allowed you; but transgress not, for God loveth not the transgressors. And eat of what God hath given you for food that which is lawful and good: and fear God, in whom ye believe. God will not punish you for an inconsiderate word in your oaths; but he will punish you for what ye solemnly swear with deliberation. And the expiation of such an oath shall be the feeding of ten poor men with such moderate food as ye feed your own families withal; or to clothe them; or to free the neck of a true believer from captivity: but he who shall not find wherewith to perform one of these three things, shall fast three days. This is the expiation of your oaths, when ye swear inadvertently. Therefore keep your oaths. Thus God declareth unto you his signs, that ye may give thanks. O true believers, surely wine, and lots, and images, and divining arrows, are an abomination of the work of Satan; therefore avoid them, that ye may prosper. Satan seeketh to sow dissension and hatred among you, by means of wine and lots, and to divert you from remembering God, and from prayer; will ye not therefore abstain from them? Obey God, and obey the apostle, and take heed to yourselves; but if ye turn back, know that the duty of our apostle is only to preach publicly. In those who believe and do good works, it is no sin that they have tasted wine or gaming before they were forbidden; if they fear God, and believe, and do good works, and shall for the future fear God, and believe, and shall persevere to fear him, and to do good; for God loveth those who do good. O true believers, God will surely prove you in offering you plenty of game, which ye may take with your hands or your lances, that God may know who feareth him in secret, but whoever trausgresseth after this, shall suffer a grievous punishment. O true believers, kill no game while ye are on pilgrimage; whosoever among you shall kill any designedly, shall restore the like of what ye shall have killed, in domestic animals, according to the determination of two just persons among you, to be brought as an offering to the Caaba; or in atonement thereof shall feed the poor; or instead thereof shall fast, that he may taste the heinousness of his deed. God hath forgiven what is past, but whoever returneth to transgress, God will take vengeance on him; for God is mighty and able to avenge. It is lawful for you to fish in the sea, and to eat what ye shall catch, as a provision for you and for those who travel; but it is unlawful for you to hunt by land, while ye are performing the rites of pilgrimage; therefore fear God, before whom ye shall be assembled at the last day. God hath appointed the Caaba, the holy house, an establishment for mankind; and hath ordained the sacred month, and the offering, and the ornaments hung thereon. This hath he done that ye might know that God knoweth whatsoever is in heaven and on earth, and that God is omniscient. Know that God is severe in punishing, and that God is also ready to forgive and merciful. The duty of our apostle is to preach only; and God knoweth that which ye discover, and that which ye conceal. Say,

Evil and good shall not be equally esteemed of, though the abundance of evil pleaseth thee; therefore fear God, O ye of understanding, that ye may be happy. O true believers, inquire not concerning things which, if they be declared unto you, may give you pain; but if ye ask concerning them when the Koran is sent down, they will be declared unto you: God pardoneth you as to these matters; for God is ready to forgive and gracious. People who have been before you formeriy inquired concerning them; and afterwards disbelieved therein. God hath not ordained anything concerning Bahira, nor Sârba, nor Wasila, nor Hâmi; but the unbelievers have invented a lie against God: and the greater part of them do not understand. And when it was said unto them, Come unto that which God hath revealed, and to the apostle; they answered, That religion which we found our fathers to follow is sufficient for us. What though their fathers knew nothing, and were not rightly directed? O true believers, take care of your souls. He who erreth shall not hurt you, while ye are rightly directed: unto God shall ye all return, and he will tell you that which ye have done. O true believers, let witnesses be taken between you, when death approaches any of you, at the time of making the testament; let there be two witnesses, just men, from among you; or two others of a different tribe or faith from yourselves, if ye be journeying in the earth, and the accident of death befall you. Ye shall shut them both up, after the afternoon prayer, and they shall swear by God, if ye doubt them, and they shall say, We will not sell our evidence for a bribe, although the person concerned be one who is related to us, neither will we conceal the testimony of God, for then should we certainly be of the number of the wicked. But if it appear that both have been guilty of iniquity, two others shall stand up in their place, of those who have convicted them of falsehood, the two nearest in blood, and they shall swear by God, saying, Verily our testimony is more true than the testimony of these two, neither have we prevaricated; for then should we become of the number of the unjust. This will be easier, that men may give testimony according to the plain intention thereof, or fear lest a different oath be given, after their oath. Therefore fear God, and hearken; for God directeth not the unjust people. On a certain day shall God assemble the apostles, and shall say unto them, What answer was returned you, when ye preached unto the people to whom ye were sent? They shall answer, We have no knowledge but thou art the knower of secrets. When God shall say, O Jesus son of Mary, remember my favour towards thee, and towards thy mother; when I strengthened thee with the holy spirit, that thou shouldest speak unto men in the cradle, and when thou wast grown up; and when I taught thee the scripture, and wisdom, and the law and the gospel; and when thou didst create of clay as it were the figure of a bird, by my permission, and didst breathe thereon, and it became a bird by my permission; and thou didst heal one blind from

