THE HEIGHTS

THE QUR’AN

7. THE HEIGHTS

A Meccan sura named after the heights of the barrier which will divide the righteous from the damned on the Day of Judgement (verse 46). The sura begins by addressing the Prophet, reassuring him about his

revelations, and closes emphasizing the fact that he merely repeats what is revealed to him. It warns the disbelievers of their fate via numerous stories of disobedient communities of the past, in the hope that they may take heed and repent before it is too late. Both subjects also serve to give encouragement to the Prophet and the believers.

In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy

1Alif Lam Mim Sad

2This Book has been sent down to you [Prophet]—let there be no anxiety in your heart because of it^a—so that you may use it to give warning and to remind the believers: ³‘Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord; do not follow other masters beside Him. How seldom you take heed!’

4How many towns We have destroyed! Our punishment came to them by night or while they slept in the afternoon: ⁵their only cry when Our punishment came to them was, ‘How wrong we were!’

6We shall certainly question those to whom messengers were sent—

and We shall question the messengers themselves— ⁷and, with full knowledge, for We were never far from them, We shall tell them what they did. ⁸On that Day the weighing of deeds will be true and just: those whose good deeds are heavy on the scales will be the ones to prosper, ⁹and those whose good deeds are light will be the ones who have lost their souls through their wrongful rejection of Our messages.

10We established you [people] on the earth and provided you with a means of livelihood there—small thanks you give! ¹¹We

created you, We gave you shape, and then We said to the angels,

‘Bow down before Adam,’ and they did. But not Iblis: he was not one of those who bowed down. ¹²God said, ‘What prevented you from bowing down as I commanded you?’ and he said, ‘I am better than him: You created me from re and him from clay.’ ¹³God said,

‘Get down from here! This^a is no place for your arrogance. Get out!

You are contemptible!’ ¹⁴but Iblis said, ‘Give me respite until the Day people are raised from the dead,’ ¹⁵and God replied, ‘You have respite.’ ¹⁶And then Iblis said, ‘Because You have put me in the wrong, I will lie in wait for them all on Your straight path: ¹⁷I will come at them—from their front and their back, from their right and their left—and You will nd that most of them are ungrateful.’

18God said, ‘Get out! You are disgraced and banished! I swear I shall ll Hell with you and all who follow you! ¹⁹But you and your wife, Adam, live in the Garden. Both of you eat whatever you like, but do not go near this tree or you will become wrongdoers.’

20Satan whispered to them so as to expose their nakedness,^b

which had been hidden from them: he said, ‘Your Lord only forbade you this tree to prevent you becoming angels or immortals,’ ²¹and he swore to them, ‘I am giving you sincere advice’— ²²he lured them with lies. Their nakedness became exposed to them when they had eaten from the tree: they began to put together leaves from the Garden to cover themselves. Their Lord called to them, ‘Did I not forbid you to approach that tree? Did I not warn you that Satan was your sworn enemy?’ ²³They replied, ‘Our Lord, we have wronged our souls: if You do not forgive us and have mercy, we shall be lost.’

24He said, ‘All of you get out! You are each other’s enemies.^c On earth you will have a place to stay and livelihood—for a time.’ ²⁵He said, ‘There you will live; there you will die; from there you will be brought out.’

26Children of Adam, We have given you garments to cover your nakedness and as adornment for you; the garment of God-

consciousness is the best of all garments—this is one of God’s signs, so that people may take heed. ²⁷Children of Adam, do not let Satan

seduce you, as he did your parents, causing them to leave the

Garden, stripping them of their garments^d to expose their nakedness to them: he and his forces can see you from where you cannot see them: We have made evil ones allies to those who do not believe.

28Yet when [these people] do something disgraceful,^a they say,

‘We found our forefathers doing this,’ and, ‘God has commanded us to do this.’ Say [Prophet], ‘God does not command disgraceful

deeds. How can you say about God things that you do not know [to be true]?’ ²⁹Say, ‘My Lord commands righteousness. Direct your worship straight to Him wherever you pray; call on Him; devote your religion entirely to Him. Just as He rst created you, so you will come back [to life] again.’ ³⁰Some He has guided and some are doomed to stray: they have taken evil ones rather than God as their masters, thinking that they are rightly guided. ³¹Children of Adam, dress well^b whenever you are at worship, and eat and drink [as We have permitted] but do not be extravagant: God does not like

extravagant people. ³²Say [Prophet], ‘Who has forbidden the

adornment and the nourishment God has provided for His servants?’

Say, ‘They are [allowed] for those who believe during the life of this world: they will be theirs alone on the Day of Resurrection.’ This is how We make Our revelation clear for those who understand.

33Say [Prophet], ‘My Lord only forbids disgraceful deeds—

whether they be open or hidden—and sin^c and unjusti ed

aggression, and that you, without His sanction, associate things with Him, and that you say things about Him without knowledge.’^d

34There is a time set for every people: they cannot hasten it, nor, when it comes, will they be able to delay it for a single moment.

