Surah 34. Surah Saba
Bismillah ir Rahman ir Raheem
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
- Praise be to Allah
To Whom belongs what is in the heavens and what is in the earth.
And His is the praise in the hereafter.
And He is the Wise, the Aware. - He knows what enters the earth,
And what comes out of it,
And what comes down from the sky,
And what ascends up to it;
And He is the Merciful, the Forgiving. - And the disbelievers say:
“The Moment (of Judgment) will not come upon us.”
Say: “No! (I take an oath) by my Rabb,
It shall certainly come upon you.”
(He is) the Knower of what is beyond perception—
Not hidden from Him is the likeness of an atom in the heavens,
And not on earth—
And not (something) smaller than that,
And not (something) larger,
Except that it is written in an open book; - So that He may reward those who have certainty of faith,
And engage in righteous deeds—
For them there is forgiveness and a blissful provision. - As for those who work hard to frustrate Our Signs—
For them, there is a harsh, painful doom. - And those endowed with knowledge discern
That which is revealed to you from your Rabb is the Truth,
And it guides towards the path of the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. - And the disbelievers say:
“Shall we show you a man who will tell you
That you will indeed (be raised up) in a new life
After you have become atomized—completely atomized? - He has ascribed a lie to Allah,
Or he (is possessed with) madness.”
No! Those who have no certainty of faith in the hereafter,
(They will) face chastisement,
And they have wandered far away (from the Truth). - Do they not turn their vision towards the heavens and the earth,
(And ponder) what is in between that which is ahead of them
And that which is behind them?
If We so will,
We would cause the earth to swallow them up (in an cataclysmic earthquake),
Or bring down upon them a piece (of meteor) from the sky (causing total annihilation)—
Indeed, in that are Signs for a servant who turns to Us. - And behold! We granted David (something) from our (boundless) munificence;
(Commanding) O mountain! Glorify (your Rabb) with him,
And (so did We command) the birds,
And We made iron malleable for him, - So that you make functional coats of arms,
And keep track of the linkages therein,
And engage in righteous deeds (use the arms for peace and justice)—
I am indeed the Seer of what you do. - And We made the wind (subject) for Solomon—
It (could travel) a month’s journey in the morning,
And a month’s journey in the afternoon,
And We provided for him a fountain of brass.
And as for the jinns who worked under him by command of His Rabb—
Lo! whosoever among them disobeyed Our command,
We made him taste the punishment of the blazing Fire. - They worked for him making what he desired,
Of monumental buildings and carvings and cisterns as large as reservoirs,
And fixed cauldrons.
“O family of David, persevere, giving thanks!”
But very few of My servants are thankful. - Then—
When We decreed death upon him,
No information was given to them about his death
Except that a worm of the earth was eating away his staff.
Then,
When he fell, the jinns realized that
If they had known what was beyond their perception,
They would not have tarried in dishonorable servitude. - Behold! For the people of Saba there was a Sign in their township;
(They had) two gardens— to the right and to the left—
(We commanded) “Eat from the provisions of your Rabb and be thankful to Him,
(In) a city upright, and (with your) Rabb, Most Forgiving.” - Then they turned away (from Us);
So We sent upon them an overwhelming flood
(From a collapsed reservoir impounding water)
And replaced their two (cultivated) gardens with two (desolate) gardens
With unpalatable fruit,
And (wild) bushes, and a few lote trees. - That is how We requited them for their ingratitude—
And We do not punish except those who are ingrate. - And We had established between them and between the towns
Which We had blessed—habitations, within sight of one another—
And We had decreed traffic between them:
“Travel through them in peace by night and by day.” - Then they said: “O our Rabb!
Increase the distances between us.”
And they oppressed their own souls.
So, we made them (subjects of) legends,
And We scattered them—totally scattered.
Indeed, in that are Signs
For the patient and the grateful. - And verily,
Iblis confirmed (and proved) his suspicions about them (for their lack of faith),
So they followed him,
Except a group of believers (who had certainty of faith). - Lo! He (Iblis) had no authority over them,
Except (We allowed him to do this so that)
We may sort out
Those who had certainty of faith in the hereafter
From those who were doubtful of it.
Lo! Your Rabb is the Guardian over all matters! - Say: “Call upon whom you imagine (as deities) besides Allah;
They have no power over the likeness of an atom in the heavens,
And not on earth,
And none among them is His associate therein,
And none among them is His helper therein.” - “And of no benefit will be the intercession before Him,
Except for one He permits;
Until, as (the fear) is lifted from their hearts (due to Allah’s Mercy),
They (the angels) will say: “What is it that your Rabb has decreed (for you)?”
