and of all the kinsfolk who ever sheltered him,

Say: "Behold, I take my stand on a clear evidence from my Sustainer-and [so] it is to Him that you are giving the lie! Not in my power is that which [in your ignorance] you so hastily demand:* judgment rests with none but God. He shall declare the truth, since it is He who is the best judge between truth and falsehood."

[say thou:] "Am I, then, to look unto anyone but God for judgment* [as to what is right and wrong], when it is He who has bestowed upon you from on high this divine writ, clearly spelling out the truth?"* And those unto whom We have vouchsafed revelation aforetime know that this one, too, has been bestowed from on high, step by step, by thy Sustainer.* Be not, then, among the doubters-

Thereupon We let loose upon them floods, and [plagues of] locusts, and lice, and frogs, and [water turning into] blood* -distinct signs [all]: but they gloried in their arrogance, for they were people lost in sin.

And the [divorced] mothers may nurse their children for two whole years, if they wish to complete the period of nursing; and it is incumbent upon him who has begotten the child to provide in a fair manner for their sustenance and clothing. No human being shall be burdened with more than he is well able to bear: neither shall a mother be made to suffer because of her child, nor, because of his child, he who has begotten it. And the same duty rests upon the [father's] heir. And if both [parents] decide, by mutual consent and counsel, upon separation [of mother and child],* they will incur no sin [thereby]; and if you decide to entrust your children to foster-mothers, you will incur no sin provided you ensure, in a fair manner, the safety of the child which you are handing over.* But remain conscious of God, and know that God sees all that you do.

“And [God says:] 'We have enjoined upon man goodness towards his parents: his mother bore him by bearing strain upon strain, and his utter dependence on her lasted two years:* [hence, O man,] be grateful towards Me and towards thy parents, [and remember that] with Me is all journeys' end.*

NOW [among the best of the deeds which] We have enjoined upon man is goodness towards his parents.* In pain did his mother bear him, and in pain did she give him birth; and her bearing him and his utter dependence on her took thirty months.* and so, when he attains to full maturity and reaches forty years,* he [that is righteous] prays: “O my Sustainer! Inspire me so that I may forever be grateful for those blessings of Thine with which Thou hast graced me and my parents, and that I may do what is right [in a manner] that will meet with Thy goodly acceptance; and grant me righteousness in my offspring [as well]. Verily, unto Thee have I turned in repentance:* for, verily, I am of those who have surrendered themselves unto Thee!"

And when Saul set out with his forces, he said: "Behold, God will now try you by a river: he who shall drink of it will not belong to me, whereas he who shall refrain from tasting it - he, indeed, will belong to me; but forgiven shall be he* who shall scoop up but a single handful." However, save for a few of them, they all drank [their fill] of it. And as soon as he and those who had kept faith with him had crossed the river, the others said: "No strength have we today [to stand up] against Goliath and his forces!" [Yet] those who knew with certainty that they were destined to meet God, replied: "How often has a small host overcome a great host by God's leave! For God is with those who are patient in adversity."

AND AS SOON as the caravan [with which Jacob's sons were travelling] was on its way,* their father said [to the people around him]: "Behold, were it not that you might consider me a dotard, [I would say that] I truly feel the breath of Joseph [in the air]!"

Verily, as for those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], and those who follow the Jewish faith, and the Sabians,* and the Christians, and the Magians,* [on the one hand,] and those who are bent on ascribing divinity to aught but God, [on the other,]* verily, God will decide between them on Resurrection Day: for, behold, God is witness unto everything.

VERILY, it is God alone who will decide between men* on Resurrection Day with regard to all on which they were wont to differ.*

But [bear in mind that] neither your kinsfolk nor [even] your own children will be of any benefit to you on Resurrection Day, [for then] He will decide between you [on your merit alone]: and God sees all that you do.

AND ONCE AGAIN:* We vouchsafed the divine writ unto Moses in fulfilment [of Our favour] upon those who persevered in doing good, clearly spelling out everything,* and [thus providing] guidance and grace, so that they might have faith in the [final] meeting with their Sustainer.

And We ordained for him in the tablets [of the Law] all manner of admonition, clearly spelling out everything.* And [We said:] "Hold fast unto them with [all thy] strength, and bid thy people to hold fast to their most goodly rules." I will show you the way the iniquitous shall go.*

Now this Qur'an could not possibly have been devised by anyone save God: nay indeed,* it confirms the truth of whatever there still remains [of earlier revelations] and clearly spells out the revelation [which comes] -let there be no doubt about it-from the Sustainer of all the worlds.*

Indeed, in the stories of these men* there is a lesson for those who are endowed with insight. [As for this revelation,* ] it could not possibly be a discourse invented [by man]: nay indeed,* it is [a divine writ] confirming the truth of whatever there still remains [of earlier revelations], clearly spelling out everything,* and [offering] guidance and grace unto people who will believe.

And We have established the night and the day as two symbols;* and thereupon We have effaced the symbol of night and set up [in its place] the light giving symbol of day,* so that you might seek to obtain your Sustainer's bounty and be aware of the passing years* and of the reckoning [that is bound to come]. For clearly, most clearly, have We spelt out everything!*

[And they will be told:] “This is the Day of Distinction [between the true and the false - the Day]* which you were wont to call a lie!"

