AND [remember that] when We told the angels, "Prostrate yourselves before Adam,"* they all prostrated themselves, save Iblis: he [too] was one of those invisible beings,* but then he turned away from his Sustainer's command. Will you, then, take him and his cohorts* for (your], masters instead of Me, although they are your foe? How vile an exchange on the evildoers' part!*

But if you desire to give up a wife and to take another in her stead, do not take away anything of what you have given the first one, however much it may have been.* Would you, perchance, take it away by slandering her and thus committing a manifest sin?*

And, indeed, [even] before thy time have apostles been given the lie, and they endured with patience all those charges of falsehood, and all the hurt done to them, till succour came unto them from Us: for there is no power that could alter [the outcome of] God's promises. And some of the histories of those apostles have already come within thy ken.*

for, truly and justly has thy Sustainer's promise been fulfilled.* There is no power that could alter [the fulfilment of] His promises: and He alone is all-hearing, all-knowing.

AND CONVEY [to the world] whatever has been revealed to thee of thy Sustainer's writ. There is nothing that could alter His words;* and thou canst find no refuge other than with Him.

And [remember] when you said: "O Moses, indeed we cannot endure but one kind of food; pray, then, to thy Sustainer that He bring forth for us aught of what grows from the earth - of its herbs, its cucumbers, its garlic, its lentils, its onions." Said [Moses]: "Would you take a lesser thing in exchange for what is [so much] better?* Go back in shame to Egypt , and then you can have what you are asking for!"* And so, ignominy and humiliation overshadowed them, and they earned the burden of God's condemnation: all this, because they persisted in denying the truth of God's messages and in slaying the prophets against all right: all this, because they rebelled [against God], and persisted in transgressing the bounds of what is right.*

If you do not go forth to war [in God's cause], He will chastise you with grievous chastisement, and will place another people in your stead - whereas you shall in no wise harm Him: for, God has the power to will anything.

Behold, [O believers,] it is you who are called upon to spend freely in God's cause: but [even] among you are such as turn out to be niggardly! And yet, he who acts niggardly [in God's cause] is but niggardly towards his own self: for God is indeed self-sufficient, whereas you stand in need [of Him]; and if you turn away [from Him], He will cause other people to take your place, and they will not be the likes of you!

Would you, perchance, ask of the Apostle who has been sent unto you what was asked aforetime of Moses? But whoever chooses to deny the [evidence of the] truth, instead of believing in it,* has already strayed from the right path.

Hence, render unto the orphans their posses­sions, and do not substitute bad things [of your own] for the good things [that belong to them], and do not consume their possessions together with your own:* this, verily, is a great crime.

No [other] women shall henceforth be lawful to thee* nor art thou [allowed] to supplant [any of] them by other wives,* even though their beauty should please thee greatly -: [none shall be lawful to thee] beyond those whom thou [already] hast come to possess.* And God keeps watch over everything.

and so we desired that their Sustainer grant them in his stead [a child] of greater purity than him, and closer [to them] in loving tenderness.

[O wives of the Prophet!] Were he to divorce [any of] you, God might well give him in your stead spouses better than you - women who surrender themselves unto God, who truly believe, devoutly obey His will, turn [unto Him] in repentance [whenever they have sinned] worship [Him alone] and go on and on [seeking His goodly acceptance]* - be they women previously married or virgins.*

[But] it may be that our Sustainer will grant us something better instead:* for, verily, unto our Sustainer do we turn with hope!"

For them there is the glad tiding [of happiness] in the life of this world* and in the life to come; [and since] nothing could ever alter [the outcome of] God's promises, this, this is the triumph supreme!

AND SO, set thy face steadfastly towards the [one ever-true] faith,* turning away from all that is false,* in accordance with the natural disposition which God has instilled into man:* [for,] not to allow any change to corrupt what God has thus created* this is the [purpose of the one] ever-true faith; but most people know it not.

Among the believers are men who have [always] been true to what they have vowed before God;* and among them are such as have [already] redeemed their pledge by death, and such as yet await [its fulfillment] without having changed [their resolve] in the least.

Such has been God's way with those who [sinned in like manner and] passed away aforetime - and never wilt thou find any change in God's way!*

their arro­gant behaviour on earth, and their devising of evil [arguments against God's messages].* Yet [in the end,] such evil scheming will engulf none but its authors: and can they expect anything but [to be made to go] the way of those [sinners] of olden times?* Thus [it is]: no change wilt thou ever find in God's way; yea, no deviation wilt thou ever find in God's way!

such being God's way which has ever obtained in the past - and never wilt thou find any change in God's way!*

[They will not admit to themselves that] it We who have created them and strengthened their make* - and [that] if it be Our will We can replace them entirely with others of their kind.*

But those who were bent on evildoing substituted another saying for that which had been given them:* and so We sent down upon those evildoers a plague from heaven in requital for all their iniquity.

