Surah Nahl
Contents
The order of God is coming; do not try to hasten it. Glory to God, exalted above their associations. [16:1]
God sends down the angels with the spirit from the divine order to any servant, at will: “Warn that there is no deity but Me; so be mindful of Me. [16:2]
God created the heavens and the earth rightly; God is exalted above the associations they attribute. [16:3]
God created the human being from a drop; and lo, he is an open antagonist! [16:4]
And God created the cattle, wherein are warmth and advantages for you, and from which you eat. [16:5]
And you find beauty in them when you drive them home in the evening and when you lead them to pasture in the morning. [16:6]
And they carry your burdens to territory you would not have reached without troubling your selves. Your Lord is indeed compassionate, merciful. [16:7]
And God created horses, and mules, and donkeys, for you to ride, and for adornment; and God creates what you don’t know. [16:8]
The aim of the path is up to God; but there is the deviant from it, though God would surely have guided you all were that the divine will. [16:9]
God is the one who sends you down water from the sky, from which there is drink, and vegetation for grazing. [16:10]
God produces grain for you thereby, and olives, and date palms, and grapes, and all kinds of fruit. Surely in that is a sign for people who reflect. [16:11]
And God has subjected the night to you, and the day; and the sun and the moon. And the stars are subject, by the divine order. Surely in that are signs for people who discern, [16:12]
And everything God has scattered over the earth for you is different in color and form; surely in that is a sign for people who are mindful. [16:13]
And it is God who has subjected the sea, that you may eat fresh flesh from it; and extract from it ornaments for you to wear. And you see the ships ploughing the waves thereupon, that you may seek of God’s bounty, and that you may be grateful. [16:14]
And God put mountains on the earth, lest it shake with you; and rivers and roads, that you may find your way; [16:15]
and landmarks. And they also find their way by the stars. [16:16]
So is one who creates like one who does not create? Will you not then take a lesson? [16:17]
Even if you tried to calculate the favor of God, you could never compute it. God is most forgiving, most merciful. [16:18]
And God knows what you keep secret and what you reveal. [16:19]
As for those to whom others pray besides God, they do not create anything, and are themselves created, [16:20]
inert, void of life; and they do not know when they’ll be resurrected. [16:21]
Your God is One God: as for those who do not believe in the hereafter, their hearts refuse to acknowledge, arrogant as they are. [16:22]
There is no doubt that God knows what they conceal and what they reveal; God does not love the arrogant. [16:23]
When it is said to them, “What has your Lord sent down?” They say, “Fables of the ancients.” [16:24]
Let them bear their burdens in their entirety on the day of resurrection, and some of the burdens of those they misled without knowledge. Is it not miserable what they will bear? [16:25]
Those before them had schemed, but God took their structures from their foundations and the roof collapsed on them from overhead; and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive. [16:26]
Then on the day of resurrection God will humiliate them, saying, “Where are the partners attributed to Me, about which you used to contend?” Those who have been given knowledge will say, “The shame today, and the misery, is on the atheists— [16:27]
“those oppressing their own souls when the angels take them; they will propose peace —’We did no wrong’— but God is well aware of what you have been doing. [16:28]
“So enter the gates of hell, to abide therein. And wretched indeed is the abode of the arrogant.” [16:29]
to those who were conscientious, “What did your Lord send down?” They will say, “Good.” For those who have done good in this world there is good. And the home of the hereafter is even better still. How excellent is the home of the conscientious: [16:30]
everlasting gardens, where they will enter, with rivers flowing below them, where they will have what they want. Thus does God reward the conscientious, [16:31]
those who are in wholesome states when the angels take them, saying, “Peace upon you. Enter the garden for what you have done. ” [16:32]
Are those others waiting for anything but the angels to come to them, or the decree of your Lord to come? That is what those before them did. And God did not wrong them; rather, it was they who wronged themselves. [16:33]
So the evils of what they did came upon them, and what they had laughed at surrounded them. [16:34]
