do I trust, and unto him do I turn me : the Creator of heaven and earth: he hath given you wives of your own species, and cattle both male and female; by which means he multiplieth you: there is nothing like him; and it is he who heareth and seeth. His are the keys of heaven and earth; he bestoweth provision abundantly on whom he pleaseth, and he is sparing unto whom he pleaseth; for he knoweth all things. He hath ordained you the religion which he commanded Noah, and which we have revealed unto thee, O Mohammed, and which we commanded Abraham, and Moses, and Jesus saying, Observe this religion, and be not divided therein. The worship of one God, to which thou invitest them, is grievous unto the unbelievers: GoD will elect thereto whom he pleaseth, and will direct unto the same him who shall repent. Those who lived in times past were not divided among themselves, until after that the knowledge of God's unity had come unto them; through their own perverseness: and unless a previous decree had passed from thy LORD, to bear with them till a determined time, verily the matter had been decided between them, by the destruction of the gainsayers. They who have inherited the scriptures after them are certainly in a perplexing doubt concerning the same. Wherefore invite them to receive the sure faith, and be urgent with them, as thou hast been commanded; and follow not their vain desires: and say, I believe in all the scriptures which God hath sent down; and I am commanded to establish justice among you: GOD is our LORD and your LORD: unto us will our works be imputed, and unto you will your works be imputed: let there be no wrangling between us and you; for GoD will assemble us all at the last day, and unto him shall we return. As to those who dispute concerning GoD, after obedience hath been paid him by receiving his religion, their disputing shall be vain in the sight of their LORD; and wrath shall fall on them, and they shall suffer a grievous punishment. It is God who hath sent down the scripture with truth; and the balance of true judgment : and what shall inform thee whether the hour be nigh at hand? They who believe not therein wish it to be hastened by way of mockery: but they who believe dread the same, and know it to be the truth. Are not those who dispute concerning the last hour in a wide error? GOD is bounteous unto his servants: he provideth for whom he pleaseth; and he is the strong, the mighty. Whoso chooseth the tillage of the life to come," unto him will we give increase in his tillage: and whoso chooseth the tillage of this world, we will give him the fruit thereof; but he shall have no part in the life to come. Have the idolaters deities which ordain them a religion which GOD hath not allowed? But had it not been for the decree of respiting their punishment to the day of separating the infidels from the true believers, judgment had been already given between them: for the unjust shall "I have put my trust in Him. Unto Him I shall return."-Savary. See the Prelim Disc. sect. iv. pp. 50 and 54. * viz. The modern Jews and Christians. 'Not understanding the true meaning, nor believing the real doctrines thereof. Labouring here, to obtain a reward hereafter: for what is sown in this world will be reaped in the next. surely suffer a painful torment. On that day thou shalt see the unjust in great terror, because of their demerits; and the penalty thereof shall fall upon them but they who believe and do good works shall dwell in the delightful meadows of paradise; they shall obtain whatever they shall desire, with their LORD. This is the greatest acquisition. This is what God promiseth unto his servants who believe and do good works. Say, I ask not of you, for this my preaching, any reward, except the love of my relations:* and whoever shall have deserved well by one good action, unto him will we add the merit of another action thereto; for God is inclined to forgive, ană ready to reward. Do they say, Mohammed hath blasphemously forged a lie concerning GOD? If GOD pleaseth, he will seal up thy heart: and GOD will absolutely abolish vanity, and will establish the truth in his words; for he knoweth the innermost part of men's breasts. It is he who accepteth repentance from his servants, and forgiveth sins, and knoweth that which ye do. He will incline his ear unto those who believe and work righteousness, and will add unto them above what they shall ask or descrve, of his bounty: but the unbelievers shall suffer a severe punishment. If GOD should bestow abundance upon his servants, they would certainly behave insolently in the earth: but he sendeth down by measure unto every one that which he pleaseth; for he well knoweth and seeth the condition of his servants. It is he who sendeth down the rain, after men have despaired thereof, and spreadeth abroad his mercy; and he is the patron, justly to be praised. Among his signs is the creation of heaven and earth, and of the living creatures with which he hath replenished them both; and he is able to gather them together before his tribunal, whenever he pleaseth. Whatever misfortune befalleth you is sent unto you by God, for that which your hands have deserved; and yet he forgiveth many things: ye shall not frustrate the divine vengeance in the earth; neither shall ye have any protector or helper, against GOD. Among his signs also are the ships running in the sea, like high mountains: if he pleaseth, he causeth the wind to cease, and they lie still on the back of the water: (verily herein are signs unto every patient and grateful person): or he destroyeth them by shipwreck, because of that which their crews have merited; though he pardoneth many things. And they who dispute against our signs shall know that The love of your kindred."