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34: Saba, Sheba
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1 |
Praise be to God, to Whom belong all things in the heavens and on
earth: to Him be Praise in the Hereafter: and He is Full of Wisdom,
acquainted with all things.
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2 |
He knows all that goes into the earth, and all that comes out thereof;
all that comes down from the sky and all that ascends thereto and He
is the Most Merciful, the Oft-Forgiving.
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3 |
The Unbelievers say, "Never to us will come the Hour": Say, "Nay! but
most surely, by my Lord, it will come upon you;- by Him Who knows the
unseen,- from Whom is not hidden the least little atom in the heavens
or on earth: Nor is there anything less than that, or greater, but is
in the Record Perspicuous:
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That He may reward those who believe and work deeds of righteousness:
for such is Forgiveness and a Sustenance Most Generous."
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But those who strive against Our Signs, to frustrate them,- for such
will be a Penalty,- a Punishment most humiliating.
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And those to whom knowledge has come see that the (Revelation) sent
down to thee from thy Lord - that is the Truth, and that it guides to
the Path of the Exalted (in might), Worthy of all praise.
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The Unbelievers say (in ridicule): "Shall we point out to you a man
that will tell you, when ye are all scattered to pieces in
disintegration, that ye shall (then be raised) in a New Creation?
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"Has he invented a falsehood against God, or has a spirit (seized)
him?"- Nay, it is those who believe not in the Hereafter, that are in
(real) Penalty, and in farthest error.
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9 |
See they not what is before them and behind them, of the sky and the
earth? If We wished, We could cause the earth to swallow them up, or
cause a piece of the sky to fall upon them. Verily in this is a Sign
for every devotee that turns to God (in repentance).
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10 |
We bestowed Grace aforetime on David from ourselves: "O ye Mountains!
Sing ye back the Praises of God with him! and ye birds (also)! And We
made the iron soft for him;-
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(Commanding), "Make thou coast of mail, balancing well the rings of
chain armour, and work ye righteousness; for be sure I see (clearly)
all that ye do."
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And to Solomon (We made) the Wind (obedient): Its early morning
(stride) was a month's (journey), and its evening (stride) was a
month's (journey); and We made a Font of molten brass to flow for him;
and there were Jinns that worked in front of him, by the leave of his
Lord, and if any of them turned aside from our command, We made him
taste of the Penalty of the Blazing Fire.
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They worked for him as he desired, (making) arches, images, basons as
large as reservoirs, and (cooking) cauldrons fixed (in their places):
"Work ye, sons of David, with thanks! but few of My servants are
grateful!"
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Then, when We decreed (Solomon's) death, nothing showed them his death
except a little worm of the earth, which kept (slowly) gnawing away at
his staff: so when he fell down, the Jinns saw plainly that if they
had known the unseen, they would not have tarried in the humiliating
Penalty (of their Task).
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There was, for Saba, aforetime, a Sign in their home-land - two
Gardens to the right and to the left. "Eat of the Sustenance
(provided) by your Lord, and be grateful to Him: a territory fair and
happy, and a Lord Oft-Forgiving!
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16 |
But they turned away (from God), and We sent against them the Flood
(released) from the dams, and We converted their two garden (rows)
into "gardens" producing bitter fruit, and tamarisks, and some few
(stunted) Lote-trees.
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That was the Requital We gave them because they ungratefully rejected
Faith: and never do We give (such) requital except to such as are
ungrateful rejecters.
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Between them and the Cities on which We had poured our blessings, We
had placed Cities in prominent positions, and between them We had
appointed stages of journey in due proportion: "Travel therein,
secure, by night and by day."
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But they said: "Our Lord! Place longer distances between our
journey-stages": but they wronged themselves (therein). At length We
made them as a tale (that is told), and We dispersed them all in
scattered fragments. Verily in this are Signs for every (soul that is)
patiently constant and grateful.
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And on them did Satan prove true his idea, and they followed him, all
but a party that believed.
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But he had no authority over them,- except that We might test the man
who believes in the Hereafter from him who is in doubt concerning it:
and thy Lord doth watch over all things.
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Say: "Call upon other (gods) whom ye fancy, besides God: They have no
power,- not the weight of an atom,- in the heavens or on earth: No
(sort of) share have they therein, nor is any of them a helper to God.
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23 |
"No intercession can avail in His Presence, except for those for whom
He has granted permission. So far (is this the case) that, when terror
is removed from their hearts (at the Day of Judgment, then) will they
say, 'what is it that your Lord commanded?' they will say, 'That which
is true and just; and He is the Most High Most Great'."