35Children of Adam, when messengers come to you from among yourselves, reciting My revelations to you, for those who are

conscious of God and live righteously, there will be no fear, nor will they grieve. ³⁶But those who reject Our revelations and arrogantly scorn them are the people of the Fire and there they will remain.

37Who is more wrong than the person who invents lies against God or rejects His revelations? Such people will have their preordained

share [in this world], but then, when Our angels arrive to take them back, saying, ‘Where are those you used to call on beside God?’ they will say, ‘They have deserted us.’ They will confess that they were disbelievers and ³⁸God will say, ‘Join the crowds of jinn and humans who have gone before you into the Fire.’ Every crowd curses its

fellow crowd as it enters, then, when they are all gathered inside, the last of them will say of the rst, ‘Our Lord, it was they who led us astray: give them double punishment in the Fire’—God says,

‘Every one of you will have double punishment, though you do not know it’— ³⁹and the rst of them will say to the last, ‘You were no better than us: taste the punishment you have earned.’

40The gates of Heaven will not be open to those who rejected Our revelations and arrogantly spurned them; even if a thick rope^a were to pass through the eye of a needle they would not enter the

Garden. This is how We punish the guilty— ⁴¹Hell will be their resting place and their covering, layer upon layer—this is how We punish those who do evil. ⁴²But those who believe and do good deeds—and We do not burden any soul with more than it can bear

—are the people of the Garden and there they will remain. ⁴³We shall have removed all ill feeling from their hearts; streams will ow at their feet. They will say, ‘Praise be to God, who guided us to this:

had God not guided us, We would never have found the way. The messengers of our Lord brought the Truth.’ A voice will call out to them, ‘This is the Garden you have been given as your own on account of your deeds.’ ⁴⁴The people of the Garden will cry out to the people of the Fire, ‘We have found what our Lord promised us to be true. Have you found what your Lord promised you to be true?’

and they will answer, ‘Yes’. A voice will proclaim from their midst,

‘God’s rejection [hangs] over the evildoers: ⁴⁵those who turned others away from God’s path and tried to make it crooked, those who denied the Hereafter.’

46A barrier divides the two groups with men on its heights recognizing each group by their marks: they will call out to the people of the Garden, ‘Peace be with you!’—they will not have

entered, but they will be hoping, ⁴⁷and when their glance falls upon the people of the Fire, they will say, ‘Our Lord, do not let us join the evildoers!’— ⁴⁸and the people of the heights will call out to certain men they recognize by their marks, ‘What use were your great

numbers and your false pride? ⁴⁹And are these the people you swore God would never bless? [Now these people are being told], “Enter the Garden! No fear for you, nor shall you grieve.”’

50The people of the Fire will call to the people of Paradise, ‘Give us some water, or any of the sustenance God has granted you!’ and they will reply, ‘God has forbidden both to the disbelievers—

51those who took their religion for distraction, a mere game, and were deluded by worldly life.’ Today We shall ignore^a them, just as they have ignored their meeting with this Day and denied Our Revelations.

52We have brought people a Scripture—We have explained it on the basis of true knowledge—as guidance and mercy for those who believe. ⁵³What are they waiting for but the ful lment of its [ nal prophecy]? On the Day it is ful lled, those who had ignored it will say, ‘Our Lord’s messenger spoke the truth. Is there anyone to

intercede for us now? Or can we be sent back to behave di erently from the way we behaved before?’ They will really have squandered their souls, and all [the idols] they invented will have deserted

them.

54Your Lord is God, who created the heavens and earth in six Days, then established Himself on the throne; He makes the night cover the day in swift pursuit; He created the sun, moon, and stars to be subservient to His command; all creation and command belong to Him. Exalted be God, Lord of all the worlds! ⁵⁵Call on your Lord humbly and privately—He does not like those who transgress His bounds: ⁵⁶do not corrupt the earth after it has been set right—call on Him fearing and hoping. The mercy of God is close to those who do good. ⁵⁷It is God who sends the winds, bearing good news of His coming grace, and when they have gathered up the heavy clouds, We drive them to a dead land where We cause rain to fall, bringing

out all kinds of crops, just as We shall bring out the dead. Will you not re ect? ⁵⁸Vegetation comes out of good land in abundance, by the will of its Lord, but out of bad land only scantily: We explain Our Revelations in various ways to those who give thanks.

59We sent Noah to his people. He said, ‘My people, serve God:

you have no god other than Him. I fear for you the punishment of a fearsome Day!’ ⁶⁰but the prominent leaders of his people said, ‘We believe you are far astray.’ ⁶¹He replied, ‘My people, there is

nothing astray about me! On the contrary, I am a messenger from the Lord of all the Worlds: ⁶²I am delivering my Lord’s messages to you and giving you sincere advice. I know things from God that you do not. ⁶³Do you nd it so strange that a message should come from your Lord—through a man in your midst—to warn you and make you aware of God so that you may be given mercy?’ ⁶⁴but they called him a liar. We saved him, and those who were with him, on the Ark and We drowned those who rejected Our revelations—they were wilfully blind.

