←Prev   Ayah al-Hadid (The Iron) 57:27   Next→ 

Popular and/or Featured Works
Muhammad Asad   
And thereupon We caused [other of] Our apostles to follow in their footsteps; and [in the course of time] We caused them to be followed by Jesus, the son of Mary, upon whom We bestowed the Gospel; and in the hearts of those who [truly] followed him We engendered compassion and mercy. But as for monastic asceticism - We did not enjoin it upon them: they invented it themselves out of a desire for God’s goodly acceptance. But then, they did not [always] observe it as it ought to have been observed: and so We granted their recompense unto such of them as had [truly] attained to faith, whereas many of them became iniquitous
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
Then in the footsteps of these ˹prophets˺, We sent Our messengers, and ˹after them˺ We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and granted him the Gospel, and instilled compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they made it up—We never ordained it for them—only seeking to please Allah, yet they did not ˹even˺ observe it strictly. So We rewarded those of them who were faithful. But most of them are rebellious.
Safi Kaskas   
Then We sent Our Messengers to follow in their footsteps and followed up with Jesus, the son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel. We placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. As for monasticism, which they invented to seek God's pleasure, We did not ordain for them, and they did not observe properly. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but many of them are wicked.

Listen: 
Did you notice?

 You can SEARCH IslamAwakened: 

Source Arabic and Literal tools
Arabic   
ثُمَّ قَفَّیۡنَا عَلَىٰۤ ءَاثَـٰرِهِم بِرُسُلِنَا وَقَفَّیۡنَا بِعِیسَى ٱبۡنِ مَرۡیَمَ وَءَاتَیۡنَـٰهُ ٱلۡإِنجِیلَۖ وَجَعَلۡنَا فِی قُلُوبِ ٱلَّذِینَ ٱتَّبَعُوهُ رَأۡفَةࣰ وَرَحۡمَةࣰۚ وَرَهۡبَانِیَّةً ٱبۡتَدَعُوهَا مَا كَتَبۡنَـٰهَا عَلَیۡهِمۡ إِلَّا ٱبۡتِغَاۤءَ رِضۡوَ ٰنِ ٱللَّهِ فَمَا رَعَوۡهَا حَقَّ رِعَایَتِهَاۖ فَءَاتَیۡنَا ٱلَّذِینَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مِنۡهُمۡ أَجۡرَهُمۡۖ وَكَثِیرࣱ مِّنۡهُمۡ فَـٰسِقُونَ ۝٢٧
Transliteration (2021)   
thumma qaffaynā ʿalā āthārihim birusulinā waqaffaynā biʿīsā ib'ni maryama waātaynāhu l-injīla wajaʿalnā fī qulūbi alladhīna ittabaʿūhu rafatan waraḥmatan warahbāniyyatan ib'tadaʿūhā mā katabnāhā ʿalayhim illā ib'tighāa riḍ'wāni l-lahi famā raʿawhā ḥaqqa riʿāyatihā faātaynā alladhīna āmanū min'hum ajrahum wakathīrun min'hum fāsiqūn
Word for Word
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh, Ms. Kauser Katri, and more
  
Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently.

Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning
Muhammad Asad   
And thereupon We caused [other of] Our apostles to follow in their footsteps; and [in the course of time] We caused them to be followed by Jesus, the son of Mary, upon whom We bestowed the Gospel; and in the hearts of those who [truly] followed him We engendered compassion and mercy. But as for monastic asceticism - We did not enjoin it upon them: they invented it themselves out of a desire for God’s goodly acceptance. But then, they did not [always] observe it as it ought to have been observed: and so We granted their recompense unto such of them as had [truly] attained to faith, whereas many of them became iniquitous
M. M. Pickthall   
Then We caused Our messengers to follow in their footsteps; and We caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow, and gave him the Gospel, and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But monasticism they invented - We ordained it not for them - only seeking Allah's pleasure, and they observed it not with right observance. So We give those of them who believe their reward, but many of them are evil-livers
Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)   
Then, in their wake, We followed them up with (others of) Our messengers: We sent after them Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the Gospel; and We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him Compassion and Mercy. But the Monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them: (We commanded) only the seeking for the Good Pleasure of Allah; but that they did not foster as they should have done. Yet We bestowed, on those among them who believed, their (due) reward, but many of them are rebellious transgressors
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
Then in the footsteps of these ˹prophets˺, We sent Our messengers, and ˹after them˺ We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and granted him the Gospel, and instilled compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they made it up—We never ordained it for them—only seeking to please Allah, yet they did not ˹even˺ observe it strictly. So We rewarded those of them who were faithful. But most of them are rebellious.
