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 75, &c. 5 See ibid. p. 80.
40 And the companions of the left hand (how miserable shall the companions of the left hand be!) shall dwell amidst burning winds,f and scalding water, under the shade of a black smoke, neither cool nor agreeable. For they enjoyed the pleasures of life before this, while on earth; and obstinately persisted in a heinous wickedness: and they said, After we shall have died, and become dust and bones, shall we surely be raised to life? Shall our forefathers also be raised with us? Say, Verily both the first and the last 50 shall surely be gathered together to judgment, at the prefixed time of a known day. Then ye, O men, who have erred, and denied the resurrection as a falsehood, shall surely eat of the fruit of the tree of al Zakkum, and shall fill your bellies therewith: and ye shall drink thereon boiling water; and ye shall drink as a thirsty camel drinketh. This shall be their entertainment on the day of judgment. We have created you: will ye not therefore believe that we can raise you from the dead? What think ye? The seed which ye emit, do ye create the same, or are we the creators thereof? 60 We have decreed death unto you all: and we shall not be prevented. We are able to substitute others like unto you in your stead, and to produce you again in the condition or form which ye know not. Ye know the original production by creation; will ye not therefore consider that we are able to produce you by resuscitation? What think ye? The grain which ye sow, do ye cause the same to spring forth, or do we cause it to spring forth? If we pleased, verily we could render the same dry and fruitless, so that ye would not cease to wonder,g saying, Verily we have contracted debtsh for seed and labor, but we are not permittedi to reap the fruit thereof. What think ye? The water which ye drink, do ye send down the same from the clouds, or are we the senders thereof? If we pleased, we could render the same brackish: will ye not therefore give thanks? 70 What think ye? The fire which ye strike, do ye produce the tree whence ye obtain the same,k or are we the producers thereof? We have ordained the same for an admonition,l and an advantage to those who travel through the deserts. Wherefore praise the name of thy LORD, the great God. Moreover I swearm by the setting of the stars; (and it is surely a great oath, if ye knew it;) that this is the excellent Koran, the original whereof is written in the preserved book: none shall touch the same, except those who are clean.n It is a revelation from the LORD of all creatures. 80 Will ye, therefore, despise this new revelation?
f Which shall penetrate into the passages of their bodies. g Or to repent of your time and labour bestowed to little purpose, &c. h Or, We are undone. i Or, We are unfortunate wretches, who are denied the necessaries of life. k See chapter 36, p. 334, note b. l To put men in mind of the resurrection;1 which the production of fire in some sort resembles, or, of the fire of hell.2 m The particle la is generally supposed to be intensive in this place; but if it be taken for a negative, the words must be translated, I will not or do not swear, because what is here asserted is too manifest to need the confirmation of an oath.3 n Or, Let none touch the same, &c. Purity both of body and mind being requisite in him who would use this book with the respect he ought, and hopes to edify by it: for which reason these words are usually written on the cover.4
1 See cap. 36, p. 334. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 54.
And do ye make this return for your food which ye receive from God, that ye deny yourselves to be obliged to him for the same?o When the soul of a dying person cometh up to his throat, and ye at the same time are looking on; (and we are nigher unto him than ye, but ye see not his true condition;) would ye not, if ye are not to be rewarded for your action hereafter, cause the same to return into the body, if ye speak the truth?p And whether he be of those who shall approach near unto God,q his reward shall be rest, and mercy, and a garden of delights: or whether he be of the companions of the right hand, 90 he shall be saluted with the salutation, Peace be unto thee! by the companions of the right hand, his brethren: or whether he be of those who have rejected the true faith, and gone astray, his entertainment shall consist of boiling water, and the burning of hell fire. Verily this is a certain truth. Wherefore praise the name of thy LORD, the great God.
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LVII. ENTITLED, IRON;r REVEALED AT MECCA, OR AT MEDINA.s
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth singeth praise unto GOD; and he is mighty and wise. His is the kingdom of heaven and earth; he giveth life, and he putteth to death; and he is almighty. He is the first, and the last; the manifest and the hidden: and he knoweth all things. It is he who created the heavens and the earth in six days, and then ascended his throne. He knoweth that which entereth into the earth, and that which issueth out of the same, and that which descendeth from heaven, and that which ascendeth thereto; and he is with you, wheresoever ye be: for GOD seeth that which ye do. His is the kingdom of heavens and earth; and unto GOD shall all things return. He causeth the night to succeed the day, and he causeth the day to succeed the night; and he knowest the innermost part of men's breasts. Believe in GOD and his apostle, and lay out in alms a part of the wealth whereof GOD hath made you inheritors: for unto such of you as believe, and bestow alms, shall be given a great reward.
o By ascribing the rains, which fertilize your lands, to the influence of the stars.5 Some copies instead of rizkacom, i.e., your food, read shocracom, i.e., your gratitude; and then the passage may be rendered thus, And do ye make this return of gratitude, for GOD'S revealing the Korân, that ye reject the same as a fiction? p The meaning of this obscure passage is, if ye shall not be obliged to give an account of your actions at the last day, as by your denying the resurrection ye seem to believe, cause the soul of the dying person to return into his body; for ye may as easily do that as avoid the general judgment.6 q That is, of the leaders, or first professors of the faith. r The word occurs toward the end of the chapter. s It is uncertain which of the two places was the scene of revelation of this chapter.
35 5 See ibid. Sect. I. p. 25. 6 Jallal., al Beidâwi.
And what aileth you, that ye believe not in GOD, when the apostle inviteth you to believe in your LORD; and he hath received your covenantt concerning this matter, if ye believe any proposition? It is he who hath sent down unto his servant evident signs, that he may lead you out of darkness into light; for GOD is compassionate and merciful unto you. 10 And what aileth you, that ye contribute not of your substance for the defence of GOD'S true religion? Since unto GOD appertaineth the inheritance of heaven and earth. Those among you who shall have contributed and fought in defence of the faith, before the taking of Mecca, shall not be held equal with those who shall contribute and fight for the same afterwards.u These shall be superior in degree unto those who shall contribute and fight for the propagation of the faith, after the above-mentioned success; but unto all hath GOD promised a most excellent reward; and GOD well knoweth that which ye do. Who is he that will lend unto GOD an acceptable loan? for he will double the same unto him, and he shall receive moreover an honourable reward. On a certain day, thou shalt see the true believers of both sexes: their light shall run before them, and on their right hands;x and it shall be said unto them, Good tidings unto you this day: gardens through which rivers flow; ye shall remain therein forever. This will be great felicity. On that day the hypocritical men and the hypocritical women shall say unto those who believe, Stay for us,y what we may borrow some of your light. It shall be answered, Return back into the world, and seek light. And a high wall shall be set betwixt them, wherein shall be a gate, within which shall be mercy; and without it, over against the same, the torment of hell. The hypocrites shall call out unto the true believers, saying, Were we not with you? They shall answer, Yea; but ye seduced your own souls by your hypocrisy; and ye waited our ruin; and ye doubted concerning the faith; and your wishes deceived you, until the decree of GOD came, and ye died: and the deceiver deceived you concerning GOD. This day, therefore, a ransom shall not be accepted of you, nor of those who have been unbelievers. Your abode shall be hell fire: this is what ye have deserved; and an unhappy journey shall it be thither! Is not the time yet come unto those who believe, that their hearts should humbly submit to the admonition of GOD, and to that truth which hath been revealed; and that they be not as those unto whom the scripture was given heretofore, and to whom the time of forbearance was prolonged, but their hearts were hardened, and many of them were wicked doers? Know that GOD quickeneth the earth, after it hath been dead. Now have we distinctly declared our signs unto you, that ye may understand. Verily as to the almsgivers, both men and women, and those who lend unto GOD an acceptable loan, he will double the same unto them; and they shall moreover receive an honourable reward. And they who believe in GOD and his apostles, these are the men of veracity, and the witnesses in the presence of their LORD: they shall have their reward, and their light. But as to those who believe not, and accuse our signs of falsehood, they shall be the companions of hell.
t That is, ye are obliged to believe in him by the strongest arguments and motives. u Because afterwards there was not so great necessity for either, the Mohammedan religion being firmly established by that great success. x One light leading them the right way to paradise, and the other proceeding from the book wherein their actions are recorded, which they will hold in their right hand. y For the righteous will hasten to paradise swift as lightning.
Know that this present life is only a toy and a vain amusement: and worldly pomp, and the affectation of glory among you, and the multiplying of riches and children, are as the plants nourished by the rain, the springing up whereof delighteth the husbandmen; afterwards they wither, so that thou seest the same turned yellow, and at length they become dry stubble. And in the life to come will be a severe punishment for those who covet worldly grandeur; 20 and pardon from GOD, and favor for those who renounce it: for this present life is no other than a deceitful provision. Hasten with emulation to obtain pardon from your LORD, and paradise, the extent whereof equalleth the extent of heaven and earth, prepared for those who believe in GOD and his apostles. This is the bounty of GOD: he will give the same unto whom he pleaseth; and GOD is endued with great bounty. No accident happeneth in the earth, nor in your persons, but the same was entered in the book of our decrees, before we created it: verily this is easy with GOD: and this is written lest ye immoderately grieve for the good which escapeth you, or rejoice for that which happened unto you; for GOD loveth no proud or vain-glorious person, or those who are covetous, and command men covetousness. And whoso turneth aside from giving alms; verily GOD is self-sufficient, worthy to be praised. We formerly sent our apostles with evident miracles and arguments; and we sent down with them the scriptures and the balance,z that men might observe justice: and we sent them down iron,a wherein is mighty strength for war,b and various advantages unto mankind: that GOD may know who assisteth him and his apostles in secret;c for GOD is strong and mighty. We formerly sent Noah and Abraham, and we established in their posterity the gift of prophecy, and the scripture: and of them some were directed, but many of them were evil-doers. Afterwards we caused our apostles to succeed in their footsteps; and we caused Jesus the son of Mary to succeed them, and we gave him the gospel: and we put in the hearts of those that followed him compassion and mercy: but as to the monastic state, they instituted the same (we did not prescribe it to them) only out of a desire to please GOD; yet they observed not the same as it ought truly to have been observed. And we gave unto such of them as believed their reward: but many of them were wicked doers. O ye who believe in the former prophets,d fear GOD, and believe in his apostle Mohammed: he will give you two portions of his mercy,e and he will ordain a light wherein ye may walk, and he will forgive you; for GOD is ready to forgive, and merciful: that those who have received the scriptures may know that they have not power over any of the favours of GOD,f and that good is in the hand of GOD; he bestoweth the same on whom he pleaseth; for GOD is endued with great beneficence.
z i.e., A rule of justice. Some think that a balance was actually brought down from heaven by the angel Gabriel to Noah, the use of which he was ordered to introduce among his people. a That is, we taught them how to dig the same from mines. Al Zamakhshari adds, that Adam is said to have brought down with him from paradise five things made of iron, viz., an anvil, a pair of tongs, two hammers, a greater and a lesser, and a needle. b Warlike instruments and weapons being generally made of iron. c That is, sincerely and heartily. d These words are directed to the Jews and Christians, or rather to the latter only. e One as a recompence for their believing in Mohammed, and the other as a recompense for their believing in the prophets who preceded him; for they will not lose the reward of their former religion, though it be now abrogated by the promulgation of Islâm.1 f i.e., That they cannot expect to receive any of the favours above mentioned, because they believe not in his apostle, and those favours are annexed to faith in him; or, that they have not power to dispose of GOD'S favours, particularly of the greatest of them, the gift of prophecy, so as to appropriate the same to whom they please.1
1 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
LVIII. ENTITLED, SHE WHO DISPUTED; REVEALED AT MEDINA.g
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
NOW hath GOD heard the speech of her who disputed with thee concerning her husband, and made her complaint unto GOD;h and GOD hath heard your mutual discourse: for GOD both heareth and seeth. As to those among you who divorce their wives, by declaring that they will thereafter regard them as their mothers; let them know that they are not their mothers. They only are their mothers who brought them forth;i and they certainly utter an unjustifiable saying and a falsehood: but GOD is gracious and ready to forgive. Those who divorce their wives by declaring that they will for the future regard them as their mothers, and afterwards would repairk what they have said, shall be obliged to free a captive,l before they touch one another. That is what ye are warned to perform: and GOD is well apprised of that which ye do. And whoso findeth not a captive to redeem, shall observe a fast of two consecutive months, before they touch one another. And whoso shall not be able to fast that time, shall feed threescore poor men. This is ordained you, that ye may believe in GOD and his apostle. These are the statutes of GOD: and for the unbelievers is prepared a grievous torment. Verily they who oppose GOD and his apostle shall be brought low, as the unbelievers who preceded them were brought low. And now have we sent down manifest signs: and an ignominious punishment awaiteth the unbelievers.
g Some are of opinion that the first ten verses of this chapter, ending with these words, and fear GOD, before whom ye shall be assembled, were revealed at Mecca, and the rest at Medina.2 h This was Khawla bint Thálaba, the wife of Aws Ebn al Sâmat, who, being divorced by her husband by a form in use among the Arabs in the time of ignorance, viz., by saying to her, Thou art to me as the back of my mother,3 came to ask Mohammed's opinion whether they were necessarily obliged to a separation; and he told her that it was not lawful for her to cohabit with her husband any more: to which she replying, that her husband had not put her away, the prophet repeated his former decision, adding that such form of speaking was by general consent understood to imply a perpetual separation. Upon this the woman, being greatly concerned because of the smallness of her children, went home, and uttered her complaint to GOD in prayer: and thereupon this passage was revealed,4 allowing a man to take his wife again, notwithstanding his having pronounced the above-mentioned form of divorce, on doing certain acts of charity or mortification, by way of penance. i And therefore no woman ought to be placed in the same degree of prohibition, except those whom GOD has joined with them, as nursing mothers, and the wives of the prophet.5 k This seems to be here the true meaning of the original word, which properly signifies to return, and is variously expounded by the Mohammedan doctors. l Which captive, according to the most received decision, ought to be a true believer, as is ordered for the expiation of manslaughter.6
2 Idem. 3 See cap. 33, p. 312. 4 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. 5 Al Beidâwi See cap. 4, p. 56, and cap. 33, p. 319. 6 See cap. 4, p. 64.
On a certain day GOD shall raise them all to life, and shall declare unto them that which they have wrought. GOD hath taken an exact account thereof; but they have forgotten the same: and GOD is witness over all things. Dost thou not perceive that GOD knoweth whatever is in heaven and in earth? There is no private discourse among three persons, but he is the fourth of them; nor among five, but he is the sixth of them; neither among a smaller number than this, nor a larger, but he is with them, wheresoever they be: and he will declare unto them that which they have done, on the day of resurrection; for GOD knoweth all things. Hast thou not observed those who have been forbidden to use clandestine discourse, but afterwards return to what they have been forbidden, and discourse privily among themselves of wickedness, and enmity, and disobedience towards the apostle?m And when they come unto thee, they salute thee with that form of salutation wherewith GOD doth not salute thee;n and they say among themselves, by way of derision, Would not GOD punish us for what we say, if this man were a prophet? Hell shall be their sufficient punishment: they shall go down into the same to be burned; and an unhappy journey shall it be! 10 O true believers, when ye discourse privily together, discourse not of wickedness, and enmity, and disobedience towards the apostle; but discourse of justice and piety: and fear GOD, before whom ye shall be assembled. Verily the clandestine discourse of the infidels proceedeth from Satan, that he may grieve the true believers: but there shall be none to hurt them in the least, unless by the permission of GOD; wherefore in GOD let the faithful trust. O true believers, when it is said unto you, Make room in the assembly; make room:o GOD will grant you ample room in paradise. And when it is said unto you, Rise up; rise up: GOD will raise those of you who believe, and those to whom knowledge is given, to superior degrees of honour; and GOD is fully apprised of that which ye do. O true believers, when ye go to speak with the apostle, give alms previously to your discoursing with him;p this will be better for you, and more pure. But if ye find not what to give, verily GOD will be gracious and merciful unto you. Do ye fear to give alms previously to your discoursing with the prophet, lest ye should impoverish yourselves? Therefore if ye do it not, and GOD is gracious unto you, by dispensing with the said precept for the future, be constant at prayer, and pay the legal alms; and obey GOD and his apostle in all other matters: for GOD well knoweth that which ye do.
m That is, the Jews and hypocritical Moslems, who caballed privately together against Mohammed, and made signs to one another when they saw the true believers; and this they continued to do, notwithstanding they were forbidden. n It seems they used, instead of Al salâm aleica, i.e., Peace be upon thee, to say, Al sâm aleica, i.e., Mischief on thee, &c.1 o In this passage the Moslems are commanded to give place, in the public assemblies, to the prophet and the more honourable of his companions; and not to press and crowd upon him, as they used to do, out of a desire of being near him, and hearing his discourse. p To show your sincerity, and to honour the apostle. It is doubted whether this be a counsel or a precept; but, however, it continued but a very little while in force, being agreed on all hands to be abrogated by the following passage, Do ye fear to give alms, &c.2
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem
Hast thou not observed those who have taken for their friends a people against whom GOD is incensed?q They are neither of you, nor of them:r and they swear to a lies knowingly. GOD hath prepared for them a grievous punishment; for it is evil which they do. They have taken their oaths for a cloak, and they have turned men aside from the way of GOD: wherefore a shameful punishment awaiteth them; neither their wealth nor their children shall avail them at all against GOD. These shall be the inhabitants of hell fire; they shall abide therein forever. On a certain day GOD shall raise them all: then will they swear unto him, as they swear now unto you, imagining that it will be of service to them. Are they not liars? 20 Satan hath prevailed against them, and hath caused them to forget the remembrance of GOD. These are the party of the devil; and shall not the party of the devil be doomed to perdition? Verily they who oppose GOD and his apostle shall be placed among the most vile. GOD hath written, Verily I will prevail, and my apostles: for GOD is strong and mighty. Thou shalt not find people who believe in GOD and the last day to love him who opposeth GOD and his apostle; although they be their fathers, or their sons, or their brethren, or their nearest relations. In the hearts of these hath GOD written faith; and he hath strengthened them with his spirit: and he will lead them into gardens, beneath which rivers flow, to remain therein forever. GOD is well pleased in them; and they are well pleased in him. These are the party of GOD: and shall not the party of GOD prosper?
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LIX. ENTITLED, THE EMIGRATION;t REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth celebrateth the praise of GOD: and he is the mighty, the wise.
q i.e., The Jews. r Being hypocrites, and wavering between the two parties. s i.e., They have solemnly professed Islâm, which they believe not in their hearts. t The original word signifies the quitting or removing from one's native country or settlement, to dwell elsewhere, whether it be by choice or compulsion.
It was he who caused those who believed not, of the people who receive the scripture, to depart from their habitations at the first emigration.u Ye did not think that they would go forth: and they thought that their fortresses would protect them against GOD. But the chastisement of GOD came upon them, from whence they did not expect; and he cast terror into their hearts. They pulled down their houses with their own hands,x and the hands of the true believers. Wherefore take example from them, O ye who have eyes. And if GOD had not doomed them to banishment, he had surely punished them in this world:y and in the world to come they shall suffer the torment of hell fire. This, because they opposed GOD and his apostle: and whoso opposeth GOD, verily GOD will be severe in punishing him. What palm-trees ye cut down, or left standing on their roots, were so cut down or left by the will of GOD; and that he might disgrace the wicked doers. And as to the spoils of these people which GOD hath granted wholly to his apostle,z ye did not push forward any horses or camels against the same;a but GOD giveth unto his apostles dominion over whom he pleaseth: for GOD is almighty. The spoils of the inhabitants of the towns which GOD hath granted to his apostle are due unto GOD and to the apostle, and to him who is of kin to the apostle, and the orphans, and the poor, and the traveller; that they may not be forever divided in a circle among such of you as are rich. What the apostle shall give you, that accept; and what he shall forbid you, that abstain from: and fear GOD; for GOD is severe in chastising. A part also belongeth to the poor Mohâjerîn,b who have been dispossessed of their houses and their substance, seeking favor from GOD, and his good- will, and assisting GOD and his apostle. These are the men of veracity.
u The people here intended were the Jews of the tribe of al Nadîr, who dwelt in Medina, and when Mohammed fled thither from Mecca, promised him to stand neuter between him and his opponents, and made a treaty with him to that purpose. When he had gained the battle of Bedr, they confessed that he was the prophet described in the law: but upon his receiving that disgrace at Ohod, they changed their note; and Caab Ebn al Ashraf, with forty horse, went and made a league with Abu Sofiân, which they confirmed by oath. Upon this, Mohammed got Caab dispatched, and, in the fourth year of the Hejra, set forward against al Nadîr, and besieged them in their fortress, which stood about three miles from Medina, for six days, at the end of which they capitulated, and were allowed to depart, on condition that they should entirely quit that place: and accordingly some of them went into Syria, and others to Khaibar and Hira.1 This was the first emigration, mentioned in the passage before us. The other happened several years after, in the reign of Omar, when that Khalîf banished those who had settled at Khaibar, and obliged them to depart out of Arabia.2 Dr. Prideaux, speaking of Mohammed's obliging those of al Nadîr to quit their settlements, says that a party of his men pursued those who fled into Syria, and having overtaken them, put them all to the sword, excepting only one man that escaped. With such cruelty, continues he, did those barbarians first set up to fight for that imposture they had been deluded into.3 But a learned gentleman has already observed that this is all grounded on a mistake, which the doctor was led into by an imperfection in the printed edition of Elmacinus; where, after mentioning the expulsion of the Nadîrites, are inserted som e incoherent words relating to another action which happened the month before, and wherein seventy Moslems, instead of putting others to the sword, were surprised and put to the sword themselves, together with their leader al Mondar Ebn Omar, Caab Ebn Zeid alone escaping.4 x Doing what damage they could, that the Moslems might make the less advantage of what they were obliged to leave behind them. y By delivering them up to slaughter and captivity, as he did those of Koreidha. z It is remarkable that in this expedition the spoils were not divided according to the law given for that purpose in the Korân,5 but were granted to the apostle, and declared to be entirely in his disposition. And the reason was, because the place was taken without the assistance of horse, which became a rule for the future.6 a For the settlement of those of al Nadîr being so near Medina, the Moslems went all on foot thither, except only the prophet himself.7 b Wherefore Mohammed distributed those spoils among the Mohâjerîn, or those who had fled from Mecca, only, and gave no part thereof to the Ansârs, or those of Medina, except only to three of them, who were in necessitous circumstances.8
1 Al Beidâwi, Jallal. &c. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. c. 35. 2 Idem interp. 3 Prid. Life of Mah. p. 82. 4 Vide Gagnier, not. in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 72. 5 Cap. 8, p. 130. 6 Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 91. 7 Al Beidâwi. 8 Idem. Vide Abulf. ubi sup. p. 72.
