The Koran Part 69

And we set mountains on the earth lest it should move with them, and we made on it broad pa.s.sages between them as routes for their guidance;

And we made the heaven a roof strongly upholden; yet turn they away from its signs.

And He it is who hath created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon, each moving swiftly in its sphere.

At no time5 have we granted to man a life that shall last for ever: if thou then die, shall they live for ever?

Every soul shall taste of death:6 and for trial will we prove you with evil and with good; and unto Us shall ye be brought back.

And when the infidels see thee they receive thee only with scoffs:-"What! is this he who maketh such mention of your G.o.ds?" Yet when mention is made to them of the G.o.d of Mercy, they believe not.

"Man," say they, "is made up of haste."7 But I will shew you my signs:8 desire them not then to be hastened.

They say, "When will this threat be made good? Tell us, if ye be men of truth?"

Did the infidels but know the time when they shall not be able to keep the fire of h.e.l.l from their faces or from their backs, neither shall they be helped!

But it shall come on them suddenly and shall confound them; and they shall not be able to put it back, neither shall they be respited.

Other apostles have been scoffed at before thee: but that doom at which they mocked encompa.s.sed the scoffers.

SAY: Who shall protect you by night and by day from the G.o.d of Mercy? Yet turn they away from the warning of their Lord.

Have they G.o.ds beside Us who can defend them? For their own succour have they no power; neither shall the G.o.ds they join with G.o.d screen them from Us.

Yes! we have given these men and their fathers enjoyments so long as their life lasted. What! see they not that we come to a land and straiten its borders9 Is it they who are the conquerors?

SAY: I only warn you of what hath been revealed to me: but the deaf will not hear the call, whenever they are warned;

Yet if a breath of thy Lord's chastis.e.m.e.nt touch them, they will a.s.suredly say, "Oh! woe to us! we have indeed been offenders."

Just balances will we set up for the day of the resurrection, neither shall any soul be wronged in aught; though, were a work but the weight of a grain of mustard seed, we would bring it forth to be weighed: and our reckoning will suffice.

We gave of old to Moses and Aaron the illumination,10 and a light and a warning for the G.o.d-fearing,

Who dread their Lord in secret, and who tremble for "the Hour."

And this Koran which we have sent down is a blessed warning: will ye then disown it?

Of old we gave unto Abraham his direction,11 for we knew him worthy.

When he said to his Father and to his people, "What are these images to which ye are devoted?"

They said, "We found our fathers wors.h.i.+pping them."

He said, "Truly ye and your fathers have been in a plain mistake."

They said, "Hast thou come unto us in earnest? or art thou of those who jest?"

He said, "Nay, your Lord is Lord of the Heavens and of the Earth, who hath created them both; and to this am I one of those who witness:

-And, by G.o.d, I will certainly lay a plot against your idols, after ye shall have retired and turned your backs."

So, he broke them all in pieces, except the chief of them, that to it they might return, inquiring.

They said, "Who hath done this to our G.o.ds? Verily he is one of the unjust."

They said, "We heard a youth make mention of them: they call him Abraham."

They said, "Then bring him before the people's eyes, that they may witness against him."

They said, "Hast thou done this to our G.o.ds, O Abraham?"

He said, "Nay, that their chief hath done it: but ask ye them, if they can speak."

So they turned their thoughts upon themselves, and said, "Ye truly are the impious persons:"

Then became headstrong in their former error12 and exclaimed,"Thou knowest that these speak not."

He said, "What! do ye then wors.h.i.+p, instead of G.o.d, that which doth not profit you at all, nor injure you? Fie on you and on that ye wors.h.i.+p instead of G.o.d! What! do ye not then understand?"

They said:13 "Burn him, and come to the succour of your G.o.ds: if ye will do anything at all."

We said, "O fire! be thou cold, and to Abraham a safety!"14

And they sought to lay a plot against him, but we made them the sufferers.

And we brought him and Lot in safety to the land which we have blessed for all human beings:

And we gave him Isaac and Jacob as a farther gift, and we made all of them righteous:

We also made them models who should guide others by our command, and we inspired them with good deeds and constancy in prayer and almsgiving, and they wors.h.i.+pped us.

And unto Lot we gave wisdom, and knowledge; and we rescued him from the city which wrought filthiness; for they were a people, evil, perverse:

And we caused him to enter into our mercy, for he was of the righteous.

And remember Noah when aforetime he cried to us and we heard him, and delivered him and his family from the great calamity;

And we helped him against the people who treated our signs as impostures. An evil people verily were they, and we drowned them all.

And David and Solomon; when they gave judgment concerning a field when some people's sheep had caused a waste therein; and we were witnesses of their judgment.

And we gave Solomon insight into the affair; and on both of them we bestowed wisdom and knowledge. And we constrained the mountains and the birds to join with David in our praise: Our doing was it!

And we taught David the art of making mail15 for you, to defend you from each other's violence: will ye therefore be thankful?

And to Solomon we subjected we subjected the strongly blowing wind; it sped at his bidding to the land we had blessed; for we know all things: