and when We appointed for Moses forty nights [on Mount Sinai], and in his absence you took to worshipping the [golden] calf, and thus became evildoers:

IT IS lawful for you to go in unto your wives during the night preceding the [day's] fast: they are as a garment for you, and you are as a garment for them. God is aware that you would have deprived yourselves of this right,* and so He has turned unto you in His mercy and removed this hardship from you. Now, then, you may lie with them skin to skin, and avail yourselves of that which God has ordained for you,* and eat and drink until you can discern the white streak of dawn against the blackness of night,* and then resume fasting until nightfall; but do not lie with them skin to skin when you are about to abide in meditation in houses of worship.* These are the bounds set by God: do not, then, offend against them - [for] it is thus that God makes clear His messages unto mankind, so that they might remain conscious of Him.

AND [then] We appointed for Moses thirty nights [on Mount Sinai ]; and We added to them ten, whereby the term of forty nights set bye, his Sustainer was fulfilled.* And Moses said unto his brother Aaron: "Take thou my place among my people; and act righteously, and follow not the path of the spreaders of corruption."

Behold, from on high have We bestowed it on a blessed night:* for, verily, We have always been warning [man].*

BEHOLD, from on high have We bestowed this [divine writ] on Night of Destiny.*

And what could make thee conceive what it is, that Night of Destiny?

The Night of Destiny is better than a thousand months:*

Verily, in the creation of the heavens and of the earth, and the succession of night and day: and in the ships that speed through the sea with what is useful to man: and in the waters which God sends down from the sky, giving life thereby to the earth after it had, been lifeless, and causing all manner of living creatures to multiply thereon: and in the change of the winds, and the clouds that run their appointed courses between sky and earth: [in all this] there are messages indeed for people who use their reason.*

IT IS lawful for you to go in unto your wives during the night preceding the [day's] fast: they are as a garment for you, and you are as a garment for them. God is aware that you would have deprived yourselves of this right,* and so He has turned unto you in His mercy and removed this hardship from you. Now, then, you may lie with them skin to skin, and avail yourselves of that which God has ordained for you,* and eat and drink until you can discern the white streak of dawn against the blackness of night,* and then resume fasting until nightfall; but do not lie with them skin to skin when you are about to abide in meditation in houses of worship.* These are the bounds set by God: do not, then, offend against them - [for] it is thus that God makes clear His messages unto mankind, so that they might remain conscious of Him.

Those who spend their possessions [for the sake of God] by night and by day, secretly and openly, shall have their reward with their Sustainer; and no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve.

"Thou makest the night grow longer by shortening the day, and Thou makest the day grow longer by shortening the night. And Thou bringest forth the living out of that which is dead, and Thou bringest forth the dead out of that which is alive. And Thou grantest sustenance unto whom `Thou willest, beyond all reckoning."

[But] they are not all alike: among the followers of earlier revelation there are upright people,* who recite God's messages throughout the night, and prostrate themselves [before Him].

Verily, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the succession of night and day, there are indeed messages for all who are endowed with insight,

although His is all that dwells in the night and the day, and He alone is all-hearing, all-knowing.

And He it is who causes you to be [like] dead* at night, and knows what you work in daytime; and He brings you back to life each days* in order that a term set [by Him] be fulfilled. In the end, unto Him you must return: and then He will make you understand all that you were doing [in life].

Then, when the night overshadowed him with its darkness, he beheld a star;., [and] he exclaimed, "This is my Sustainer!" -but when it went down, he said, "I love not the things that go down."

[He is] the One who causes the dawn to break; and He has made the night to be [a source of] stillness, and the sun and the moon to run their appointed courses:* [all] this is laid down by the will of the Almighty, the All-Knowing.

VERILY, your Sustainer is God, who has created the heavens and the earth in six aeons, and is established on the throne of His almightiness.* He covers the day with the night in swift pursuit, with the sun and the moon and the stars subservient to His command: oh, verily, His is all creation and all command. Hallowed is God, the Sustainer of all the worlds!

for, verily, in the alternating of night and day, and in all that God has created in the heavens and on earth there are messages indeed for people who are conscious of Him!

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!

But us for those who have done evil deeds - the recompense of an evil, deed shall be the like thereof:* and - since they will have none to defend them against God - ignominy will overshadow them as though their faces were veiled by the night's own darkness:* it is they who are destined for the fire. therein to abide.

[whereas] it is He who has made the night for you, so that you might have rest therein, and the day, to make [you] see* in this, behold, there are messages indeed for people who [are willing to] listen.