They will say: “Justice!”
And He is the Most High, the Greatest! - Say: “Who provides for you from the heavens and the earth?”
Say: “It is Allah.
And indeed, either we or you alone are on (the right) guidance,
Or in manifest error.” - Say: “You will not be asked about what we earned,
And we will not be asked about what you are doing.” - Say: “Our Rabb will gather us all together,
He will then make the Truth manifest between us,
Lo! He is the Opener, the Knower.” - Say: “Show me those whom you associate with Him;
Nay! But He is Allah, the Mighty, the Wise!” - And We sent you not
But for all of humankind—
A giver of glad tidings, and a Warner—
However, most among humankind do not comprehend. - And they say: “When will this promise (come to pass)
If you are truthful?” - Say: “The Day is promised (and fixed) for you—
Neither can you delay it one moment,
Nor can you advance it (one moment).” - And say the disbelievers:
“Never shall we believe in this Qur’an,
And not in (what has been revealed) before it.”
If you were to see,
When the transgressors are made to stand before their Rabb,
Some will contradict what the others say.
Those who were weak will say to those who were arrogant (and influential):
“If you had not (led us astray),
We would indeed be among those who had certainty of faith.” - Those who were influential will say to those who were weak:
“Did we prevent you from guidance when it came to you?
No! You were culpable.” - And those who were weak will say to those who were influential:
“No! You plotted night and day,
When you commanded us to deny Allah
And make up partners with Him.”
And they will hide in shame when they see the punishment.
And We shall place yokes on the necks of those who disbelieved;
“Is not the recompense they get but (due to) what they did?” - And We did not send a Warner to any community
Except that the affluent among them said:
“Verily, we reject what has been revealed to you.” - And they said: “We have great wealth and (many) children,
And we shall not be among those punished.” - Say: “Indeed my Rabb increases the provision as He wills,
And constricts it (as He wills),
But most among humankind do not comprehend.” - And neither your wealth nor your children
Bring you any closer to Us in rank;
But he who has believed with certainty,
And has engaged in righteous deeds,
For such there is recompense, doubled, for what they did,
And they shall dwell in peace in stations high. - Those who work hard to frustrate Our Signs,
It is they who will be presented for punishment. - Say: “Indeed my Rabb increases the provision as He wills
For any of His servants,
And constricts it from him (as He wills),
And what you spend (in charity),
He will then replace it for you.
Lo! He is the best of Providers!” - And on the Judgment Day
He will gather them all together,
Then He will say to the angels:
“Are these the ones who used to worship you?” - They will say:
“Glorified are You!
You are our protector, not them.”
But they used to worship the jinns,
Many of them believed in them (for worship). - Then, this Day,
No authority has any of you over the other
For benefit or for harm.
And We will say to the transgressors:
“Taste ye the punishment of the Fire
Of which you were deniers.” - And when Our manifest Signs are recited to them,
They say: “This is not but (the word of a) man
(Who) desires to take you away from
What your forefathers used to worship.”
And they say: “This is not but a concocted lie.”
And those who deny the Truth when it comes to them (say):
“This is not but obvious sorcery.” - And We did not reveal to them Books that they read,
Nor did We send any Warner to them before you. - And they gave the lie to what came before them,
And not (even) a tenth of what We sent to them was accepted by them,
And they gave the lie to My Messengers.
Then, (witness) how was My riposte (counter thrust)! - Say: “I do indeed give you but one advice:
That you stand before Allah in pairs or alone,
Then reflect.
Your companion is not possessed—
He is but a Warner to you
Before an overwhelming doom (befalls you).” - Say: “Whatever I ask of you as recompense, it is for you.
My recompense is not but with Allah,
And He is Witness over all things.” - Say: “Verily, my Rabb sends down the Truth;
(He is) Knower of the very essence of all that is beyond perception.” - Say: “The Truth has arrived,
And falsehood cannot create anything nor can it resurrect anything.” - Say: “If I have gone astray,
Then indeed I have gone astray but for myself;
And if I am on guidance,
Then it is because of the revelation from my Rabb;
Indeed, He is the Hearer, the One who is Close.” - And if you were to see
When they are terrified (on Judgment Day),
And there is no escape (through death),
And they are seized from so close; - And they will say:
“We believe in it.”
But how can they reach it from a place so far away? - As they did indeed deny it aforetime,
And (now) grope for what is beyond perception from a place far away. - And between them and their wish is erected a barrier (of death),
As was done earlier with their kind (other disbelievers).
Indeed, they were engaged in contentious doubts.