And they who quietly possessed the town of Medina, and professed the faith without molestation, before them,c love him who hath fled unto them, and find in their breasts no want of that which is given the Mohâjerîn,d but prefer them before themselves, although there be indigence among them. And whoso is preserved from the covetousness of his own soul, those shall surely prosper. 10 And they who have come after theme say, O LORD, forgive us and our brethren who have preceded us in the faith, and put not into our hearts ill- will against those who have believed: O LORD, verily thou art compassionate and merciful. Hast thou not observed them who play the hypocrites? They say unto their brethren who believe not, of those who have received the scriptures,f Verily if ye be expelled your habitations, we will surely go forth with you; and we will not pay obedience, in your respect, unto any one forever: and if ye be attacked, we will certainly assist you. But GOD is witness that they are liars. Verily if they be expelled, they will not go forth with them: and if they be attacked, they will not assist them;g and if they do assist them, they will surely turn their backs: and they shall not be protected. Verily ye are stronger than they, by reason of the terror cast into their breasts from GOD. This, because they are not people of prudence. They will not fight against you in a body, except in fenced towns, or from behind walls. Their strength in war among themselves is great:h thou thinkest them to be united; but their hearts are divided. This, because they are people who do not understand. Like those who lately preceded them,i they have tasted the evil consequence of their deed; and a painful torment is prepared for them hereafter. Thus have the hypocrites deceived the Jews: like the devil, when he saith unto a man, Be thou an infidel; and when he is become an infidel, he saith, Verily I am clear of thee; for I fear GOD, the LORD of all creatures. Wherefore the end of them both shall be that they shall dwell in hell fire, abiding therein forever: and this shall be the recompense of the unjust. O true believers, fear GOD; and let a soul look what it sendeth before for the morrow:k and fear GOD, for GOD is well acquainted with that which ye do. And be not as those who have forgotten GOD, and whom he hath caused to forget their own souls: these are the wicked doers. 20 The inhabitants of hell fire and the inhabitants of paradise shall not be held equal. The inhabitants of paradise are they who shall enjoy felicity. If we had sent down this Koran on a mountain, thou wouldest certainly have seen the same humble itself, and cleave in sunder for fear of GOD. These similitudes do we propose unto men, that they may consider. He is GOD, besides whom there is no GOD; who knoweth that which is future, and that which is present: he is the most Merciful;
c That is, the Ansârs; who enjoyed their houses and the free exercise of their religion before the Hejra, while the converts of Mecca were persecuted and harassed by the idolaters. d i.e., And bear them no grudge or envy on that account. e The persons here meant seem to be those who fled from Mecca after Mohammed began to gain strength, and his religion had made a considerable progress. f That is, the Jews of the tribe of al Nadîr. g And it happened accordingly; for Ebn Obba and his confederates wrote to the Nadîrites to this purpose, but never performed their promise.1 h i.e., It is not their weakness or cowardice which makes them decline a field battle with you, since they show strength and valour enough in their wars with one another; but both fail them when they enter into the lists with GOD and his apostle. i viz., The idolaters who were slain at Bedr; or the Jews of Kainokâ, who were plundered and sent into exile before those of al Nadîr. k That is, for the next life, which may be called the morrow, as this present life may be called to-day.
1 Al Beidâwi.
he is GOD, besides whom there is no GOD: the King, the Holy, the Giver of peace, the Faithful, the Guardian, the Powerful, the Strong, the most High. Far be GOD exalted above the idols which they associate with him! He is GOD, the Creator, the Maker, the Former. He hath most excellent names.l Whatever is in heaven and in earth praiseth him: and he is the Mighty, the Wise.
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LX. ENTITLED, SHE WHO IS TRIED;m REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O TRUE believers, take not my enemy and your enemy for your friends,n showing kindness towards them; since they believe not in the truth which hath come unto you, having expelled the apostle and yourselves from your native city, because ye believe in GOD, your LORD. If ye go forth to fight in defence of my religion, and out of a desire to please me, and privately show friendship unto them;o verily I well know that which ye conceal, and that which ye discover: and whoever of you doth this, hath already erred from the straight path. If they get the better of you, they will be enemies unto you, and they will stretch forth their hands and their tongues against you with evil: and they earnestly desire that ye should become unbelievers. Neither your kindred nor your children will avail you at all on the day of resurrection, which will separate you from one another: and GOD seeth that which ye do. Ye have an excellent pattern in Abraham, and those who were with him, when they said unto their people, Verily we are clear of you, and of the idols which ye worship, besides GOD: we have renounced you; and enmity and hatred is begun between us and you forever, until ye believe in GOD alone: except Abraham's saying unto his father, Verily I will beg pardon for thee:p but I cannot obtain aught of GOD in thy behalf. O LORD, in thee do we trust, and unto thee are we turned; and before thee shall we be assembled hereafter.
l See cap. 7, p. 123, note x. m This chapter bears this title because it directs the women who desert and come over from the infidels to the Moslems to be examined, and tried whether they be sincere in their profession of the faith. n This passage was revealed on account of Hateb Ebn Abi Balpaa, who understanding that Mohammed had a design to surprise Mecca, wrote a letter to the Koreish, giving them notice of the intended expedition, and advised them to be on their guard: which letter he sent by Sarah, a maid-servant belonging to the family of Hâshem. The messenger had not been gone long, before Gabriel discovered the affair to the prophet, who immediately sent after her; and having intercepted the letter, asked Hateb how he came to be guilty of such an action? To which he replied that it was not out of infidelity, or a desire to return to idolatry, but merely to induce the Koreish to treat his family, which was still at Mecca, with some kindness; adding that he was well assured his intelligence would be of no service at all to the Meccans, because he was satisfied GOD would take vengeance on them. Whereupon Mohammed received his excuse and pardoned him; but it was thought proper to forbid any such practices for the future.1 o The verb here used has also a contrary signification, according to which the words may be rendered, and yet openly show friendship unto them. p For in this Abraham's example is not to be followed. See chapter 9, p. 148.
1 Idem. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 192.
O LORD, suffer us not to be put to trial by the unbelievers:q and forgive us, O LORD; for thou art mighty and wise. Verily ye have in them an excellent example, unto him who hopeth in GOD and the last day: and whoso turneth back; verily GOD is self-sufficient, and praiseworthy. Peradventure GOD will establish friendship between yourselves and such of them as ye now hold for enemies:r for GOD is powerful; and GOD is inclined to forgive, and merciful. As to those who have not borne arms against you on account of religion, nor turned you out of your dwellings, GOD forbiddeth you not to deal kindly with them, and to behave justly towards them:s for GOD loveth those who act justly. But as to those who have borne arms against you on account of religion, and have dispossessed you of your habitations, and have assisted in dispossessing you, GOD forbiddeth you to enter into friendship with them: and whosoever of you entereth into friendship with them, those are unjust doers. 10 O true believers, when believing women come unto you as refugees, try them: GOD well knoweth their faith. And if ye know them to be true believers, send them not back to the infidels: they are not lawful for the unbelievers to have in marriage; neither are the unbelievers lawful for them. But give their unbelieving husbands what they shall have expended for their dowers.t Nor shall it be any crime in you if ye marry them, provided ye give them their dowries.u And retain not the patronage of the unbelieving women: but demand back that which ye have expended for the dowry of such of your wives as go over to the unbelievers; and let them demand back that which they have expended for the dowry of those who come over to you. This is the judgment of GOD, which he establisheth among you: and GOD is knowing and wise.
q i.e., Suffer them not to prevail against us, lest they thence conclude themselves to be in the right, and endeavour to make us deny our faith by the terror of persecution.1 r And this happened accordingly on the taking of Mecca; when Abu Sofiân and others of the Koreish, who had till then been inveterate enemies to the Moslems, embraced the same faith, and became their friends and brethren. Some suppose the marriage of Mohammed with Omm Habîba, the daughter of Abu Sofiân, which was celebrated the year before, to be here intended.2 s This passage, it is said, was revealed on account of Koteila bint Abd'al Uzza, who having, while she was an idolatress, brought some presents to her daughter, Asma bint Abi Becr, the latter not only refused to accept them, but even denied her admittance.3 t For, according to the terms of the pacification of al Hodeibiya,4 each side was to return whatever came into their power belonging to the other; wherefore when the Moslems were, by this passage, forbidden to restore the married women who should come over to them, they were at the same time commanded to make some sort of satisfaction, by returning their dowry. It is related that, after the aforesaid pacification, while Mohammed was yet at al Hodeibiya, Sobeia bint al Hareth, of the tribe of Aslam, having embrace Mohammedism, her husband, Mosâfer the Makhzumite, came and demanded her back; upon which this passage was revealed: and Mohammed, pursuant thereto, administered to her the oath thereafter directed, and returned her husband her dower; and then Omar married her.5 u For what is returned to their former husbands is not to be considered as their dower.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Gagnier, not in Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 91. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See cap. 48, p. 380, &c. 5 Al Beidâwi.
If any of your wivesx escape from you to the unbelievers, and ye have your turn by the coming over of any of the unbelievers' wives to you;y give unto those believers whose wives shall have gone away, out of the dowries of the latter, so much as they shall have expended for the dowers of the former: and fear GOD, in whom ye believe. O prophet, when believing women come unto thee, and plight their faith unto thee,z that they will not associate anything with GOD, nor steal, nor commit fornication, nor kill their children,a nor come with a calumny which they have forged between their hands and their feet,b nor be disobedient to thee in that which shall be reasonable: then do thou plight thy faith unto them, and ask pardon for them of GOD; for GOD is inclined to forgive, and merciful. O true believers, enter not into friendship with a people against whom GOD is incensed;c they despair of the life to come,d as the infidels despair of the resurrection of those who dwell in the graves.
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LXI. ENTITLED, BATTLE-ARRAY; REVEALED AT MECCA.e
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and in earth celebrateth the praise of GOD; for he is mighty and wise. O true believers, why do ye say that which ye do not?f It is most odious in the sight of GOD, that ye say that which ye do not. Verily GOD loveth those who fight for his religion in battle-array, as though they were a well-compacted building. Remember when Moses said unto his people, O my people, why do ye injure me;g since ye know that I am the apostle of GOD sent unto you? And when they had deviated from the truth, GOD made their hearts to deviate from the right way; for GOD directeth not wicked people.
x Literally, anything of your wives; which some interpret, any part of their dowry. y Or, as the original verb may also be translated, and ye take spoils; in which case the meaning will be, that those Moslems, whose wives shall have gone over to the infidels, shall have a satisfaction for their dower out of the next booty. This law, they saw, was given because of the idolaters, after the preceding verse had been revealed, refused to comply therewith, or to make any return of the dower of those women who went over to them from the Moslems;1 so that the latter were obliged to indemnify themselves as they could. z See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 37. Some are of opinion that this passage was not revealed till the day of the taking of Mecca; when, after having received the solemn submission of the men, he proceeded to receive that of the women.2 a See chapter 81. b Jallalo'ddin understands these words of their laying their spurious children to their husbands. c i.e., The infidels in general; or the Jews in particular.3 d By reason of their infidelity; or because they well know they cannot expect to be made partakers of the happiness of the next life, by reason of their rejecting of the prophet foretold in the law, and whose mission is confirmed by miracles.4 e Or, as some rather judge, at Medina; which opinion is confirmed by the explication in the next note. f The commentators generally suppose these words to be directed to the Moslems, who, notwithstanding they had solemnly engaged to spend their lives and fortunes in defence of their faith, yet shamefully turned their backs at the battle of Ohod.5 They may, however, be applied to hypocrites of all sorts, whose actions contradict their words. g viz., By your disobedience; or by maliciously aspersing me.6
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 See cap. I, p. 1. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Cap. 3, p. 45, &c. 6 See cap. 33, p. 320.
And when Jesus the Son of Mary said, O children of Israel, verily I am the apostle of GOD sent unto you, confirming the law which was delivered before me, and bringing good tidings of an apostle who shall come after me, and whose name shall be Ahmed.i And when he produced unto them evident miracles, they said, This is manifest sorcery. But who is more unjust than he who forgeth a lie against GOD, when he is invited unto Islam? And GOD directeth not the unjust people. They seek to extinguish GOD'S light with their mouths: but GOD will perfect his light, though the infidels be averse thereto. It is he who hath sent his apostle with the direction, and the religion of truth, that he may exalt the same above every religion, although the idolaters be averse thereto. 10 O true believers, shall I show you a merchandise which will deliver you from a painful torment hereafter? Believe in GOD and his apostle; and defend GOD'S true religion with your substance, and in your own persons. This will be better for you, if ye knew it. He will forgive you your sins, and will introduce you into gardens through which rivers flow, and agreeable habitations in gardens of perpetual abode. This will be great felicity. And ye shall obtain other things which ye desire, namely, assistance from GOD, and a speedy victory. And do thou bear good tidings to the true believers. O true believers, be ye assistants of GOD; as Jesus the son of Mary said to the apostles, Who will be my assistants with respect to GOD?k The apostles answered, We will be the assistants of GOD. So a part of the children of Israel believed, and a part believed not:l but we strengthened those who believed, above their enemy; wherefore they became victorious over them.
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LXII. ENTITLED, THE ASSEMBLY; REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth praiseth GOD; the King, the Holy, the Mighty, the Wise.
i For Mohammed also bore the name of Ahmed; both names being derived from the same root, and nearly of the same signification. The Persian paraphrast, to support what is here alleged, quotes the following words of Christ, I go to my father, and the Paraclete shall come:7 the Mohammedan doctors unanimously teaching that by the Paraclete (or, as they choose to read it, the Periclyte, or Illustrious) their prophet is intended, and no other.8 k See chapter 3, p. 38. l Either by rejecting him, or by affirming him to be GOD, and the son of GOD.9
7 See John xvi. 7, &c. 8 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 58. 9 Jallalo'ddin.
It is he who hath raised up amidst the illiterate Arabians an apostle from among themselves,m to rehearse his signs unto them, and to purify them, and to teach them the scriptures and wisdom; whereas before they were certainly in a manifest error; and others of them have not yet attained unto them, by embracing the faith; though they also shall be converted in God's good time; for he is mighty and wise. This is the free grace of GOD: he bestoweth the same on whom he pleaseth: and GOD is endued with great beneficence. The likeness of those who were charged with the observance of the law, and then observed it not, is as the likeness of an ass laden with books.n How wretched is the likeness of the people who charge the signs of GOD with falsehood! and GOD directeth not the unjust people. Say, O ye who follow the Jewish religion, if ye say that ye are the friends of GOD above other men, wish for death,o if ye speak truth. But they will never wish for it, because of that which their hands have sent before them:p and GOD well knoweth the unjust. Say, Verily death, from which ye fly, will surely meet you: then shall ye be brought before him who knoweth as well what is concealed as what is discovered; and he will declare unto you that which ye have done. O true believers, when ye are called to prayer on the day of assembly,q hasten to the commemoration of GOD and leave merchandising. This will be better for you, if you knew it. 10 And when prayer is ended, then disperse yourselves through the land as ye list, and seek gain of the liberality of GOD:r and remember GOD frequently, that ye may prosper. But when they see any merchandising, or sport, they flock thereto, and leave thee standing up in the pulpit.s Say, The reward which is with GOD is better than any sport or merchandise: and GOD is the best provider.
m See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 32. n Because they understand not the prophecies contained in the law, which bear witness to Mohammed, no more than the ass does the books he carries. o i.e., Make it your request to GOD that he would translate you from this troublesome world to a state of never-fading bliss. p See chapter 2, p. 11. q That is, Friday, which being more peculiarly set apart by Mohammed for the public worship of GOD, is therefore called Yawm al jomá, i.e., the day of the assembly or congregation; whereas before it was called al Arûba. The first time this day was particularly observed, as some say, was on the prophet's arrival at Medina, into which city he made his first entry on a Friday: but others tell us that Caab Ebn Lowa, one of Mohammed's ancestors, gave the day its present name, because on that day the people used to be assembled before him.1 One reason given for the observation of Friday, preferably to any other day of the week, is because on that day GOD finished the creation.2 By returning to your commerce and worldly occupations, if ye think fit: for the Mohammedans do not hold themselves obliged to observe the day of their public assembly with the same strictness as the Christians and Jews do their respective Sabbath; or particularly to abstain from work, after they have performed their devotions. Some, however, from a tradition of their prophet, are of opinion that works of charity, and religious exercises, which may draw down the blessing of GOD, are recommended in this passage. r It is related that one Friday, while Mohammed was preaching, a caravan of merchants happened to arrive with their drums beating, according to custom; which the congregation hearing, they all ran out of the mosque to see them, except twelve only.3
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Vide Gol. in Alfrag p. 15. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin.