his birth and the leper, by my permission; and when thou didst bring forth the dead from their graves, by my permission; and when I withheld the children of Israel from killing thee, when thou hadst come unto them with evident miracles, and such of them as believed not, said, This is nothing but manifest sorcery. And when I commanded the apostles of Jesus, saying, Believe in me and in my messenger; they answered, We do believe: and do thou bear witness that we are resigned unto thee. Remember when the apostles said, O Jesus, son of Mary, is thy Lord able to cause a table to descend unto us from heaven? He answered, Fear God, if ye be true believers. They said, We desire to eat thereof, and that our hearts may rest at ease, and that we may know that thou hast told us the truth, and that we may be witnesses thereof. Jesus, the son of Mary, said, O God our Lord, cause a table to descend unto us from heaven, that the day of its descent may become a festival day unto us, unto the first of us, and unto the last of us, and a sign from thee; and do thou provide food for us, for thou art the best provider. God said, Verily I will cause it to descend unto you; but whoever among you shall disbelieve hereafter, I will surely punish him with a punishment wherewith I will not punish any other creature. And when God shall say unto Jesus, at the last day, O Jesus, son of Mary, hast thou said unto men, Take me and my mother for two gods beside God? He shall answer, Praise be unto thee! it is not for me to say that which I ought not; if I had said so, thou wouldst surely have known it: thou knowest what is in me, but I know not what is in thee; for thou art the knower of secrets. I have not spoken to them any other than what thou didst command me; namely, Worship God, my Lord and your Lord: and I was a witness of their actions while I stayed among them; but since thou hast taken me to thyself, thou hast been the watcher over them; for thou art witness of all things. If thou punish them, they are surely thy servants; and if thou forgive them, thou art mighty and wise. God will say, This day shall their veracity be of advantage unto those who speak truth; they shall have gardens wherein rivers flow, they shall remain therein for ever: God hath been well pleased in them, and they have been well pleased in him. This shall be great felicity. Unto God belongeth the kingdom of heaven and of earth, and of whatever therein is; and he is almighty.

CHAPTER VI.

ENTITLED, CATTLE; REVEALED AT MECCA.

IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.