Safi Kaskas   
Then We sent Our Messengers to follow in their footsteps and followed up with Jesus, the son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel. We placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. As for monasticism, which they invented to seek God's pleasure, We did not ordain for them, and they did not observe properly. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but many of them are wicked.
Wahiduddin Khan   
Then, in their wake, We followed them up with [others of] Our messengers and after them Jesus, son of Mary. We gave him the Gospel and imbued the hearts of those who followed him with compassion and mercy. But We did not prescribe monasticism for them: that was their own innovation by which they sought to please God. But then, they did not observe it in the way that it should have been observed. So We rewarded only those who were truly faithful, for many of them were disobedient
Shakir   
Then We made Our messengers to follow in their footsteps, and We sent Isa son of Marium afterwards, and We gave him the Injeel, and We put in the hearts of those who followed him kindness and mercy; and (as for) monkery, they innovated it-- We did not prescribe it to them-- only to seek Allah's pleasure, but they did not observe it with its due observance; so We gave to those of them who believed their reward, and most of them are transgressors
Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar   
Again, We sent Our Messengers following their footsteps. And We sent following them Jesus son of Mary. And We gave him the Gospel. And We assigned in the hearts of those who followed him, tenderness and mercy. But as for monasticism, they made it up themselves. We prescribed it not for them but they were so looking for the contentment of God. Then, they gave it not the attention giving its right attention so We gave those who believed among them their compensation. And many of them are ones who disobey.
T.B.Irving   
Then We made Our messengers follow along in their footsteps and We followed them up with Jesus the son of Mary. We gave him the Gospel and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who have followed him, as well as monkhood; yet they initiated it: We did not prescribe it for them-accept through (their) aspiring for God´s approval. They do not observe it in the way it should be observed. We gave their earnings to those of them who believe; yet many of them are immoral.
Abdul Hye   
Then We sent after them, Our Messengers, and We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and gave him the gospel. And We placed compassion and Mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But the monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe it for them but they sought to please Allah, but they did not observe it with the right of its observance. Yet, We rewarded those among them who believed, but many of them are rebellious.
The Study Quran   
Then We sent Our messengers to follow in their footsteps, and We sent Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel and placed kindness and mercy in the hearts of those who follow him. And monasticism they invented—We did not ordain it for them—only to seek God’s Contentment. Yet they did not observe it with proper observance. So We gave those of them who believed their reward, yet many of them are iniquitous
Talal Itani & AI (2024)   
Then, following their footsteps, We sent Our messengers, and We sent Jesus, the son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel. We instilled compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. But they invented monasticism, but We didn’t prescribe it for them—solely to seek God’s approval, but they didn’t observe it with proper observance. Therefore, We gave those among them who believed their reward, but many of them are sinners.