LXIII. ENTITLED, THE HYPOCRITES; REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the hypocrites come unto thee, they say, We bear witness that thou art indeed the apostle of GOD. And GOD knoweth that thou art indeed his apostle: but GOD beareth witness that the hypocrites are certainly liars. They have taken their oaths for a protection, and they turn others aside from the way of GOD: it is surely evil which they do. This is testified of them, because they believed, and afterwards became unbelievers: wherefore a seal is set on their hearts, and they shall not understand. When thou beholdest them, their persons please thee:t and if they speak, thou hearest their discourse with delight. They resemble pieces of timber set up against a wall.u They imagine every shout to be against them.x They are enemies: wherefore beware of them. GOD curse them: how are they turned aside from the truth! And when it is said unto them, Come, that the apostle of GOD may ask pardon for you; they turn away their heads, and thou seest them retire big with disdain. It shall be equal unto them, whether thou ask pardon for them, or do not ask pardon for them: GOD will by no means forgive them; for GOD directeth not the prevaricating people. These are the men who say to the inhabitants of Medina, Do not bestow anything on the refugees who are with the apostle of GOD, that they may be obliged to separate from him. Whereas unto GOD belong the stores of heaven and earth: but the hypocrites do not understand. They say, Verily, if we return to Medina, the worthier shall expel thence the meaner.y Whereas superior worth belongeth unto GOD and his apostle, and the true believers: but the hypocrites know it not. O true believers, let not your riches or your children divert you from the remembrance of GOD: for whosoever doth this, they will surely be losers. 10 And give alms out of that which we have bestowed on you; before death come unto one of you, and he say, O LORD, wilt thou not grant me respite for a short term: that I may give alms, and become one of the righteous? For GOD will by no means grant further respite to a soul, when its determined time is come: and GOD is fully apprised of that which ye do.
t The commentators tell us, that Abdallah Ebn Obba, a chief hypocrite, was a tall man of a very graceful presence, and of a ready and eloquent tongue; and used to frequent the prophet's assembly, attended by several like himself; and that these men were greatly admired by Mohammed, who was taken with their handsome appearance, and listened to their discourse with pleasure.1 u Being tall and big, but void of knowledge and consideration.2 x Living under continual apprehensions; because they are conscious of their hypocrisy towards GOD, and their insincerity towards the Moslems. y These, as well as the preceding, were the words of Ebn Obba to one of Medina, who in a certain expedition quarrelling with an Arab of the desert about water, received a blow on the head with a stick, and made his complaint thereof to him.3
1 Al Beidâwi 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
LXIV. ENTITLED, MUTUAL DECEIT; REVEALED AT MECCA.z
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHATEVER is in heaven and earth celebrateth the praises of GOD: his is the kingdom, and unto him is the praise due; for he is almighty. It is he who hath created you; and one of you is predestined to be an unbeliever, and another of you is predestined to be a believer: and GOD beholdeth that which ye do. He hath created the heavens and the earth with truth; and he hath fashioned you, and given you beautiful forms: and unto him must ye all go. He knoweth whatever is in heaven and earth: and he knoweth that which ye conceal, and that which ye discover; for GOD knoweth the innermost part of men's breasts. Have ye not been acquainted with the story of those who disbelieved heretofore, and tasted the evil consequence of their behavior? And for them is prepared in the life to come a tormenting punishment. This shall they suffer, because their apostles came unto them with evident proofs of their mission, and they said, Shall men direct us? Wherefore they believed not, and turned their backs. But GOD standeth in need of no person: for GOD is self-sufficient, and worthy to be praised. The unbelievers imagine that they shall not be raised again. Say, Yea, by my LORD, ye shall surely be raised again; then shall ye be told that which ye have wrought; and this is easy with GOD. Wherefore believe in GOD and his apostle, and the light which we have sent down: for GOD is well acquainted with that which ye do. On a certain day he shall assemble you, at the day of the general assembly: that will be the day of mutual deceit.a And whoso shall believe in GOD, and shall do that which is right, from him will he expiate his evil deeds, and he will lead him into gardens beneath which rivers flow, to remain therein forever. This will be great felicity. 10 But they who shall not believe, and shall accuse our signs of falsehood, those shall be the inhabitants of hell fire, wherein they shall remain forever; and a wretched journey shall it be thither! No misfortune happeneth but by the permission of GOD; and whoso believeth in GOD, he will direct his heart: and GOD knoweth all things. Wherefore obey GOD, and obey the apostle: but if ye turn back, verily the duty incumbent on our apostle is only public preaching. GOD! there is no GOD but he: wherefore in GOD let the faithful put their trust. O true believers, verily of your wives and your children ye have an enemy:b wherefore beware of them. But if ye pass over their offences, and pardon, and forgive them;c GOD is likewise inclined to forgive, and merciful.
z The commentators are not agreed whether this chapter was revealed at Mecca, or at Medina; or partly at the one place, and partly at the other. a When the blessed will deceive the damned, by taking the places which they would have had in paradise had they been true believers; and contrariwise.1 b For these are apt to distract a man from his duty, especially in time of distress;2 a married man caring for the things that are of this world, while the unmarried careth for the things that belong to the LORD.3 c Considering that the hindrance they may occasion you proceeds from their affection, and their ill bearing your absence in time of war, &c.
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin, Yahya. 2 Idem. 3 See I Cor. vii. 25, &c.
Your wealth and your children are only a temptation; but with GOD is a great reward. Wherefore fear GOD, as much as ye are able; and hear, and obey: and give alms, for the good of your souls; for whoso is preserved from the covetousness of his own soul, they shall prosper. If ye lend unto GOD an acceptable loan, he will double the same unto you, and will forgive you: for GOD is grateful, and long-suffering, knowing both what is hidden, and what is divulged; the Mighty, the Wise.
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LXV. ENTITLED, DIVORCE; REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O PROPHET, when ye divorce women, put them away at their appointed term;d and compute the term exactly: and fear GOD, your LORD. Oblige them not to go out of their apartments, neither let them go out, until the term be expired, unless they be guilty of manifest uncleanness. These are the statutes of GOD: and whoever transgresseth the statutes of GOD assuredly injureth his own soul. Thou knowest not whether GOD will bring something new to pass, which may reconcile them after this. And when they shall have fulfilled their term, either retain them with kindness, or part from them honourably: and take witnesses from among you, men of integrity; and give your testimony as in the presence of GOD. This admonition is given unto him who believeth in GOD and the last day: and whoso feareth GOD, unto him will he grant a happy issue out of all his afflictions, and he will bestow on him an ample provision from whence he expecteth it not: and whoso trusteth in GOD, he will be his sufficient support; for GOD will surely attain his purpose. Now hath GOD appointed unto everything a determined period. As to such of your wives as shall despair having their courses, by reason of their age; if ye be in doubt thereof, let their term be three months: and let the same be the term of those who have not yet had their courses. But as to those who are pregnant, their term shall be, until they be delivered of their burden.e And whoso feareth GOD, unto him will he make his command easy. This is the command of GOD, which he hath sent down unto you. And whoso feareth GOD, he will expiate his evil deeds from him, and will increase his reward.
d That is, when they shall have had their courses thrice after the time of their divorce, if they prove not to be with child; or, if they prove with child, when they shall have been delivered.1 Al Beidâwi supposes husbands are hereby commanded to divorce their wives while they are clean; and says that the passage was revealed on account of Ebn Omar, who divorced his wife when she had her courses upon her, and was therefore obliged to take her again. e See chapter 2, p. 24.
1 cap. 2, p. 24.
Suffer the women whom ye divorce to dwell in some part of the houses wherein ye dwell; according to the room and conveniences of the habitations which ye possess: and make them not uneasy, that ye may reduce them to straits. And if they be with child, expend on them what shall be needful, until they be delivered of their burden. And if they suckle their children for you, give them their hire;f and consult among yourselves, according to what shall be just and reasonable. And if ye be put to a difficulty herein, and another woman shall suckle the child for him, let him who hath plenty expend proportionably in the maintenance of the mother and the nurse, out of his plenty: and let him whose income is scanty expend in proportion out of that which GOD hath given him. GOD obligeth no man to more than he hath given him ability to perform: GOD will cause ease to succeed hardship. How many cities have turned aside from the command of the LORD and his apostles! Wherefore we brought them to a severe account; and we chastised them with a grievous chastisement: and they tasted the evil consequence of their business; and the end of their business was perdition. 10 GOD hath prepared for them a severe punishment: wherefore fear GOD, O ye who are endued with understanding. True believers, now hath GOD sent down unto you an admonition, an apostle who may rehearse unto you the perspicuous signs of GOD; that he may bring forth those who believe and do good works, from darkness into light. And whoso believeth in GOD, and doth that which is right, him will he lead into gardens beneath which rivers flow, to remain therein forever: now hath GOD made an excellent provision for him. It is GOD who hath created seven heavens, and as many different stories of the earth: the divine command descendeth between them;g that ye may know that GOD is omnipotent, and that GOD comprehendeth all things by his knowledge.
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LXVI. ENTITLED, PROHIBITION; REVEALED AT MEDINA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O PROPHET, why holdest thou that to be prohibited which GOD hath allowed thee, seeking to please thy wives;h since GOD is inclined to forgive, and merciful?
f Which ought at least to be sufficient to maintain and clothe them during the time of suckling. See chapter 2, p. 25. g Penetrating and pervading them all with absolute efficacy.
GOD hath allowed you the dissolution of your oaths:i and GOD is your master; and he is knowing and wise. When the prophet intrusted as a secret unto one of his wives a certain accident; and when she disclosed the same, and GOD made it known unto him; he acquainted her with part of what she had done, and forbore to upbraid her with the other part thereof. And when he had acquainted her therewith, she said, Who hath discovered this unto thee? He answered, The knowing, the sagacious God hath discovered it unto me.k
h There are some who suppose this passage to have been occasioned by Mohammed's protesting never to eat honey any more, because, having once eaten some in the apartment of Hafsa, or of Zeinab, three other of his wives, namely, Ayesha, Sawda, and Safia, all told him they smelt he had been eating of the juice which distils from certain shrubs in those parts, and resembles honey in taste and consistence, but is of a very strong flavour, and which the prophet had a great aversion to.1 But the more received opinion is, that the chapter was revealed on the following occasion. Mohammed having lain with a slave of his named Mary, of Coptic extract (who had been sent him as a present by al Mokawkas, governor of Eygpt), on the day which was due to Ayesha, or to Hafsa, and, as some say, on Hafsa's own bed, while she was absent; and this coming to Hafsa's knowledge, she took it extremely ill, and reproached her husband so sharply that, to pacify her, he promised, with an oath, never to touch the maid again:1 and to free him from the obligation of this promise was the design of the chapter. I cannot here avoid observing, as a learned writer2 has done before me, that Dr. Prideaux has strangely misrepresented this passage. For having given the story of the prophet's amour with his maid mary, a little embellished, he proceeds to tell us that in this chapter Mohammed brings in GOD allowing him, and all his Moslems, to lie with their maids when they will, notwithstanding their wives (whereas the words relate to the prophet only, who wanted not any new permission for that purpose, because it was a privilege already granted him,3 though to none else); and then, to show what ground he had for his assertion, adds that the first words of the chapter are, O prophet, why dost thou forbid what GOD hath allowed thee, that thou mayest please thy wives? GOD hath granted unto you to lie with your maid-servants.4 Which last words are not to be found here, or elsewhere in the Korân, and contain an allowance of what is expressly forbidden therein;5 though the doctor has thence taken occasion to make some reflections which might as well have been spared. I shall say nothing to aggravate the matter, but leave the reader to imagine what this reverend divine would have said of a Mohammedan if he had caught him tripping in the like manner. Having digressed so far, I will venture to add a word or two in order to account for one circumstance which Dr. Prideaux relates concerning Mohammed's concubine Mary; viz., that after her master's death, no account was had of her or the son which she had borne him, but both were sent away into Egypt, and no mention made of either ever after among them; and then he supposes (for he seldom is at a loss for a supposition) that Ayesha, out of the hatred which she bore her, procured of her father, who succeeded the impostor in the government, to have her thus disposed of.6 But it being certain, by the general consent of all the eastern writers, that Mary continued in Arabia till her death, which happened at Medina about five years after that of her master, and was buried in the usual burying-place there, called al Bakí, and that her son died before his father, it has been asked, whence the doctor had this?7 I answer, that I guess he had it partly from Abulfaragius, according to the printed edition of whose work, the Mary we are speaking of is said to have been sent with her sister Shirin (not with her son) to Alexandria by al Mokawkas;8 though I make no doubt but we ought in that passage to read min, from, instead if ila, to (notwithstanding the manuscript copies of this author used by Dr. Pocock, the editor, and also a very fair one in my own possession, agree in the latter reading); and that the sentence ought to run thus, quam (viz., Mariam) unà cum sorore Shirina ab Alexandria miserat al Mokawkas. i By having appointed an expiation for that purpose;9 or, as the words may be translated, God hath allowed you to use an exception in your oaths if it please GOD; in which case a man is excused from guilt if he perform not his oath.10 The passage, though directed to all the Moslems in general, seems to be particularly designed for quieting the prophet's conscience in regard to the oath above mentioned: but Al Beidâwi approves not this opinion, because such an oath was to be looked upon as an inconsiderate one, and required no expiation. k When Mohammed found that Hafsa knew of his having injured her, or Ayesha, by lying with his concubine Mary on the day due to one of them, he desired her to keep the affair secret, promising, at the same time, that he would not meddle with Mary any more; and foretold her, as a piece of news which might soothe her vanity, that Abu Becr and Omar should succeed him in the government of his people. Hafsa, however, could not conceal this from Ayesha, with whom she lived in strict friendship, but acquainted her with the whole matter: whereupon the prophet, perceiving, probably by Ayesha's behaviour, that his secret had been discovered, upbraided Hafsa with her betraying him, telling her that GOD had revealed it to him; and not only divorced her, but separated him from all his other wives for a whole month, which time he spent in the apartment of Mary. In a short time, notwithstanding, he took Hafsa again, by the direction, as he gave out, of the angel Gabriel, who commended her for her frequent fasting and other exercises of devotion, assuring him likewise that she should be one of his wives in paradise.11
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 1 Idem, Jallal., Yahya. 2 Gagnier, not. ad Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 150. 3 See cap. 33, p. 318, 319. 4 Prid. Life of Mah. p. 113. 5 See cap. 17, p. 209; cap. 4, p. 56; and cap. 24, p. 267, &c. 6 Prid. Life of Mah. p. 114. 7 Gagnier, ubi supra. 8 Abulfarag. Hist. Dynast. p. 165. 9 See cap. 5, p. 84. 10 Al Beidâwi. 11 Idem. al Zamakh, &c.
If ye both be turned unto GOD (for your hearts have swerved) it is well: but if ye join against him, verily GOD is his patron; and Gabriel, and the good man among the faithful, and the angels also are his assistants.l If he divorce you, his LORD can easily give him in exchange other wives better than you, women resigned unto God, true believers, devout, penitent, obedient, given to fasting, both such as have been known by other men, and virgins. O true believers, save your souls, and those of your families, from the fire whose fuel is men and stones, over which are set angels fierce and terrible;m who disobey not GOD in what he hath commanded them, but perform what they are commanded. O unbelievers, excuse not yourselves this day; ye shall surely be rewarded for what ye have done.n O true believers, turn unto GOD with a sincere repentance: peradventure your LORD will do away from you your evil deeds, and will admit you into gardens, through which rivers flow; on the day whereon GOD will not put to shame the prophet, or those who believe with him: their light shall run before them, and on their right hands,o and they shall say, LORD, make our light perfect, and forgive us: for thou art almighty. O prophet, attack the infidels with arms, and the hypocrites with arguments; and treat them with severity: their abode shall be hell, and an ill journey shall it be thither. 10 GOD propoundeth as a similitude unto the unbelievers, the wife of Noah, and the wife of Lot: they were under two of our righteous servants, and they deceived them both;p wherefore their husbands were of no advantage unto them at all, in the sight of GOD:q and it shall be said unto them, at the last day, Enter ye into hell fire, with those who enter therein. GOD also propoundeth as a similitude unto those who believe, the wife of Pharaoh;r when she said, LORD, build me a house with thee in paradise; and deliver me from Pharaoh and his doings, and deliver me from the unjust people: and Mary the daughter of Imran; who preserved her chastity, and into whose womb we breathed of our spirit,s and who believed in the words of her LORD, and his scriptures, and was a devout and obedient person.t
l This sentence is directed to Hafsa and Ayesha; the pronouns and verbs of the second person being in the dual number. m See chapter 74, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72. n These words will be spoken to the infidels at the last day. o See chapter 57, p. 400. p Who were both unbelieving women, but deceived their respective husbands by their hypocrisy. Noah's wife, named Wâïla, endeavoured to persuade the people her husband was distracted; and Lot's wife, whose name was Wâhela (though some writers give this name to the other, and that of Wâïla to the latter), was in confederacy with the men of Sodom, and used to give them notice when any strangers came to lodge with him, by a sign of smoke by day, and of fire by night.1 q For they both met with a disastrous end in this world,2 and will be doomed to eternal misery in the next. In like manner, as Mohammed would insinuate, the infidels of his time had no reason to expect any mitigation of their punishment, on account of their relation to himself and the rest of the true believers. r viz., Asia, the daughter of Mozâhem. The commentators relate, that because she believed in Moses, her husband cruelly tormented her, fastening her hands and feet to four stakes, and laying a large mill-stone on her breast, her face, at the same time, being exposed to the scorching beams of the son. These pains, however, were alleviated by the angels shading her with their wings, and the view of the mansion prepared for her in paradise, which was exhibited to her on her pronouncing the prayer in the text. At length GOD received her soul; or, as some say, she was taken up alive into paradise, where she eats and drinks.3 s See chapter 19, p. 228, &c. t On occasion of the honourable mention here made of these two extraordinary women, the commentators introduce a saying of their prophet, That among men there had been many perfect, but no more than four of the other sex had attained perfection; to wit, Asia, the wife of Pharaoh; Mary, the daughter of Imrân; Khadîjah, the daughter of Khowailed (the prophet's first wife); and Fâtema, the daughter of Mohammed.
1 Jallal., al Zamakh. 2 See cap. 11, p. 162, 166, and 167. 3 Jallal., al Zamakh.
LXVII. ENTITLED, THE KINGDOM;u REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BLESSED be he in whose hand is the kingdom, for he is almighty! Who hath created death and life, that he might prove you, which of you is most righteous in his actions: and he is mighty, and ready to forgive. Who hath created seven heavens, one above another: thou canst not see in a creature of the most Merciful any unfitness or disproportion. Lift up thine eyes again to heaven, and look whether thou seest any flaw: then take two other views; and thy sight shall return unto thee dull and fatigued. Moreover we have adorned the lowest heaven with lamps, and have appointed them to be darted at the devils,x for whom we have prepared the torment of burning fire: and for those who believe not in their LORD is also prepared the torment of hell; and ill journey shall it be thither. When they shall be thrown thereinto, they shall hear it bray like an ass;y and it shall boil, and almost burst for fury. So often as a company of them shall be thrown therein, the keepers thereof shall ask them, saying, Did not a warner come unto you? They shall answer, Yea, a warner came unto us: but we accused him of imposture, and said, GOD hath not revealed anything; ye are in no other than a great error: 10 and they shall say, If we had hearkened, or had rightly considered, we should not have been among the inhabitants of burning fire: and they shall confess their sins; but far be the inhabitants of burning fire from obtaining mercy! Verily they who fear their LORD in secret shall receive pardon and a great reward. Either conceal your discourse, or make it public; he knoweth the innermost part of your breasts: shall not he know all things who hath created them; since he is the sagacious, the knowing? It is he who hath levelled the earth for you: therefore walk through the regions thereof, and eat of his provision; unto him shall be the resurrection. Are ye secure that he who dwelleth in heaven will not cause the earth to swallow you up? and behold, it shall shake. Or are you secure that he who dwelleth in heaven will not send against you an impetuous whirlwind, driving the sands to overwhelm you? then shall ye know how important my warning was. Those also who were before you disbelieved; and how grievous was my displeasure! Do they not behold the birds above them, extending and drawing back their wings? None sustaineth them, except the Merciful; for he regardeth all things. 20 Or who is he that will be as an army unto you, to defend you against the Merciful? Verily the unbelievers are in no other than a mistake. Or who is he that will give you food, if he withholdeth his provision? yet they persist in perverseness, and flying from the truth.
u It is also entitled by some, The Saving, or The Delivering, because, say they, it will save him who reads it from the torture of the sepulchre. x See chapter 15, p. 192. y See chapter 31, p. 308.
Is he, therefore, who goeth grovelling upon his face, better directed than he who walketh upright in a straight way?z Say, It is he who hath given you being, and endued you with hearing, and sight, and understanding; yet how little gratitude have ye! Say, It is he who hath sown you in the earth, and unto him shall ye be gathered together. They say, When shall this menace be put in execution, if ye speak truth? Answer, The knowledge of this matter is with GOD alone: for I am only a public warner. But when they shall see the same nigh at hand, the countenance of the infidels shall grow sad: and it shall be said unto them, This is what ye have been demanding. Say, What think ye? Whether GOD destroy me and those who are with me, or have mercy on us; who will protect the unbelievers from a painful punishment? Say, He is the Merciful; in him do we believe, and in him do we put our trust. Ye shall hereafter know who is in a manifest error. 30 Say, What think ye? If your water be in the morning swallowed up by the earth, who will give you clear and running water?
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LXVIII. ENTITLED, THE PEN; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
N.a BY the pen, and what they write,b thou, O Mohammed, through the grace of thy LORD, art not distracted. Verily there is prepared for thee an everlasting reward: for thou art of a noble disposition.c Thou shalt see, and the infidels shall see, which of you are bereaved of your senses. Verily thy LORD well knoweth him who wandereth from his path; and he well knoweth those who are rightly directed: wherefore obey not those who charge thee with imposture. They desire that thou shouldest be easy with them, and they will be easy with thee.d
z This comparison is applied by the expositors to the infidel and the true believer. a This letter is sometimes made the title of the chapter, but its meaning is confessedly uncertain. They who suppose it stands for the word Nûn are not agreed as to its signification in this place; for it is not only the name of the letter N in Arabic, but signifies also an inkhorn and a fish; some are of opinion the former signification is the most proper here, as consonant to what is immediately mentioned of the pen and writing, and, considering that the blood of certain fish is good ink, not inconsistent with the latter signification; which is, however, preferred by others, saying that either the whole species of fish in general is thereby intended, or the fish which swallowed Jonas (who is mentioned in this chapter), or else that vast one called Behemoth, fancied to support the earth, in particular. Those who acquiesce in none of the foregoing explications have invented others of their own, and imagine this character stands for the table of GOD'S decrees, or one of the rivers in paradise, &c.1 b Some understand these words generally, and others of the pen with which GOD'S decrees are written on the preserved table, and of the angels who register the same. c In that thou hast borne with so much patience and resignation the wrongs and insults of thy people, which have been greater than those offered to any apostle before thee.2 d i.e., If thou wilt let them alone in their idolatry and other wicked practices, they will cease to revile and persecute thee.
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Yahya. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem, Jallal.
