And remember that Abraham
Was tried by his Lord
With certain Commands,
Which he fulfilled:
He said: "I will make thee
An Imām to the Nations."
He pleaded: "And also
(Imāms) from my offspring!"
He answered: "But My Promise
Is not within the reach
Of evil-doers."
"Our Lord! make of us
Muslims, bowing to Thy (Will),
And of our progeny a people
Muslim, bowing to Thy (Will);
And show us our places for
The celebration of (due) rites;
And turn unto us (in Mercy);
For Thou art the Oft-Returning,
Most Merciful.
Does any of you wish
That he should have a garden
With date-palms and vines
And streams flowing
Underneath, and all kinds
Of fruit, while he is stricken
With old age, and his children
Are not strong (enough
To look after themselves)—
That it should be caught
In a whirlwind,
With fire therein,
And be burnt up?
Thus doth God make clear
To you (His) Signs;
That ye may consider.
When she was delivered,
She said: "O my Lord!
Behold! I am delivered
Of a female child!"—
And God knew best
What she brought forth—
"And nowise is the male
Like the female.
I have named her Mary,
And I commend her
And her offspring
To Thy protection
From the Evil One,
The Rejected."
Let those (disposing of an estate)
Have the same fear in their minds
As they would have for their own
If they had left a helpless family behind:
Let them fear God, and speak
Words of appropriate (comfort),
We gave him Isaac
And Jacob: all (three)
We guided:
And before him,
We guided Noah,
And among his progeny,
David, Solomon, Job,
Joseph, Moses, and Aaron:
Thus do We reward
Those who do good:
Thy Lord is Self-sufficient,
Full of Mercy: if it were
His Will, He could destroy
You, and in your place
Appoint whom He will
As your successors, even as
He raised you up
From the posterity
Of other people.
When thy Lord drew forth
From the Children of Adam—
From their loins—
Their descendants, and made them
Testify concerning themselves, (saying):
"Am I not your Lord
(Who cherishes and sustains you)?"—
They said: "Yea!
We do testify!" (This), lest
Ye should say on the Day
Of Judgment: "Of this we
Were never mindful":
Or lest ye should say:
"Our fathers before us
May have taken false gods,
But we are (their) descendants
After them: wilt Thou then
Destroy us because of the deeds
Of men who were futile?"
But none believed in Moses
Except some children of his People,
Because of the fear of Pharaoh
And his chiefs, lest they
Should persecute them; and certainly
Pharaoh was mighty on the earth
And one who transgressed all bounds.
Gardens of perpetual bliss:
They shall enter there,
As well as the righteous
Among their fathers, their spouses,
And their offspring:
And angels shall enter unto them
From every gate (with the salutation):
We did send apostles
Before thee, and appointed
For them wives and children:
And it was never the part
Of an apostle to bring a Sign
Except as God permitted
(Or commanded). For each period
Is a Book (revealed).
"O our Lord! I have made
Some of my offspring to dwell
In a valley without cultivation,
By Thy Sacred House;
In order, O our Lord, that they
May establish regular Prayer:
So fill the hearts of some
Among men with love towards them,
And feed them with Fruits:
So that they may give thanks.
He said, "Seest Thou? This is
The one whom Thou hast honoured
Above me! If Thou wilt but
Respite me to the Day
Of Judgment, I will surely
Bring his descendants
Under my sway
All but a few!"
Behold! We said
To the angels, "Bow down
To Adam": they bowed down
Except Iblīs. He was
One of the Jinns, and he
Broke the Command
Of his Lord.
Will ye then take him
And his progeny as protectors
Rather than Me? And they
Are enemies to you!
Evil would be the exchange
For the wrong-doers!