And if anyone alters such a provision._ after having come to know it, the sin of acting thus shall fall only upon those who have altered it.* Verily, God is all-hearing, all-knowing.

Ask the children of Israel how many a clear message We have given them! And if one alters God's blessed message* after it has reached him - verily, God is severe in retribution!

for, verily, those who are bent on denying the truth of Our messages We shall, in time, cause to endure fire: [and] every time their skins are burnt off, We shall replace them with new skins, so that they may taste suffering [in full]* Verily, God is almighty, wise.

then We transformed the affliction into ease of life,* so that they throve and said [to themselves], "Misfortune and hardship befell our forefathers as well* -whereupon We took them to task, all of a sudden, without their being aware [of what was coming].*

But those among them who were bent on wrongdoing substituted another saying for that which they had been given: and so We let loose against them a plague from heaven in requital of all their evil doings.*

AND [thus it is:] whenever Our messages are conveyed unto them in all their clarity, those who do not believe that they are destined to meet Us [are wont to] say, "Bring us a discourse other than this, or alter this one."* Say [O Prophet]: "It is not conceivable that I should alter it of my own volition; I only follow what is revealed to me. Behold, I would dread, were I [thus] to rebel against my Sustainer, the suffering [which would befall me] on that ,awesome Day [of Judgment]!"

ART THOU NOT aware of those who have preferred a denial of the truth to God's blessings,* and [thereby] invited their people to alight in that abode of utter desolation

[His promise will be fulfilled] on the Day when the earth shall be changed into another earth, as shall be the heavens* and when [all men] shall appear before God, the One who holds absolute sway over all that exists.

And now that We replace one message by another* -since God is fully aware of what He bestows from on high, step by step* - they [who deny the truth] are wont to say, "Thou but inventest it!" Nay, but most of them do not understand it!*

God has promised those of you who have attained to faith and do righteous deeds that, of a certainty, He will cause them to accede to power on earth,* even as He caused [some of] those who lived before them to accede to it; and that, of a certainty, He will firmly establish for them the religion which He has been pleased to bestow on them;* and that, of a certainty, He will cause their erstwhile state of fear to be replaced by a sense of security* [seeing that] they worship Me [alone], not ascribing divine powers to aught beside Me.* But all who, after [having understood] this, choose to deny the truth - it is they, they who are truly iniquitous!

Excepted, however, shall be they who repent and attain to faith and do righteous deeds: for it is they whose [erstwhile] bad deeds God will transform into good ones - seeing that God is indeed much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace,

and neither* need anyone who has done wrong and then has replaced the wrong with good:* for, verily, I am much-forgiving, a dis­penser of grace!

Among the believers are men who have [always] been true to what they have vowed before God;* and among them are such as have [already] redeemed their pledge by death, and such as yet await [its fulfillment] without having changed [their resolve] in the least.

But they turned away [from Us], and so We let loose upon them a flood that overwhelmed the dams,* and changed their two [expanses of luxuriant] gardens into a couple of gardens yielding bitter fruit, and tamarisks, and some few [wild] lote-trees:

And Pharaoh said: “Leave it to me to slay Moses - and let him invoke his [alleged] sustainer!* Behold, I fear lest he cause you to change your religion, or lest he cause corruption to prevail in the land!"

As soon as you [O believers] are about to set forth on a war that promises booty,* those who stayed behind [aforetime] will surely say, “Allow us to go with you" - [thus showing that] they would like to alter the Word of God.* Say: “By no means shall you go with us: God has declared aforetime [to whom all spoils shall belong]."* Thereupon they will [surely] answer, “Nay, but you begrudge us [our share of booty]!" Nay, they can grasp but so little of the truth!

The judgment passed by Me shall not be altered; but never do I do the least wrong unto My creatures!"

from changing the nature of your existence* and bringing you into being [anew] in a manner [as yet] unknown to you.

to replace them with [people] better than they are; for there is nothing to prevent Us [from doing what We will].*

[They will not admit to themselves that] it We who have created them and strengthened their make* - and [that] if it be Our will We can replace them entirely with others of their kind.*