[promising] freedom from blame or [offering] a warning!*

Thereafter let them bring to an end their state of self-denial,* and let them fulfill the vows which they [may] have made, and let them walk [once again] around the Most Ancient Temple.*

For, whatever you may spend on others, or whatever you may vow [to spend], verily, God knows it; and those who do wrong [by withholding charity] shall have none to succour them.

[The truly virtuous are] they [who] fulfil their vows,* and stand in awe of a Day the woe of which is bound to spread far and wide,

For, whatever you may spend on others, or whatever you may vow [to spend], verily, God knows it; and those who do wrong [by withholding charity] shall have none to succour them.

when a woman of [the House of] `Imran prayed: "O my Sustainer! Behold, unto Thee do I vow [the child] that is in, my womb, to be devoted to Thy service. Accept it, then, from me: verily, Thou alone art all-hearing, all-knowing!"

Eat, then, and drink, and let thine eye be gladdened! And if thou shouldst see any human being, convey this unto him:* `Behold, abstinence from speech have I vowed unto the Most Gracious; hence, I may not speak today to any mortal.*

SAY [unto all men]: “1 but warn you on the strength of divine revelation!" But the deaf [of heart] will not hearken to this call, however often they are warned.*

And yet they gave him the lie! And so We saved him and all who stood by him, in the ark, and made them inherit [the earth],* the while We caused those who gave the lie to Our messages to drown:* behold, then, what happened in the end to those people who had been warned [in vain]!

and rained down upon them a rain [of destruction]:* and dire is such rain upon all who let themselves be warned [to no avail]!*

the while We rained a rain [of destruction] upon the others: and dire is such rain upon all who let themselves be warned [to no avail]*

and behold what happened in the end to those that had been warned [to no avail]!

But then, once it alights upon them, hapless will be the awakening of those who were warned [to no avail]!*

ALL MANKIND were once one single community; [then they began to differ - ] whereupon God raised up the prophets as heralds of glad tidings and as warners, and through them bestowed revelation from on high, setting forth the truth, so that it might decide between people with regard to all on which they had come to hold divergent views.* Yet none other than the selfsame people who had been granted this [revelation] began, out of mutual jealousy, to disagree about its meaning after all evidence of the truth had come unto them. But God guided the believers unto the truth about which, by His leave, they had disagreed: for God guides onto a straight way him that wills [to be guided].*

[We sent all these] apostles as heralds of glad tidings and as warners, so that men might have no excuse before God after [the coming of] these apostles: and God is indeed al­mighty, wise.

And We send [Our] message-bearers only as heralds of glad tidings and as warners: hence, all who believe and live righteously -no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve;

However, they who are bent on denying the truth [refuse to believe and] say, "Why has no miraculous sign ever been bestowed on him from on high by his Sustainer?"* [But] thou art only a warmer; and [in God] all people have a guide.*

But We send [Our] message-bearers only as heralds of glad tidings and as warners - whereas those who are bent on denying the truth contend [against them] with fallacious arguments, so as to render void the truth thereby, and to make My messages and warnings a target of their mockery.

upon thy heart, [O Muhammad]* so that thou mayest be among those who preach

And withal, never have We destroyed any community unless it had been warned

and to convey this Qur'an [to the world]." Whoever, therefore, chooses to follow the right path, follows it but for his own good; and if any wills to go astray, say [unto him]: “I am only a warner.

although, verily, We had sent warners unto them:

Now these [people] deem it strange that a warner should have come unto them from their own midst - and [so] the deniers of the truth are saying: “A [mere] spellbinder is he, a liar!*

SAY [O Muhammad]: “I am only a warner; and there is no deity whatever save God, the One, who holds absolute sway over all that exists,

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

AND LO!* We caused a group of unseen beings to incline towards thee, [O Muhammad,]* so that they might give ear to the Qur'an; and so, as soon as they became aware of it,* they said [unto one another], “Listen in silence!" And when [the recitation] was ended, they returned to their people as warners.*

But nay - they deem it strange that a warner should have come unto them from their own midst;* and so these deniers of the truth are saying, “A strange thing is this!

Thou art but [sent] to warn those who stand in awe of it.

BEHOLD, as for those who are bent on denying the truth* - it is all one to them whether thou warnest them or dost not warn them: they will not believe.

Say: "What could most weightily bear witness to the truth?" Say: "God is witness between me and you; and this Qur'an has been revealed unto me so that on the strength thereof I might warn you and all whom it may reach." Could you in truth bear witness that there are other deities side by side with God? Say: "I bear no [such] witness!" Say: "He is the One God; and, behold, far be it from me to ascribe divinity, as, you do, to aught beside Him!"*

And warn hereby those who fear lest they be gathered unto their Sustainer with none to protect them from Him or to intercede with Him, so that they might become [fully] conscious of Him.*

And this, too, is a divine writ which We have bestowed from on high - blessed, confirming the truth of whatever there still remains [of earlier revelations]* -and [this] in order that thou mayest warn the foremost of all cities and all who dwell around it.* And those who believe in the life to come do believe in this [warning]; and it is they who are ever-mindful of their prayers.

[And thus will God continue:] "O you who have lived in close communion with [evil] invisible beings and [like-minded] humans! Have there not come unto you apostles from among yourselves, who conveyed unto you My messages and warned you of the coming of this your Day [of Judgment]?" They will answer: "We do bear witness against ourselves!"-for the life of this world had beguiled them: and so they will bear witness against themselves that they had been denying the truth.

A DIVINE WRIT has been bestowed from on high upon thee -and let there be no doubt about this in thy heart-in order that thou mayest warn [the erring] thereby, and [thus] admonish the believers:*

Why, do you deem it strange that a tiding from your Sustainer should have come unto you through a man from among yourselves, so that he might warn you, and that you might become conscious of God, and that you might be graced with His mercy?"

Why, do you deem it strange that a tiding from your Sustainer should have come unto you through a man from among yourselves, so that he might warn you? Do but remember how He made you heirs to Noah's people, and endowed you abundantly with power:* remember, then, God's blessings, so that you might attain to a happy state!"

With all this, it is not desirable that all of the believers take the field [in time of war]. From within every group in their midst, some shall refrain from going forth to war, and shall devote themselves [instead] to acquiring a deeper knowledge of the Faith. and [thus be able to] teach their home-coming brethren, so that these [too] might guard themselves against evil.*

Do people deem it strange that We should have inspired a man from their own midst [with this Our message]:* "Warn all mankind, and give unto those who have attained to faith the glad tiding that in their Sustainer's sight they surpass all others in that they are completely sincere-?* [Only] they who deny the truth say, "Behold. he is clearly but a spellbinder!"*

Hence, warn men of the Day when this suffering may befall them, and when those who did wrong [in their lifetime] will exclaim: "O our Sustainer! Grant us respite for a short while, so that we might respond to Thy call and follow the apostles!"* [But God will answer:] "Why - were you not aforetime wont to swear that no kind of resurrection and retribution awaited you?*

THIS IS A MESSAGE unto all mankind. Hence, let them be warned thereby, and let them know that He is the One and Only God; and let those who are endowed with insight take this to heart!

He causes the angels to descend with this divine inspiration,* [bestowed] at His behest upon whomever He wills of His servants: "Warn [all human beings] that there is no deity save Me: be, therefore, conscious of Me!"

[a divine writ] unerringly straight, meant to warn [the godless] of a severe punishment from Him, and to give unto the believers who do good works the glad tiding that theirs shall be a goodly reward-

Furthermore, [this divine writ is meant] to warn all those who assert, "God has taken unto Himself a son."

But We send [Our] message-bearers only as heralds of glad tidings and as warners - whereas those who are bent on denying the truth contend [against them] with fallacious arguments, so as to render void the truth thereby, and to make My messages and warnings a target of their mockery.

hence, warn them of [the coming of] the Day of Regrets, when everything will have been decided-for as yet they are heedless, and they do not believe [in it].

and only to this end have We made this [divine writ] easy to understand, in thine own tongue, [O Prophet,]* so that thou might convey thereby a glad tiding to the God-conscious, and warn thereby those who are given to [futile] contention:

SAY [unto all men]: “1 but warn you on the strength of divine revelation!" But the deaf [of heart] will not hearken to this call, however often they are warned.*

And warn [whomever thou canst reach, beginning with] thy kinsfolk,*

And neither wert thou present on the slope of Mount Sinai when We called out [to Moses]:* but [thou, too, art sent] as an act of thy Sustainer's grace, to warn people to whom no warner has come before thee, so that they might bethink themselves [of Us];

and yet,* they [who are bent on denying the truth] assert, “[Muhammad] has invented it!" Nay, but it is the truth from thy Sustainer, enabling thee to warn [this] people to whom no warner has come before thee, so that they might follow the right path.

AND NO BEARER of burdens shall be made to bear another's burden;* and if one weighed down by his load calls upon [another] to help him carry it, nothing thereof may be carried [by that other], even if it be one's near of kin.* Hence, thou canst [truly] warn only those who stand in awe of their Sustainer although He is beyond the reach of their perception,* and are constant in prayer, and [know that] whoever grows in purity, attains to purity but for the good of his own self, and [that] with God is all journeys' end.

[bestowed upon thee] so that thou mayest warn people whose forefathers had not been warned, and who therefore are unaware [of the meaning of right and wrong].*

thus, it is all one to them whether thou warnest them or dost not warn them: they will not believe.

Thou canst [truly] warn only him who is willing to take the reminder to heart,* and who stands in awe of the Most Gracious although He is beyond the reach of human perception: unto such, then, give the glad tiding of [God's] forgiveness and of a most excellent reward!

to the end that it may warn everyone who is alive [of heart], and that the word [of God] may bear witness* against all who deny the truth.

And those who were bent on denying the truth will be urged on in throngs towards hell till, when they reach it, its gates will be opened, and its keepers will ask them, “Have there not come to you apostles from among yourselves, who conveyed to you your Sustainer's messages and warned you of the coming of this your Day [of Judgment]? "They will answer: “Yea, indeed!" But the sentence of suffering will [already] have fallen due upon the deniers of the truth;*

High above all orders [of being] is He, in almightiness enthroned.* By His Own will does He bestow inspiration upon whomever He wills of His servants, so as to warn [all human beings of the coming] of the Day when they shall meet Him*

Hence, warn them of that Day which draws ever nearer, when the hearts will chokingly come up to the throats: no loving friend will the evildoers have, nor any intercessor who would be heeded:*

BUT IF they turn away, say:* “I warn you of [the coming of] a thunderbolt of punishment* like the thunderbolt [that fell upon the tribes] of Ad and Thamud!"*

[Thou art but entrusted with Our message:] and so We have revealed unto thee a discourse in the Arabic tongue* in order that thou mayest warn the foremost of all cities and all who dwell around it* to wit, warn [them] of the Day of the Gathering, [the coming of] which is beyond all doubt: [the Day when] some shall find themselves in paradise, and some in the blazing flame.

We have not created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them otherwise than in accord­ance with [an inner] truth, and for a term set [by Us]:* and yet, they who are bent on denying the truth turn aside from the warning which has been conveyed unto them.*

And yet, before this there was the revelation of Moses, a guide and a [sign of God's] grace; and this [Qur'an] is a divine writ confirming the truth [of the Torah]* in the Arabic tongue, to warn those who are bent on evildoing, and [to bring] a glad tiding to the doers of good:

AND REMEMBER that brother of [the tribe of] Ad,* how - seeing that [other] warnings had already come and gone within his own knowledge as well as in times beyond his ken -* he warned his people [who lived] among those sand-dunes: “Worship none but God! Verily, I fear lest suffering befall you on an awesome day!"

