408 A l K O R A N . C h a p . 46-
that G od may recompenfe them for their works: and they (hall not be
treated unjuftly. On a certain day, the unbelievers fhall be expofed before
the fire of hell; and it Jhall be ƒaid unto them, Ye received your good things
in your life-rime, -while ye were in the world ; and ye enjoyed yourfelves
therein : wherefore this day ye fhall be rewarded with the punifhment of
ignominy; for that ye behaved infolently in the earth, without juftice, and
for that ye tranfgrefled. Remember the brother of An*, when he preached
•unto his people in al A h k a f , (and there were preachers before him, and
■ after 'him,) yayi»|;, Worfhip none but G od : verily I fear for you the punifh-
‘ment-of a great day. They anfwered, Art thou come unto us that thou
mayeft turn us afide from the worjhip of our gods ? Bring on us now the
punijhment with which thou threatened us, if thou art a man of veracity. He
Yaid, Yerily the knowledge of the time when your punifhment will be in-
■flitted, is with G od ; hnd I only declare unto you that which I am fent to
preach ; but I fee ye are an ignorant people. And when they {den the preparation
made for their punijhment, namely, a cloud traverfing the sky, and
tending towards their valleys, theyfaid, This is a traverfing cloud, which
«bringeth us rain. H ud anfwered, Nay ; it is what ye demanded to be
hadened: a wind, wherein is a fevere vengeance : it will dedroy every thing1,
at the command of its L o r d . And in the morning nothing was to be feen,
befides their empty dwellings. Thus do we reward wicked people. We
had edablifhed them in the like flourifhing condition wherein we have edablifh-
■ ed you, O men of M e c c a -, and we had given them ears, and eyes, and
'hearts : yet neither their ears, nor their eyes, nor their hearts profited them
• at all, when they rejected the figns of G od ; but the vengeance which they
mocked at, fell upon them. We heretofore dedroyed the cities which wen
round about youc; and we varioutly propofed our figns unto them, that
• they might repent. Did thofe protedt them, whom they took for gods, befides
G o d , and imagined to be honoured with .his familiarity ? Nay.; they.with-
drew from them : yet this was their falfe opinion which fedueed them, and
the blafphemy which they had devifed. Remember when we caufed certain of
the genii'* to turn afide unto thee, that they might hear the K o r an : and
when they were prefent at the reading of the fame, they faid to one another,
' Give-ear : and when it was ended, they returned back unto their ‘people,
preaching what they had beard. They faid, Our people, verily we have heard
I .a
rryhe brother of 'Ad;] i. e. The prophet Hud. the -fettlements of-the Thamudiles, Midianites,
1 It w ill defiroy evert thing, &c ] Which came and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Ate.
to pafs accordingly:' for this peftilential and vio- d Certain of the genii a] Thefe genii, accord-
lent wind killed all who believed not in the ring.to diiferent opinions, were of Nijibin, or of
do&rine of Hud, without diltindtion of fex, age, Taman, or of Ninive; and in number nine, or
or degree ; and intirely deftroyed their poffef- ' ieven. 'They heard Mohammed reading the. Koran
■ lions. See the Prelim. Difc. $ i . p. 6, and'the by night, or after the morning prayer, in the
_ notes to ch. 7, p. 124. ■ valley of at Nakblah, during the time of hia re*
■ c. 'The cities which were round about-you\\ As treat to at Tayef and believed on.him 1.
- 1c ld tm , ' JaLLa LO'dDIN.
' C h a p . 4 7 . A l K O R AN .
a book.read.unto_ us, which hath been, revealed fince M o se s„ confirming the
fsripture which was delivered before it ; and dire&ing unto the truth, and the
right way. Our people, obey G od’ s preacher: and believe.in him; that he
may forgive you your fins, and may deliver you from a painful punifhment.
And whoever obeyeth not G od’ s preacher, fhall by no means
fruftrate G od's vengeance on earth : neither fhall he have any proteftors befides
him. Thefe will be in a manifeft error. Do they not know that
G od, who hath created the heavens and the earth, and was not fatigued
with the creation thereof, is able to raife the dead to life ? Yea verily : for
he is almighty. On a certain day the unbelievers fhall be expofed unto
hell fire ; jj and it Jhall be faid unto them,* Is not this really come to pafs ?
They fhall anfwer, Yea, by our L o r d . ■ G od fhall reply, Tafte, therefore,
the punifhment of hell, for that ye have been unbelievers. Do thou, O pro-
phet, bear . the infults of thy people with patience, as our apoftles, who were
endued with, conftancy, bare the injuries of their, people: and require not their
punijhment to be haftened unto .them. On the day whereon they fhall fee
Ate punijhment' wherewith .they .have been threatened, it fhall feem as though
they had tarried in the 'world but an hour of a day. This is a fair warning.
Shall any perifh except the people who tranfgrefs ?
» A book which hath been revealed fince Mofjs;] before their converfion to Mohammtdifm, to have
Hence. the commentators fuppofe thofe genii, been of the Jewijh. religion.
CHA P . XL VII.
Intitled, M o h a m m e d 1 ; revealed at M e d i n a 1*.
In the name of the moll merciful G od.
GOD will render of none effedt the works of thofe who believe not, and.
who turn away men from the way of G od : but as to thofe who believe*
and work righteoufnefs, and believe in the revelation which hath been lent-
down unto M o h am m e d , (for it is the truth from their L o r d ,) he will expiate
their evil deeds from them, and will difpofe their heart aright. This will
he do, becaufe thofe who believe not follow vanity, and becaufe thofe who
believe follow the truth from their L ord. Thus G od propoundeth unto
men their examples. When ye encounter the unbelievers, ftrike off their
heads, until ye have made a great daughter among them ; and bind them
in bonds: and either give them a free difmiflion afterwards, or exalt a ran-
G g g fom.;
"Some intitle this chapter War-, which is there- ‘ Some fuppofe the whole to have been rein
commanded to be vigoroufly carried on againft. vealed at Mecca.
the enemies of the Mohammedan faith.