The idolaters say, “Had God willed, we would not have worshipped anything else but God, neither we nor our ancestors; and we would not have considered anything else sacred.” That is how those before them acted; but what is the obligation of the messengers except clear communication? [16:35]
We have in fact sent a messenger to every people, telling them to serve God and turn away from idols. Among them were those whom God guided, and among them were those who deserved to go wrong. So travel the earth and see how those who denied truth ended up. [16:36]
If you wish they had guidance, yet even God does not guide those whom God allows to get lost; and there are no saviors for them. [16:37]
They swear by God the most intent of their oaths that God will not resurrect the dead. Oh, no! It is a promise binding on God —even though people don’t know— [16:38]
to clarify to them what they differed on, and so that those who scoffed may know that they were the ones who were liars. [16:39]
Our only word to something when We intend it is that We say to it “Be,” and it is. [16:40]
As for those who have gone into exile for God after having been oppressed, We will make a good place for them in this world, though the reward of the hereafter is certainly greater—if they only knew— [16:41]
those who are constant and trust in their Lord. [16:42]
We never sent before you any but men whom We inspired— so ask the people with the Reminder, if you do not know— [16:43]
with clarifications and scriptures. And We revealed to you the Reminder, that you might clarify to people what had been revealed to them, and that they might reflect. [16:44]
Do those who plot evils feel secure from God causing the earth to swallow them up, or the coming of punishment to them from where they do not perceive, [16:45]
or God’s seizing them in the midst of their comings and goings, they being unable to prevent it, [16:46]
or God’s seizing them with gradual wastage? Yet it is the fact that your Lord is indeed kind, merciful. [16:47]
Do they not observe what God has created? Their shadows revolve from the right and the left, bowing to God as they shrink away. [16:48]
And all in the heavens and all on earth bow to God, from animals to angels, without being proud; [16:49]
they are in awe of their Lord above them, and they do what they are directed. [16:50]
God said, “Don’t adopt two gods, for there is only one God: so let it be Me that you fear. ” [16:51]
And to God belongs what is in the heavens and the earth; and to God is due perpetual devotion. So do you fear other than God? [16:52]
Whatever blessing you have is from God; and when adversity touches you, it is to God that you groan. [16:53]
But then when God removes the adversity from you, some of you attribute partners to their Lord, [16:54]
ungrateful for what We’ve given them. Then enjoy yourselves for now; for you will come to know. [16:55]
And they assign part of what We have provided them to what they do not know; by God, you will surely be questioned about what you invented. [16:56]
And they attribute daughters to God, who is above this, while for them is what they want: [16:57]
when one of you is given news of the birth of a female, his face darkens and he grieves within: [16:58]
he hides himself from the people out of distress at the news he’s given; shall he keep it, in spite of ignominy, or shall he bury it in the dust? Oh, what an evil decision they make! [16:59]
The model of evil is of those who do not believe in the hereafter, while the supreme ideal pertains to God, who is the epitome of power and wisdom. [16:60]
If God were to punish people for their injustice, not a single creature would be left on earth: but God leaves them be until a determined time. And when their time has come, they cannot postpone it for even an hour nor yet bring it on. [16:61]
They attribute what they dislike to God, and their tongues assert the lie that the good is theirs. There is no doubt that their lot is the fire, and that they will be rushed. [16:62]
By God, We have sent messengers to peoples before you, but Satan made the latter’s acts seem pleasing to them, so he is their patron today; and there is a painful penalty in store for them. [16:63]
And We only sent the Book down to you so you may clarify for them what they differ on; and as guidance and mercy to a people who believe. [16:64]
And God sends water down from the sky, enlivening the earth thereby after it has died. Surely in that is a sign for people who are listening. [16:65]
And there is a lesson for you in cattle: We let you drink from what is inside them, between feces and blood, milk that is pure and palatable to those who drink. [16:66]
And from the fruits of the date palm and the grape you make wine and wholesome food; surely in that is a sign for people who understand. [16:67]
And your Lord inspired the bee, “Make your houses in the mountains, in the trees, and in the buildings they construct: [16:68]