65To the people of ‘Ad We sent their brother, Hud. He said, ‘My people, serve God: you have no god other than Him. Will you not take heed?’ ⁶⁶but the disbelieving leaders of his people said, ‘We believe you are a fool,’ and ‘We think you are a liar.’ ⁶⁷He said, ‘My people, there is nothing foolish about me! On the contrary, I am a messenger from the Lord of all the Worlds: ⁶⁸I am delivering my Lord’s messages to you. I am your sincere and honest adviser. ⁶⁹Do you nd it so strange that a message should come from your Lord, through a man in your midst, to warn you? Remember how He made you heirs after Noah’s people, and increased your stature:

remember God’s bounties, so that you may prosper.’ ⁷⁰They said,

‘Have you really come to tell us to serve God alone and to forsake what our forefathers served? If what you say is true, bring us the punishment you threaten.’ ⁷¹He said, ‘You are already set to receive your Lord’s loathing and anger. Are you arguing with me about mere names you and your forefathers invented, names for which God has given no sanction? Just wait; I too am waiting.’ ⁷²We saved

him, and those who were with him, through Our mercy; We

destroyed those who denied Our revelations and would not believe.

73To the people of Thamud We sent their brother, Salih. He said,

‘My people, serve God: you have no god other than Him. A clear sign has come to you now from your Lord: this is God’s she-camel—

a sign for you—so let her graze in God’s land and do not harm her in any way, or you will be struck by a painful torment. ⁷⁴Remember how He made you heirs after ‘Ad and settled you in the land to build yourselves castles on its plains and carve houses out of the mountains: remember God’s blessings and do not spread corruption in the land,’ ⁷⁵but the arrogant leaders among his people said to the believers they thought to be of no account, ‘Do you honestly think that Salih is a messenger from his Lord?’ They said, ‘Yes. We believe in the message sent through him,’ ⁷⁶but the arrogant leaders said,

‘We reject what you believe in,’ ⁷⁷and then they hamstrung the camel. They de ed their Lord’s commandment and said, ‘Salih, bring down the punishment you threaten, if you really are a

messenger!’ ⁷⁸An earthquake seized them: by the next morning they were lying dead in their homes. ⁷⁹So he turned away from them, saying, ‘My people, I delivered my Lord’s messages to you and gave you sincere advice, but you did not like those who gave sincere advice.’

80We sent Lot and he said to his people, ‘How can you practise this outrage? No one in the world has outdone you in this. ⁸¹You lust after men rather than women! You transgress all bounds!’ ⁸²The only response his people gave was to say [to one another], ‘Drive them out of your town! These men want to keep themselves chaste!’

83We saved him and his kinsfolk—apart from his wife who stayed behind— ⁸⁴and We showered upon [the rest of] them a rain [of destruction]. See the fate of the evildoers.

85To the people of Midian We sent their brother, Shu’ayb. He said, ‘My people, serve God: you have no god other than Him. A clear sign has come to you from your Lord. Give full measure and weight and do not undervalue people’s goods; do not cause

corruption in the land after it has been set in order: this is better for you, if you are believers. ⁸⁶Do not sit in every pathway, threatening and barring those who believe in God from His way, trying to make it crooked. Remember how you used to be few and He made you multiply. Think about the fate of those who used to spread

corruption. ⁸⁷If some of you believe the message I bring and others do not, then be patient till God judges between us. He is the best of all judges.’

88His people’s arrogant leaders said, ‘Shu’ayb, we will expel you and your fellow believers from our town unless you return to our religion.’ He said, ‘What! Even if we detest it? ⁸⁹If we were to return to your religion after God has saved us from it, we would be

inventing lies about Him: there is no way we could return to it—

unless by the will of God our Lord: in His knowledge He

comprehends everything. We put our trust in God. Our Lord, expose the truth [and judge] between us and our people, for You are the best judge.’ ⁹⁰The disbelieving leaders among his people said, ‘You will certainly be losers if you follow Shu’ayb’— ⁹¹an earthquake seized them: by the next morning they were lying dead in their homes; ⁹²it was as if those who had rejected Shu’ayb had never lived there; it was those who had rejected Shu’ayb who were the losers— ⁹³so he turned away from them, saying, ‘My people, I

delivered my Lord’s messages to you and gave you sincere advice, so why should I grieve for people who refused to believe?’

94Whenever We sent a prophet to a town, We a icted its [disbelieving]^a people with su ering and hardships, so that they might humble themselves [before God], ⁹⁵and then We changed their hardship into prosperity, until they multiplied. But then they said, ‘Hardship and a uence also befell our forefathers,’ and so We took them suddenly, unawares. ⁹⁶If the people of those towns had believed and been mindful of God, We would have showered them with blessings from the heavens and earth, but they rejected the truth and so We punished them for their misdeeds.