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24 |
Say: "Who gives you sustenance, from the heavens and the earth?" Say:
"It is God; and certain it is that either we or ye are on right
guidance or in manifest error!"
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Say: "Ye shall not be questioned as to our sins, nor shall we be
questioned as to what ye do."
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Say: "Our Lord will gather us together and will in the end decide the
matter between us (and you) in truth and justice: and He is the one to
decide, the One Who knows all."
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Say: "Show me those whom ye have joined with Him as partners: by no
means (can ye). Nay, He is God, the Exalted in Power, the Wise."
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We have not sent thee but as a universal (Messenger) to men, giving
them glad tidings, and warning them (against sin), but most men
understand not.
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They say: "When will this promise (come to pass) if ye are telling the
truth?"
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Say: "The appointment to you is for a Day, which ye cannot put back
for an hour nor put forward."
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The Unbelievers say: "We shall neither believe in this scripture nor
in (any) that (came) before it." Couldst thou but see when the
wrong-doers will be made to stand before their Lord, throwing back the
word (of blame) on one another! Those who had been despised will say
to the arrogant ones: "Had it not been for you, we should certainly
have been believers!"
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The arrogant ones will say to those who had been despised: "Was it we
who kept you back from Guidance after it reached you? Nay, rather, it
was ye who transgressed.
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Those who had been despised will say to the arrogant ones: "Nay! it
was a plot (of yours) by day and by night: Behold! Ye (constantly)
ordered us to be ungrateful to God and to attribute equals to Him!"
They will declare (their) repentance when they see the Penalty: We
shall put yokes on the necks of the Unbelievers: It would only be a
requital for their (ill) Deeds.
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Never did We send a warner to a population, but the wealthy ones among
them said: "We believe not in the (Message) with which ye have been
sent."
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They said: "We have more in wealth and in sons, and we cannot be
punished."
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Say: "Verily my Lord enlarges and restricts the Provision to whom He
pleases, but most men understand not."
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It is not your wealth nor your sons, that will bring you nearer to Us
in degree: but only those who believe and work righteousness - these
are the ones for whom there is a multiplied Reward for their deeds,
while secure they (reside) in the dwellings on high!
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Those who strive against Our Signs, to frustrate them, will be given
over into Punishment.
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Say: "Verily my Lord enlarges and restricts the Sustenance to such of
his servants as He pleases: and nothing do ye spend in the least (in
His cause) but He replaces it: for He is the Best of those who grant
Sustenance.
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One Day He will gather them all together, and say to the angels, "Was
it you that these men used to worship?"
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They will say, "Glory to Thee! our (tie) is with Thee - as Protector -
not with them. Nay, but they worshipped the Jinns: most of them
believed in them."
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So on that Day no power shall they have over each other, for profit or
harm: and We shall say to the wrong-doers, "Taste ye the Penalty of
the Fire,- the which ye were wont to deny!"
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When Our Clear Signs are rehearsed to them, they say, "This is only a
man who wishes to hinder you from the (worship) which your fathers
practised." And they say, "This is only a falsehood invented!" and the
Unbelievers say of the Truth when it comes to them, "This is nothing
but evident magic!"
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But We had not given them Books which they could study, nor sent
apostles to them before thee as Warners.
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And their predecessors rejected (the Truth); these have not received a
tenth of what We had granted to those: yet when they rejected My
apostles, how (terrible) was My rejection (of them)!
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46 |
Say: "I do admonish you on one point: that ye do stand up before God,-
(It may be) in pairs, or (it may be) singly,- and reflect (within
yourselves): your Companion is not possessed: he is no less than a
warner to you, in face of a terrible Penalty."
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Say: "No reward do I ask of you: it is (all) in your interest: my
reward is only due from God: And He is witness to all things."
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48 |
Say: "Verily my Lord doth cast the (mantle of) Truth (over His
servants),- He that has full knowledge of (all) that is hidden."
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Say: "The Truth has arrived, and Falsehood neither creates anything
new, nor restores anything."
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Say: "If I am astray, I only stray to the loss of my own soul: but if
I receive guidance, it is because of the inspiration of my Lord to me:
it is He Who hears all things, and is (ever) near."
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If thou couldst but see when they will quake with terror; but then
there will be no escape (for them), and they will be seized from a
position (quite) near.
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And they will say, "We do believe (now) in the (Truth)"; but how could
they receive (Faith) from a position (so far off,-
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53 |
Seeing that they did reject Faith (entirely) before, and that they
(continually) cast (slanders) on the unseen from a position far off?
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54 |
And between them and their desires, is placed a barrier, as was done
in the past with their partisans: for they were indeed in suspicious
(disquieting) doubt.
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