10 But obey not any who is a common swearer, a despicable fellow, a defamer, going about with slander, who forbiddeth that which is good, who is also a transgressor, a wicked person, cruel, and besides this, of spurious birth:e although he be possessed of wealth and many children: when our signs are rehearsed unto him, he saith, They are fables of the ancients. We will stigmatize him on the nose.f Verily we have tried the Meccans,g as we formerly tried the owners of the garden;h when they swore that they would gather the fruit thereofi in the morning, and added not the exception, if it please God: wherefore a surrounding destruction from thy LORD encompassed it, while they slept; 20 and in the morning it became like a garden whose fruits had been gathered.k And they called the one to the other as they rose in the morning, saying, Go out early to your plantation, if ye intend to gather the fruit thereof: so they went on, whispering to one another, No poor man shall enter the garden upon you, this day. And they went forth early, with a determined purpose. And when they saw the garden blasted and destroyed, they said, We have certainly mistaken our way: but when they found it to be their own garden, they cried, Verily we are not permittedl to reap the fruit thereof. The worthier of them said, Did I not say unto you, Will ye not give praise unto GOD? They answered, Praise be unto our LORD! Verily we have been unjust doers. 30 And they began to blame one another,m and they said, Woe be unto us! verily we have been transgressors: peradventure our LORD will give us in exchange a better garden than this: and we earnestly beseech our LORD to pardon us. Thus is the chastisement of this life: but the chastisement of the next shall be more grievous: if they had known it, they would have taken heed. Verily for the pious are prepared, with their LORD, gardens of delight. Shall we deal with the Moslems, as with the wicked?n
e The person at whom this passage was particularly levelled is generally supposed to have been Mohammed's inveterate enemy, al Walid Ebn al Mogheira, whom, to complete his character, he calls bastard, because al Mogheira did not own him for his son till he was eighteen years of age.1 Some, however, think it was al Akhnas Ebn Shoraik, who was really of the tribe of Thakîf, though reputed to be of that of Zahra.2 f Which being the most conspicuous part of the face, a mark set thereon is attended with the utmost ignominy. It is said that this prophetical menace was actually made good, al Walid having his nose slit by a sword at the battle of Bedr, the mark of which wound he carried with him to his grave.3 g By afflicting them with a grievous famine. See chapter 23, p. 260. h This garden was a plantation of palm-trees, about two parsangs from Sanaa, belonging to a certain charitable man, who, when he gathered his dates, used to give public notice to the poor, and to leave them such of the fruit as the knife missed, or was blown down by the wind, or fell beside the cloth spread under the tree to receive it: after his death, his sons, who were then become masters of the garden, apprehending they should come to want if they followed their father's example, agreed to gather the fruit early in the morning, when the poor could have no notice of the matter: but when they came to execute their purpose, they found, to their great grief and surprise, that their plantation had been destroyed in the night.4 i Literally, that they would cut it; the manner of gathering dates being to cut the clusters off with a knife. Marracci supposes they intended to cut down the trees, and destroy the plantation; which, as he observes, renders the story ridiculous and absurd. k Or, as the original may also be rendered, like a dark night; it being burnt up and black.5 l The same expression is used, chapter 56, p. 398. m For one advised this expedition, another approved of it, a third gave consent by his silence, but the fourth was absolutely against it.5 n This passage was revealed in answer to the infidels, who said, If we shall be raised again, as Mohammed and his followers imagine, they will not excel us; but we shall certainly be in a better condition than they in the next world, as we are in this.6
1 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem. 5 Al Beidâwi 6 Idem.
What aileth you that ye judge thus? Have ye a book from heaven, wherein ye read that ye are therein promised that which ye shall choose? Or have ye received oaths which shall be binding upon us to the day of resurrection, that ye shall enjoy what ye imagine? 40 Ask them, which of them will be the voucher of this. Or have they companionso who will vouch for them? Let them produce their companions, therefore, if they speak truth. On a certain day the leg shall be made bare;p and they shall be called upon to worship, but they shall not be able.q Their looks shall be cast down: ignominy shall attend them; for that they were invited to the worship of God, while they were in safety, but would not hear. Let me alone, therefore, with him who accuseth this new revelation of imposture. We will lead them gradually to destruction, by ways which they know not:r and I will bear with them for a long time; for my stratagem is effectual. Dost thou ask them any reward for thy preaching? But they are laden with debts. Are the secrets of futurity with them; and do they transcribe the same from the table of God's decrees?s Wherefore patiently wait the judgment of thy LORD: and be not like him who was swallowed by the fish;t when he cried unto God, being inwardly vexed. Had not grace from his LORD reached him, he had surely been cast forth on the naked shore, covered with shame: 50 but his LORD chose him, and made him one of the righteous. It wanteth little but that the unbelievers strike thee down with their malicious looks, when they hear the admonition of the Koran; and they say, He is certainly distracted: but it is no other than an admonition unto all creatures.
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LXIX. ENTITLED, THE INFALLIBLE; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE infallible!u What is the infallible? And what shall cause thee to understand what the infallible is?
o Or, as some interpret the word, idols; which can make their condition, in the next life, equal to that of the Moslems? p This expression is used to signify a grievous and terrible calamity: thus they say, War has made bare the leg, when they would express the fury and rage of battle.7 q Because the time of acceptance shall be past. Al Beidâwi is uncertain whether the words respect the day of judgment, or the article of death: but Jallalo'ddin supposes them to relate to the former, and adds that the infidels shall not be able to perform the act of adoration, because their backs shall become stiff and inflexible. r i.e., By granting them long life and prosperity in this world; which will deceive them to their ruin. s See chapter 52, p. 389. t That is, be not impatient and pettish, as Jonas was. See chapter 21, p. 248. u The original word al Hâkkat is one of the names or epithets of the day of judgment. As the root from which it is derived signifies not only to be or come to pass of necessity, but also to verify; some rather think that day to be so called because it will verify and show the truth of what men doubt of in this life, viz., the resurrection of the dead, their being brought to account, and the consequent rewards and punishments.8
7 Idem, Jallalo'ddin 8 Idem
The tribes of Thamud and Ad denied as a falsehood the day which shall strikex men's hearts with terror. But Thamud were destroyed by a terrible noise: and Ad were destroyed by a roaring and furious wind; which God caused to assail them for seven nights and eight days successively: thou mightest have seen people during the same, lying prostrate, as though they had been the roots of hollow palm-trees;y and couldest thou have seen any of them remaining? Pharaoh also, and those who were before him, and the cities which were overthrown,z were guilty of sin: 10 and they severally were disobedient to the apostle of their LORD; wherefore he chastised them with an abundant chastisement. When the water of the deluge arose, we carried you in the ark which swam thereon; that we might make the same a memorial unto you, and the retaining ear might retain it. And when one blast shall sound the trumpet, and the earth shall be moved from its place, and the mountains also, and shall be dashed in pieces at one stroke: on that day the inevitable hour of judgment shall suddenly come; and the heavens shall cleave in sunder, and shall fall in pieces, on that day: and the angels shall be on the sides thereof;a and eight shall bear the throne of thy LORD above them, on that day.b On that day ye shall be presented before the judgment-seat of God; and none of your secret actions shall be hidden. And he who shall have his book delivered into his right hand shall say, Take ye, read this my book; 20 verily I thought that I should be brought to this my account: he shall lead a pleasing life, in a lofty garden, the fruits whereof shall be near to gather. Eat and drink with easy digestion; because of the good works which ye sent before you, in the days which are past. But he who shall have his book delivered into his left hand shall say, Oh that I had not received this book; and that I had not known what this my account was! Oh that death had made an end of me! My riches have not profited me; and my power is passed from me. 30 And God shall say to the keepers of hell, Take him, and bind him, and cast him into hell to be burned: then put him into a chain of the length of seventy cubits:c because he believed not in the great GOD; and was not solicitous to feed the poor: wherefore this day he shall have no friend here; nor any food, but the filthy corruption flowing from the bodies of the damned, which none shall eat but the sinners. I sweard by that which ye see, and that which ye see not, 40 that this is the discourse of an honourable apostle and not the discourse of a poet: how little do ye believe! Neither is it the discourse of a soothsayer: how little are ye admonished! It is a revelation from the LORD of all creatures. If Mohammed had forged any part of these discourses concerning us,
x Arab. al Kâriát, or the striking; which is another name or epithet of the last day. y See chapter 54, p. 392. z Viz., Sodom and Gomorrah. See chapter 9, p. 142, note p. a These words seem to intimate the death of the angels at the demolition of their habitation; beside the ruins whereof they shall lie like dead bodies. b The number of those who bear it at present being generally supposed to be but four; to whom four more will be added at the last day, for the grandeur of the occasion.1 c i.e., Wrap him round with it, so that he may not be able to stir. d Or, I will not swear. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m.
1 Idem.
verily we had taken him by the right hand, and had cut in sunder the vein of his heart; neither would we have withheld any of you from chastising him. And verily this book is an admonition unto the pious; and we well know that there are some of you who charge the same with imposture: 50 but it shall surely be an occasion of grievous sighing unto the infidels; for it is the truth of a certainty. Wherefore praise the name of thy LORD, the great God.
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LXX. ENTITLED, THE STEPS; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
ONE demanded and called for vengeance to fall on the unbelievers:e there shall be none to avert the same from being inflicted by GOD, the possessor of the steps:f by which the angels ascend unto him, and the spirit Gabriel also, in a day whose space is fifty thousand years:g wherefore bear the insults of the Meccans with becoming patience; for they see their punishment afar off, but we see it nigh at hand. On a certain day the heaven shall become like molten brass, and the mountains like wool of various colours, scattered abroad by the wind: 10 and a friend shall not ask a friend concerning his condition, although they see one another. The wicked shall wish to redeem himself from the punishment of that day, by giving up his children, and his wife, and his brother, and his kindred who showed kindness unto him, and all who are in the earth; and that this might deliver him: by no means: for hell fire, dragging them by their scalps, shall call him who shall have turned his back, and fled from the faith, and shall have amassed riches, and covetously hoarded them. Verily man is created extremely impatient:h 20 when evil toucheth him, he is full of complaint;
e The person here meant is generally supposed to have been al Nodar Ebn al Hareth, who said, O GOD, if what Mohammed preaches be the truth from thee, rain down upon us a shower of stones, or send some dreadful judgment to punish us.1 Others, however, think it was Abu Jahl, who challenged Mohammed to cause a fragment of heaven to fall on them.2 f By which prayers and righteous actions ascend to heaven; or by which the angels ascend to receive the divine commands, or the believers will ascend to paradise. Some understand thereby the different orders of angels; or the heavens, which rise gradually one above another. g This is supposed to be the space which would be required for their ascent from the lowest part of creation to the throne of GOD, if it were to be measured; or the time which it would take a man up to perform that journey; and this is not contradictory to what is said elsewhere3 (if it be to be interpreted of the ascent of the angels), that the length of the day whereon they ascend is one thousand years; because that is meant only of their ascent from earth to the lower heaven, including also the time of their descent. But the commentators generally taking the day spoken of in both these passages to be the day of judgment, have recourse to several expedients to reconcile them, some of which we have mentioned in another place;4 and as both passages seem to contradict what the Mohammedan doctors teach, that GOD will judge all creatures in the space of half a day,5 they suppose those large number of years are designed to express the time of the previous attendance of those who are to be judged;6 or else to the space wherein GOD will judge the unbelieving nations, of which they say there will be fifty, the trial of each nation taking up one thousand years, though that of the true believers will be over in the short space above mentioned.7 h See chapter 17, p. 208.
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Cap. 32, p. 310. 4 Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65. 5 See ibid. p. 69. 6 See ibid. p. 67. 7 Al Zamakh.
but when good befalleth him, he becometh niggardly: except those who are devoutly given, and who persevere in their prayers; and those of whose substance a due and certain portion is ready to be given unto him who asketh, and him who is forbidden by shame to ask: and those who sincerely believe the day of judgment, and who dread the punishment of their LORD: (for there is none secure from the punishment of their LORD:) and who abstain from the carnal knowledge of women 30 other than their wives, or the slaves which their right hands possess: (for as to them they shall be blameless; but whoever coveteth any woman besides these, they are transgressors:) and those who faithfully keep what they are intrusted with, and their covenant; and who are upright in their testimonies, and who carefully observe the requisite rites in their prayers: these shall dwell amidst gardens, highly honoured. What aileth the unbelievers, that they run before thee in companies, on the right hand and on the left? Doth every man of them wish to enter into a garden of delight? By no means: verily we have created them of that which they know.i 40 I sweark by the LORD of the east and of the west,l that we are able to destroy them, and to substitute better than them in their room; neither are we to be prevented, if we shall please so to do. Wherefore suffer them to wade in vain disputes, and to amuse themselves with sport: until they meet their day with which they have been threatened; the day whereon they shall come forth hastily from their graves, as though they were troops hastening to their standard: their looks shall be downcast; ignominy shall attend them. This is the day with which they have been threatened.
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LXXI. ENTITLED, NOAH; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we sent Noah unto his people, saying, Warn thy people, before a grievous punishment overtake them. Noah said, O my people, verily I am a public warner unto you; wherefore serve GOD, and fear him, and obey me; he will forgive you part of your sins;m and will grant you respite until a determined time: for GOD'S determined time, when it cometh, shall not be deferred; if ye were men of understanding, ye would know this.
i viz., Of filthy seed, which bears no relation or resemblance to holy beings; wherefore it is necessary for him who would hope to be an inhabitant of paradise, to perfect himself in faith and spiritual virtues, to fit himself for that place.1 k Or, I will not swear, &c. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m. l The original words are in the plural number, and signify the different points of the horizon at which the sun rises and sets in the course of the year. See chapter 37, p. 334, note e. m i.e., Your past sins; which are done away by the profession of the true faith.
1 Al Beidâwi.
He said, LORD, verily I have called my people night and day; but my calling only increaseth their aversion: and whensoever I call them to the true faith, that thou mayest forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, and cover themselves with their garments, and persist in their infidelity, and proudly disdain my counsel. Moreover I invited them openly, and I spake to them again in public; and I also secretly admonished them in private; and I said, Beg pardon of your LORD; for he is inclined to forgive: 10 and he will cause the heaven to pour down rain plentifully upon you, and will give you increase of wealth and of children;n and he will provide you gardens, and furnish you with rivers. What aileth you, that ye hope not for benevolence in GOD;o since he hath created you variously?p Do ye not see how GOD hath created the seven heavens, one above another; and hath placed the moon therein for a light, and hath appointed the sun for a taper? GOD hath also produced and caused you to spring forth from the earth: hereafter he will cause you to return into the same; and he will again take you thence, by bringing you forth from your graves. And GOD hath spread the earth as a carpet for you, that ye may walk therein through spacious paths. 20 Noah said, LORD, verily they are disobedient unto me; and they follow him whose riches and children do no other than increase his perdition. And they devised a dangerous plot against Noah: and the chief men said to the others, Ye shall by no means leave your gods; neither shall ye forsake Wadd, nor Sowa, nor Yaghuth, and Yauk, and Nesr.q And they seduced many; (for thou shalt only increase error in the wicked:) because of their sins they were drowned, and cast into the fire of hell; and they found none to protect them against GOD. And Noah said, LORD, leave not any families of the unbelievers on the earth: for if thou leave them, they will seduce thy servants, and will beget none but a wicked and unbelieving offspring.r LORD, forgive me and my parents,s and every one who shall enter my house,t being a true believer, and the true believers of both sexes; and add unto the unjust doers nothing but destruction.
n It is said that after Noah had for a long time preached to them in vain, GOD shut up the heaven for forty years, and rendered their women barren.2 o i.e., That GOD will accept and amply reward those who serve him? For some suppose Noah's people made him this answer, If what we now follow be the truth, we ought not to forsake it; but if it be false, how will GOD accept, or be favourable unto us, who have rebelled against him?3 p That is, as the commentators expound it, by various steps or changes, from the original matter, till ye became perfect men.4 q These were five idols worshipped by the Antediluvians, and afterwards by the ancient Arabs. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. I. p. 15. r They say Noah preferred not this prayer for the destruction of his people till after he had tried them for nine hundred and fifty years, and found them incorrigible reprobates. s His father Lamech, and his mother, whose name was Shamkha, the daughter of Enosh, being true believers. t The commentators are uncertain whether Noah's dwelling-house be here meant, or the temple he had built for the worship of GOD, or the ark.
2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 See cap. 22, p. 250, and cap. 23, p. 257, &c.
LXXII. ENTITLED, THE GENII; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, It hath been revealed unto me that a company of genii attentively heard me reading the Koran,u and said, Verily we have heard an admirable discourse; which directeth unto the right institution; wherefore we believe therein, and we will by no means associate any other with our LORD. He (may the majesty of our LORD be exalted!) hath taken no wife, nor hath he begotten any issue. Yet the foolish among usx hath spoken that which is extremely false of GOD; but we verily thought that neither man nor genius would by any means have uttered a lie concerning GOD. And there are certain men who fly for refuge unto certain of the genii;y but they increase their folly and transgression: and they also thought, as ye thought,z that GOD would not raise any one to life. And we formerly attempted to pry into what was transacting in heaven; but we found the same filled with a strong guard of angels, and with flaming darts: and we sat on some of the seats thereof to hear the discourse of its inhabitants; but whoever listeneth now, findeth a flame laid in ambush for him, to guard the celestial confines.a 10 And we know not whether evil be hereby intended against those who are in the earth, or whether their LORD intendeth to direct them aright. There are some among us who are upright; and there are some among us who are otherwise: we are of different ways. And we verily thought that we could by no means frustrate GOD in the earth, neither could we escape him by flight: wherefore, when we had heard the direction contained in the Koran, we believed therein. And whoever believeth in his LORD, need not fear any diminution of his reward, nor any injustice. There are some Moslems among us; and there are others of us who swerve from righteousness.b And whoso embraceth Islam, they earnestly seek true direction: but those who swerve from righteousness shall be fuel for hell. If they tread in the way of truth, we will surely water them with abundant rain:c that we may prove them thereby: but whoso turneth aside from the admonition of his LORD, him will he send into a severe torment. Verily the places of worship are set apart unto GOD: wherefore invoke not any other therein together with GOD. When the servant of GODd stood up to invoke him, it wanted little but that the genii had pressed on him in crowds, to hear him rehearse the Koran.
u See chapter 46, p. 374, note q. x viz., Eblis, or the rebellious genii. y For the Arabs, when they found themselves in a desert in the evening (the genii being supposed to haunt such places about that time), used to say, I fly for refuge unto the Lord of this valley, that he may defend me from the foolish among his people.1 z It is uncertain which of these pronouns is to be referred to mankind, and which to the genii, some expositors taking that of the third person to relate to the former, and that of the second person to the latter; and others being of the contrary opinion. a See chapter 15, p. 192. b See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. c i.e., We will grant them plenty of all good things. Some think by these words rain is promised to the Meccans, after their seven years' drought, on their embracing Islâm. d viz., Mohammed.
1 Al Beidâwi.
20 Say, Verily I call upon my LORD only, and I associate no other god with him. Say, Verily I am not able, of myself, to procure you either hurt, or a right institution. Say, Verily none can protect me against GOD; neither shall I find any refuge besides him. I can do no more than publish what hath been revealed unto me from GOD, and his messages. And whosoever shall be disobedient unto GOD, and his apostle, for him is the fire of hell prepared; they shall remain therein forever. Until they see the vengeance with which they are threatened, they will not cease their opposition: but then shall they know who were the weaker in a protector, and the fewer in number. Say, I know not whether the punishment with which ye are threatened be nigh, or whether my LORD will appoint for it a distant term. He knoweth the secrets of futurity; and he doth not communicate his secrets unto any, except an apostle in whom he is well pleased: and he causeth a guard of angels to march before him, and behind him; that he may know that they have executed the commissions of their LORD;e he comprehendeth whatever is with them; and counteth all things by number.