PRAISE be unto God, who hath created the heavens and the earth, and hath ordained the darkness and the light; nevertheless they who believe not in the Lord, equalize other gods with him. It is he who hath created you of clay; and then decreed the term of your lives; and the prefixed term is with him: yet do we doubt thereof. He is God in heaven and in earth; he knoweth what ye keep secret, and what ye publish, and knoweth what ye deserve. There came not unto them any sign, of the signs of their Lord, but they retired from the same; and they have gainsaid the truth, after that it hath come unto them: but a message shall come unto them, concerning that which they have mocked at. Do they not consider how many generations we have destroyed before them? We had established them in the earth in a manner wherein we have not established you; we sent the heaven to rain abundantly upon them, and we gave them rivers which flowed under their feet: yet we destroyed them in their sins, and raised up other generations after them. Although we had caused to descend unto thee a book written on paper, and they had handled it with their hands, the unbelievers had surely said, This is no other than manifest sorcery. They said, Unless an angel be sent down unto him, we will not believe. But if we had sent down an angel, verily the matter had been decreed, and they should not have been borne with, by having time granted them to repent. And if we had appointed an angel for our messenger, we should have sent him in the form of a man, and have clothed him before them, as they are clothed. Other apostles have been laughed to scorn before thee; but the judgment which they made a jest of, encompassed those who laughed them to scorn. Say, Go through the earth, and behold what hath been the end of those who accused our prophets of imposture. Say, Unto whom belongeth whatsoever is in heaven and earth? Say, Unto God. He hath prescribed unto himself mercy. He will surely gather you together on the day of resurrection; there is no doubt of it. They who destroy their own souls are those who will not believe. Unto him is owing whatsoever happeneth by night or by day; it is he who heareth and knoweth. Say. Shall I take any other protector than God, the creator of heaven and earth, who feedeth all and is not fed by any? Say, Verily I am commanded to be the first who professeth Islâm, and it was said unto me, Thou shalt by no means be one of the idolaters. Say, Verily I fear, if I should rebel against my

Lord, the punishment of the great day: from whomsoever it shall be averted on that day, God will have been merciful unto him; this will be manifest salvation. If God afflict thee with any hurt, there is none who can take it off from thee, except himself; but if he cause good to befall thee, he is almighty; he is the supreme Lord over his servants; aud he is wise and knowing. Say, What thing is the strongest in bearing testimony? Say, God; he is witness between me and you. And this Korân was revealed unto me, that I should admonish you thereby, and also those unto whom it shall reach. Do you really profess that there are other gods together with God? Say, I do not profess this. Say, Verily he is one God; and I am guiltless of what ye associate with him. They unto whom we have given the scripture know our apostle, even as they know their own children; but they who destroy their own souls, will not believe. Who is more unjust than he who inventeth a lie against God, or chargeth his signs with imposture? Surely the unjust shall not prosper. And on the day of resurrection we will assemble them all; then will we say unto those who associated others with God, Where are your companions, whom ye imagined to be those of God? But they shall have no other excuse, than that they shall say, By Gcd our Lord, we have not been idolaters.. Behold, how they lie against themselves, and what they have blasphemously imagined to be the companion of God flieth from them. There is of them who hearkeneth unto thee when thou readest the Korân; but we have cast veils over their hearts, that they should not understand it, and a deafness in their ears: and though they should see all kinds of signs, they will not believe therein; and their infidelity will arrive to that height that they will even come unto thee, to dispute with thee. The unbelievers will say, This is nothing but silly fables of ancient times. And they will forbid others from believing therein, and will retire afar off from it; but they will destroy their own souls only, and they are not sensible thereof. If thou didst see, when they shall be set over the fire of hell! and they shall say, Would to God we might be sent back into the world; we would not charge the signs of our Lord with imposture, and we would become true believers: nay, but that is become manifest unto them, which they formerly concealed; and though they should be sent back into the world, they would surely return to that which was forbidden them; and they are surely liars. And they said, There is no other life than our present life; neither shall we be raised again. But if thou couldst see, when they shall be set before their Lord! He shall say unto them, Is not this in truth come to pass? They shall answer, Yea, by our Lord. God shall say, Taste therefore the punishment due unto you, for that ye have disbelieved. They are lost who reject as falsehood the meeting of God in the next life, until the hour cometh suddenly upon them. Then will they say, Alas! for that we have behaved ourselves negligently in our lifetime; and they shall carry their burdens on their backs; will it not be evil