[Whereupon the angels] said: "O Lot! Behold, we are messengers from thy Sustainer! Never shall [thy enemies] attain to thee! Depart, then, with thy household while it is yet night, and let none of you look back;* [and take with thee all thy family] with the exception of thy wife: for, behold, that which is to befall these [people of Sodom] shall befall her [as well].* Verily, their appointed time is the morning [and] is not the morning nigh?"

And be constant in praying at the beginning and the end* of the day, as well as during the early watches of the night:* for, verily, good deeds drive away evil deeds: this is a reminder to all who bear [God] in mind.

And it is He who has spread the earth wide and placed on it firm mountains and running waters, and created thereon two sexes of every [kind of] plant;* [and it is He who] causes the night to cover the day. Verily, in all this there are messages indeed for people who think!

It is all alike [to Him] whether any of you conceals his thought* or brings it into the open, and whether he seeks to hide [his evil deeds] under the cover of night or walks [boldly] in the light of day,*

and has made the sun and the moon, both of them constant upon their courses, subservient [to His laws, so that they be of use] to you; and has made the night and the day subservient [to His laws, so that they be of use] to you.*

Go, then., with thy household while it is yet night, with thyself following them in the rear; and let none of you look back,* but proceed whither you are bidden."

And He has made the night and the day and the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws, so that they be of use] to you;* and all the stars are subservient to His command: in this, behold, there are messages indeed for people who use their reason!

LIMITLESS in His glory is He who transported His servant by night from the Inviolable House of Worship [at Mecca] to the Remote House of Worship [,at Jerusalem] - the environs of which We had blessed* -so that We might show him some of Our symbols: for, verily, He alone is all-hearing, all-seeing.*

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!*

BE CONSTANT in [thy] prayer from the time when the sun has passed its zenith till the darkness of night, and [be ever mindful of its] recitation at dawn:* for, behold, the recitation [of prayer] at dawn is indeed witnessed [by all that is holy].*

And rise from thy sleep and pray during part of the night [as well], as a free offering from thee,* and thy Sustainer may well raise thee to a glorious station [in the life to come].

[Zachariah] prayed: "O my Sustainer! Appoint a sign for me!" Said [the angel]: "Thy sign shall be that for full three nights [and days] thou wilt not speak unto men.*

Hence, bear with patience whatever they [who deny the truth] may say, and extol thy Sustainer's limitless glory and praise Him before the rising of the sun and before its setting; and extol His glory, too, during some of the hours of the night as well as during the hours of the day,* so that thou might attain to happiness.

they extol His lim­itless glory by night and by day, never flagging [therein].

and [fail to see that] it is He who has created the night and the day and the sun and the moon - all of them floating through space!

Say: “Who could protect you, by night or by day, from the Most Gracious?"* And yet, from a remembrance of their Sustainer do they stubbornly turn away!

Thus it is, because God [is almighty* the One who] makes the night grow longer by shortening the day, and makes the day grow longer by shortening the night; and because God is all-hearing, all-seeing.*

And He it is who grants life and deals death; and to Him is due the alternation of night and day. Will you not, then, use your reason?

It is God who causes night and day to alter­nate: in this [too], behold, there is surely a lesson for all who have eyes to see!

And He it is who makes the night a garment for you, and [your] sleep a rest, and causes every [new] day to be a resurrection.

And He it is who causes the night and the day to succeed one another, [revealing Himself in His works] unto him who has the will to take thought - that is* has the will to be grateful.

for, were they not aware that it is We who had made the night for them, so that they might rest therein, and the day, to make [them] see?* In this, behold, there are messages indeed for peo­ple who will believe!

Say: “Have you ever considered [this]: If God had willed that there should always be night about you, without break, until the Day of Resurrection - is there any deity other than God that could bring you light?* Will you not, then, listen [to the truth]?"

Say: “Have you ever considered [this]: If God had willed that there should always be daylight about you, without break, until the Day of Resurrection - is there any deity other than God that could bring you [the darkness of] night, wherein you might rest? Will you not, then, see [the truth]?"*

For it is out of His grace that He has made for you the night and the day, so that you might rest therein as well as seek to obtain [what you need] of His bounty: and [He gave you all this] so that you might have cause to be grateful.

And among His wonders is your sleep, at night or in daytime, as well as your [ability to go about in] quest of some of His bounties: in this, behold, there are messages indeed for people who [are willing to] listen!

Art thou not aware that it is God who makes the night grow longer by shortening the day, and makes the day grow longer by shortening the night, and that He has made the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws], each running its course for a term set [by Him]* and that God is fully aware of all that you do?