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LXXIII. ENTITLED, THE WRAPPED UP; REVEALED AT MECCA.f
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O THOU wrapped up,g arise to prayer, and continue therein during the night, except a small part;h that is to say, during one half thereof: or do thou lessen the same a little or add thereto.i And repeat the Koran with a distinct and sonorous voice:
e That is to say, either that the prophet may know that Gabriel and the other angels, who bring down the revelation, have communicated it to him pure and free from any diabolical suggestions; or that GOD may know that the prophet has published the same to mankind.1 f Some will have the last verse, beginning at these words, Verily thy LORD knoweth, &c., to have been revealed at Medina. g When this revelation was brought to Mohammed, he was wrapped up in his garments, being affrighted at the appearance of Gabriel; or, as some say, he lay sleeping unconcernedly, or, according to others, praying, wrapped up in one part of a large mantle or rug, with the other part of which Ayesha had covered herself to sleep.2 This epithet of wrapped up, and another of the same import given to Mohammed in the next chapter, have been imagined, by several learned men,3 pretty plainly to intimate his being subject to the falling sickness: a malady generally attributed to him by the Christians,4 but mentioned by no Mohammedan writer. Though such an inference may be made, yet I think it scarce probable, much less necessary.5 h For a half is such, with respect to the whole. Or, as the sentence may be rendered, Pray half the night, within a small matter, &c. Some expound these words as an exception to nights in general; according to whom the sense will be, Spend one-half of every night in prayer, except some few nights in the year, &c.6 i i.e., Set apart either less than half the night, as one-third, for example, or more, as two-thirds. Or the meaning may be, either take a small matter from a lesser part of the night than one-half, e.g., from one-third, and so reduce it to a fourth; or add to such lesser part, and make it a full half.1
1 Idem. 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. 3 Hotting. Hist. Orient. l. I, c. 2. Marracc. in Alc. p. 763. Vide Gagnier, not. ad Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 9. 4 See Prideaux, Life of Mahomet, p. 16, and the authors there cited. 5 See Ockley's Hist. of the Saracens, vol. i. p. 300, &c 6 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
for we will lay on thee a weighty word.k Verily the rising by nightl is more efficacious for steadfast continuance in devotion, and more conducive to decent pronunciation:m for in the day-time thou hast long employment. And commemorate the name of thy LORD; and separate thyself unto him, renouncing worldly vanities. He is the LORD of the east, and of the west; there is no GOD but he. Wherefore take him for thy patron: 10 and patiently suffer the contumelies which the infidels utter against thee; and depart from them with a decent departure. And let me alone with those who charge the Koran with falsehood, who enjoy the blessings of this life; and bear with them for a while: verily with us are heavy fetters, and a burning fire, and food ready to choke him who swalloweth it,n and painful torment. On a certain day the earth shall be shaken, and the mountains also, and the mountains shall become a heap of sand poured forth. Verily we have sent unto you an apostle, to bear witness against you; as we sent an apostle unto Pharaoh; but Pharaoh was disobedient unto the apostle; wherefore we chastised him with a heavy chastisement. How, therefore, will ye escape, if ye believe not, the day which shall make children become gray-headed through terror? The heaven shall be rent in sunder thereby: the promise thereof shall surely be performed. Verily this is an admonition; and whoever is willing to be admonished will take the way unto his LORD. 20 Thy LORD knoweth that thou continuest in prayer and meditation sometimes near two third parts of the night, and sometimes one half thereof, and at other times one third part thereof; and a part of thy companions, who are with thee, do the same. But GOD measureth the night and the day; he knoweth that ye cannot exactly compute the same: wherefore he turneth favourably unto you.o Read, therefore, so much of the Koran as may be easy unto you. He knoweth that there will be some infirm among you; and others travel through the earth, that they may obtain a competency of the bounty of GOD; and others fight in the defence of GOD'S faith. Read, therefore, so much of the same as may be easy. And observe the stated times of prayer, and pay the legal alms; and lend unto GOD an acceptable loan; for whatever good ye send before your souls, ye shall find the same with GOD. This will be better, and will merit a greater reward.p And ask GOD forgiveness; for GOD is ready to forgive, and merciful.
k viz., The precepts contained in the Korân; which are heavy and difficult to those who are obliged to observe them, and especially to the prophet, whose care it was to see that his people observed them also.2 l Or, the person who riseth by night; or, the hours, or particularly the first hours of the night, &c. m For the nighttime is most proper for meditation and prayer, and also for reading GOD'S word distinctly and with attention, by reason of the absence of every noise and object which may distract the mind. Marracci, having mentioned this natural explication of the Mohammedan commentators, because he finds one word in the verse which may be taken in a sense tending that way, says the whole may with greater exactness be expounded of the fitness of the night season for amorous diversions and discourse; and he paraphrases it in Latin thus: Certe in principio noctis majus robur et vim habet homo, ad foeminas premendas et subagitandas, et ad clarioribus verbis amores suos propalandos.3 A most effectual way, this, to turn a book into ridicule! n As thorns and thistles, the fruit of the infernal tree al Zakkûm, and the corruption flowing from the bodies of the damned. o By making the matter easy to you, and dispensing with your scrupulous counting of the hours of the night which ye are directed to spend in reading and praying: for some of the Moslems, not knowing how the time passed, used to watch the whole night, standing and walking about till their legs and feet swelled in a sad manner. The commentators add that this precept of dedicating a part of the night to devotion, is abrogated by the institution of the five hours of prayer.4 p i.e., The good which ye shall do in your lifetime will be much more meritorious in the sight of GOD, than what ye shall defer till death, and order by will.1
2 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Marracc. in Alc. p. 759. 4 Al Beidâwi. 1 Idem.
LXXIV. ENTITLED, THE COVERED; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
O THOU covered,q arise and preach,r and magnify thy LORD. And cleanse thy garments: and fly every abomination:s and be not liberal in hopes to receive more in return: and patiently wait for thy LORD. When the trumpet shall sound, verily that day shall be a day of distress 10 and uneasiness unto the unbelievers. Let me alone with him whom I have created,t on whom I have bestowed abundant riches, and children dwelling in his presence,u and for whom I have disposed affairs in a smooth and easy manner,x and who desireth that I will yet add other blessings unto him. By no means: because he is an adversary to our signs.y I will afflict him with grievous calamities:z for he hath devised and prepared contumelious expressions to ridicule the Koran. May he be cursed: how maliciously hath he prepared the same! 20 And again, may he be cursed: how maliciously hath he prepared the same! Then he looked, and frowned, and put on an austere countenance:
q It is related, from Mohammed's own mouth, that being on Mount Harâ, and hearing himself called, he looked on each hand, and saw nobody; but looking upwards, he saw the angel Gabriel on a throne, between heaven and earth; at which sight being much terrified, he returned to his wife Khadîjah, and bade her cover him up; and that then the angel descended, and addressed him in the words of the text. From hence some think this chapter to have been the first which was revealed: but the more received opinion is, that it was the 96th. Others say that the prophet, having been reviled by certain of the Koreish, was sitting in a melancholy and pensive posture, wrapped up in his mantle, when Gabriel accosted him: and some say he was sleeping. See the second note to the preceding chapter. r It is generally supposed that Mohammed is here commanded more especially to warn his near relations, the Koreish; as he is expressly ordered to do in a subsequent revelation.2 s By the word abomination the commentators generally agree idolatry to be principally intended. t The person here meant is generally supposed to have been al Walid Ebn al Mogheira,3 a principal man among the Koreish. u Being well provided for, and not obliged to go abroad to seek their livings, as most others of the Meccans were.4 x By facilitating his advancement to power and dignity; which were so considerable that he was surnamed Rihâna Koreish, or The sweet odour of the Koreish, and al Wahîd, i.e., The only one, or The incomparable.5 y On the revelation of this passage it is said that Walid's prosperity began to decay, and continued daily so to do to the time of his death.6 z Or, as the words may be strictly rendered, I will drive him up the crag of a mountain; which some understand of a mountain of fire, agreeably to a tradition of their prophet, importing that al Walid will be condemned to ascend this mountain, and then to be cast down from thence, alternately for ever; and that he will be seventy years in climbing up, and as many in falling down.7
2 See cap. 26, p. 281, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 33. 3 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallal. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem. 6 Idem. 7 Idem.
then he turned back, and was elated with pride; and he said, This is no other than a piece of magic, borrowed from others: these are only the words of a man. I will cast him to be burned in hell. And what shall make thee to understand what hell is? It leaveth not anything unconsumed, neither doth it suffer anything to escape: it scorcheth men's flesh: 30 over the same are nineteen angels appointed. We have appointed none but angels to preside over hell fire:a and we have expressed the number of them only for an occasion of discord to the unbelievers;b that they to whom the scriptures have been given may be certain of the veracity of this book,c and the true believers may increase in faith; and that those to whom the scriptures have been given, and the true believers, may not doubt hereafter; and that those in whose hearts there is an infirmity, and the unbelievers, may say, What mystery doth GOD intend by this number? Thus doth GOD cause to err whom he pleaseth; and he directeth whom he pleaseth. None knoweth the armies of thy LORD,d besides him; and thise is no other than a memento unto mankind. Assuredly. By the moon, and the night when it retreateth, and the morning when it reddeneth, I swear that this is one of the most terrible calamities, giving warning unto men, 40 as well as unto him among you who desireth to go forward, as unto him who chooseth to remain behind. Every soul is given in pledge for that which it shall have wrought:f except the companions of the right hand;g who shall dwell in gardens, and shall ask one another questions concerning the wicked, and shall also ask the wicked themselves, saying, What hath brought you into hell? They shall answer, We were not of those who were constant at prayer, neither did we feed the poor; and we waded in vain disputes with the fallacious reasoners; and we denied the day of judgment, until deathh overtook us: and the intercession of the interceders shall not avail them. 50 What aileth them, therefore, that they turn aside from the admonition of the Koran, as though they were timorous asses flying from a lion? But every man among them desireth that he may have expanded scrolls delivered to him from God.i By no means. They fear not the life to come. By no means: verily this is a sufficient warning. Whoso is willing to be warned, him shall it warn: but they shall not be warned, unless GOD shall please. He is worthy to be feared; and he is inclined to forgiveness.
a The reason of which is said to be, that they might be of a different nature and species from those who are to be tormented, lest they should have a fellow-feeling of, and compassionate their sufferings; or else, because of their great strength and severity of temper.1 b Or, for a trial of them: because they might say this was a particular borrowed by Mohammed of the Jews. c And especially the Jews; this being conformable to what is contained in their books.2 d i.e., All his creatures; or particularly the number and strength of the guards of hell. e The antecedent seems to be hell. f See chapter 52, p. 388. g i.e., The blessed;3 who shall redeem themselves by their good works. Some say these are the angels, and others, such as die infants.4 h Literally, That which is certain. i For the infidels to Mohammed that they would never obey him as a prophet till he brought each man a writing from heaven, to this effect, viz., From GOD to such a one: Follow Mohammed.5
1 Idem 2 Jallal. 3 See cap. 56, p. 396, note t. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem.
LXXV. ENTITLED, THE RESURRECTION; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY I sweark by the day of resurrection; and I swear by the soul which accuseth itself:l doth man think that we will not gather his bones together? Yea: we are able to put together the smallest bones of his fingers. But man chooseth to be wicked, for the time which is before him. He asketh, When will the day of resurrection be? But when the sight shall be dazzled, and the moon shall be eclipsed, and the sun and the moon shall be in conjunction;m 10 on that day man shall say, Where is a place of refuge? By no means: there shall be no place to fly unto. With thy LORD shall be the sure mansion of rest on that day: on that day shall a man be told that which he hath done first and last.n Yea; a man shall be an evidence against himself: and though he offer his excuses, they shall not be received. Move not thy tongue, O Mohammed, in repeating the revelations brought thee by Gabriel, before he shall have finished the same, that thou mayest quickly commit them to memory: for the collecting the Koran in thy mind, and the teaching thee the true reading thereof, are incumbent on us. But when we shall have read the same unto thee by the tongue of the angel, do thou follow the reading thereof: and afterwards it shall be our part to explain it unto thee. 20 By no means shalt thou be thus hasty for the future. But ye love that which hasteneth away,o and neglect the life to come. Some countenances on that day shall be bright, looking towards their LORD: and some countenances, on that day, shall be dismal: they shall think that a crushing calamity shall be brought upon them. Assuredly. When a man's soul shall come up to his throat, in his last agony, and the standers-by shall say, Who bringeth a charm to recover him? and shall think it to be his departure out of this world;
k Or, I will not swear. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m. l Being conscious of having offended, and of failing of perfection, notwithstanding its endeavours to do its duty; or, the pious soul which shall blame others, at the last day, for having been remiss in their devotions, &c. Some understand the words of the soul of Adam, in particular; who is continually blaming himself for having lost paradise by his disobedience.6 m Rising both in the west:1 which conjunction is no contradiction to what is mentioned just before, of the moon's being eclipsed; because those words are not to be understood of a regular eclipse, but metaphorically, of the moon's losing her light at the last day in a preternatural manner. Some think the meaning rather to be, that the sun and the moon shall be joined in the loss of their light.2 n Or, the good which he hath done, and that which he hath left undone, &c. o i.e., The fleeting pleasures of this life. The words intimate the natural hastiness and impatience of man,3 who takes up with a present enjoyment, though short and bitter in its consequences, rather than wait for real happiness in futurity.
6 Idem. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 62. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 See cap. 17, p. 208.
and one leg shall be joined with the other leg:p 30 on that day unto thy LORD shall he be driven. For he believed not,q neither did he pray; but he accused God's apostle of imposture, and turned back from obeying him: then he departed unto his family, walking with a haughty mien. Wherefore, woe be unto thee; woe! And again, woe be unto thee; woe! Doth man think that he shall be left at full liberty, without control? Was he not a drop of seed, which was emitted? Afterwards he became a little coagulated blood, and God formed him, and fashioned him with just proportion; and made of him two sexes, the male and the female. 40 Is not he who hath done this able to quicken the dead?
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LXXVI. ENTITLED, MAN; REVEALED AT MECCA.r
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
DID there not pass over man a long space of time; during which he was a thing not worthy of remembrance?s Verily we have created man of the mingled seed of both sexes, that we might prove him: and we have made him to hear and to see.t We have surely directed him in the way; whether he be grateful, or ungrateful. Verily we have prepared for the unbelievers chains, and collars, and burning fire. But the just shall drink of a cup of wine, mixed with the water of Cafur,u a fountain whereof the servants of GOD shall drink; they shall convey the same by channels whithersoever they please. These fulfil their vow, and dread the day, the evil whereof will disperse itself far abroad; and give food unto the poor, and the orphan, and the bondman, for his sake, saying, We feed you for GOD'S sake only: we desire no recompense from you, nor any thanks:
p i.e., And when he shall stretch forth his legs together, as is usual with dying persons. The words may also be translated, And when one affliction shall be joined with another affliction. q Or, He did not give alms; or, He was not a man of veracity. Some suppose Abu Jahl, and others one Adi Ebn Rabîa, to be particularly inveighed against in this chapter. r It is somewhat doubtful whether this chapter was revealed at Mecca or Medina. s Some take these words to be spoken of Adam, whose body, according to Mohammedan tradition, was at first a figure of clay, and was left forty years to dry before GOD breathed life into it;1 others understand them of man in general and of the time he lies in the womb. t That he might be capable of receiving the rules and directions given by GOD for his guidance;2 and of meriting reward or punishment for his observance or neglect of them. u Is the name of a fountain in paradise, so called from its resembling camphire (which the word signifies) in odour and whiteness. Some take the word for an appellative, and think the wine of paradise will be mixed with camphire, because of its agreeable coolness and smell.3
1 See the notes to cap. 2, p. 4. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem.
10 verily we dread, from our LORD, a dismal and calamitous day.x Wherefore GOD shall deliver them from the evil of that day, and shall cast on them brightness of countenance, and joy; and shall reward them, for their patient persevering, with a garden and silk garments: therein shall they repose themselves on couches; they shall see therein neither sun nor moon;y and the shades thereof shall be near spreading above them, and the fruits thereof shall hang low, so as to be easily gathered. And their attendants shall go round about unto them, with vessels of silver, and goblets: the bottles shall be bottles of silver shining like glass; they shall determine the measure thereof by their wish. And therein shall they be given to drink of a cup of wine, mixed with the water of Zenjebil,z a fountain in paradise named Salsabil:a and youths, which shall continue forever in their bloom, shall go round to attend them; when thou seest them, thou shalt think them to be scattered pearls: 20 and when thou lookest, there shalt thou behold delights, and a great kingdom. Upon them shall be garments of fine green silk, and of brocades, and they shall be adorned with bracelets of silver: and their LORD shall give them to drink of a most pure liquor; and shall say unto them, Verily this is your reward: and your endeavor is gratefully accepted. Verily we have sent down unto thee the Koran, by a gradual revelation. Wherefore patiently wait the judgment of thy LORD; and obey not any wicked person or unbeliever among them. And commemorate the name of thy LORD, in the morning, and in the evening: and during some part of the night worship him, and praise him a long part of the night. Verily these men love the transitory life, and leave behind them the heavy day of judgment. We have created them, and have strengthened their joints; and when we please, we will substitute others like unto them, in their stead. Verily this is an admonition: and whoso willeth, taketh the way unto his LORD: 30 but ye shall not will, unless GOD willeth; for GOD is knowing and wise. He leadeth whom he pleaseth into his mercy; but for the unjust hath he prepared a grievous punishment.
x It is related that Hasan and Hosein, Mohammed's grandchildren, on a certain time being both sick, the prophet, among others, visited them, and they wished Ali to make some vow to GOD for the recovery of his sons: whereupon Ali, and Fâtema, and Fidda, their maid-servant, vowed a fast of three days in case they did well; as it happened they did. This vow was performed with so great strictness, that the first day, having no provisions in the house, Ali was obliged to borrow three measures of barley of one Simeon, a Jew, of Khaibar, one measure of which Fâtema ground the same day, and baked five cakes of the meal, and they were set before them to break their fast with after sunset: but a poor man coming to them, they gave all their bread to him, and passed the night without tasting anything except water. The next day Fâtema made another measure into bread, for the same purpose; but an orphan begging some food, they chose to let him have it, and passed that night as the first; and the third day they likewise gave their whole provision to a famished captive. Upon this occasion Gabriel descended with the chapter, before us, and told Mohammed that GOD congratulated him on the virtues of his family.1 y Because they shall not need the light of either.2 The word Zamharîr, here translated moon, properly signifies extreme cold: for which reason some understand the meaning of the passage to be, that in paradise there shall be felt no excess either of heat or of cold. z The word signifies ginger, which the Arabs delight to mix with the water they drink; and therefore the water of this fountain is supposed to have the taste of that spice.3 a Signifies water which flows gently and pleasantly down the throat.
1 Idem. 2 See Revel. xxi. 23. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallal.
LXXVII. ENTITLED, THOSE WHICH ARE SENT; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the angels which are sent by God, following one another in a continual series; and those which move swiftly, with a rapid motion; and by those which disperse his commands, by divulging them through the earth; and by those which separate truth from falsehood, by distinguishing the same; and by those which communicate the divine admonitions, to excuse, or to threaten:b verily that which ye are promisedc is inevitable. When the stars, therefore, shall be put out, and when the heaven shall be cloven in sunder, 10 and when the mountains shall be winnowed, and when the apostles shall have a time assigned to them to appear and bear testimony against their respective people; to what a day shall that appointment be deferred! to the day of separation: and what shall cause thee to understand what the day of separation is? On that day, woe be unto them who accused the prophets of imposture! Have we not destroyed the obstinate unbelievers of old? We will also cause those of the latter times to follow them. Thus do we deal with the wicked. Woe be, on that day, unto them who accused the prophets of imposture! 20 Have we not created you of a contemptible drop of seed, which we placed in a sure repository, until the fixed term of delivery? And we were able to do this: for we are most powerful. On that day, woe be unto those who accused the prophets of imposture: Have we not made the earth to contain the living and the dead, and placed therein stable and lofty mountains, and given you fresh water to drink? Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture! It shall be said unto them, Go ye to the punishment which ye denied as a falsehood: 30 go ye into the shadow of the smoke of hell, which shall ascend in three columns, and shall not shade you from the heat, neither shall it be of service against the flame; but it shall cast forth sparks as big as towers, resembling yellow camels in colour.d Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture! This shall be a day whereon they shall not speak to any purpose; neither shall they be permitted to excuse themselves. Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture! This shall be the day of separation: we will assemble both you and your predecessors. Wherefore, if ye have any cunning stratagem, employ stratagems against me. 40 Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture!
b Some understand the whole passage of the verses of the Korân; which continued to be sent down, parcel after parcel, during the space of several years, and which rescind (for so the verb ásafa may also be translated) and abolish all former dispensations, divulging and making known the ways of salvation, distinguishing truth from falsehood, and communicating admonition, &c. Some interpret the first three verses of the winds, sent in a continual succession, blowing with a violent gust, and dispersing rain over the earth; and others give different explications. c viz., The day of judgment. d Being of fiery colour. Others, however, suppose these sparks will be of a dusky hue, like that of black camels, which always inclines a little to the yellow; the word translated yellow, signifying sometimes black. Some copies, by the variation of a vowel, have cables, instead of camels.
But the pious shall dwell amidst shades and fountains, and fruits of the kinds which they shall desire: and it shall be said unto them, Eat and drink with easy digestion, in recompense for that which ye have wrought; for thus do we reward the righteous doers. Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture! Eat, O unbelievers, and enjoy the pleasures of this life, for a little while: verily ye are wicked men. Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture! And when it is said unto them, Bow down; they do not bow down. Woe be, on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture! 50 In what new revelation will they believe, after this.
