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Muhammad Asad   
Had there been [a prospect of] immediate gain, and an easy journey, they would certainly have followed thee, [O Prophet:] but the distance was too great for them. And yet, [after your return, O believers,] they will swear by God, "Had we been able to do so, we would certainly have set out with you!" - [and by thus falsely swearing] they will be destroying their own selves: for God knows indeed that they are lying
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
Had the gain been within reach and the journey shorter, they would have followed you, but the distance seemed too long for them. And they will swear by Allah, “Had we been able, we would have certainly joined you.” They are ruining themselves. And Allah knows that they are surely lying.
Safi Kaskas   
Had there been immediate profit and an easy journey, they would have followed you. But the distance was too far for them. Later, they will swear by God, "Had we been able, we would surely have marched with you." They will be damning their own souls. God knows they are liars.

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Source Arabic and Literal tools
Arabic   
لَوۡ كَانَ عَرَضࣰا قَرِیبࣰا وَسَفَرࣰا قَاصِدࣰا لَّٱتَّبَعُوكَ وَلَـٰكِنۢ بَعُدَتۡ عَلَیۡهِمُ ٱلشُّقَّةُۚ وَسَیَحۡلِفُونَ بِٱللَّهِ لَوِ ٱسۡتَطَعۡنَا لَخَرَجۡنَا مَعَكُمۡ یُهۡلِكُونَ أَنفُسَهُمۡ وَٱللَّهُ یَعۡلَمُ إِنَّهُمۡ لَكَـٰذِبُونَ ۝٤٢
Transliteration (2021)   
law kāna ʿaraḍan qarīban wasafaran qāṣidan la-ittabaʿūka walākin baʿudat ʿalayhimu l-shuqatu wasayaḥlifūna bil-lahi lawi is'taṭaʿnā lakharajnā maʿakum yuh'likūna anfusahum wal-lahu yaʿlamu innahum lakādhibūn
Word for Word
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh, Ms. Kauser Katri, and more
  
If it had been a gain near and a journey easy, surely they (would) have followed you but was long for them the distance. And they will swear by Allah, "If we were able, certainly we (would) have come forth with you." They destroy their own selves and Allah knows (that) indeed, they (are) surely liars.

Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning
Muhammad Asad   
Had there been [a prospect of] immediate gain, and an easy journey, they would certainly have followed thee, [O Prophet:] but the distance was too great for them. And yet, [after your return, O believers,] they will swear by God, "Had we been able to do so, we would certainly have set out with you!" - [and by thus falsely swearing] they will be destroying their own selves: for God knows indeed that they are lying
M. M. Pickthall   
Had it been a near adventure and an easy journey they had followed thee, but the distance seemed too far for them. Yet will they swear by Allah (saying): If we had been able we would surely have set out with you. They destroy their souls, and Allah knoweth that they verily are liars
Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)   
If there had been immediate gain (in sight), and the journey easy, they would (all) without doubt have followed thee, but the distance was long, (and weighed) on them. They would indeed swear by Allah, "If we only could, we should certainly have come out with you": They would destroy their own souls; for Allah doth know that they are certainly lying
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
Had the gain been within reach and the journey shorter, they would have followed you, but the distance seemed too long for them. And they will swear by Allah, “Had we been able, we would have certainly joined you.” They are ruining themselves. And Allah knows that they are surely lying.
Safi Kaskas   
Had there been immediate profit and an easy journey, they would have followed you. But the distance was too far for them. Later, they will swear by God, "Had we been able, we would surely have marched with you." They will be damning their own souls. God knows they are liars.
Wahiduddin Khan   
Had the gain been immediate and the journey shorter, they would have followed you: but the distance seemed too great for them. Yet they will swear by God, Had we been able, we would have gone out with you. They bring ruin upon themselves. God knows that they are surely lying
Shakir   
Had it been a near advantage and a short journey, they would certainly have followed you, but the tedious journey was too long for them; and they swear by Allah: If we had been able, we would certainly have gone forth with you; they cause their own souls to perish, and Allah knows that they are most surel
Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar   
If it had been a near advantage and an easy journey, they would have followed thee, except the destination of the journey was distant for them. And they will swear by God: If we were able, we would, certainly, have gone forth with you. They will cause themselves to perish. And God knows that they are the ones who lie.
