Thunder

1Alif-Lam-Mim-Ra. These are the verses of the Book. What has been revealed to you 'O Prophet' from your Lord is the truth, but most people do not believe.

2Allah is the One Who has raised the heavens without pillars-as you can see-then established Himself on the Throne. He has put the sun and the moon at your service, each orbiting for a set time. He manages everything. He makes the signs clear so that you may be sure of the meeting with your Lord. 3And He is the One Who spread out the earth and put stable mountains and riv-ers upon it, and created fruits of every kind in pairs.¹ He covers the day with night. Surely in this are signs for those who reflect. 4And on the earth there are 'different' regions next to each other, as well as gardens of grapes, different crops, date trees-some sharing a root, others standing alone. They all take in the samne water, yet We make some taste better than others. Surely in this are signs for those who understand.

5Now, if anything should amaze you 'O Prophet', it should be their ques-tion: 'What! When we are turned into dust, will we really be raised back to life again?' Such people have no faith in their Lord. They will have chains around their necks. They will be the people of the Fire, where they will be forever. 6They ask you 'O Prophet' to speed up the punishment instead of mercy, even though there have already been 'many' punishments before them. Surely your Lord is full of forgive-ness for people, even with all the wrong they do, and your Lord is truly severe in punishment. 7The disbelievers say, 'If only a sign could be sent down to him from his Lord.'² You 'O Prophet' are only a warner. And every people had a guide.

8Allah knows what every female is preg-nant with and what increases and de-creases in the wombs.³ And with Him ev-erything is planned precisely. 9He is the' Knower of the seen and the unseen--the Great and Most Honoured. 10It is the same 'to Him' whether any of you speaks secretly or publicly, whether one hides in the darkness of night or goes about in broad daylight.

11For every person there are angels who take turns to protect them from the front and the back by Allah's command. Surely, Allah would never change a peo-ple's state 'of blessing' until they change their state 'of faith'. And if Allah wants to punish a people, it can never be stopped, and they can never find a protector oth-er than Him. 12He is the One Who shows you lightning, causing hope and fear'⁴ and forms heavy clouds. 13The thunder praises His glory, as do the angels in awe of Him. He sends thunderbolts, striking whoever He wants. Still those deniers argue about Allah, even though He is mighty in power.

14The only true prayer is to Him 'alone'. But those idols' they call besides Him can never respond to them in any way. It is just like someone who stretches out their hands to water, hoping it will reach their mouths, but it can never do that. The calls of the disbelievers are simply useless.

15Everyone in the heavens and the earth bows down to Allah-willingly or un-willingly--as do their shadows, morning and evening.⁶

16Ask 'them, O Prophet', 'Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth?' Say, 'Allah!' Ask 'them, 'Why 'then' have you taken besides Him lords who cannot even benefit or protect themselves?' Say, 'Can the person who chooses to be blind 'to the truth' be equal to the person who chooses to see? Or can darkness be equal to light?'⁷ Or have they made up equal partners for Allah who created some-thing similar to what He created, leaving them confused between the two cre-ations? Say, 'Allah is the 'only' Creator of all things, and He is One and Supreme.'

17He sends down rain from the sky, caus-ing the valleys to flow, each according to its capacity. The stream then carries along rising foam, similar to the waste produced from metal that people melt in the fire to make jewellery or tools. This is how Allah compares truth to falsehood. The worthless' waste is then thrown away, but what benefits people stays on the earth. This is how Allah gives exam-ples.

18Those who respond to the call of' their Lord will have the best reward. As for those who do not respond to Him, even if they had everything in the world twice over, they would certainly offer it to save themselves. They will face strict judgment, and Hell will be their home. What an evil place to rest! 19Can the person who recognizes your Lord's rev-elation to you 'O Prophet' as the truth be equal to the one who turns a blind eye? None will keep this in mind except those who truly understand.