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LXXVIII. ENTITLED, THE NEWS; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
CONCERNING what do the unbelievers ask questions of one another? Concerning the great news of the resurrection, about which they disagree. Assuredly they shall hereafter know the truth thereof. Again, Assuredly they shall hereafter know the truth thereof. Have we not made the earth for a bed, and the mountains for stakes to fix the same?e And have we not created you of two sexes; and appointed your sleep for rest; 10 and made the night a garment to cover you; and destined the day to the gaining your livelihood; and built over you seven solid heavens; and placed therein a burning lamp? And do we not send down from the clouds pressing forth rain, water pouring down in abundance, that we may thereby produce corn, and herbs, and gardens planted thick with trees? Verily the day of separation is a fixed period: the day whereon the trumpet shall sound, and ye shall come in troops to judgment; and the heaven shall be opened, and shall be full of gates for the angels to pass through; 20 and the mountains shall pass away, and become as a vapor; verily hell shall be a place of ambush, a receptacle for the transgressors, who shall remain therein for ages: they shall not taste any refreshment therein, or any drink, except boiling water, and filthy corruption: a fit recompense for their deeds! For they hope that they should not be brought to an account, and they disbelieved our signs, accusing them of falsehood. But everything have we computed, and written down. 30 Taste, therefore: we will not add unto you any other than torment.f But for the pious is prepared a place of bliss: gardens planted with trees, and vineyards,
e See chapter 16, p. 196, and chapter 31, p. 307. f This, say the commentators, is the most severe and terrible sentence in the whole Korân, pronounced against the inhabitants of hell; they being hereby assured that every change in their torments will be for the worse.
and damsels with swelling breasts, of equal age with themselves, and a full cup. They shall hear no vain discourse there, nor any falsehood. This shall be their recompense from thy LORD; a gift fully sufficient: from the LORD of heaven and earth, and of whatever is between them; the Merciful. The inhabitants of heaven or of earth shall not dare to demand audience of him: the day whereon the spirit Gabriel and the other angels shall stand in order, they shall not speak in behalf of themselves or others, except he only to whom the Merciful shall grant permission, and who shall say that which is right. This is the infallible day. Whoso, therefore, willeth, let him return unto his LORD. 40 Verily we threaten you with a punishment nigh at hand: the day whereon a man shall behold the good or evil deeds which his hands have sent before him; and the unbeliever shall say, Would to GOD I were dust!
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LXXIX. ENTITLED, THOSE WHO TEAR FORTH; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the angels who tear forth the souls of some with violence; and by those who draw forth the souls of others with gentleness;g by those who glide swimmingly through the air with the commands of God; and those who precede and usher the righteous to paradise; and those who subordinately govern the affairs of this world: on a certain day, the disturbing blast of the trumpet shall disturb the universe; and the subsequent blast shall follow it. On that day men's hearts shall tremble: their looks shall be cast down. 10 The infidels say, Shall we surely be made to return whence we came?h After we shall have become rotten bones, shall we be again raised to life? They say, This then will be a return to loss. Verily it will be but one sounding of the trumpet,i and, behold, they shall appear alive on the face of the earth.k Hath not the story of Moses reached thee? When his LORD called unto him in the holy valley Towa,l saying, Go unto Pharaoh; for he is insolently wicked: and say, Hast thou a desire to become just and holy; and I will direct thee unto thy LORD, that thou mayest fear to transgress. 20 And he showed him the very great sign of the rod turned into a serpent: but he charged Moses with imposture, and rebelled against God. Then he turned back hastily; and he assembled the magicians, and cried aloud,
g These are the angel of death and his assistants, who will take the souls of the wicked in a rough and cruel manner from the inmost part of their bodies, as a man drags up a thing from the bottom of the sea; but will take the souls of the good in a gentle and easy manner from their lips, as when a man draws a bucket of water at one pull.1 There are several other interpretations of this whole passage; some expounding all the five parts of the oath of the stars, others of the souls of men, others of the souls of warriors in particular, and others of war-horses: a detail of which, I apprehend, would rather tire than please. h i.e., Shall we be restored to our former condition? i viz., The second or third blast, according to different opinions. k Or, they shall appear at the place of judgment. The original word al Sâhira is also one of the names of hell. l See chapter 20, p. 234.
1 Al Beidâwi.
saying, I am your supreme LORD. Wherefore GOD chastised him with the punishment of the life to come, and also of this present life. Verily herein is an example unto him who feareth to rebel. Are ye more difficult to create, or the heaven which God hath built? He hath raised the height thereof, and hath perfectly formed the same: and he hath made the night thereof dark, and hath produced the light thereof. 30 After this, he stretched out the earth,m whence he caused to spring forth the water thereof, and the pasture thereof; and he established the mountains, for the use of yourselves, and of your cattle. When the prevailing, the great day shall come, on that day shall a man call to remembrance what he hath purposely done: and hell shall be exposed to the view of the spectator. And whoso shall have transgressed, and shall have chosen this present life; verily hell shall be his abode; 40 but whoso shall have dreaded the appearing before his LORD, and shall have refrained his soul from lust, verily paradise shall be his abode. They will ask thee concerning the last hour, when will be the fixed time thereof? By what means canst thou give any information of the same? Unto thy LORD belongeth the knowledge of the period thereof: and thou art only a warner, who fearest the same. The day whereon they shall see the same, it shall seem to them as though they had not tarried in the world longer than an evening, or a morning thereof.
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LXXX. ENTITLED, HE FROWNED; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE prophet frowned, and turned aside, because the blind man came unto him:n and how dost thou know whether he shall peradventure be cleansed from his sins, or whether he shall be admonished, and the admonition shall profit him? The man who is wealthy, thou receivest respectfully; whereas it is not to be charged on thee, that he is not cleansed: but him who cometh unto thee earnestly, seeking his salvation, and who feareth God, 10 dost thou neglect. By no means shouldst thou act thus. Verily the Koran is an admonition (and he who is willing retaineth the same;) written in volumes honourable, exalted, and pure; by the hands of scribes honoured, and just.o
m Which had been created before the heavens, but without expansion.1 n This passage was revealed on the following occasion. A certain blind man, named Abdallah Ebn Omm Mactûm, came and interrupted Mohammed while he was engaged in earnest discourse with some of the principal Koreish, whose conversion he had hopes of; but the prophet taking no notice of him, the blind man, not knowing he was otherwise busied, raised his voice, and said, O apostle of GOD, teach me some part of what GOD hath taught thee; but Mohammed, vexed at this interruption, frowned and turned away from him; for which he is here reprehended. After this, whenever the prophet saw Ebn Omm Mactûm, he showed him great respect, saying, The man is welcome, on whose account my LORD hath reprimanded me; and he made him twice governor of Medina.2 o Being transcribed from the preserved table, highly honoured in the sight of GOD, kept pure and uncorrupted from the hands of evil spirits, and touched only by the angels. Some understand hereby the books of the prophets, with which the Korân agrees in substance.1
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem al Beidâwi.
May man be cursed! What hath seduced him to infidelity? Of what thing doth God create him? Of a drop of seed doth he create him; and he formeth him with proportion; 20 and then facilitateth his passage out of the womb: afterwards he causeth him to die, and layeth him in the grave; hereafter, when it shall please him, he shall raise him to life. Assuredly, He hath not hitherto fully performed what God hath commanded him. Let man consider his food; in what manner it is provided. We pour down water by showers; afterwards we cleave the earth in clefts, and we cause corn to spring forth therein, and grapes, and clover, and the olive, and the palm, 30 and gardens planted thick with trees, and fruits, and grass, for the use of yourselves and of your cattle. When the stunning sound of the trumpet shall be heard; on that day shall a man fly from his brother, and his mother, and his father, and his wife, and his children. Every man of them, on that day, shall have business of his own sufficient to employ his thoughts. On that day the faces of some shall be bright, laughing, and joyful: 40 and upon the faces of others, on that day, shall there be dust; darkness shall cover them. These are the unbelievers, the wicked.
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LXXXI. ENTITLED, THE FOLDING UP; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the sun shall be folded up;p and when the stars shall fall; and when the mountains shall be made to pass away; and when the camels ten months gone with young shall be neglected;q and when the wild beasts shall be gathered together;r and when the seas shall boil;s and when the souls shall be joined again to their bodies; and when the girl who hath been buried alive shall be asked for what crime she was put to death;t 10 and when the books shall be laid open; and when the heaven shall be removed;u and when hell shall burn fiercely; and when paradise shall be brought near; every soul shall know what it hath wrought.
p As a garment that is laid by. q See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 64. r See ibid. p. 64 and 67. s See ibid. p. 64. t For it was customary among the ancient Arabs to bury their daughters alive as soon as they were born; for fear they should be impoverished by providing for them, or should suffer disgrace on their account. See chapter 16, p. 199. u Or plucked away from its place, as the skin is plucked off from a camel which is flaying; for that is the proper signification of the verb here used. Marracci fancies the passage alludes to that in the Psalms,2 where, according to the versions of the Septuagint and the Vulgate, GOD is said to have stretched out the heaven like a skin. 1 Al Zamakh. 2 Psalm civ. 2.
Verily I swearx by the stars which are retrograde, which move swiftly, and which hide themselves;y and by the night, when it cometh on; and by the morning, when it appeareth; these these are the words of an honourable messenger,z 20 endued with strength, of established dignity in the sight of the possessor of the throne, obeyed by the angels under his authority, and faithful: and your companion Mohammed is not distracted. He had already seen him in the clear horizon:a and he suspected notb the secrets revealed unto him. Neither are these the words of an accursed devil.c Whither, therefore, are you going? This is no other than an admonition unto all creatures; unto him among you who shall be willing to walk uprightly: but ye shall not will, unless GOD willeth, the LORD of all creatures.
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LXXXII. ENTITLED, THE CLEAVING IN SUNDER; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the heaven shall be cloven in sunder; and when the stars shall be scattered; and when the seas shall be suffered to join their waters; and when the graves shall be turned upside down: every soul shall know what it hath committed, and what it hath omitted. O man, what hath seduced thee against thy gracious LORD, who hath created thee, and put thee together, and rightly disposed thee? In what form he pleased hath he fashioned thee. Assuredly. But ye deny the last judgment as a falsehood. 10 Verily there are appointed over you guardian angels,d honourable in the sight of God, writing down your actions; who know that which ye do. The just shall surely be in a place of delight: but the wicked shall surely be in hell; they shall be cast therein to be turned, on the day of judgment, and they shall not be absent therefrom forever. What shall cause thee to understand what the day of judgment is? Again, What shall cause thee to understand what the day of judgment is? It is a day whereon one soul shall not be able to obtain anything in behalf of another soul: and the command, on that day, shall be GOD'S.
x Or, I will not swear, &c. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m. y Some understand hereby the stars in general, but the more exact commentators, five of the planets, viz., the two which accompany the sun, and the three superior planets; which have both a retrograde and a direct motion, and hide themselves in the rays of the sun, or when they set. z i.e., Gabriel. a See chapter 53, p. 389. b Some copies, by a change of one letter only, instead of dhanînin, read danînin; and then the words should be rendered, He is not tenacious of, or grudges not to communicate to you, the secret revelations which he has received. c Who has overheard, by stealth, the discourse of the angels. The verse is an answer to a calumny of the infidels, who said the Korân was only a piece of divination, or magic; for the Arabs suppose the soothsayer, or magician, receives his intelligence from those evil spirits, who are continually listening to learn what they can from the inhabitants of heaven. d See chapter 50, p. 384, and the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 56.
Chapter LXXXIII
ENTITLED, THOSE WHO GIVE SHORT MEASURE OR WEIGHT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WOE be unto those who give short measure or weight: who, when they receive by measure from other men, take the full; but when they measure unto them, or weigh unto them, defraud! Do not these think they shall be raised again, at the great day, the day whereon mankind shall stand before the LORD of all creatures? By no means. Verily the register of the actions of the wicked is surely in Sejjîn.e And what shall make thee to understand what Sejjîn is? It is a book distinctly written. 10 Woe be on that day, unto those who accused the prophets of imposture; who denied the day of judgment as a falsehood! And none denieth the same as a falsehood, except every unjust and flagitious person: who, when our signs are rehearsed unto him, saith, They are fables of the ancients. By no means: but rather their lusts have cast a veil over their hearts. By no means. Verily they shall be shut out from their LORD on that day; and they shall be sent into hell to be burned: then shall it be said unto them by the infernal guards, This is what ye denied as a falsehood. Assuredly. But the register of the actions of the righteous is Illiyyûn:f and what shall cause thee to understand what Illiyyun is? 20 It is a book distinctly written: those who approach near unto God are witnesses thereto.g Verily the righteous shall dwell among delights: seated on couches they shall behold objects of pleasure; thou shalt see in their faces the brightness of joy. They shall be given to drink of pure wine, sealed; the seal whereof shall be musk:h and to this let those aspire, who aspire to happiness: and the water mixed therewith shall be of Tasnîm,i a fountain whereof those shall drink who approach near unto the divine presence.k
e Is the name of the general register, wherein the actions of all the wicked, both men and genii, are distinctly entered. Sejn signifies a prison; and this book, as some think, derives its name from thence, because it will occasion those whose deeds are there recorded to be imprisoned in hell. Sejjin, or Sajin, is also the name of the dungeon beneath the seventh earth, the residence of Eblis and his host, where, it is supposed by some, that this book is kept, and where the souls of the wicked will be detained till the resurrection.1 If the latter explication be admitted, the words, And what shall make thee to understand what Sejjin is? should be enclosed within a parenthesis. f The word is a plural, and signifies high places. Some say it is the general register wherein the actions of the righteous, whether angels, men, or genii, are distinctly recorded. Others will have it to be a place in the seventh heaven, under the throne of GOD, where this book is kept, and where the souls of the just, as many think, will remain till the last day.2 If we prefer the latter opinion, the words, And what shall make thee to understand what Illiyyûn is? should likewise be enclosed in a parenthesis. g Or, are present with, and keep the same. h i.e., The vessels containing the same shall be sealed with musk, instead of clay. Some understand by the seal of this wine its farewell, or the flavour it will leave in the mouth after it is drank. i Is the name of a fountain in paradise, so called from its being conveyed to the highest apartments. k For they shall drink the water of Tasnîm pure and unmixed, being continually and wholly employed in the contemplation of GOD; but the other inhabitants of paradise shall drink it mixed with their wine.3
1 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 61. 2 Jallalo'ddin. See the Prelim. Disc. ubi sup. 3 Al Beidâwi.
They who act wickedly laugh the true believers to scorn: 30 and when they pass by them, they wink at one another: and when they turn aside to their people, they turn aside making scurrilous jests; and when they see them, they say, Verily these are mistaken men. But they are not sent to be keepers over them.l Wherefore one day the true believers, in their turn, shall laugh the infidels to scorn:m lying on couches they shall look down upon them in hell. Shall not the infidels be rewarded for that which they have done?
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LXXXIV. ENTITLED, THE RENDING IN SUNDER; REVEALED AT MECCA.n
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the heaven shall be rent in sunder, and shall obey its LORD, and shall be capable thereof; and when the earth shall be stretched out,o and shall cast forth that which is therein,p and shall remain empty, and shall obey its LORD, and shall be capable thereof: O man, verily laboring thou laborest to meet thy LORD, and thou shalt meet him.q And he who shall have his book given into his right hand shall be called to an easy account, and shall turn unto his familyr with joy: 10 but he who shall have his book given him behind his back,s shall invoke destruction to fall upon him, and he shall be sent into hell to be burned; because he rejoiced insolently amidst his family on earth. Verily he thought he should never return unto God: yea verily, but his LORD beheld him. Wherefore I sweart by the redness of the sky after sunset, and by the night, and the animals which it driveth together, and by the moon when she is in the full; ye shall surely be transferred successively from state to state.u 20 What aileth them, therefore, that they believe not the resurrection; and that, when the Koran is read unto them, they worship not?x Yea: the unbelievers accuse the same of imposture: but GOD well knoweth the malice which they keep hidden in their breasts. Wherefore denounce unto them a grievous punishment, except those who believe and do good works: for them is prepared a never- failing reward.
l i.e., The infidels are not commissioned by GOD to call the believers to account, or to judge of their actions. m When they shall see them ignominiously driven into hell. It is also said, that a door shall be shown the damned, opening into paradise, and they shall be bidden to go in; but when they come near the door it shall be suddenly shut, and the believers within shall laugh at them.1 n There are some who take this chapter to have been revealed at Medina. o Like a skin; every mountain and hill being levelled. p As the treasures hidden in its bowels, and the dead bodies which lie in their graves. q Or, and thou shalt meet thy labour; whether thy works be good, or whether they be evil r i.e., His relations or friends who are true believers; or rather, to his wives and servants, of the damsels and youths of paradise, who wait to receive him.2 s That is, into his left hand; for the wicked will have that hand bound behind their back, and their right hand to their neck. t Or, I will not swear. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m. u i.e., From the state of the living, to that of the dead; and from the state of the dead, to a new state of life in another world. x Or, humble not themselves.
1 Idem. 2 Idem.
LXXXV. ENTITLED, THE CELESTIAL SIGNS; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the heaven adorned with signs;y by the promised day of judgment; by the witness, and the witnessed;z cursed were the contrivers of the pit,a of fire supplied with fuel; when they sat around the same, and were witnesses of what they did against the true believers:b and they afflicted them for no other reason, but because they believed in the mighty, the glorious GOD, unto whom belongeth the kingdom of heaven and earth: and GOD is witness of all things. 10 Verily for those who persecute the true believers of either sex, and afterwards repent not, is prepared the torment of hell; and they shall suffer the pain of burning.c But for those who believe, and do that which is right, are destined gardens beneath which rivers flow: this shall be great felicity. Verily the vengeance of thy LORD is severe. He createth, and he restoreth to life: he is inclined to forgive, and gracious; the possessor of the glorious throne, who effecteth that which he pleaseth. Hath not the story of the hosts of Pharaohd and of Thamude reached thee? Yet the unbelievers cease not to accuse the divine revelations of falsehood:
y The original word properly signifies towers, which some interpret of real towers,1 wherein it is supposed the angels keep guard;2 and others, of the stars of the first magnitude: but the generality of expositors understand thereby the twelve signs of the zodiac, wherein the planets make their several stations.3 z The meaning of these words is very uncertain, and the explications of the commentators consequently vary. One thinks the witness to be Mohammed, and that which is borne witness of, to be the resurrection, or the professors of the Mohammedan faith; or else that these latter are the witness, and the professors of every other religion, those who will be witnessed against by them. Another supposes the witness to be the guardian angel, and his charge the person witnessed against. Another expounds the words of the day of Arafat, the 9th of Dhu'lhajja, and of the day of slaying the victims, which is the day following, or else of Friday, the day of the weekly assembling of the Mohammedans at their mosques, and of the people who are assembled on those days, &c.4 a Literally, the lords of the pit. These were the ministers of the persecution raised by Dhu Nowâs, king of Yaman, who was of the Jewish religion, against the inhabitants of Najrân; for they having embraced Christianity (at that time the true religion, by the confession of Mohammed himself), the bigoted tyrant commanded all those who would not renounce their faith to be cast into a pit, or trench, filled with fire, and there burnt to ashes.5 Others, however, tell the story with different circumstances.6 b Or, as some choose to understand the words, And shall be witnesses against themselves, at the day of judgment, of their unjust treatment of the true believers. c Which pain, it is said, the persecutors of the Christian martyrs above mentioned felt in this life; the fire bursting forth upon them from the pit, and consuming them.7 d See chapter 7, p. 115, &c. e See ibid. p. 111, &c.
1 Yahya. 2 See cap. 15, p. 191. 3 Jallal., al Beidâwi, Yahya. 4 Idem. 5 Idem. Vide Poc. Spec. p. 62; Ecchellens. Hist. Arab. part i. c. 10; and Prid. Life of Mah. p. 61. 6 Vide D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abou Navas. 7 Al Beidâwi, Yahya.
20 but GOD encompasseth them behind, that they cannot escape. Verily that which they reject is a glorious Koran; the original whereof is written in a table kept in heaven.f
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Chapter LXXXVI
ENTITLED, THE STAR WHICH APPEARED BY NIGHT; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the heaven, and that which appeareth by night: but what shall cause thee to understand what that which appeareth by night is? it is the star of piercing brightness:g every soul hath a guardian set over it. Let a man consider, therefore, of what he is created. He is created of seed poured forth, issuing from the loins, and the breastbones.h Verily God is able to restore him to life, the day whereon all secret thoughts and actions shall be examined into; 10 and he shall have no power to defend himself, nor any protector. By the heaven which returneth the rain;i and by the earth which openeth to let forth vegetables and springs: verily this is a discourse distinguishing good from evil: and it is not composed with lightness. Verily the infidels are laying a plot to frustrate my designs: but I will lay a plot for their ruin. Wherefore, O prophet, bear with the unbelievers: let them alone a while.
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LXXXVII. ENTITLED, THE MOST HIGH;k REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
PRAISE the name of thy LORD, the most high; who hath created, and completely formed his creatures:
f And preserved from the least change or corruption. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 50, and Sect. IV. p. 58. g Some take the words to signify any bright star, without restriction; but others think some particular star or stars to be thereby intended; which one supposes to be the morning star (peculiarly called al Târek, or the appearing by nights), another Saturn (that planet being by the Arabs surnamed al Thakeb, or the piercing, as it was by the Greeks, Phoenon, or the shining), and a third, the Pleiades. h i.e., From the loins of the man, and the breast-bones of the woman.1 i Or, as some expound it, Which performeth its periodic motion, returning to the point from whence it began the same. The words seem designed to express the alternate returns of the different seasons of the year. k Some take the first word of this chapter, viz., Praise, for its title.