Now [before their downfall,] We had placed between them and the cities which We had blessed* [many] towns within sight of one another; and thus We had made traveling easy [for them, as if to say]: “Travel safely in this [land], by night or by day!"

But those who had been weak will say unto those who had gloried in their arrogance: “Nay, [what kept us away was your] devising of false arguments, night and day, [against God's messages- as you did]* when you persuaded us to blaspheme against God and to claim that there are powers that could rival Him!"* And when they see the suffering [that awaits them], they will [all] be unable to express [the full depth of] their remorse:* for We shall have put shackles around the necks of those who had been bent on denying the truth:* [and] will this be aught but a [just] requital for what they were doing?

He makes the night grow longer by shortening the day, and He makes the day grow longer by shortening the night; and He has made the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws], each running its course for a term set [by Him].* Thus is God, your Sustainer: unto Him belongs all dominion - whereas those whom you invoke instead of Him do not own so much as the husk of a date-stone!

And [of Our sway over all that exists] they have a sign in the night: We withdraw from it the [light of] day - and lo! they are in darkness.

[and] neither may the sun overtake the moon, nor can the night usurp the time of day,* since all of them float through space [in accordance with Our laws].

and by night.* Will you not, then, use your reason?

He it is who has created the heavens and the earth in accordance with [an inner] truth.* He causes the night to flow into the day, and causes the day to flow into the night; and He has made the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws], each running its course for a term set [by Him].* Is not He the Almighty, the All-Forgiving?

Or [dost thou deem thyself equal to] one who devoutly worships [God] throughout the night, prostrating himself or standing [in prayer], ever- mindful of the life to come, and hoping for his Sustainer's grace?"* Say: “Can they who know and they who do not know be deemed equal?" [But] only they who are endowed with insight keep this in mind!

IT IS GOD who has made the night for you, so that you might rest therein, and the day, to make [you] see.* Behold, God is indeed limitless in His bounty unto man - but most men are ungrateful.

Now among His signs are the night and the day, as well as the sun and the moon: [hence,] adore not the sun or the moon, but prostrate yourselves in adoration before God, who has created them - if it is Him whom you [really] worship.*

And though some be too proud [to listen to this call], they who [in their hearts] are with thy Sustainer extol His limitless glory by night and by day, and never grow weary [thereof].

And [God said]: “Go thou forth with My servants by night, for you will surely be pursued;

And in the succession of night and day, and in the means of subsistence* which God sends down from the skies, giving life thereby to the earth after it had been lifeless, and in the change of the winds: [in all this] there are messages for people who use their reason.

and in the night, too, extol His glory, and at every prayer's end.*

they would lie asleep during but a small part of the night,

and extol His glory at night, and at the time when the stars retreat.

He makes the night grow longer by shortening the day, and makes the day grow longer by shortening the night; and He has full knowledge of what is in the hearts [of men].

which He willed against them for seven nights and eight days without cease, so that in the end thou couldst see those people laid low [in death], as though they were so many [uprooted] trunks of hollow palm trees:

[And after a time, Noah] said: "O my Sustainer! Verily, I have been calling unto my people night and day

Keep awake [in prayer] at night, all but a small part

[and,] verily, the hours of night the mind most strongly and speak with the clearest voice,*

BEHOLD, [O Prophet,] thy Sustainer knows that thou keepest awake [in prayer] nearly two-thirds of the night, or one-half of it, or a third of it, together with some of those who follow thee.* And God who determines the measure of night and day, is aware that you would never grudge it:* and therefore He turns towards you in His grace. Recite, then, as much of the Qur'an as you may do with ease. He knows that in time there will be among you sick people, and others who will go about the land in search of God's bounty, and others who will fight in God's cause.* Recite, then, [only] as much of it as you may do with ease, and be constant in prayer, and spend in charity,* and [thus] lend unto God a goodly loan: for whatever good deed you may offer up in your own behalf, you shall truly find it with God - yea, better, and richer in reward. And [always] seek God's forgiveness: behold, God is much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace!

Consider the night when it departs,

and during some of the night,* and prostrate thyself before Him, and extol His limitless glory throughout the long night.*

and made the night [its] cloak

and He has made dark its night and brought forth its light of day.

and the night as it darkly falls,

and the night, and what it [step by step] unfolds,

and the ten nights!*

Consider the night as it runs its course!*

and the night as it veils it darkly!

CONSIDER the night as it veils [the earth] in darkness,

and the night when it grows still and dark.*