Talal Itani (2012)   
Then We sent in their wake Our messengers, and followed up with Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel, and instilled in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy. But as for the monasticism which they invented—We did not ordain it for them—only to seek God's approval. But they did not observe it with its due observance. So We gave those of them who believed their reward, but many of them are sinful
Dr. Kamal Omar   
Then We brought afterwards Our Messengers on their footsteps and afterwards We brought Iesa Ibn-e-Maryam and We delivered him Al-Injeel [This is another attribute for Al-Kitab. See Verse No. 19/30 where Iesa himself terms it as Al-Kitab. Other attributes in relation to Prophet Iesa are available in 2/87, 253 3/50 5/46, 110 43/63 and they are Al-Bayyinat, Taurat, Hudah, Mauizatun-lil-Muttaqin, Al-Hikmah]. And We developed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. And as far as Rahbaniyah [Monasticism (is concerned)], they (themselves) initiated it; We did not prescribe it for them — except the seehead of state of the Pleasures of Allah; then they observed it not as its observance became due. Then We paid back those amongst them who Believed their reward. And the vast majority of them are Fasiqun
M. Farook Malik   
After them We sent other Messengers, one after the other, and followed them with Jesus the son of Mary. We gave him The Gospel, and put compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they instituted it themselves - for We did not enjoin it on them - in order to seek the good pleasure of Allah, but they did not observe it as it should have been observed. Yet We rewarded those among them who were true believers, but most of them are transgressors
Muhammad Mahmoud Ghali   
Thereafter We made to supervene on their tracks Our Messengers; and We made to supervene (after that) Isa son of Maryam, (1Jesus son of Mary) and We brought him the Injil; (The Book revealed to) and We made in the hearts of the ones who closely followed him compassion and mercy. And monasticism they innovated for themselves; in no way did We prescribe it for them, except for seeking the all-blessed Satisfaction of Allah; yet in no way did they pay heed to it as it should be truly heeded. So We brought the ones of them who believed their reward; and many of them are immoral
Muhammad Sarwar   
Then We sent Our other Messengers to follow their traditions. After them We sent Jesus, the son of Mary, to whom We gave the Gospel. In the hearts of his followers We placed compassion and mercy. We did not command them to lead the monastic life. This was their own method of seeking the pleasure of God. Despite this intention, they did not properly observe it (the monastic life). To the believers among them, We gave their reward but many of them are evil-doers
Muhammad Taqi Usmani   
Then We made Our messengers follow them one after the other, then We sent after them ‘Isa, the son of Maryam (Jesus, son of Mary), and gave him the Injil, and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, it was invented by them; We did not ordain it for them, but (they adopted it) to seek Allah‘s pleasure, then could not observe it as was due. So We gave the believers from among them their reward. And many of them are sinners
Shabbir Ahmed   
Then, in succession, We followed them up with (other of) Our Messengers. We caused them to be followed by Jesus son of Mary and gave him the Gospel. And We placed kindness and compassion in the hearts of those who followed him. As for monastic asceticism - We had never ordained it to them. They invented it themselves to seek Allah's Approval. But then, they did not uphold the Gospel with right observance. And so those who truly believed among them, We gave them their reward. But, a great many of them have been drifting away
Dr. Munir Munshey   
Then, We had many messengers follow in their footsteps _ one after another. (Eventually), We sent , the son of Mary and gave him the Gospel. We instilled compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. (As for) the monasticism, We did not impose it on them. They invented it themselves. (By such means), they sought the acceptance and the pleasure of Allah. Yet, they did not abide by the demands of monasticism. We granted the reward to those of them who believed. Most of them, (however), are evildoers
Syed Vickar Ahamed   
Then, afterwards, We followed them with (others of) Our messengers; And We sent after them Isa (Jesus) the son of Maryam (Mary), and gifted him the Gospel: And We placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But the self isolation and self-denial (practiced by monks in monasteries) which they made up for themselves, We did not place it upon them: (We commanded) only the seeking for the good Pleasure of Allah: But that they did not continue it as they should have done. So, We blessed, on those among them who believed, their (due) reward, but many of them are rebellious transgressors
Umm Muhammad (Sahih International)   
Then We sent following their footsteps Our messengers and followed [them] with Jesus, the son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel. And We placed in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy and monasticism, which they innovated; We did not prescribe it for them except [that they did so] seeking the approval of Allah . But they did not observe it with due observance. So We gave the ones who believed among them their reward, but many of them are defiantly disobedient
[The Monotheist Group] (2011 Edition)   
Then We sent in their tracks Our messengers. We sent Jesus the son of Mary, and We gave him the Injeel, and We ordained in the hearts of his followers kindness and mercy. But they invented Monasticism which We never decreed for them. They wanted to please God, but they did not observe it the way it should have been observed. Consequently, We gave those who believed among them their recompense, while many of them were wicked
Abdel Haleem   
We sent other messengers to follow in their footsteps. After those We sent Jesus, son of Mary: We gave him the Gospel and put compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. But monasticism was something they invented- We did not ordain it for them- only to seek God’s pleasure, and even so, they did not observe it properly. So We gave a reward to those of them who believed, but many of them were lawbreakers
Abdul Majid Daryabadi   
Thereafter in their footsteps We caused Our apostles to follow, and We caused lsa, son Of Maryam, to follow them, and We vouchsafed Unto him the Injil, and We placed In the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And asceticism! they innovated it- We prescribed it not for them Only seeking Allah's pleasure yet they tended it not with tendence due thereto. So We vouchsafed Unto such of them as believed their hire, and many of them are transgressors
Ahmed Ali   
Then in their train We sent Our apostles, and succeeding them Jesus, son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel, and put into the hearts of his followers compassion and kindness. But they created monasticism which had not been prescribed for them by Us except for seeking the pleasure of God; yet they did not observe it as it should have been rightly observed. So We gave those among them who were believers their reward; but most of them are disobedient
Aisha Bewley   
Then We sent Our Messengers following in their footsteps and sent ´Isa son of Maryam after them, giving him the Gospel. We put compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. They invented monasticism — We did not prescribe it for them — purely out of desire to gain the pleasure of Allah, but even so they did not observe it as it should have been observed. To those of them who had iman We gave their reward but many of them are deviators.