T.B.Irving   
If there had been some goods to be acquired closer by and on a shorter journey, they would have followed you; but the expedition seemed much too far for them. They will swear by God; "If we could have managed to, we would have left along with you (all)." They destroy their own souls while God knows what liars they are!
Abdul Hye   
(For the hypocrites) if the gain would have been immediate and an easy journey, they would have certainly followed you, but the long journey (Tabuk expedition) was too hard for them. (For not joining you in the expedition) they would swear by Allah: “If only we could, we would certainly have come forth with you.” They destroy their own selves, and Allah knows that they are liars.
The Study Quran   
Were it something ephemeral nearby or an easy journey, they would have followed thee. But the trek was too great for them. And they will swear by God, “If we had been able, we would have gone out with you.” They destroy themselves, and God knows that they are liars
Talal Itani & AI (2024)   
They would’ve followed you if there had been immediate gain and a short journey, but the distance seemed too great for them. They will swear by God, “If we could, we would’ve gone out with you.” They destroy themselves, and God knows that they are lying.
Talal Itani (2012)   
Had the gain been immediate, and the journey shorter, they would have followed you; but the distance seemed too long for them. Still they swear by God: 'Had we been able, we would have marched out with you.' They damn their own souls, and God knows that they are lying
Dr. Kamal Omar   
Had there been an immediate gain, and an easy journey, they would have followed you, but the hardship (of the journey and the season) appeared extreme to them. And they would soon swear by Allah: “If we only could, we would certainly have gone out with you.” They destroy their personalities, and Allah knows: certainly they, without doubt, are liars
M. Farook Malik   
As for the hypocrites, if the gain would have been immediate and the journey short, they would have certainly accompanied you, but the long journey (in Tabuk expedition) was too hard for them. To justify their not accompanying you, they would even swear by Allah, "If we were able, we would certainly have marched with you." By doing so, they are destroying their own souls, for Allah knows that they are liars
Muhammad Mahmoud Ghali   
If it had been (some) advantage near at hand, and a moderately (smooth) journey, they would indeed have closely followed you; but the distance was too far for them, and they will soon swear by Allah, "If we had been able, indeed we would have gone out with you; They bring perdition (i.e., permission to be excused form fighting) upon their selves; and Allah knows that surely they are liars indeed.
Muhammad Sarwar   
Had the gain been immediate or the journey shorter, they (hypocrites) would certainly have followed you, (Muhammad), but it was too far for them. They will swear by God, "Had we had the ability, we would certainly have marched with you." They destroy only themselves and God knows that they are lying
Muhammad Taqi Usmani   
Had it been a gain at hand or an average journey, they would have certainly followed you, but the distance seemed too far to them. They will swear by Allah: .We would have certainly set out with you, if we were able to. They are putting themselves to ruin. Allah knows that they are liars
Shabbir Ahmed   
There are people among you that if it were a quick material gain and a short easy journey, they would follow you. But the strife and the distance seem heavy and long to them. They will swear by Allah, "If we could, we would have gone along with you." They destroy their "Self". Allah knows that they are liars
Dr. Munir Munshey   
They would have come out and accompanied you if the mission involved a quick gain or an easy journey, but the hardship of the long journey bothers them. Yet, (when you come back) they would swear by Allah and say, "If we could, we would have accompanied you." (Thus), they destroy their souls. Of course, Allah knows that they are the liars
Syed Vickar Ahamed   
If there was (something) to be gained right away, and the journey was easy, they would (all) have followed you without doubt but, the distance (from Medinah to Tabuk) was long for them. They would truly swear by Allah, "If we only could, we would surely have come out with you:" They destroy their own souls (by lying); And Allah does know that they are only lying
Umm Muhammad (Sahih International)   
Had it been an easy gain and a moderate trip, the hypocrites would have followed you, but distant to them was the journey. And they will swear by Allah , "If we were able, we would have gone forth with you," destroying themselves [through false oaths], and Allah knows that indeed they are liars
[The Monotheist Group] (2011 Edition)   
If it were a near gain, or an easy journey, they would have followed you; but the distance was too much for them. And they will swear by God: "If we could have, we would have come with you." They destroy themselves, and God knows they are liars
Abdel Haleem   
They would certainly have followed you [Prophet] if the benefit was within sight and the journey short, but the distance seemed too great for them. They will swear by God, ‘If we could, we certainly would go out [to battle] with you,’ but they ruin themselves, for God knows that they are lying
Abdul Majid Daryabadi   
Were there a gear nigh and a journey moderate, they would have surely followed thee, but the distance seemed far unto them. And anon they will be swearing by Allah: if only we could we would surely have come forth with you. They destroy their own souls: and Allah knoweth that verily they are liars
Ahmed Ali   
(O Prophet), had the gain been close at hand, and easy the journey, they would surely have followed you; but hard was the journey and long the going. Even then they swear by God (and say): "If we had the strength we would surely have gone out with you." They are only ruining themselves, for God is aware they lie
Aisha Bewley   
If it had been a case of easy gains and a short journey, they would have followed you, but the distance was too great for them. They will swear by Allah: ´Had we been able to, we would have gone out with you.´ They are destroying their own selves. Allah knows that they are lying.