“then eat from all the fruits, gently walking the pathways of your Lord.” From within them exudes a drink of various colors, in it healing for humankind. Surely in that is a sign for people who reflect. [16:69]
God created you, and then will take your souls. And some of you are kept back to an abject age, such that they know nothing they once knew. For God is omniscient, omnipotent. [16:70]
And God has favored some of you over others in substance; and those who have been favored are not about to turn their substance over to those who are under their control, such that they would be equal in that respect. Will they refuse the kindness of God? [16:71]
And God made you mates from yourselves, and made you children and grandchildren from your mates, and provided for you of the wholesome things. Will they then believe in falsehood, denying the kindness of God, [16:72]
and worshipping, instead of God, what has no power to provide them anything from the heavens or the earth, being inherently incapable? [16:73]
So don’t make up similes for God; for God knows and you do not know. [16:74]
God has made an example of a slave in bondage with no power over anything, and someone for whom We provide a fine provision from Us, and he gives of it secretly and openly— are the two equal? God be praised! But most of them do not know. [16:75]
And God has made an example of two men, one of whom is mute and has no power over anything, being entirely dependent on his guardian, bringing no good whichever way the latter directs him: is he equal to one who commends straightforwardness, and is himself on a straight path? [16:76]
The secret of the heavens and the earth belongs to God. And the decree of the end of time is as the blink of an eye, or even quicker; for God has power over every thing. [16:77]
And God brought you out of your mothers’ insides while you knew nothing, and gave you hearing and eyesight and feelings, that you might be grateful. [16:78]
Don’t they look at the birds, suspended in the air in the sky? Nothing holds them up but God. Surely there are signs in that for people who believe. [16:79]
And God made your houses places of quiet for you, and made you tents of hides, which you find light on the day of your departure and on the day you pitch your camp; and, from their wool, fur, and hair, furnishings and goods for a while. [16:80]
And God made things that create shade for you, and made shelters of the mountains for you, and made you garments to protect you from the heat, and mail to protect you against your violence. Thus does God complete divine favor to you, that you may acquiesce. [16:81]
But if they turn away, your only obligation is clear communication. [16:82]
They recognize the kindness of God, but then deny it, as most of them are ingrates, [16:83]
One day We will raise up a witness from every people; then those who were ungrateful will not be heard, and not regarded with favor. [16:84]
And when those who went wrong see the penalty, it will not be lightened for them, and they will be granted no stay. [16:85]
And when the idolaters see their idols, they will say, “Our Lord, these are our idols, to which we prayed instead of You,” and they will throw their word at them - “You are certainly liars!” [16:86]
And they will present to God, on that day, a treaty of peace, and what they had invented will desert them. [16:87]
For those who rejected and impeded the cause of God, We will add a penalty on top of the penalty, because they sowed dissension. [16:88]
And the day We raise among them a witness from every people against them We will bring you as a witness against these. For We have revealed the Book to you, an explanation of all things, and guidance and mercy, and good news for those who acquiesce. [16:89]
God commands justice, and goodness, and giving to relatives; and forbids indecency, and abomination and injustice, cautioning you that you may be mindful. [16:90]
Fulfill the commitment to God when you promise, and do not break a trust after its confirmation. You have made God your surety, for God knows whatever you do. [16:91]
Do not be like she who breaks what she has spun, after it is strong, into untwisted strands. You exploit your trust to defraud each other, lest one people become more numerous than another. God is only testing you thereby, and will clarify for you on the day of resurrection what you differed about. [16:92]
And had God willed, God would have made you one people: but God leaves astray whom God will, and God guides whom God will. And you will surely be questioned about what you have been doing. [16:93]
So do not pledge your trust falsely among you, such that the foot may slip after it is planted, and you taste misery for having hindered the cause of God, as you will have tremendous agony. [16:94]