1 Al Beidâwi, Yahya
and who determineth them to various ends,l and directeth them to attain the same;m and who produceth the pasture for cattle, and afterwards rendereth the same dry stubble of a dusky hue. We will enable thee to rehearse our revelations;n and thou shalt not forget any part thereof, except what GOD shall please;o for he knoweth that which is manifest, and that which is hidden. And we will facilitate unto thee the most easy way.p Wherefore admonish thy people, if thy admonition shall be profitable unto them. 10 Whoso feareth God, he will be admonished: but the most wretched unbeliever will turn away therefrom; who shall be cast to be broiled in the greater fire of hell, wherein he shall not die, neither shall he live. Now hath he attained felicity, who is purified by faith, and who remembereth the name of his LORD, and prayeth. But ye prefer this present life: yet the life to come is better, and more durable. Verily this is written in the ancient books, the books of Abraham and Moses.
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LXXXVIII. ENTITLED, THE OVERWHELMING;q REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
HATH the news of the overwhelming day of judgment reached thee? The countenances of some, on that day, shall be cast down; labouring and toiling:r they shall be cast into scorching fire to be broiled: they shall be given to drink of a boiling fountain: they shall have no food, but of dry thorns and thistles:s which shall not fatten, neither shall they satisfy hunger. But the countenances of others, on that day, shall be joyful; well pleased with their past endeavor: 10 they shall be placed in a lofty garden, wherein thou shalt hear no vain discourse: therein shall be a running fountain; therein shall be raised beds, and goblets placed before them, and cushions laid in order, and carpets ready spread. Do they not consider the camels,t how they are created;
l Determining their various species, properties, ways of life, &c.1 m Guiding the rational by their reason and also by revelation, and the irrational by instinct, &c.2 n See chapter 75, p. 431. o i.e., Except such revelations as GOD shall think fit to abrogate and blot out of thy memory. See chapter 2, p. 13, and chapter 75, p. 431. p To retain the relations communicated to thee by Gabriel; or, as some understand the words, We will dispose thee to the profession and strict observance of the most easy religion, that is, of Islâm. q That is a name, or epithet, of the last day; because it will suddenly overwhelm all creatures with fear and astonishment. It is also a name, or epithet, of hell fire. r i.e., Dragging their chains, and labouring through hell fire, as camels labour through mud, &c. Or, Employing and fatiguing themselves in what shall not avail them.3 s Such as the camels eat when green and tender. Some take the original word al Darí for the name of a thorny tree. t These animals are of such use, or rather necessity, in the east, that the creation of a species so wonderfully adapted to those countries is a very proper instance, to an Arabian, of the power and wisdom of GOD. Some, however, think the clouds (which the original word ibl also signifies) are here intended; the heaven being mentioned immediately after.
1 Al Beidâwi. 2 Idem. 3 Idem.
and the heaven, how it is raised; and the mountains, how they are fixed; 20 and the earth, how it is extended? Wherefore warn thy people; for thou art a warner only: thou art not impowered to act with authority over them. But whoever shall turn back,u and disbelieve, GOD shall punish him with the greater punishment of the life to come. Verily unto us shall they return: then shall it be our part to bring them to account.
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LXXXIX. ENTITLED, THE DAYBREAK; REVEALED AT MECCA.x
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the daybreak, and ten nights;y by that which is double, and that which is single;z and by the night when it cometh on: is there not in this an oath formed with understanding? Hast thou not considered how thy LORD dealt with Ad, the people of Irem,a adorned with lofty buildings,b the like whereof hath not been erected in the land;c and with Thamud, who hewed the rocks in the valleyd into houses;
u Or, Except him who shall turn back, and be an infidel: and GOD shall also punish him &c. By which exception some suppose that power is here given to Mohammed to chastise obstinate infidels and apostates. x Some are of opinion this chapter was revealed at Medina. y That is, the ten nights of Dhu'lhajja, or the 10th of that month (whence some understand the daybreak mentioned just before, of the morning of that day, or of the preceding); or the nights of the 10th of Moharram; or, as others rather think, the 10th, 11th, and 12th of Dhu'lhajja; all which are days peculiarly sacred among the Mohammedans. z These words are variously interpreted. Some understand thereby all things in general; some, all created beings (which are said to have been created by pairs, or of two kinds),1 and the Creator, who is single; some, of the primum mobile, and the other orbs; some, of the constellations and the planets; some, of the nights before mentioned, taken either together or singly; and some, of the day of slaying the victims (the 10th of Dhu'lhajja), and of the day of Arafat, which is the day before, &c.2 a Was the name of the territory or city of the Adites, and of the garden mentioned in the next note; which were so called from Irem, or Aram, the grandfather of Ad, their progenitor. Some think Aaron himself to be here meant, and his name to be added to signify the ancient Adites, his immediate descendants, and to distinguish them from the latter tribe of that name:3 but the adjective and relative joined to the word are, in the original, of the feminine gender, which seems to contradict this opinion. b Or pillars. Some imagine these words are used to express the great size and strength of the old Adites;4 and then they should be translated, who were of enormous stature. But the more exact commentators take the passage to relate to the sumptuous palace and delightful gardens built and made by Sheddâd the son of Ad. For they say Ad left two sons, Sheddâd and Sheddîd, who reigned jointly after his decease, and extended their power over the greater part of the world; but Sheddîd dying, his brother became sole monarch; who, having heard of the celestial paradise, made a garden in imitation thereof, in the deserts of Aden, and called it Irem, after the name of his great-grandfather: when it was finished he set out, with a great attendance, to take a view of it; but when they were come within a day's journey of the place, they were all destroyed by a terrible noise from heaven. Al Beidâwi adds that one Abdallah Ebn Kelâbah (whom, after D'Herbelot, I have elsewhere named Colabah)5 accidentally hit on this wonderful place, as he was seeking a camel. c If we suppose the preceding words to relate to the vast stature of the Adites, these must be translated, The like of whom hath not been created, &c. d The learned Greaves, in his translation of Abulfeda's description of Arabia,6 has falsely rendered these words, which are there quoted, Quibus petroe vallis responsum dederunt, i.e., To whom the rocks of the valley returned answer: which slip being made by so great a man, I do not at all wonder that La Roque, and Petis de la Croix, from whose Latin version, and with whose assistance, La Roque made his French translation of the aforesaid treatise, have been led into the same mistake, and rendered those words, A qui les pierres de la valée rendirent réponse.1 The valley here meant, say the commentators,2 is Wâdi'lkora, lying about one day's journey3 (not five and upwards, as Abulfeda will have it) from al Hejr.
1 See cap. 51, p. 387. 2 Al Zamakh. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 4 Idem. See the Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 5 Prelim. Disc. p. 5. 6 p. 43. It was published by Dr. Hudson, in the third vol. of the Geograhphiæ Veteris Scriptor. Gr. minor.
and with Pharaoh, the contriver of the stakes:e 10 who had behaved insolently in the earth, and multiplied corruption therein? Wherefore thy LORD poured on them various kindsf of chastisement: for thy LORD is surely in a watch-tower, whence he observeth the actions of men. Moreover man, when his LORD trieth him by prosperity, and honoureth him, and is bounteous unto him, saith, My LORD honoureth me; but when he proveth him by afflictions, and withholdeth his provisions from him, he saith, My LORD despiseth me. By no means:g but ye honour not the orphan, neither do ye excite one another to feed the poor; 20 and ye devour the inheritance of the weak,h with undistinguishing greediness, and ye love riches with much affection. By no means should ye do thus. When the earth shall be minutely ground to dust; and thy LORD shall come, and the angels rank by rank; and hell, on that day, shall be brought nigh:i on that day shall man call to remembrance his evil deeds; but how shall remembrance avail him? He shall say, Would to GOD that I had heretofore done good works in my lifetime!k On that day none shall punish with his punishment; nor shall any bind with his bonds.l O thou soul which art at rest,m return unto thy LORD, well pleased with thy reward, and well pleasing unto God: enter among my servants; 30 and enter my paradise.
e See chapter 38, p. 340. f The original word signifies a mixture, and also a scourge of platted thongs: whence some suppose the chastisement of this life is here represented by scourge, and intimated to be as much lighter than that of the next life, as scourging is lighter than death.4 g For worldly prosperity or adversity is not a certain mark either of the favour or disfavour of GOD. h Not suffering women or young children to have any share in the inheritance of their husbands or parents. See chapter 4, p. 54. i There is a tradition that at the last day hell will be dragged towards the tribunal by 70,000 halters, each halter being hauled by 70,000 angels, and that it will come with great roaring and fury.5 k Or, for this my latter life. l i.e., None shall be able to punish or to bind, as GOD shall then punish and bind the wicked.6 m Some expound this of the soul, which, having, by pursuing the concatenation of natural causes, raised itself to the knowledge of that Being which produced them, and exists of necessity, rests fully contented, or acquiesces in the knowledge of him, and the contemplation of his perfections. By this the reader will observe that the Mohammedans are no strangers to Quietism. Others, however, understand the words of the soul, which, having attained the knowledge of the truth, rests satisfied, and relies securely thereon, undisturbed by doubts; or of the soul which is secure of its salvation, and free from fear or sorrow.7
1 Descr. de l'Arabie, mise à la suite du Voyage de la Palestine, par La Roque, p. 35. 2 Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi. 3 Ebn Hawkal, apud Abulf. ubi sup. Geogr. Nub. p. 110. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 6 Idem. 7 Al Beidâwi
XC. ENTITLED, THE TERRITORY; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
I SWEARn by this territory,o (and thou, O prophet, residest in this territory,)p and by the begetter, and that which he hath begotten;q verily we have created man in misery.r Doth he think that none shall prevail over him?s He saith, I have wasted plenty of riches.t Doth he think that none seeth him? Have we not made him two eyes, and a tongue, and two lips; 10 and shown him the two highways of good and evil? Yet he attempteth not the cliff. What shall make thee to understand what the cliff is? It is to free the captive; or to feed, in the day of famine, the orphan who is of kin, or the poor man who lieth on the ground. Whoso doth this, and is one of those who believe, and recommend perseverance unto each other, and recommend mercy unto each other; these shall be the companions of the right hand.u But they who shall disbelieve our signs shall be the companions of the left hand:x 20 above them shall be arched fire. _____
XCI. ENTITLED, THE SUN; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the Sun, and its rising brightness; by the moon when she followeth him;y by the day, when it showeth its splendor; by the night, when it covereth him with darkness; by the heaven, and him who built it; by the earth, and him who spread it forth; by the soul, and him who completely formed it, and inspired into the same its faculty of distinguishing, and power of choosing, wickedness and piety:
n Or, I will not swear, &c. See chapter 56, p. 398, note m. o viz., The sacred territory of Mecca. p Or, Thou shalt be allowed to do what thou pleasest in this territory; the words, in this sense, importing a promise of that absolute power which Mohammed attained on the taking of Mecca.1 q Some understand these words generally; others of Adam or Abraham, and of their offspring, and of Mohammed in particular.2 r Or, to trouble. This passage was revealed to comfort the prophet under the persecutions of the Koreish.3 s Some expositors take a particular person to be here intended, who was one of Mohammed's most inveterate adversaries; as al Walid Ebn al Mogheira;4 others suppose Abu'l Ashadd Ebn Calda to be the man, who was so very strong, that a large skin being spread under his feet, and ten men pulling at it, they could not make him fall, though they tore the skin to pieces.5 t In a vain and ostentatious manner, or in opposing of Mohammed.6 u See chapter 56, p. 396. x See ibid. y i.e., When she rises just after him, as she does at the beginning of the month; or when she gets after him, as happens when she is a little past the full.7
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Idem. 4 Al Zamakh. 5 Al Beidâwi. 6 Idem. 7 Idem.
now is he who hath purified the same, happy; 10 but he who hath corrupted the same, is miserable. Thamud accused their prophet Saleh of imposture, through the excess of their wickedness: when the wretchz among them was sent to slay the camel; and the apostle of GOD said unto them, Let alone the camel of GOD; and hinder not her drinking. But they charged him with imposture; and they slew her. Wherefore their LORD destroyed them, for their crime, and made their punishment equal unto them all: and he feareth not the issue thereof.
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XCII. ENTITLED, THE NIGHT; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the night, when it covereth all things with darkness; by the day, when it shineth forth; by his who hath created the male, and the female: verily your endeavor is different. Now whoso is obedient, and feareth God, and professeth the truth of that faith which is most excellent; unto him will we facilitate the way to happiness: but whoso shall be covetous, and shall be wholly taken up with this world, and shall deny the truth of that which is most excellent; 10 unto him will we facilitate the way to misery; and his riches shall not profit him, when he shall fall headlong into hell. Verily unto us appertaineth the direction of mankind: and ours is the life to come, and the present life. Wherefore I threaten you with fire which burneth fiercely, which none shall enter to be burned except the most wretched; who shall have disbelieved, and turned back. But he who strictly bewareth idolatry and rebellion shall be removed far from the same; who giveth his substance in alms, and by whom no benefit is bestowed on any, that it may be recompensed, 20 but who bestoweth the same for the sake of his LORD, the most High,a and hereafter he shall be well satisfied with his reward.
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XCIII. ENTITLED, THE BRIGHTNESS; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the brightness of the morning;b and by the night, when it groweth dark:
z viz., Kedâr Ebn Sâlef. See chapter 7, p. 112, and chapter 54, p. 393. a Jallalo'ddin thinks this whole description belongs peculiarly to Abu Becr: for when he had purchased Belâl, the Ethiopian (afterwards the prophet's Muedhdhin, or crier to prayers), who purchased Belâl, the Ethiopian (afterwards the prophet's Muedhdhin, or crier to prayers), who had been put to the rack on account of his faith, the infidels said he did it only out of a view of interest; upon which this passage was revealed. b The original word properly signifies the bright part of the day, when the sun shines full out, three or four hours after it is risen.
thy LORD hath not forsaken thee, neither doth he hate thee.c Verily the life to come shall be better for thee than this present life: and thy LORD shall give thee a reward wherewith thou shalt be well pleased. Did he not find thee an orphan, and hath he not taken care of thee? And did he not find thee wandering in error, and hath he not guided thee into the truth? And did he not find thee needy, and hath he not enriched thee? Wherefore oppress not the orphan: 10 neither repulse the beggar: but declare the goodness of thy LORD.
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XCIV. ENTITLED, HAVE WE NOT OPENED; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
HAVE we not opened thy breast;d and eased thee of thy burden,e which galled thy back; and raise thy reputation for thee? Verily a difficulty shall be attended with ease. Verily a difficulty shall be attended with ease. When thou shalt have ended thy preaching; labor to serve God in return for his favours;f and make thy supplication unto thy LORD.
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XCV. ENTITLED, THE FIG; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the fig, and the olive;g and by mount Sinai,
c It is related that no revelation having been vouchsafed to Mohammed for several days, in answer to some questions put to him by the Koreish, because he had confidently promised to resolve them the next day, without adding the exception, if it please GOD,1 or because he had repulsed an importunate beggar, or else because a dead puppy lay under his seat, or for some other reason; his enemies said that GOD had left him: whereupon this chapter was sent down for his consolation.2 d By disposing and enlarging it to receive the truth, and wisdom, and prophecy; or, by freeing thee from uneasiness and ignorance? This passage is thought to intimate the opening of Mohammed's heart, in his infancy, or when he took his journey to heaven, by the angel Gabriel; who having wrung out the black drop, or seed of original sin, washed and cleansed the same, and filled it with wisdom and faith:3 but some think it relates to the occasion of the preceding chapter.4 e i.e., Of thy sins committed before thy mission; or of thy ignorance, or trouble of mind. f Or When thou shalt have finished thy prayer, labour in preaching the faith.5 g GOD, say the commentators swears by these two fruits, because of their great uses and virtues: for the fig is wholesome and of easy digestion, and physically good to carry off phlegm, and gravel in the kidneys or bladder, and to remove obstructions of the liver and spleen, and also cures the piles and the gout, &c.; the olive produces oil, which is not only excellent to eat, but otherwise useful for the compounding of ointments;1 the wood of the olive- tree, moreover, is good for cleansing the teeth, preventing their growing rotten, and giving a good odour to the mouth, for which reason the prophets, and Mohammed in particular, made use of no other for toothpicks.2 Some, however, suppose that these words do not mean the fruits or trees above mentioned, but two mountains in the holy land, where they grow in plenty; or else the temple of Damascus and that at Jerusalem.3
1 See cap. 18, p. 219 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Al Beidâwi, Yahya. Vide Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 8 and 33; Prid, Life of Mohamet, p. 105, &c. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem. 1 Idem, al Zamakh. 2 Al Zamakh. 3 Idem, Yahya, al Beidâwi, Jallal.
and this territory of security;h verily we created man of a most excellent fabric; afterwards we rendered him the vilest of the vile:i except those who believe, and work righteousness; for they shall receive an endless reward. What, therefore, shall cause thee to deny the day of judgment after this?k Is not GOD the most wise judge?
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XCVI. ENTITLED, CONGEALED BLOOD; REVEALED AT MECCA.l
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
READ, in the name of thy LORD, who hath created all things; who hath created man of congealed blood.m Read, by thy most beneficent LORD;n who taught the use of the pen; who teacheth man that which he knoweth not. Assuredly. Verily man becometh insolent, because he seeth himself abound in riches.o Verily unto thy LORD shall be the return of all. What thinkest thou as to him who forbiddeth 10 our servant, when he prayeth?p What thinkest thou; if he follow the right direction; or command piety? What thinkest thou; if he accuse the divine revelations of falsehood, and turn his back?
h viz., The territory of Mecca.4 These words seem to argue the chapter to have been revealed there. i i.e., As the commentators generally expound this passage, We created man of comely proportion of body, and great perfection of mind; and yet we have doomed him, in case of disobedience, to be an inhabitant of hell. Some, however, understand the words of the vigorous constitution of man in the prime and strength of his age, and of his miserable decay when he becomes old and decrepit: but they seem rather to intimate the perfect state of happiness wherein man was originally created, and his fall from thence, in consequence of Adam's disobedience, to a state of misery in this world, and becoming liable to one infinitely more miserable in the next.5 k Some suppose these words directed to Mohammed, and others to man in general, by way of apostrophe. l The first five verses of this chapter, ending with the words, Who taught man that which he knew not, are generally allowed to be the first passage of the Korân which was revealed, though some give this honour to the seventy-four chapter, and others to the first, the next, they say, being the sixty-eighth. m All men being created of thick or concreted blood,6 except only Adam, Eve, and Jesus.7 n These words, containing a repetition of the command, are supposed to be a reply to Mohammed, who, in answer to the former words spoken by the angel, had declared that he could not read, being perfectly illiterate; and intimate a promise that GOD, who had inspired man with the art of writing, would graciously remedy this defect in him.8 o The commentators agree the remaining part of the chapter to have been revealed against Abu Jahl, Mohammed's great adversary. p For Abu Jahl threatened that if he caught Mohammed in the act of adoration, he would set his foot on his neck; but when he came and saw him in that posture, he suddenly turned back as in a fright, and, being asked what was the matter, said there was a ditch of fire between himself and Mohammed, and a terrible appearance of troops, to defend him.9
4 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. 5 Vide Marracc. in loc. p. 809. 6 See cap. 22, p. 250. 7 Yahya. 8 Al Beidâwi. 9 Idem.
Doth he not know that GOD seeth? Assuredly. Verily, if he forbear not, we will drag him by the forelock,q the lying, sinful forelock. And let him call his councilr to his assistance: we also will call the infernal guards to cast him into hell. Assuredly. Obey him not: but continue to adore God; and draw nigh unto him.
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XCVII. ENTITLED, AL KADR; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we sent down the Koran in the night of al Kadr.s And what shall make thee understand how excellent the night of al Kadr is? The night of al Kadr is better than a thousand months. Therein do the angels descend, and the spirit of Gabriel also, by the permission of their LORD, with his decrees concerning every matter.t It is peace until the rising of the morn.
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XCVIII. ENTITLED, THE EVIDENCE;u WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE unbelievers among those to whom the scriptures were given, and among the idolaters, did not stagger,x until the clear evidencey had come unto them:
q See chapter 11, p. 164, note o. r i.e., The council or assembly of the principal Meccans, the far greater part of whom adhered to Abu Jahl. s The word al Kadr signifies power and honor or dignity, and also the divine decree; and the night is so named either from its excellence above all other nights in the year, or because, as the Mohammedans believe, the divine decrees for the ensuing year are annually on this night fixed and settled, or taken from the preserved table by GOD'S throne, and given to the angels to be executed.1 On this night Mohammed received his first revelations; when the Korân, say the commentators, was sent down from the aforesaid table, entire and in one volume, to the lowest heaven, from whence Gabriel revealed it to Mohammed by parcels, as occasion required. The Moslem doctors are not agreed where to fix the night of al Kadr; the greater part are of opinion that it is one of the ten last nights of Ramadân, and, as is commonly believed, the seventh of those nights, reckoning backward; by which means it will fall between the 23rd and 24th days of that month.2 t See the preceding note, and chapter 44, p. 367. u Some entitle this chapter, from the first words, Did not. x i.e., Did not waver in their religion, or in their promises to follow the truth, when an apostle should come unto them. For the commentators pretend that before the appearance of Mohammed, the Jews and Christians, as well as the worshippers of idols, unanimously believed and expected the coming of that prophet, until which time they declared they would persevere in their respective religions, and then would follow him; but when he came, they rejected him through envy.3 y viz., Mohammed, or the Korân.