Ali Ünal   
Thereafter, We sent, following in their footsteps, others of Our Messengers, and We sent Jesus son of Mary, and granted him the Gospel, and placed in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism: they innovated it – We did not prescribe it to them – only to seek God’s good pleasure, but they have not observed it as its observance requires. So We have granted those among them who have truly believed their reward, but many among them have been transgressors
Ali Quli Qara'i   
Then We followed them up with Our apostles and We followed [them] with Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Evangel, and We put in the hearts of those who followed him kindness and mercy. But as for monasticism, they innovated it —We had not prescribed it for them— only seeking Allah’s pleasure. Yet they did not observe it with due observance. So We gave to the faithful among them their [due] reward, but many of them are transgressors
Hamid S. Aziz   
Then We made Our Messengers to follow in their footsteps, and We sent Jesus, son of Mary afterwards, and We bestowed on him the Gospel, and We put in the heart of those who followed him kindness and mercy; but monkery (or monasticism), they invented it -
Ali Bakhtiari Nejad   
Then We followed them up with Our messengers, and We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel, and put gentleness and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But they made up being monks, We did not mandate it to them, but (We only mandated) looking for God's pleasure, but they did not observe it as it was supposed to be observed. Then we gave those of them who believed their reward, while most of them are disobedient.
A.L. Bilal Muhammad et al (2018)   
Then in their footsteps, We followed them up with more of Our messengers. We sent after them Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the gospel, and We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him, compassion and mercy. But monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them. We asked only the seeking for the grace of God, but that, they did not develop as they should have. Still We bestowed on those among them who believed, their reward, but many of them are rebellious transgressors
Musharraf Hussain   
We sent more messengers in their footsteps, including Isa son of Maryam, to whom We gave the Gospel. We filled his follower’s hearts with compassion, and they invented self-denial, which We hadn’t prescribed for them. They invented this to seek Allah’s pleasure, but failed to fulfil its requirements. Those who believed, We rewarded them, but many were lawbreakers
Maududi   
In their wake, We sent a succession of Our Messengers, and raised Jesus, son of Mary, after all of them, and bestowed upon him the Evangel, and We set tenderness and mercy in the hearts of those that followed him. As for monasticism, it is they who invented it; We did not prescribe it for them. They themselves invented it in pursuit of Allah´s good pleasure, and then they did not observe it as it ought to have been observed. So We gave their reward to those of them that believed. But many of them are wicked
[The Monotheist Group] (2013 Edition)   
Then We sent in their tracks Our messengers. And We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel, and We ordained in the hearts of his followers kindness and mercy. But they invented Monasticism which We never decreed for them. They wanted to please God, but they did not observe it the way it should have been observed. Consequently, We gave those who believed among them their recompense, while many of them were wicked
Mohammad Shafi   
Then, in their wake, We followed with [others of] Our Messengers and We followed with Jesus, son of Mary. And We gave him the Injeel [Gospel] and created compassion and mercy in the minds of those who followed him. And they innovated monasticism — We did not prescribe it for them — just to please Allah. But then, they did not observe it the way it should have been observed. So We gave those who believed their reward. And many of them were depraved

Controversial or status undetermined works
Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelvi)   
Then We sent after then. Our other Messengers following in their footsteps, and We sent following, Isa son of Maryam and bestowed him the Injil. And We placed tenderness and mercy in the hearts of his followers. And as for adopting monasticism they invented it into the religion on their own accord, We prescribed it not for them, yes this innovation they created for seeking the pleasure of Allah, but they observed it not as it was to be observed, so We gave the believers of them then reward, but most of them are disobedient.