Ali Ünal   
Had there been an immediate gain, and an easy journey, those (who stayed behind because of hypocrisy) would surely have followed you, but the difficult journey was too distant for them. Yet they will swear by God: "If only we had been able to, we would surely have gone forth with you." They destroy their own selves, for God knows that they are truly liars
Ali Quli Qara'i   
Were it an accessible gain or a short journey, they would have surely followed you; but the distance seemed too far to them. Yet they will swear by Allah: ‘If we could, we would have surely gone forth with you.’ They [merely] destroy themselves. Allah knows that they are indeed liars
Hamid S. Aziz   
Had there been an immediate gain, and an easy journey, they would have followed you; but the distance was too far for them; yet they will swear by Allah, "If we could, we would have gone forth with you." They destroy their own souls, but Allah
Ali Bakhtiari Nejad   
Had there been an immediate gain and an easy journey they would have certainly followed you, but the far distance was hard for them, and they are going to swear by God: “We would certainly come out with you if we could.” They destroy themselves, and God knows they are indeed liars.
A.L. Bilal Muhammad et al (2018)   
If there had been immediate gain, and the journey was easy, they would all, without doubt, have followed you, but the distance was long. They indeed swear by God, “If we could, we would certainly have come out with you.” They ruin their own-selves, for God knows that they are certainly lying
Musharraf Hussain   
Had there been an instant gain and an easy journey they would have followed you; however, Tabuk was too far away and the journey difficult. They will swear by Allah, “If we were capable we certainly would have come out with you.” They have ruined themselves. Allah knows they are liars
Maududi   
Were it a gain at hand or a short journey, they would have surely followed you, but the distance seemed too far to them. Still they will swear by Allah: "If only we could, we would surely have gone forth with you." They merely bring ruin upon themselves. Allah knows well that they are liars
[The Monotheist Group] (2013 Edition)   
If it were a near gain, or an easy journey, they would have followed you; but the distance was too much for them. And they will swear by God: "If we could have, we would have gone with you." They destroy themselves, and God knows they are liars.
Mohammad Shafi   
Had it been a near expedition and a short journey, they would certainly have followed you, but the long journey was too much for them. And they swear by Allah, "If only we could, we would certainly have set out with you." They are killing their own souls, and Allah knows for certain that they are lying

Controversial or status undetermined works
Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelvi)   
If there had been any near gain, or an average journey, then they would have certainly gone with you, but the hard journey seemed too long to them, and now they will swear by Allah, that if we had been able, then we would have surely gone with you. They ruin their souls, and Allah knows that undoubtedly, they are necessarily liars.
Rashad Khalifa   
If there were a quick material gain, and a short journey, they would have followed you. But the striving is just too much for them. They will swear by GOD: "If we could, we would have mobilized with you." They thus hurt themselves, and GOD knows that they are liars.