-Savary. The meaning of these words is somewhat obscure. Some imagine they express a detestation of the forgery charged on the prophet by the infidels; because none could be capable of so wicked an action, but one whose heart was close shut, and knew not his Lord: as if he had said, God forbid that thou shouldest be so void of grace, or have so little sense of thy duty! Others think the signification to be, that God might strike all the revelations which had been vouchsafed to Mohammed out of his heart at once; and others, that God would strengthen his heart with patience against the insults of the unbelievers. • Wherefore the doctrine taught in this book be of man, it will certainly fail and come to nothing, but if it be of God, it can never be overthrown. He will impress upon thy heart the seal of patience. He will destroy falsehood, and confirm the truth of his words. He fathometh the depth of every heart."-Savary. "Excess of prosperity would have made them forget moderation."-Savary. "If the crimes of mariners have merited his anger, he drowneth them, but his mercy often prevaileth over his justice."-Savary. there will be no way for them to escape our vengeance. Whatever things are given you, they are the provision of this present life: but the reward which is with GOD is better, and more durable, for those who believe, and put their trust in their LORD; and who avoid heinous and filthy crimes, and when they are angry, forgive; and who hearken unto their LORD, and are constant at prayer, and whose affairs are directed by consultation among themselves, and who give alms out of what we have bestowed on them; and who, when an injury is done them, avenge themselves (and the retaliation of evil ought to be an evil proportionate thereto): but he who forgiveth, and is reconciled unto his enemy, shall receive his reward from GOD; for he loveth not the unjust doers. And whoso shall avenge himself, after he hath been injured; as to these, it is not lawful to punish them for it but it is only lawful to punish those who wrong men, and act insolently in the earth, against justice; these shall suffer a grievous punishment. And whoso beareth injuries patiently, and forgiveth; verily this is a necessary work. Whom GoD shall cause to err, he shall afterwards have no protector. And thou shalt see the ungodly, who shall say, when they behold the punishment prepared for them, Is there no way to return back into the world? And thou shalt see them exposed unto hell fire; dejected, because of the ignominy they shall undergo: they shall look at the fire sideways, and by stealth; and the true believers shall say, Verily the losers are they who have lost their own souls, and their families, on the day of resurrection: shall not the ungodly continue in eternal torment? They shall have no protectors to defend them against GOD: and whom God shal cause to err, he shall find no way to the truth. Hearken unto your LORD, before the day come, which God will not keep back: ye shall have no place of refuge on that day; neither shall ye be able to deny your sins. But if those to whom thou preachest turn aside from thy admonitions, verily we have not sent thee to be a guardian over them: † thy duty is preaching only. When we cause man to taste mercy from us, he rejoiceth thereat: but if evil befall them, for that which their hands have formerly committed, verily man becometh ungrateful. Unto GoD appertaineth the kingdom of heaven and earth: he createth that which he pleaseth; he giveth females unto whom he pleaseth, and he giveth males unto whom he pleaseth; or he giveth them males and females jointly: and he maketh whom he pleaseth to be childless; for he is wise and powerful. It is not fit for man that GOD should speak unto him otherwise than by private revelation, or from behind a veil, or by his sending of a messenger to reveal, by his permission, that which he pleaseth; for he is high and wise. Thus have we revealed unto Using the means which God has put into their hands for their own defence. This is added to complete the character here given; for valour and courage are not inconsistent with clemency; the rule being, See chap. 5, p. 88, &c. Parcere subjectis, et debellare superbos. *Covered with shame, they shall start back in terror, and shall look upon the flames with an eye of dismay." Savary. +"If they persist in their unbelief, thou ceasest to be their guide." Savary. • Al Beidâwi. thee a revelation, by our command. Thou didst not understand, beforc this, what the book of the Korân was, nor what the faith was: but we have ordained the same for a light; we will thereby direct such of our servants as we please: and thou shalt surely direct them into the right way, the way of GOD, unto whom belongeth whatever is in heaven and in earth. Shall not all things return unto God? CHAPTER XLIII. INTITLED, THE ORNAMENTS OF GOLD;' REVEALED AT MECCA. IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD. H. M." By the perspicuous book; verily we have ordained the