Rashad Khalifa   
Subsequent to them, we sent our messengers. We sent Jesus the son of Mary, and we gave him the Injeel (Gospel), and we placed in the hearts of his followers kindness and mercy. But they invented hermitism which we never decreed for them. All we asked them to do was to uphold the commandments approved by GOD. But they did not uphold the message as they should have. Consequently, we gave those who believed among them their recompense, while many of them were wicked.
Hasan Al-Fatih Qaribullah   
Following them We sent Our (other) Messengers, and We sent following in their footsteps, (Prophet) Jesus, the son of Mary and gave him the Gospel, and put tenderness and mercy in the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they invented it thereby seeking the pleasure of Allah. We did not write it for them, and they did not observe it as it should be observed. We gave to those of them who believed their wage, but many of them are impious
Maulana Muhammad Ali   
Then We made Our messengers to follow in their footsteps, and We made Jesus son of Mary to follow, and We gave him the Gospel. And We put compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. And (as for) monkery they innovated it -- We did not prescribe it to them -- only to seek Allah’s pleasure, but they did not observe it with its due observance. So We gave those of them who believed their reward, but most of them are transgressors
Muhammad Ahmed & Samira   
Then We sent after/made to follow on their tracks with Our messengers, and We sent after/made to follow with Jesus Mary's son, and We gave/brought him the Bible/New Testament , and We made/put in (the) hearts/minds (of) those who followed him mercy/compassion, and mercy and monkhood/monasticism they invented/innovated it , We did not order/ dictate it on them except (their) wishing/desiring God's acceptance/ approval , so they did not tend/protect it its deserved/just protection/keep , so We gave/brought those who believed from them their reimbursement ; many/much from them (are) debauchers
Bijan Moeinian   
After them we sent many Prophets [to guide them back to the right path]. Eventually I sent Jesus, son of Mary and gave him the Gospel and placed in the heart of his follower’s kindness and mercy. The Monasticism [abandoning the world out of fear], however, was their own invention (not prescribed by God) to please God. They did not observe the rules of their invented sect in the right spirit as it should have been observed. I (God) rewarded those of them who had believed but most of them are wicked
Faridul Haque   
We then sent Our other Noble Messengers after them following their footsteps, and after them We sent Eisa, the son of Maryam, and bestowed the Injeel to him; and We instilled compassion and mercy in the hearts of his followers; and they invented monasticism which We had not ordained upon them only to seek Allah’s pleasure, then did not properly abide by it as it should have been rightfully abided; We therefore gave the believers among them their reward; and many of them are sinners
Sher Ali   
Then WE caused Our Messengers to follow in their footsteps; and WE caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow them, and WE gave him the Gospel. And WE put compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. And monasticism they invented - WE did not prescribe it for them - for the seeking of ALLAH's pleasure; but they observed it not as it should be observed. Yet WE gave those of them, who believed, their due reward, but many of them are rebellious
Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri   
Then in the footsteps of these Messengers, We sent (other) Messengers and We sent ‘Isa, the son of Maryam (Jesus, the son of Mary) after them and gave him the Injil (the Gospel). And We created kindness and mercy in the hearts of those who were (the true) followers (of ‘Isa [Jesus]). And they themselves invented the innovation of monasticism. We did not prescribe it for them. But they (introduced this innovation of monasticism) merely to seek Allah’s pleasure. Then they could not practically keep and maintain that check which was its due (i.e., could not continue its spirit and discipline). So We paid those of them who believed (and continued the innovation of monasticism to seek the pleasure of Allah) their reward. And most of them (who left it and changed their ways) are disobedient
Amatul Rahman Omar   
Then We caused a series of Our Messengers one after the other to follow them closely in their footsteps, and we caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow them, and We gave him (- Jesus) the Evangel. And We placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him, but as for monasticism they invented it themselves, We did not enjoin it upon them. (They started monastic life) to seek Allah's pleasure, but they did not observe it (as faithfully) as it should have been observed. Yet We duly rewarded such of them as (truly) believed but many of them were transgressors