For he had truly warned them of Our punishing might; but they stubbornly cast doubt on these warn­ings,

BEHOLD. We sent Noah unto his people. [saying:] "Warn thy people ere grievous suffering befall them!

Arise and warn!

Verily, We have warned you of suffering near at hand - [suffering] on the Day when man shall [clearly] see what his hands have sent ahead, and when he who has denied the truth shall say, "Oh, would that I were mere dust... !"*

and so I warn you of the raging fire -

Verily, We have sent thee [O Prophet] with the truth, as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner: and thou shalt not be held accountable for those who are destined for the blazing fire.

O followers of the Bible! Now, after a long time during which no apostles have appeared, there has come unto you [this] Our Apostle to make [the truth] clear to you, lest you say, "No bearer of glad tidings has come unto us, nor any warner ": for now there has come unto you a bearer of glad tidings and a warner -since God has the power to will anything.

Has it, then, never occurred to them* that there is no madness whatever in [this] their fellowman? He is only a plain warner.*

Say [O Prophet]: "It is not within my power to bring benefit to, or avert harm from, myself, except as God may please. And if I knew that which is beyond the reach of human perception, abundant good fortune-would surely have fallen to my lot, and no evil would ever have touched me. I am nothing but a warner, and a herald of glad tidings unto people who will believe."*

Say: "Consider whatever there is in the heavens and on earth!" But of what avail could all the messages and all the warnings be to people who will not believe?

so that you may worship none but God. [Say, O Prophet:] "Behold, I come unto you from Him [as] a warner and a bearer of glad tidings:*

IS IT, then, conceivable [O Prophet] that thou couldst omit any part of what is being revealed unto thee [because the deniers of the truth dislike it,-and] because thy heart is distressed at their saying,* "Why has not a treasure been bestowed upon him from on high?" -or, "[Why has not] an angel come [visibly:: with him ?"* [They fail to understand that] thou art only a warner, whereas God has everything in His care ;*

AND INDEED, [it was with the same message that] We sent forth Noah unto his people :* "Behold, I come unto you with the plain warning

and say: "Behold, I am indeed the plain warner [promised by God] !*

AND AS a guide towards the truth* have We bestowed this [revelation] from on high; with this [very] truth has it come down [unto thee, O Prophet]:* for We have sent thee but as a herald of glad tidings and a warner,

SAY [O Muhammad]: “O men! I am but a plain warner [sent by God] unto you!"

Hallowed is He who from on high, step by step, has bestowed upon His servant the standard by which to discern the true from the false,* so that to all the world it might be a warning:

Yet they say: What sort of apostle is this [man] who eats food [like all other mortals] and goes about in the market places? Why has not an angel [visibly] been sent down unto him, to act as a warner together with him?"

Now had We so willed. We could have [con­tinued as before and] raised up a [separate] warner in every single community:*

Yet [withal, O Prophet,] We have sent thee only as a herald of glad tidings and a warner.

I am nothing but a plain warner."

And neither wert thou present on the slope of Mount Sinai when We called out [to Moses]:* but [thou, too, art sent] as an act of thy Sustainer's grace, to warn people to whom no warner has come before thee, so that they might bethink themselves [of Us];

And yet they say, “Why have no miraculous signs ever been bestowed upon him from on high by his Sustainer?" Say: “Miracles are in the power of God alone;* and as for me - I am but a plain warner."

and yet,* they [who are bent on denying the truth] assert, “[Muhammad] has invented it!" Nay, but it is the truth from thy Sustainer, enabling thee to warn [this] people to whom no warner has come before thee, so that they might follow the right path.

[And as for thee,] O Prophet - behold, We have sent thee as a witness [to the truth], and as a herald of glad tidings and a warner,

NOW [as for thee, O Muhammad,] We have not sent thee otherwise than to mankind at large, to be a herald of glad tidings and a warner; but most people do not understand [this],

For [thus it is:] whenever We sent a warner to any community, those of its people who had lost themselves entirely in the pursuit of pleasures would declare,* “Behold, we deny that there is any truth in [what you claim to be] your message!" –

And yet, [O Muhammad,] never have We vouchsafed them any revelations which they could quote, and neither have We sent unto them any warner before thee.*

Say: “I counsel you one thing only: Be [ever­ conscious of] standing before God, whether you are in the company of others or alone;* and then bethink yourselves [that] there is no madness in [this pro­phet,] your fellow-man:* he is only a warner to you of suffering severe to come."

thou art nothing but a warner.