same an Arabic Korân that ye may understand: and it is certainly written in the original book, kept with us, being sublime and full of wisdom. Shall we therefore turn away from you the admonition, and deprive you thereof, because ye are a people who transgress? And how many prophets have we sent among those of old? and no prophet came unto them, but they laughed him to scorn: wherefore we destroyed nations who were more mighty than these in strength; and the example of those who were of old hath been already set before them. If thou ask them who created the heavens and the earth, they will certainly answer, The mighty, the wise God created them: who hath spread the earth as a bed for you, and hath made you paths therein, that ye may be directed: and who sendeth down rain from heaven by measure, whereby we quicken a dead country; (so shall ye be brought forth from your graves :) and who hath created all the various species of things, and hath given you ships and cattle, whereon ye are carried; that ye may sit firmly on the backs thereof, and may remember the favour of your LORD, when ye sit thereon, and may say, Praise be unto him, who hath subjected these unto our service! for we could not have mastered them by our own power:* and unto our LORD shall we surely return. Yet have they attributed unto him some of his servants as his offspring verily man is openly ungrateful. Hath God taken daughters out of those beings which he hath created; and hath he chosen sons for you? But when one of them hath the news brought of the birth of a child of that sex which they attribute unto the Merciful, as his similitude, his face Or, as the words may be also translated, Thus have we sent the spirit Gabriel unto thee with a revelation. The word chosen for the title of this chapter occurs p. 398. Some except the verse beginning with these words, And ask our apostles whom we have. eent before thee, &c. ▾ i. e. The preserved Table; which is the original of all the scriptures in general. "Borne on the land and on the sea, ought ye not to call to mind his benefits, and to say, Praise be to him who hath made his creatures administer unto our wants! We could not have procured unto ourselves these advantages."—Savary. * becometh black, and he is oppressed with sorrow. Do they therefore attribute unto God female issue, which are brought up among ornaments. and are contentious without cause? And do they make the angels, who are the servants of the Merciful, females? Were they present at their creation? Their testimony shall be written down, and they shall be examined concerning the same, on the day of judgment. And they say, If the Merciful had pleased, we had not worshipped them. They have no knowledge herein they only utter a vain lie. Have we given them a book of revelations before this; and do they keep the same in their custody? But they say, Verily we found our fathers practising a religion; and we are guided in their footsteps. Thus we sent no preacher before thee, unto any city, but the inhabitants thereof who lived in affluence, said, Verily we found our fathers practising a religion: and we tread in their footsteps. And the preacher answered, What, although I bring you a more right religion than that which ye found your fathers to practise? And they replied, Verily we believe not that which ye are sent to preach. Wherefore we took vengeance on them: and behold what hath been the end of those who accused our apostles of imposture. Remember when Abraham said unto his father, and his people, Verily I am clear of the gods which ye worship, except him who hath created me; for he will direct me . aright. And he ordained this to be a constant doctrine among his posterity; that they should be turned from idolatry to the worship of the only true God. Verily I have permitted these Meccans and their fathers to live in prosperity, until the truth should come unto them, and a manifest apostle: but now the truth is come unto them, they say, This is a piece of sorcery; and we believe not therein. And they say, Had this Korân been sent down unto some great man of either of the two cities, we would have received it. Do they distribute the mercy of thy LoRD? We distribute the necessary provision among them, in this present life, and we raise some of them several degrees above the others, that the one of them may take the other to serve him and the mercy of thy LORD is more valuable than the riches which they gather together. If it were not that mankind would have become one sect of infidels, verily we had given unto those who believe not in the Merciful, roofs of silver to their houses, and stairs of silver, by which they might ascend thereto, and doors of silver to their houses, and couches of silver, for them to lean on; and ornaments of gold: for all this is the provision of the present life; but the next life with thy LORD shall be for those who fear him. Whoever shall withdraw from the admonition of the Merciful, we will chain a devil unto him; and he shall be his inseparable See chap. 16. p. 218, &c. Can the Eternal be the father of a capricious being, of a daughter, whose youth is passed in the midst of ornament and of dress?"-Savary. "Did heaven command this worship unto them? They blaspheme."-Savary. al Mogheira, or Orwa Ebn Masud the Thakifite." 1 By this expression the prophetic office is here particularly intended. 'Al Beidâwi. |