Hasan Al-Fatih Qaribullah   
Had the gain been immediate or the journey easy, they would have followed you; but the distance seemed far to them. Yet they will swear by Allah: 'Had we been able, we would have gone out with you. ' They bring destruction upon their souls. Allah knows that they are lying
Maulana Muhammad Ali   
Had it been a near gain and a short journey, they would certainly have followed thee, but the hard journey was too long for them. And they will swear by Allah: If we had been able, we would have gone forth with you. They cause their own souls to perish; and Allah knows that they are liars
Muhammad Ahmed & Samira   
If (it) was near/close enjoyable accessories/vanities , and an easy and light journey/trip , they would have followed you, and but the hard to reach distance it became distant/far on (for) them, and they will swear/take oath by God: "If we were able we would have gotten out/emerged with you." They perish/destroy themselves, and God knows that they truly are lying/denying (E)
Bijan Moeinian   
O’ Mohammad, if it was an easy campaign, they would have been quite ready to follow you. However, they could not handle the situation (marching a long way in the desert in the hot summer, not having enough time to harvest their new crop and going to face the strong Roman empire’s army.) They would dare to swear by God and say: “If we could, we would certainly join you.” By saying such lies, they are destroying their own souls. God knows that they are liars
Faridul Haque   
Had there been some wealth near at hand or a short journey, they would have certainly accompanied you, but the difficult path became very distant for them; and they will now swear by Allah that "Had we been able, we would have surely accompanied you"; they destroy their own souls; and Allah knows that undoubtedly, they are indeed liars
Sher Ali   
If it had been an immediate gain and a short journey, they would certainly have followed thee, but the hard journey seem too long to them. Yet they will swear by ALLAH, saying, `If we had been able, we would surely have gone forth with you.' They but ruin their souls; and ALLAH knows that they are liars
Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri   
Had the benefit (i.e., spoils of war) been a near gain and the journey (of fighting) easy and moderate, then they (the hypocrites) would certainly have followed you. But (that) arduous journey appeared to them far too long. And they will (now) swear by Allah soon: ‘Had we been able to go, we would certainly have marched forth with you.’ They are drawing upon themselves (added) destruction (by these lies), and Allah knows that they are liars beyond doubt
Amatul Rahman Omar   
Had it been an immediate gain and a short journey these (hypocrites) would certainly have followed you, but the hard journey seemed too distant to them, still they will swear (after your successful return) by Allah (saying), `If only we could, we would surely have marched forth with you.' They spell their own ruin, Allah knows well that they are liars
Muhsin Khan & Muhammad al-Hilali   
Had it been a near gain (booty in front of them) and an easy journey, they would have followed you, but the distance (Tabuk expedition) was long for them, and they would swear by Allah, "If we only could, we would certainly have come forth with you." They destroy their ownselves, and Allah knows that they are liars

Non-Muslim and/or Orientalist works
Arthur John Arberry   
Were it a gain near at hand, and an easy journey, they would have followed thee; but the distance was too far for them. Still they will swear by God, 'Had we been able, we would have gone out with you,' so destroying their souls; and God knows that they are truly liars
George Sale   
If it had been a near advantage, and a moderate journey, they had surely followed thee; but the way seemed tedious unto them: And yet they will swear by God, saying, if we had been able, we had surely gone forth with you. They destroy their own souls; for God knoweth that they are liars
Edward Henry Palmer   
Were there goods nigh at hand, and a moderate journey, they would have followed you; but the distance was too far for them; they will swear by God, 'If we could, we would have gone forth with you.' They destroy themselves, but God knows that they lie
John Medows Rodwell   
Had there been a near advantage and a short journey, they would certainly have followed thee; but the way seemed long to them. Yet will they swear by God, "Had we been able, we had surely gone forth with you:" they are self-destroyers! And God knoweth that they are surely liars
N J Dawood (2014)   
Had the gain been immediate or the journey short, they would have followed you:³ but the distance seemed too far to them. Yet they will swear by God: ‘Had we been able, we would have marched with you.‘ They bring ruin upon themselves. God knows that they are surely lying

New, Partial, or In Progress Translations
Fode Drame   
Had it been a gain near at hand and a journey with a destination well defined, then they would have surely followed you but the distance seemed far to them and they will swear by Allah, “We had gone out with you if we could” thus they destroy their own souls and Allah knows that indeed they surely are liars.