Verily, We have sent thee with the truth, as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner: for there never was any community but a warner has [lived and] passed away in its midst.*

And in that [hell] they will cry aloud: “O our Sustainer! Cause us to come out [of this suffering]! We shall [henceforth] do good deeds, not such as we were wont to do [aforetime]!" [But We shall answer:] “Did We not grant you a life long enough so that whoever was willing to take thought could bethink himself? And [withal,] a war­ner had come unto you! Taste, then, [the fruit of your evil deeds]: for evildoers shall have none to succour them!"

As it is, they [who are averse to the truth often] swear by God with their most solemn oaths that if a warner should ever come to them, they would follow his guidance better than any of the communities [of old had followed the warner sent to them]:* but now that a warner has come unto them, [his call] but increases their aversion,

had it not been revealed unto me [by God] - to no other end than that I might convey [unto you] a plain warning.*

to be a herald of glad tidings as well as a warning. And yet, [whenever this divine writ is offered to men,] most of them turn away, so that they cannot hear [its message];*

And thus it is: whenever We sent, before thy time, a warner to any community, those of its people who had lost themselves entirely in the pursuit of pleasures* would always say, “Behold, we found our forefathers agreed on what to believe - and, verily, it is but in their footsteps that we follow!"*

Say: “I am not the first of [God's] apostles;* and [like all of them,] I do not know what will be done with me or with you: for I am nothing but a plain warner."*

AND REMEMBER that brother of [the tribe of] Ad,* how - seeing that [other] warnings had already come and gone within his own knowledge as well as in times beyond his ken -* he warned his people [who lived] among those sand-dunes: “Worship none but God! Verily, I fear lest suffering befall you on an awesome day!"

VERILY, [O Muhammad,] We have sent thee as a witness [to the truth], and as a herald of glad tidings and a warner –

And so, [O Muhammad, say unto them:] “Flee unto God [from all that is false and evil]! Verily, I am a plain warner to you from Him!

And do not ascribe divinity to aught side by side with God:* verily, I am a plain warner to you from Him!"

THIS IS a warning like those warnings of old:*

far-reaching wisdom [was held out to them]: but [since] all warnings have been of no avail,

And how severe is the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!*

TO THE TRUTH gave the lie [the tribe of] Ad: and how severe was the suffering which I inflicted when My warnings were disregarded!

for, how severe is the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!

[AND the tribe of] Thamud gave the lie to all [Our] warnings;

and how severe was the suffering which I inflicted when My warnings were disregarded!

LOT 'S PEOPLE [too] gave the lie to all [Our] warn­ings:

For he had truly warned them of Our punishing might; but they stubbornly cast doubt on these warn­ings,

and even demanded that he give up his guests [to them]:* whereupon We deprived them of their sight [and thus told them, as it were]:* “Taste, then, the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!"

“Taste, then, the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!"

Now surely, unto Pharaoh's folk [too] came such warnings;

well-nigh bursting with fury; [and] every time a host [of such sinners] is flung into it, its keepers will ask them, "Has no warner ever come to you?"

They will reply: "Yea, a warner did indeed come unto us, but we gave him the lie and said, 'Never has God sent down anything [by way of revelation]! You [self-styled warners] are but lost in a great delusion!"'*

Or can you ever feel secure that He who is in heaven will not let loose against you a deadly stormwind,* whereupon you would come to know how [true] My warning was?

Say thou, [O Prophet:] "Knowledge thereof rests with God alone; and I am only a plain warner."

[And Noah] said: "O my people! I am but a plain warner to you, [sent to tell you]

a warning to mortal man –