Muhsin Khan & Muhammad al-Hilali   
Then, We sent after them, Our Messengers, and We sent Iesa (Jesus) son of Maryam (Mary), and gave him the Injeel (Gospel). And We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him, compassion and mercy. But the Monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them, but (they sought it) only to please Allah therewith, but that they did not observe it with the right observance. So We gave those among them who believed, their (due) reward, but many of them are Fasiqoon (rebellious, disobedient to Allah)

Non-Muslim and/or Orientalist works
Arthur John Arberry   
Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented -- We did not prescribe it for them -- only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly
George Sale   
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 who 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
Edward Henry Palmer   
Then we followed up their footsteps with our apostles; and we followed them up with Jesus the son of Mary; and we gave him the gospel; and we placed in the hearts of those who followed him kindness and compassion.- But monkery, they invented it; we only prescribed to them the craving after the goodwill of God, and they observed it not with due observance. But we gave to those who believe amongst them their hire; though many amongst them were workers of abomination
John Medows Rodwell   
Then we caused our apostles to follow in their footsteps; and we caused Jesus the son of Mary to follow them; and we gave him the Evangel, and we put into the hearts of those who followed him kindness and compassion: but as to the monastic life, they invented it themselves. The desire only of pleasing God did we prescribe to them, and this they observed not as it ought to have been observed: but to such of them as believed gave we their reward, though many of them were perverse
N J Dawood (2014)   
In their trail We sent Our apostles, and after those Jesus son of Mary. We gave him the Gospel, and put compassion and mercy in the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they instituted it themselves (for We had not enjoined it on them), seeking thereby to please God; but they did not observe it faithfully. We rewarded only those who believed; many of them were degenerate

New, Partial, or In Progress Translations
Fode Drame   
Then We made Our [other] messengers to follow on their footsteps and then We followed them with Jesus son of Mary and We gave him the gospel and We placed in the hearts of those who follow him, tenderness and mercy. Whereas the monasticism, they invented it. We did not prescribe it upon them all but to seek the pleasure of Allah, yet they did not take care of it [the monasticism] with its proper care so We gave to those who believe among them their rewards but many of them are renegades.
Munir Mezyed   
Then We made Our Messengers to follow in their footsteps. And We made Jesus, son of Mary, to follow, giving him the Gospel, and placing compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But they innovated Monasticism which We did not prescribe it for them. (They sought it) only to please Allâh, but they did not observe it in accordance with what is required. So We gave the ones who Adhered to Absolute Monotheism their reward. But many of them were indulging in personal disobedience extensively without repentance.
Sahib Mustaqim Bleher   
Then We let Our messengers follow into their footsteps and made ´Isa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), follow and gave him the Injil and placed in the hearts of those who followed him kindness and mercy, and monasticism they invented, We did not prescribe it for them except that they should seek the contentment of Allah, and they did not observe it properly, so We gave those who believed amongst them their reward, and many of them were sinful.
Fadel Soliman, Bridges‘ Translation   
Then We sent in their wake Our messengers and followed them with Jesus, son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel and instilled in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy. But the monasticism which they invented was only to seek Allah’s good pleasure—We did not ordain it for them— yet they did not observe it with its due observance. So We gave those of them who attained faith their reward, but many of them are defiantly disobedient.
Linda “iLHam” Barto   
We sent Our messengers after their footsteps. We followed them with Jesus the son of Mary and bestowed on him the Gospel. We ordained within the hearts of his followers compassion and mercy, but (certain) followers made up the idea of monasticism [eg, celibacy and self-denial]. We did not prescribe that for them. We only commanded seeking the contentment of Allah, but they failed to observe that as they should have. Still, We rewarded the believers appropriately, but many are defiantly disobedient.