1 See cap. 44, p. 367. 2 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin. 3 Idem.
an apostle from GOD, rehearsing unto them pure books of revelations; wherein are contained right discourses. Neither were they unto whom the scriptures were given divided among themselves, until after the clear evidence had come unto them.z And they were commanded no other in the scriptures than to worship GOD, exhibiting unto him the pure religion, and being orthodox; and to be constant at prayer, and to give alms;a and this is the right religion. Verily those who believe not, among those who have received the scriptures, and among the idolaters, shall be cast into the fire of hell, to remain therein forever. These are the worst of creatures. But they who believe, and do good works; these are the best of creatures: their reward with their LORD shall be gardens of perpetual abode, through which rivers flow; they shall remain therein forever. GOD will be well pleased in them; and they shall be well pleased in him. This is prepared for him who shall fear his LORD.
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XCIX. ENTITLED, THE EARTHQUAKE; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the earth shall be shaken by an earthquake;b and the earth shall cast forth her burdens;c and a man shall say, What aileth her? On that day the earth shall declare her tidings, for that thy LORD will inspire her.d On that day men shall go forward in distinct classes, that they may behold their works. And whoever shall have wrought good of the weight of an ant,e shall behold the same. And whoever shall have wrought evil of the weight of an ant, shall behold the same.
z But when the promised apostle was sent, and the truth became manifest to them, they withstood the clearest conviction, differing from one another in their opinions; some believing and acknowledging Mohammed to be the prophet foretold in the scriptures, and others denying it.1 a But these divine precepts in the law and the gospel have they corrupted, changed, and violated.2 b This earthquake will happen at the first, or, as others say, at the second blast of the trumpet.3 c viz., The treasures and dead bodies within it.4 d i.e., Will inform all creatures of the occasion of her trembling, and casting forth her treasures and her dead, by the circumstances which shall immediately attend them. Some say the earth will, at the last day, be miraculously enabled to speak, and will give evidence of the actions of her inhabitants.5 e See chapter 4, p. 58, note y.
1 Idem. 2 Idem. 3 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 65 4 See cap. 84, p. 441. 5 Al Beidâwi. See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV.
Chapter C
ENTITLED, THE WAR-HORSES WHICH RUN SWIFTLY; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the war-horses which run swiftly to the battle, with a panting noise; and by those which strike fire, by dashing their hoofs against the stones; and by those which make a sudden incursion on the enemy early in the morning, and therein raise the dust, and therein pass through the midst of the adverse troops:f verily man is ungrateful unto his LORD; and he is witness thereof: and he is immoderate in the love of worldly good. Doth he not know, therefore, when that which is in the graves shall be taken forth, 10 and that which is in men's breasts shall be brought to light, that their LORD will, on that day, be fully informed concerning them?
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CI. ENTITLED, THE STRIKING; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE striking!g What is the striking? And what shall make thee to understand how terrible the striking will be? On that day men shall be like moths scattered abroad, and the mountains shall become like carded wool of various colours driven by the wind. Moreover he whose balance shall be heavy with good works, shall lead a pleasing life: but as to him whose balance shall be light, his dwelling shall be the pit of hell.h What shall make thee to understand how frightful the pit of hell is? It is a burning fire.
f Some will have it that not horses, but the camels which went to the battle of Bedr, are meant in this passage.1 Others interpret all the parts of the oath of the human soul;2 but their explications seem a little forced, and therefore I choose to omit them. g This is one of the names or epithets given to the last day, because it will strike the hearts of all creatures with terror.3 h The original word Hâwiyat is the name of the lowest dungeon of hell, and properly signifies a deep pit or gulf.
1 Yahya, ex trad. Ali Ebn Abi Taleb. 2 Al Beidâwi. 3 Idem, Jallalo'ddin.
Chapter CII
ENTITLED, THE EMULOUS DESIRE OF MULTIPLYING; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE emulous desire of multiplying riches and children employeth you, until ye visit the graves.i By no means should ye thus employ your time: hereafter shall ye know your folly. Again, By no means: hereafter shall ye know your folly. By no means: if ye knew the consequence hereof with certainty of knowledge, ye would not act thus. Verily ye shall see hell: again, ye shall surely see it with the eye of certainty. Then shall ye be examined, on that day, concerning the pleasures with which ye have amused yourselves in this life.
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CIII. ENTITLED, THE AFTERNOON; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
BY the afternoon;k verily man employeth himself in that which will prove of loss: except those who believe, and do that which is right; and who mutually recommend the truth, and mutually recommend perseverance unto each other.
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CIV. ENTITLED, THE SLANDERER; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WOE unto every slanderer, and backbiter:l who heapeth up riches, and prepareth the same for the time to come!
i i.e., Until ye die. According to the exposition of some commentators, the words should be rendered thus: The contending or vieing in numbers wholly employeth you, so that ye visit even the graves, to number the dead: to explain which, they relate that there was a great dispute and contention between the descendants of Abd Menâf and the descendants of Sahm, which of the two families were the more numerous; and it being found, on calculation, that the children of Abd Menâf exceeded those of Sahm, the Sahmites said that their numbers had been much diminished by wars in the time of ignorance, and insisted that the dead, as well as the living, should be taken into the account; and by this way of reckoning they were found to be more than the descendants of Abd Menâf.1 k Or the time from the sun's declination to his setting, which is one of the five appointed times of prayer. The original word also signifies, The age, or time in general. This passage is said to have been revealed against al Akhnas Ebn Shoreik, or al Walîd Ebn al Mogheira, or Omeyya Ebn Khalf, who were all guilty of slandering others, and especially the prophet.1
1 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallal. 1 Idem.
He thinketh that his riches will render him immortal. By no means. He shall surely be cast into Al Hotama.m And who shall cause thee to understand what Al Hotama is? It is the kindled fire of GOD;n which shall mount above the hearts of those who shall be cast therein. Verily it shall be as an arched vault above them on columns of vast extent.
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CV. ENTITLED, THE ELEPHANT; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
HAST thou not seen how thy LORD dealt with the masters of the elephant?o Did he not make their treacherous design an occasion of drawing them into error;
m Is one of the names of hell, or the name of one of its apartments;2 which is so called because it will break in pieces whatever shall be thrown into it. n And therefore shall not be extinguished by any.3 o This chapter relates to the following piece of history, which is famous among the Arabs; Abraha Ebn al Sabâh, surnamed al Ashram, i.e., the Slit-nosed, king or viceroy of Yaman, who was an Ethiopian,4 and of the Christian religion, having built a magnificent church at Sanaa with a design to draw the Arabs to go in pilgrimage thither, instead of visiting the temple of Mecca, the Koreish, observing the devotion and concourse of the pilgrims at the Caaba began considerably to diminish, sent one Nofail, as he is named by some of the tribe of Kenânah, who getting into the aforesaid church by night, defiled the altar and walls thereof with his excrements. At this profanation Abraha being highly incensed, vowed the destruction of the Caaba, and accordingly set out against Mecca at the head of a considerable army, wherein were several elephants, which he had obtained of the king of Ethiopia, their numbers being, as some say, thirteen, though others mention but one. The Meccans, at the approach of so considerable a host, retired to the neighbouring mountains, being unable to defend their city or temple; but GOD himself undertook the protection of both. For when Abraha drew near to Mecca, and would have entered it, the elephant on which he rode, which was a very large one, and named Mahmûd, refused to advance any nigher to the town, but knelt down whenever they endeavoured to force him that way, though he would rise and march briskly enough if they turned him towards any other quarter: and while matters were in this posture, on a sudden a large flock of birds, like swallows, came flying from the sea coast, every one of which carried three stones, one in each foot, and one in its bill; and these stones they threw down upon the heads of Abraha's men, certainly killing every one they struck. Then GOD sent a flood, which swept the dead bodies, and some of those who had not been struck by the stones, into the sea: the rest fled toward Yaman, but perished by the way; none of them reaching Sanaa, except only Abraha himself, who died soon after his arrival there, being struck with a sort of plague or putrefaction, so that his body opened, and his limbs rotted off by piecemeal. It is said that one of Abraha's army, named Abu Yacsûm, escaped over the Red Sea into Ethiopia, and going directly to the king, told him the tragical story; and upon that prince's asking him what sort of birds they were that had occasioned such a destruction, the man pointed to one of them, which had followed him all the way, and was at that time hovering directly over his head, when immediately the bird let fall the stone, and struck him dead at the king's feet.5 This remarkable defeat of Abraha happened the very year Mohammed was born, and as this chapter was revealed before the Hejra, and within fifty-four years, at least, after it came to pass, when several persons who could have detected the lie, had Mohammed forged this story out of his own head, were alive, it seems as if there was really something extraordinary in the matter, which might, by adding some circumstances, have been worked up into a miracle to his hands. Marracci6 judges the whole to be either a fable, or else a feat of some evil spirits, of which he gives a parallel instance, as he thinks, in the strange defeat of Brennus, when he was marching to attack the temple of Apollo at Delphi.7 Dr. Prideaux directly charges Mohammed with coining this miracle, notwithstanding he might have been so easily disproved, and supposes, without any foundation, that this chapter might not have been published till Othman's edition of the Korân,1 which was many years after, when all might be dead who could remember anything of the above-mentioned war.2 But Mohammed had no occasion to coin such a miracle himself, to gain the temple of Mecca any greater veneration: the Meccans were but too superstitiously fond of it, and obliged him, against his inclinations and original design, to make it the chief place of his new invented worship. I cannot, however, but observe Dr. Prideaux's partiality on this occasion, compared with the favourable reception he gives to the story of the miraculous overthrow of Brennus and his army, which he concludes in the following words: "Thus was GOD pleased in a very extraordinary manner to execute his vengeance upon those sacrilegious wretches for the sake of religion in general, how false and idolatrous soever that particular religion was, for which that temple at Delphos was erected."3 If it be answered, that the Gauls believed the religion, to the devotions of which that temple was consecrated, to be true (though that be not certain), and therefore it was an impiety in them to offer violence to it, whereas Abraha acknowledged not the holiness of the Caaba, or the worship there practised; I reply, that the doctor, on occasion of Cambyses being killed by a wound he accidentally received in the same part of the body where he had before mortally wounded the Apis, or bull worshipped by the Egyptians, whose religion and worship that prince most certainly believed to be false and superstitious, makes the same reflection: "The Egyptians," says he, "reckoned this as an especial judgment from heaven upon him for that fact, and perchance they were not much out in it: for it seldom happening in an affront given to any mode of worship, how erroneous soever it may be, but that religion is in general wounded hereby, there are many instances in history, wherein GOD hath very signally punished the profanations of religion in the worst of times, and under the worst modes of heathen idolatry."4
2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 72. 3 Al Beidâwi. 4 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 8. 5 Al Zamakh., al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, Abulf. Hist. Gen. &c. See Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 61, &c., and D'Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abrahah. 6 Refut. in Alcor. p. 823. 7 See Prid. Connection, part ii. book i. p. 25, and the authors there quoted. 1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. III. p. 45. 2 Prid. Life of Mahomet, p. 63, 64. 3 Prid. Connection, in the place above cited. 4 Ibid. part i. book iii. p. 173.
and send against them flocks of birds, which casts down upon them stones of baked clay;p and render them like the leaves of corn eaten by cattle?
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CVI. ENTITLED, KOREISH; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
FOR the uniting of the tribe of Koreish;q their uniting in sending forth the caravan of merchants and purveyorsr in winter and summer;
p These stones were of the same kind with those by which the Sodomites were destroyed,5 and were no bigger than vetches, though they fell with such force as to pierce the helmet and the man through, passing out at his fundament. It is said also that on each stone was written the name of him who was to be slain by it. q Some connect these words with the following, and suppose the natural order to be, Let them serve the Lord of this house, for the uniting, &c. Others connect them with the last words of the preceding chapter, and take the meaning to be, that GOD had so destroyed the army of Abraha for the uniting of the Koreish, &c. And the last opinion is confirmed by one copy, mentioned by al Beidâwi, wherein this and the preceding make but one chapter. It may not be amiss to observe, that the tribe of Koreish, the most noble among all the Arabians, and of which was Mohammed himself, were the posterity of Fehr, surnamed Koreish, the son of Malec, the son of al Nadr, who was descended in a right line from Ismael. Some writers say that al Nadr bore the surname of Koreish, but the more received opinion is that it was his grandson Fehr, who was so called because of his intrepid boldness, the word being a diminutive of Karsh, which is the name of a sea monster, very strong and daring; though there be other reasons given for its imposition.6 r It was Hâshem, the great-grandfather of Mohammed, who first appointed the two yearly caravans here mentioned;7 one of which set out in the winter for Yaman, and the other in summer for Syria.8
5 See cap. 11, p. 166. 6 Vide Gagnier, Vie de Mah. t. I, p. 44 and 46. 7 See the Prelim. Disc. p. 3. 8 Al Zamakh., Jallal., al Beidâwi.
let them serve the LORD of this house; who supplieth them with food against hunger,s and hath rendered them secure from fear.t
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CVII. ENTITLED, NECESSARIES; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHAT thinkest thou of him who denieth the future judgment as a falsehood? It is he who pusheth away the orphan;u and stirreth not up others to feed the poor. Woe be unto those who pray, and who are negligent at their prayer: who play the hypocrites, and deny necessariesx to the needy.
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CVIII. ENTITLED, AL CAWTHAR; REVEALED AT MECCA.y
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
VERILY we have given thee al Cawthar.z
s By means of the aforesaid caravans of purveyors; or, Who supplied them with food in time of a famine, which those of Mecca had suffered.1 t By delivering them from Abraha and his troops; or, by making the territory of Mecca a place of security. u The person here intended, according to some, was Abu Jahl, who turned away an orphan, to whom he was guardian, and who came to him naked, and asked for some relief out of his own money. Somme say it was Abu Sofiân, who, having killed a camel, when an orphan begged a piece of the flesh, beat him away with his staff; and others think it was al Walid Ebn al Mogheira, &c. x The original word al Maûn properly signifies utensils, or whatever is of necessary use, as a hatchet, a pot, a dish, and a needle, to which some add a bucket and a hand-mill; or, according to a tradition of Ayesha, fire, water, and salt; and this signification it bore in the time of ignorance: but since the establishment of the Mohammedan religion, the word has been used to denote alms, either legal or voluntary; which seems to be the true meaning in this place. y There are some, however, who think it to have been revealed at Medina. z This word signifies abundance, especially of good, and thence the gift of wisdom and prophecy, the Korân, the office of intercessor, &c. Or it may imply abundance of children, followers, and the like. It is generally, however, expounded of a river in paradise of that name, whence the water is derived into Mohammed's pond, of which the blessed are to drink before their admission into that place.2 According to a tradition of the prophet's, this river, wherein his LORD promised him abundant good, is sweeter than honey, whiter than milk, cooler than snow, and smoother than cream; its banks are of chrysolites, and the vessels to drink thereout of silver; and those who drink of it shall never thirst.3 Euthymius Zigabenus,4 instead of Cauthar, reading Canthar, supposes the word to have the same signification in Arabic as in Greek, and translates the two first verses of the chapter thus: [Greek text],-i.e., We have given thee the beetle; wherefore pray unto thy LORD, and slay it; and then he cries out, O wonderful and magnificent sacrifice, worthy of the legislator!
1 Idem. 2 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 74. 3 Al Beidâwi, Jallal. &c. 4 In Panoplia Dogmat. inter Sylburgii Sarocenic. p. 29.
Wherefore pray unto thy LORD, and slay the victims.a Verily he who hateth thee shall be childless.b
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CIX. ENTITLED, THE UNBELIEVERS; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY: O unbelievers,c I will not worship that which ye worship; nor will ye worship that which I worship. Neither do I worship that which ye worship; neither do ye worship that which I worship. Ye have your religion, and I my religion.
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CX. ENTITLED, ASSISTANCE; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
WHEN the assistance of GOD shall come, and the victory;d and thou shalt see the people enter into the religion of GOD by troops:e celebrate the praise of thy LORD, and ask pardon of him;f for he is inclined to forgive.
a Which are to be sacrificed at the pilgrimage in the valley of Mina. Al Beidâwi explains the words thus: Pray with fervency and intense devotion, not out of hypocrisy; and slay the fatted camels and oxen, and distribute the flesh among the poor; for he says this chapter is the counterpart of the preceding, exhorting to those virtues which are opposite to the vices there condemned. b These words were revealed against al As Ebn Wayel, who, on the death of al Kâsem, Mohammed's son, called that prophet Abtar, which signifies one who has no children or posterity.1 c It is said that certain of the Koreish once proposed to Mohammed that if he would worship their gods for a year, they would worship his GOD for the same space of time; upon which this chapter was revealed.2 d i.e., When GOD shall cause thee to prevail over thy enemies, and thou shalt take the city of Mecca. e Which happened in the ninth year of the Hejra, when, Mohammed having made himself master of Mecca, and obliged the Koreish to submit to him, the rest of the Arabs came in to him in great numbers, and professed Islâm.3 f Most of the commentators agree this chapter to have been revealed before the taking of Mecca, and suppose it gave Mohammed warning of his death; for they say that when he read it al Abbâs wept, and being asked by the prophet what was the reason of his weeping, answered, Because it biddeth thee to prepare for death; to which Mohammed replied, It is as thou sayest.4 And hence, adds Jallalo'ddin, after the revelation of this chapter the prophet was more frequent in praising and asking pardon of GOD, because he thereby knew that his end approached; for Mecca was taken in the eighth year of the Hejra, and he died in the beginning of the tenth.
1 Jallalo'ddin. 2 Idem, al Beidâwi. 3 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 43. 4 Al Beidâwi.
CXI. ENTITLED, ABU LAHEB; REVEALED AT MECCA
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
THE hands of Abu Laheb shall perish,g and he shall perish.h His riches shall not profit him, neither that which he hath gained.i He shall go down to be burned into flaming fire;k and his wife also,l bearing wood,m having on her neck a cord of twisted fibres of a palm-tree.
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Chapter CXII
ENTITLED, THE DECLARATION OF GOD'S UNITY;n WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, God is one GOD; the eternal GOD: be begetteth not, neither is he begotten: and there is not any one like unto him.
g Abu Laheb was the surname of Abd'al Uzza, one of the sons of Abd'almotalleb, and uncle to Mohammed. He was a most bitter enemy to his nephew, and opposed the establishment of his new religion to the utmost of his power. When that prophet, in obedience to the command he had received to admonish his near relations,1 had called them together, and told them he was a warner sent unto them before a grievous chastisement, Abu Laheb cried out, Mayest thou perish! Hast thou called us together for this? and took up a stone to cast at him. Whereupon this passage was revealed.2 By the hands of Abu Laheb some commentators, by a synecdoche, understand his person; others, by a metonymy, his affairs in general, they being transacted with those members; or his hopes in this world and the next. h He died of grief and vexation at the defeat his friends had received at Bedr, surviving that misfortune but seven days.3 They add, that his corpse was left aboveground three days, till it stank, and then some negroes were hired to bury him.4 i And accordingly his great possessions, and the rank and esteem in which he lived at Mecca, were of no service to him, nor could protect him against the vengeance of GOD. Al Beidâwi mentions also the loss of his son Otha, who was torn to pieces by a lion in the way to Syria, though surrounded by the whole caravan. k Arab. nâr dhât laheb; alluding to the surname of Abu Laheb, which signifies the father of flames. l Her name was Omm Jemîl: she was the daughter of Harb, and sister of Abu Sofiân. m For fuel in hell; because she fomented the hatred which her husband bore to Mohammed; or, bearing a bundle of thorns and brambles, because she carried such, and strewed them by night in the prophet's way.5 n This chapter is held in particular veneration by the Mohammedans, and declared, by a tradition of their prophet, to be equal in value to a third part of the whole Korân. It is said to have been revealed in answer to the Koreish, who asked Mohammed concerning the distinguishing attributes of the GOD he invited them to worship.6
1 See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. II. p. 34. 2 Al Beidâwi, Jallalo'ddin, &c. 3 Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 57. 4 Al Beidâwi. 5 Idem, Jallalo'ddin. 6 Idem.
CXIII. ENTITLED, THE DAYBREAK; WHERE IT WAS REVEALED IS DISPUTED
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.
SAY, I fly for refuge unto the LORD of the daybreak,o that he may deliver me from the mischief of those things which he hath created;p and from the mischief of the night, when it cometh on;q and from the mischief of women blowing on knots;r and from the mischief of the envious, when he envieth.
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