Surah 51. Az-Zariyat

1.

By the winds scattering 'dust',

2.

and 'the clouds' loaded with rain,

3.

and 'the ships' gliding with ease,

4.

and 'the angels' administering affairs by 'Allah's' command!

5.

Indeed, what you are promised is true.

6.

And the Judgment will certainly come to pass.

7.

'And' by the heavens in their marvellous design!¹

 Or “By the heavens with their marvellous orbits.”

8.

Surely you are 'lost' in conflicting views 'regarding the truth'.¹

 See footnote for 50:5.

9.

Only those 'destined to be' deluded are turned away from it.¹

 Other possible translations: 1. “… by which the deluded are turned away.” 2. “Whoever is turned away from it is ˹truly˺ deluded.”

10.

Condemned are the liars-

11.

those who are 'steeped' in ignorance, totally heedless.

12.

They ask 'mockingly', 'When is this Day of Judgment?'

13.

'It is' the Day they will be tormented over the Fire.

14.

'They will be told,' 'Taste your torment! This is what you sought to hasten.'

15.

Indeed, the righteous will be amid Gardens and springs,

16.

'joyfully' receiving what their Lord will grant them. Before this 'reward' they were truly good-doers 'in the world':

17.

they used to sleep only little in the night,

18.

and pray for forgiveness before dawn.¹

 Optional prayers before dawn are recommended, and are more likely to be accepted.

19.

And in their wealth there was a rightful share 'fulfilled' for the beggar and the poor.

20.

There are 'countless' signs on earth for those with sure faith,

21.

as there are within yourselves. Can you not see?

22.

In heaven is your sustenance and whatever you are promised.

23.

Then by the Lord of heaven and earth! 'All' this is certainly as true as 'the fact that' you can speak!

24.

Has the story of Abraham's honoured guests reached you 'O Prophet'?

25.

'Remember' when they entered his presence and greeted 'him with', 'Peace!' He replied, 'Peace 'be upon you'!' 'Then he said to himself,' ''These are' an unfamiliar people.'

26.

Then he slipped off to his family and brought a fat 'roasted' calf,¹

 Abraham (ﷺ) did not want his guests to know that he was going to prepare a meal for them so they would not ask him not to.

27.

and placed it before them, asking, 'Will you not eat?'

28.

'They did not eat,' so he grew fearful of them.¹ They reassured 'him', 'Do not be afraid,' and gave him good news of a knowledgeable son.²

 As mentioned in 11:69-70, the angels came to Abraham in the form of men and when he offered them food, they did not eat. In ancient Middle Eastern culture, if a guest refused to eat the food provided by their host, it was a sign of ill-will.

 Prophet Isaac (ﷺ).

29.

Then his wife came forward with a cry, clasping her forehead 'in astonishment', exclaiming, ''A baby from' a barren, old woman!'

30.

They replied, 'Such has your Lord decreed. He is truly the All-Wise, All-Knowing.'

31.

'Later,' Abraham asked, 'What is your mission, O messengers?'

32.

They replied, 'We have actually been sent to a wicked people,

33.

to send upon them stones of 'baked' clay,

34.

marked by your Lord for the transgressors.'

35.

Then 'before the torment' We evacuated the believers from the city.

36.

But We only found one family that had submitted 'to Allah'.¹

 Lot (ﷺ) and his two daughters.

37.

And We have left a sign there¹ 'as a lesson' for those who fear the painful punishment.

 The ruins of Sodom.

38.

And in 'the story of' Moses 'was another lesson,' when We sent him to Pharaoh with compelling proof,

39.

but Pharaoh was carried away by his power, saying 'of Moses', 'A magician or a madman!'

40.

So We seized him and his soldiers, casting them into the sea while he was blameworthy.¹

 Because of his arrogance and disbelief.

41.

And in 'the story of' 'Âd 'was another lesson,' when We sent against them the devastating wind.¹

 lit., ‘a barren wind,’ since the wind was not productive—it did not carry rain or fertilize trees.

42.

There was nothing it came upon that it did not reduce to ashes.

43.

And in 'the story of' Thamûd 'was another lesson,' when they were told, 'Enjoy yourselves 'only' for a 'short' while.'¹

 Meaning, you have only three days to live. See 11:65.

44.

Still they persisted in defying the commands of their Lord, so they were overtaken by a 'mighty' blast while they were looking on.

45.

Then they were not able to rise up, nor were they helped.

46.

And the people of Noah 'had also been destroyed' earlier. They were truly a rebellious people.

47.

We built the universe with 'great' might, and We are certainly expanding 'it'.

48.

As for the earth, We spread it out. How superbly did We smooth it out!¹

 The globe was spread out to accommodate Allah’s creation. The spherical shape of the earth is expressed in 39:5.

49.

And We created pairs of all things¹ so perhaps you would be mindful.

 For example, male and female, sweet and bitter, day and night, plains and mountains, heat and cold, light and darkness.

50.

So 'proclaim, O Prophet': 'Flee to Allah! I am truly sent by Him with a clear warning to you.

51.

And do not set up another god with Allah. I am truly sent by Him with a clear warning to you.'

52.

Similarly, no messenger came to those before them without being told: 'A magician or a madman!'

53.

Have they passed this 'cliché' down to one another? In fact, they have 'all' been a transgressing people.

54.

So 'now' turn away from them 'O Prophet', for you will not be blamed.¹

 Since you have already delivered the message clearly.

55.

But 'continue to' remind. For certainly reminders benefit the believers.

56.

I did not create jinn and humans except to worship Me.

57.

I seek no provision from them, nor do I need them to feed Me.

58.

Indeed, Allah 'alone' is the Supreme Provider- Lord of all Power, Ever Mighty.

59.

The wrongdoers will certainly have a share 'of the torment' like that of their predecessors. So do not let them ask Me to hasten 'it'.

60.

Woe then to the disbelievers when they face their Day which they are warned of!