20'They are' those who honour Allah's promise, never breaking the pledge; 21and those who keep whatever 'bonds' Allah has ordered to be kept, honour their Lord, and fear strict judgment. 22And 'they are' those who are patient, hoping to please their Lord, pray salah, donate from what We have provided for them-privately and publicly-and re-spond to evil with good. They will have the ultimate destination: 23the Gardens of Eternity, which they will enter along with the faithful among their parents, spouses, and children. And the angels will enter upon them from every gate, 'saying,' 24Peace be upon you for your patience. How excellent is the ultimate destination!

25As for those who break Allah's pledge after giving their word, cut whatever 'bonds' Allah has ordered to be kept, and cause trouble throughout the land--those will be doomed, and will have the worst destination.⁹

26Allah gives generous or limited re-sources to whoever He wants. Still those deniers' become too proud of 'the pleasures of this life. But this life, compared to the Next Life, is just a temporary en-joyment.

27The disbelievers say, 'Ifonlya sign could be sent down to him from his Lord'¹⁰ Say, 'O Prophet,' 'Certainly Allah leaves to stray whoever He wants, and guides to Himself whoever turns to Him- 28those who believe and whose hearts find com-fort in remembering Allah. Surely hearts find comfort in remembering Allah. 29For those who believe and do good there will be enjoyment and a wonderful destination.

30And so We have sent you O Prophet to a community, like We did with' ear-lier communities, so that you may recite to them what We have revealed to you. Yet those 'Makkans' deny the Most Kind. Say, 'He is my Lord! There is no god 'that deserves worship' except Him. In Him I put my trust, and to Him I turn'

31If there were a recitation that could cause mountains to move, the earth to split, or the dead to speak, 'it would have been this Quran'. But it is all up to Allah. Have the believers not yet realized that if Allah wanted, He could have guided all of humaníty? And disasters will continue to hit the disbelievers or strike close to their homes for their misdeeds, until AI-lah's promise comes true,¹¹ Surely Allah never fails in His promise. 32Other mes-sengers had already been mocked before you, but I delayed the disbelievers 'fora bit' then took them. And how 'horrible was My punishment!

33Can the Lord Who watches what ev-eryone does 'be equal to idols'? Yet those 'Makkans' have made 'their idols' part-ners to Allah. Say, 'O Prophet,' 'Name them! Or are you pretending to inform Him of something He does not know 'ex-isted' on earth? Or are these 'gods' just empty words?' In fact, the disbelievers' falsehood has been made so attractive to them that they have been turned away from the 'Right' Path. And whoever Al-lah leaves to stray will have no guide. 34They will be punished in this life, but the punishment of the Next Life is truly far worse. And they will have none to shield them from Allah.

35Here is a description of the Garden which the faithful are promised: under it rivers flow, its fruit is eternal, and so is its shade. That is the 'final' destination for the faithful. But the destination for the disbelievers is the Fire!

36The faithful among' those who were given the Book are happy for what has been revealed to you 'O Prophet', while some other groups deny parts of it. Say, 'I have only been commanded to wor-ship Allah, making none equal to Him. To Him I invite 'all', and to Him is my re-turn.' 37And so We have revealed it as an authority in Arabic. And if you followed their desires after all the knowledge that has come to you, there would be none to protect or shield you from Allah.

38We already sent messengers before you and blessed them with wives and children. It was not possible for any messenger to bring a sign without Al-lah's permission. There is a time set for everything. 39Allah erases and confirms whatever He wants, and with Him is the Master Book.¹² 40Whether We show you some of what We threaten them with or cause you to die 'before that', your duty is only to deliver the message'. Judg-ment is for Us.

41Do they not realize that We keep causing them to lose ground?¹³ Allah de-cides-none can challenge His decision. And He is quick in judgment. 42Those disbelievers' before them 'secretly' planned, but Allah has the ultimate plan. He knows what every soul does. And the disbelievers will soon see who will win in the end. 43The disbelievers say, 'You 'Muhammad' are no messenger:' Say, 'O Prophet,' 'Allah is enough as a Witness between me and you, as is anyone who has knowledge of the Book'