And We streng­thened his dominion, and bestowed upon him wisdom and sagacity in judgment.

Is it that they [who care for no more than this world] believe in forces supposed to have a share in God's divinity,* which enjoin upon them as a moral law something that God has never allowed?* Now were it not for [God's] decree on the final judgment,* all would indeed have been decided be­tween them [in this world]:* but, verily, grievous suffering awaits the evildoers [in the life to come].

VERILY, the Day of Distinction [between the true and the false] is the term appointed for all of them:*

For the Day of Distinction [between the true and the false]!*

And what could make thee conceive what that Day of Distinction will be?

that Day of Distinction [between the true and the false, when they will be told]: "We have brought you together with those [sinners] of olden times;

VERILY, the Day of Distinction [between the true and the false]* has indeed its appointed time:

BEHOLD, this [divine writ] is indeed a word that between truth and falsehood,*

And thus clearly do We spell out Our messages: and [We do it] so that the path of those who are lost in sin might be distinct [from that of the righteous].

And He it is who has set up for you the stars so that you might be guided by them in the midst of the deep darkness of land and sea: clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these messages unto people of [innate] knowledge!

And He it is who has brought you [all] into being out of one living entity,* and [has appointed for each of you] a time-limit [on earth] and a resting-place [after death] :* clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these messages unto people who can grasp the truth!

And why should you not eat of that over which God's name has been pronounced, seeing that He has so clearly spelled out to you what He has forbidden you [to eat] unless you are compelled [to do so]? But, behold, [it is precisely in such matters that] many people lead others astray by their own errant views, without [having any real] knowledge. Verily, thy Sustainer is fully aware of those who transgress the bounds of what is right.

And undeviating is this thy Sustainer's way.* Clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these messages unto people who [are willing to] take them to heart!

Say: "Who is there to forbid the beauty which God has brought forth for His creatures, and the good things from among the means of sustenance?" Say: "They are [lawful] in the life of this world unto all who have attained to faith - to be theirs alone on Resurrection Day."* Thus clearly do We spell out these messages unto people of [innate] knowledge!

for, indeed, We did convey unto them a divine writ which We clearly, and wisely,* spelled out - a guidance and a grace unto people who will believe."

And thus clearly do We spell out these messages; and [We do it] so that they [who have sinned] might return [unto Us].

Yet if they repent, and take to prayer, and render the purifying dues, they become your brethren in faith:* and clearly do We spell out these messages unto people of [innate] knowledge!

He it is who has made the sun a [source of] radiant light and the moon a light [reflected],* and has determined for it phases so that you might know how to compute the years and to measure [time]. None of this has God created without [an inner] truth.* Clearly does He spell out these messages unto people of [innate] knowledge:

The parable of the life of this world is but that of rain which We send down from the sky, and which is absorbed by the plants of the earth* whereof men and animals draw nourishment, until -when the earth has assumed its artful adornment and has been embellished, and they who dwell on it believe that they have gained mastery over it* -there comes down upon it Our judgment, by night or by day, and We cause it to become [like] a field mown down, as if there had been no yesterday.* Thus clearly do We spell out these messages unto people who think!

Alif. Lam. Ra.* A DIVINE WRIT [is this], with messages that have been made clear in and by themselves, and have been distinctly spelled out as well* - [bestowed upon you] out of the grace of One who is wise, all-aware,

It is God who has raised the heavens without any supports that you could see, and is established on the throne of His almightiness;* and He [it is who] has made the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws], each running its course for a term set [by Him].* He governs all that exists. Clearly does He spell out these messages, so that you might be certain in your innermost that you are destined to meet your Sustainer [on Judgment Day].*

And We have established the night and the day as two symbols;* and thereupon We have effaced the symbol of night and set up [in its place] the light giving symbol of day,* so that you might seek to obtain your Sustainer's bounty and be aware of the passing years* and of the reckoning [that is bound to come]. For clearly, most clearly, have We spelt out everything!*

He propounds unto you a parable drawn from your own life:* Would you [agree to] have some of those whom your right hands possess* as [full-fledged] partners in whatever We may have bestowed upon you as sustenance, so that you [and they] would have equal shares in it, and you would fear [to make use of it without consulting] them, just as you might fear [the more powerful of] your equals?* Thus clearly do We spell out these messages unto people who use their reason.

a divine writ, the messages whereof have been clearly spelled out as a discourse in the Arabic tongue for people of [innate] knowl­edge,*

Now if We had willed this [divine writ] to be a discourse in a non-Arabic tongue, they [who now reject it] would surely have said, “Why is it that its messages have not been spelled out clearly?* Why - [a message in] a non-Arabic tongue, and [its bearer] an Arab?" Say: “Unto all who have attained to faith, this [divine writ] is a guidance and a source of health; but as for those who will not believe - in their ears is deafness, and so it remains obscure to them: they are [like people who are] being called from too far away.*