Irving & Mohamed Hegab   
Then We made Our messengers follow along in their footsteps and We followed them up with Jesus the son of Mary. We gave him the Gospel and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who have followed him, as well as monkhood; yet they initiated it: We did not prescribe it for themaccept through (their) aspiring for Allah (God)'s approval. They do not observe it in the way it should be observed. We gave their earnings to those of them who believe; yet many of them are immoral.
Samy Mahdy   
Then We Followed up on their footsteps by Our messengers and followed up by Jesus, Mary's son, and gave him the Gospel. And We set up in cores of those who followed him compassion and mercy and monasticism, which they innovated; We did not write it upon them except seeking Allah’s satisfaction. Then, they did not care for it, the right care. So, We gave those who believed among them their wage, and many among them are debauchees.
Thomas Cleary   
Then We sent Envoys of Ours to take up after them: We sent Jesus son of Mary, giving him the Gospel; and We put compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But the monasticism they invented for themselves was not prescribed by Us for them: only seeking the pleasure of God. And they did not observe it as it really should be observed. Yet We gave to those among them who believed their recompense; while many of them are deviants.
Ahmed Hulusi   
Then We followed their work up with Our Rasuls and followed them with Jesus and gave him the Gospel (the knowledge containing good news)... We formed in their hearts compassion, infinite tolerance and grace, and clergy (the attainment of Allah), but they innovated it (and changed it into monasticism out of fear). Whereas We had not made (clergy) compulsory upon them. They did so to seek the pleasure of Allah (the blessings of Paradise)... But they did not duly observe it! We gave the believers among them their rewards... But the majority of them are corrupt in faith!
Mir Aneesuddin   
Then We made Our messengers to follow in their footsteps and We made Isa, the son of Maryam, to follow and gave him the Injeel, and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. And they invented monasticism*, We did not prescribe it for them, only to seek Allah’s pleasure, but they did not observe it with the observation due to it. So We gave to those who believed from among them, their reward, and most of them are transgressors. * Seclusion from worldly life. him. And they invented monasticism*, We did not prescribe it for them, only to seek Allah’s pleasure, but they did not observe it with the observation due to it. So We gave to those who believed from among them, their reward, and most of them are transgressors. * Seclusion from worldly life.
Al-muntakhab fi tafsir al-Qur‘an al-Karim   
Then in sequence We sent after them others of Our Messengers from the same lineal descent and in order of succession We sent Isa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), and We gave him the Injil (the Bible) and We impressed the hearts of those who followed him and believed in him with kindness and mercy and monasticism, a system of their contrivance they had introduced, We never imposed on them. They were expected to please Allah with the profound reverence dutiful to Him and with deeds reflecting wisdom and piety and striving in His cause to attain His purpose. Yet when We made Monasticism come to pass, they never regarded the principle with close attention nor did they foster it as they should. And so We gave those of them, whose hearts Reflected the image of religious and spiritual virtues and their deeds wisdom and piety the reward they merited; many among them were indeed wicked

Obsolete and/or older editions
Yusuf Ali (Orig. 1938)   
Then, in their wake, We followed them up with (others of) Our apostles: We sent after them Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the Gospel; and We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him Compassion and Mercy. But the Monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them: (We commanded) only the seeking for the Good Pleasure of God; but that they did not foster as they should have done. Yet We bestowed, on those among them who believed, their (due) rewa rd, but many of them are rebellious transgressors
OLD Literal Word for Word   
Then We sent on their footsteps Our Messengers and We followed with Isa, son (of) Maryam, and We gave him the Injeel. And We placed in (the) hearts (of) those who followed him compassion and mercy. But monasticism they innovated - not We prescribed it for them - only seeking (the) pleasure (of) Allah, but not they observed it (with) right observance. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them (are) defiantly disobediently
OLD Transliteration   
Thumma qaffayna AAala atharihim birusulina waqaffayna biAAeesa ibni maryama waataynahu al-injeela wajaAAalna fee quloobi allatheena ittabaAAoohu ra/fatan warahmatan warahbaniyyatan ibtadaAAooha ma katabnaha AAalayhim illa ibtighaa ridwani Allahi fama raAAawha haqqa riAAayatiha faatayna allatheena amanoo minhum ajrahum wakatheerun minhum fasiqoona