And do not exchange the covenant of God for a small price: with God is what is best for you, if you knew. [16:95]
What you have comes to an end, but what is with God is everlasting. And We will definitely pay those who were constant their reward for the best of what they did. [16:96]
Whoever does right, male or female, and is a believer, We will revivify with a good life; and We will pay them their due according to the best of what they have done. [16:97]
So when you read the Recital, take refuge in God from Satan the accursed: [16:98]
for he has no power over those who believe and trust in their Lord. [16:99]
His only power is over those who take to him, and those who are idolaters. [16:100]
When We replace a sign by another —and God knows best the divine revelation— they say, “You are a mere forger.” But most of them don’t know. [16:101]
Say the holy spirit has revealed truth from your Lord, to stabilize those who believe, and as guidance and good news for those who acquiesce. [16:102]
We are well aware that they say, “It is only a human being who instructs him.” The language to which they incline is foreign, while this is a clear Arabic language. [16:103]
Those who do not believe in the signs of God, God does not guide; and there is painful torment for them. [16:104]
The ones who forge falsehood are those who do not believe in the signs of God; they are the ones who are liars. [16:105]
Those who repudiate God after having had faith —except one who is compelled, while his heart rests securely in faith— that is whoever open their chest to atheism, wrath from God is upon them, and there is tremendous torment for them. [16:106]
That is because they preferred the life of the world to the hereafter; and because God does not guide the people who refuse. [16:107]
They are those whose hearts God has sealed, and their ears and their eyes; and they are the heedless. [16:108]
There is no doubt that they will be the lost in the hereafter, [16:109]
But then your Lord, to those who go into exile after being persecuted, then struggle and persevere, your Lord is thereafter surely most forgiving, most merciful. [16:110]
One day every soul will come and debate about itself, and each soul will be paid in full for what it did; and they will not be wronged. [16:111]
God has made an example of a city that was secure and peaceful, its provision coming to it abundantly from all quarters: yet it was ungrateful for the favors of God, so God enveloped them in hunger and fear because of what they were doing. [16:112]
A messenger from among them did come to them, but they called him a liar, so the penalty afflicted them as they were being oppressive. [16:113]
So partake of what God has provided you as lawful and wholesome; and give thanks for the favor of God if it is God that you serve. [16:114]
God has forbidden you only carrion and blood, and the flesh of the swine, and anything offered up to other than God. But if anyone is compelled by necessity, without wanting to or being excessive, then God is very forgiving, very merciful. [16:115]
But do not say of falsehood asserted by your tongues, “This is permissible, and this is forbidden,” to fabricate a lie against God; for those who fabricate falsehood against God will not thrive. [16:116]
It is a minor convenience, but there is a painful penalty in store for them. [16:117]
And We forbade to the Jews what We told you of before. And We did not oppress them, but they oppressed themselves. [16:118]
But then your Lord, —to those who’ve done wrong in ignorance then repented and made amends thereafter— your Lord is most forgiving after that, most merciful. [16:119]
Abraham was a model, obedient to God, devoted, and not an idolater, [16:120]
grateful for the favors of God, who selected him and guided him to a straight path. [16:121]
And We gave him good in the world; and in the hereafter he is to be one of the worthy. [16:122]
So We inspired you to follow the way of Abraham devotedly; he was not one of the idolaters. [16:123]
The Sabbath was only made for those who differed about it. And your Lord will judge between them, on the day of resurrection, about that whereon they differed. [16:124]
Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good advice, and debate with others in the most dignified manner. For your Lord knows best who is astray from the way of God, and knows best who are the ones who are guided. [16:125]
And if you inflict punishment, then inflict punishment equivalent to the vengeance wrought on you: but if you are patient, that is certainly best for those who are patient. [16:126]
So be patient; though your patience is only through God. And do not grieve over them, and do not be depressed by whatever they connive; [16:127]
for God is with those who are conscientious and those who do good. In the name of God, the Benevolent, the Merciful [16:128]