| | John Medows Rodwell rendition of Surah The Pen(al-Qalam)
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| 68:1 | | Nun. By the PEN and by what they write |
| 68:2 | | Thou, O Prophet; by the grace of thy Lord art not possessed |
| 68:3 | | And truly a boundless recompense doth await thee |
| 68:4 | | For thou art of a noble nature |
| 68:5 | | But thou shalt see and they shall se |
| 68:6 | | Which of you is the demented |
| 68:7 | | Now thy Lord! well knoweth He the man who erreth from his path, and well doth he know those who have yielded to Guidance |
| 68:8 | | Give not place, therefore, to those who treat thee as a liar |
| 68:9 | | They desire thee to deal smoothly with them: then would they be smooth as oil with thee |
| 68:10 | | But yield not to the man of oaths, a despicable person |
| 68:11 | | Defamer, going about with slander |
| 68:12 | | Hinderer of the good, transgressor, criminal |
| 68:13 | | Harsh - beside this, impure by birth |
| 68:14 | | Though a man of riches and blessed with sons |
| 68:15 | | Who when our wondrous verses are recited to him saith - "Fables of the ancients." |
| 68:16 | | We will brand him on the nostrils |
| 68:17 | | Verily, we have proved them (the Meccans) as we proved the owners of the garden, when they swore that at morn they would cut its fruits |
| 68:18 | | But added no reserve |
| 68:19 | | Wherefore an encircling desolation from thy Lord swept round it while they slumbered |
| 68:20 | | And in the morning it was like a garden whose fruits had all been cut |
| 68:21 | | Then at dawn they called to each other |
| 68:22 | | "Go out early to your field, if ye would cut your dates." |
| 68:23 | | So on they went whispering to each other |
| 68:24 | | "No poor man shall set foot this day within your garden;" |
| 68:25 | | And they went out at daybreak with this settled purpose |
| 68:26 | | But when they beheld it, they said, "Truly we have been in fault |
| 68:27 | | Yes! we are forbidden our fruits." |
| 68:28 | | The most rightminded of them said, "Did I not say to you, Will ye not give praise to God?" |
| 68:29 | | They said, "Glory to our Lord! Truly we have done amiss." |
| 68:30 | | And they fell to blaming one another |
| 68:31 | | They said, "Oh woe to us! we have indeed transgressed |
| 68:32 | | Haply our Lord will give us in exchange a better garden than this: verily we crave it of our Lord." |
| 68:33 | | Such hath been our chastisement - but heavier shall be the chastisement of the next world. Ah! did they but know it |
| 68:34 | | Verily, for the God-fearing are gardens of delight in the presence of their Lord |
| 68:35 | | Shall we then deal with those who have surrendered themselves to God, as with those who offend him |
| 68:36 | | What hath befallen you that ye thus judge |
| 68:37 | | Have ye a Scripture wherein ye can search ou |
| 68:38 | | That ye shall have the things ye choose |
| 68:39 | | Or have ye received oaths which shall bind Us even until the day of the resurrection, that ye shall have what yourselves judge right |
| 68:40 | | Ask them which of them will guarantee this |
| 68:41 | | Or is it that they have joined gods with God? let them produce those associate-gods of theirs, if they speak truth |
| 68:42 | | On the day when men's legs shall be bared, and they shall be called upon to bow in adoration, they shall not be able |
| 68:43 | | Their looks shall be downcast: shame shall cover them: because, while yet in safety, they were invited to bow in worship, but would not obey |
| 68:44 | | Leave me alone therefore with him who chargeth this revelation with imposture. We will lead them by degrees to their ruin; by ways which they know not |
| 68:45 | | Yet will I bear long with them; for my plan is sure |
| 68:46 | | Askest thou any recompense from them? But they are burdened with debt |
| 68:47 | | Are the secret things within their ken? Do they copy them from the Book of God |
| 68:48 | | Patiently then await the judgment of thy Lord, and be not like him who was in the fish, when in deep distress he cried to God |
| 68:49 | | Had not favour from his Lord reached him, cast forth would he have been on the naked shore, overwhelmed with shame |
| 68:50 | | But his Lord chose him and made him of the just |
| 68:51 | | Almost would the infidels strike thee down with their very looks when they hear the warning of the Koran. And they say, "He is certainly possessed." |
| 68:52 | | Yet is it nothing less than a warning for all creatures |