Munir Mezyed   
If it had been a near advantage and an easy journey, those who indulge in hypocrisy would definitely have followed you. But the journey was too long and tedious for them. Still they will swear by God (saying), "If we had been able (to go forth), we would obviously have accompanied you." They destroy their own selves (through false oaths and perjury), and Allâh already Knows that they invent lies.
Sahib Mustaqim Bleher   
Had it been a nearby opportunity and short journey, they would have followed you, but the distance was too far for them, and they will swear by Allah that had we been able we would have gone out with you; they destroy themselves and Allah knows that they are lying.
Linda “iLHam” Barto   
If quick gain had been available and if the journey had been easy, they all undoubtedly would have followed you. But the distance seemed too long for them. Yet, they would swear by Allah, “If we could, we certainly would have gone out with you.” They destroy their own souls. Allah knows that they are certainly lying.
Fadel Soliman, Bridges‘ Translation   
Had the profit been immediate and the journey shorter, they would have followed you; but the distance seemed too long for them. And they will swear by Allah: “Had we been able, we would have set out with you.” They ruin themselves, and Allah knows that they are certainly liars.
Irving & Mohamed Hegab   
If there had been some goods to be acquired closer by and on a shorter journey, they would have followed you; but the expedition seemed much too far for them. They will swear by Allah (God); "If we could have managed to, we would have left along with you (all)." They destroy their own souls while Allah (God) knows what liars they are!
Samy Mahdy   
If it was a near offer, and a proposed journey, they would have followed you; but the distance was too far upon them. And they will swear by Allah: “Had we could, we would exit out with you.” They are destroying themselves, and Allah knows that they are liars.
Sayyid Qutb   
Had there been [a prospect of] an immediate gain, and a short journey, they would certainly have followed you; but the distance was too far for them. Yet they will swear by God: 'Had we been able, we would surely have joined you.' They bring ruin upon themselves. God knows indeed that they are liars.
Ahmed Hulusi   
Had there been spoils or it been a moderate trip, they would have followed you. But it seemed difficult for them. (Despite this) they will swear by Allah, “If we were able, we would have gone with you”... They are destroying themselves... Allah knows that indeed they are liars.
Sayyed Abbas Sadr-Ameli   
Had there been a near gain, and an easy journey, certainly they would have followed you, but the distance was too far to them; yet they will swear by Allah: �Had we been able, we would certainly have gone out with you�, they destroy themselves. And Allah knows that verily they are liars
Al-muntakhab fi tafsir al-Qur‘an al-Karim   
Had the expedition been a short distance and they were confident their march would attain its worldly end, they would have followed you. But the distance disenchanted their minds and appeared toilsome. They will swear to you O Muhammad that they would have gone out with you to fight had they been able to do so. They are the cause of their own destruction, and Allah knows that they are liars
Mir Aneesuddin   
Had the gain been near and the journey easy, they would have followed you, but the distant journey was tiresome for them. And they will swear by Allah, "Had we been able to, we would have certainly gone forth with you." They destroy themselves and Allah knows that they are liars.

Obsolete and/or older editions
Yusuf Ali (Orig. 1938)   
If there had been immediate gain (in sight), and the journey easy, they would (all) without doubt have followed thee, but the distance was long, (and weighed) on them. They would indeed swear by God, "If we only could, we should certainly have come out with you": They would destroy their own souls; for God doth know that they are certainly lying
OLD Literal Word for Word   
If it had been a gain near and a journey easy, surely they (would) have follo but was long for them the distance. And they will swear by Allah, "If we were able, certainly we (would) have come with you." They destroy their own selves and Allah knows (that) indeed, they (are) surely liars
OLD Transliteration   
Law kana AAaradan qareeban wasafaran qasidan laittabaAAooka walakin baAAudat AAalayhimu alshshuqqatu wasayahlifoona biAllahi lawi istataAAna lakharajna maAAakum yuhlikoona anfusahum waAllahu yaAAlamu innahum lakathiboona