rilv the pious fhall have an excellent place to return unto, namely, gardens
of’perpetual abode, the gates whereof Jhall ftand open unto them. As they
lie down therein, they fhall there afk for many forts of fruits, and for
drink ; and near them Jhall fit the virgins of paradife, refraining their
looks from beholding any befides their fpoufes, and of equal age with
them' This is what ye are promifed, at the day of account. This is
our provifion ; which fhall nob fail. This Jhall be the reward of the righteous
But for the tranfgreffors is prepared an evil receptacle, namely, hell:
thev fhall be caft into the .fame to be burned, and a wretched couch Jhall
it be This let them* tafte, to wit, fcalding water, and corruption flowing
from the bodies of the damned, and divers other things of the fame kind.
And it Jhall be faid to the feducers, This troop which was guided by you,
fhall be thrown, together with you, headlong into hell: they mail not be
bidden welcome ; for they fhall enter the fire to be burned. And the fi-
duced fhall fay to their feducers, Verily ye fhall not be bidden welcome: ye
have brought it upon us; and a wretched abode is hell. They fhall lay, 0
L ord doubly increafe the torment of him who hath brought this pumjhmenl
upon us in the fire of hell. And the infidels fhall fay, Why do we not fee the
men whom, we numbred among the wicked, and whom we received with
fcorn ? Or do our eyes mifs them ? Verily this is a truth; to wit, the dii-
putins of the inhabitants of bell fire. Say, O Mohammed, unto the idolaters,
Verily I am ho other than a Warner : and there is no god, except the one
only G o d , the Almighty, the L ord of heaven and earth, and of whatfoever
is between them the mighty, the forgiver of fins. Say, It is a weighty
meffave, from which ye turn afide. I had no knowledge of the exalted
princes.Vwhen they difputed concerning the creation of man: (it hath been
revealed’unto me. only as a proof that I am a public preacher :) when thy L oro
faid unto the angels, Verily' I am about to create man of clay: when I
lhall have formed him, therefore, and fhall have breathed my fpint into him,
do ye fall down and worfhip him c. And all the angels worfhipped him,
in general; except Eblis, who was puffed up with pride, and became an
unbeliever. God faid unto him, O Eblis, what hindreth thee from worfhip-
ping that which I have created with my hands? Art thou elated with vam
pride? Or art thou really one of exalted merit ? He anfwered, I am
more excellent than he; 'thou haft created me of fire, and haft created him
of clay. God faid unto, him, Get thee hence therefore, for thou fhalt be
driven away from mercy: and my curfe Jhall be upon thee, until the day of
judgment. He replied, O L ord , Refpite me, therefore, until the day of
Tefurre&ion. Gob faid, Verily thou fhalt bt one of thofe who are refpited until
the day of the determined time. EbI is laid, By thy might dp I fwear,
I will furelv fpduce them all, except thy fervants who Jhall peculiarly
, . ] chofen
, o / equal age with them;] i. e. About thirty , '•The exalted princes;] That is, The angels.
- .tjr, thirty three '. 'S e e chap. 2. p. 5.
1 See the Prelim. Difc. §. IV. ƒ>. 99.
chofen from among them. G od faid, It is a juft fentence ; and I fpeak the
truth : I will furely fill hell with thee, and with fuch of them as fhall follow
thee, altogether J. Say unto the M eccans, I afk not of you a.»v reward for
this my preaching : neither am I one of thofe who affume a part which belongs
not to them. The K o r a n is no other than an admonition unto all creatures :
and ye fhall furely know what is delivered therein to be true, after a
feafon.
* See chap. 7. p. 1 1 7 , and chap. i j . p. 2 1 1 , CSV.
C H A P . XXXIX.
Intitled, The Troopsa; revealed at Mecca13.
In the name of the moll merciful God.
T HE revelation of this book is from the mighty, the wife G o d . Verily
we have revealed this book unto thee with truth : wherefore ferve
G od, exhibiting the pure religion unto him. Ought not the pure religion to
be exhibited unto G o d ? But as to thofe who take other patrons befides him,
faying, We worfhip them only that they may bring us nearer unto G od ; verily
G od will judge between them concerning that wherein they difagree. Surely
G od will not direft him who is a liar, or ungrateful. If G od had been
minded to have had a foil, he had furely chofen what he pleafed out of that
which he hath created ‘. But far be fuch a thing from him ! He is the foie,
the almighty G od. He hath created the heavens and the earth with truth :
he caufeth the night to fucceed the day, and he .caufeth the day to fucceed the
night, and he obligeth the fun and the moon to perform their fervices ; each of
them hafteneth to an appointed period. Is not he the mighty, the forgiver of
fins ? He created you of one man, and afterwards out of him formed his
wife: and he hath beftowed d on you four pair of cattle =. He formeth you
in the wombs of your mothers, by feveral gradual formationsf, within three
vails of darknefs g. This is G od, your L o r d : his is the kingdom: there
C c c is
a This title is taken from the latter end of furdity of the imagination here condemned, be-
the chapter, where it is faid the wicked fhall be caufe no creature can refemble the Creator, or
fent to hell, and the righteous admitted into be worthy to bear the relation oT a fon to him.
paradife by troops. . d He hath beftowed ;J Literally, He hath fent
b Except the verfe beginning, Say, O my fervants, downs from which expreffion fome have imagin-
who have tranfgrejfed againft your own fouls, See1, ed that thefe four kinds of beafts were created in
c I f he bad been minded to have a fon, be had paradife, and thence fent down to earth*.
chofen what he pleafed out of that which he hath ' See chap. 6. p. 11 a .
created.] Becaufe, fays AlBeiddwi, there is no f See chap. 22. p. 274.
being befides himfelf, but what hath been ere- 1 Within three vails of darknefs i] • i. e. The
ated by him j fince there cannot be two necefla- belly, the womb, and the membranes which
rdy-exiftent beings: and hence appears the ab- inclofe the embryo.
1 J a l l a l o ’d d in , A lB e l d aw i . * Al Z amakh.