155 We shall certainly test you with fear and hunger, and loss of property, lives, and crops. But [Prophet], give good news to those who are steadfast, 156 those who say, when afflicted with a calamity, ‘We belong to God and to Him we shall return.’ 157 These will be given blessings and mercy from their Lord, and it is they who are rightly guided.
158 Safa and Marwa [a] are among the rites of God, so for those who make major or minor [b] pilgrimage to the House [c] it is no offence to circulate between the two. [d] Anyone who does good of his own accord will be rewarded, for God rewards good deeds, and knows everything. 159 As for those who hide the proofs and guidance We send down, after We have made them clear to people in the Scripture, God rejects them, and so do others, 160 unless they repent, make amends, and declare the truth. I will certainly accept their repentance: I am the Ever Relenting, the Most Merciful. 161 As for those who disbelieve and die as disbelievers, God rejects them, as do the angels and all people. 162 They will remain in this state of rejection: their punishment will not be lightened, nor will they be reprieved.
163 Your God is the one God: there is no god except Him, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy. 164 In the creation of the heavens and earth; in the alternation of night and day; in the ships that sail the seas with goods for people; in the water which God sends down from the sky to give life to the earth when it has been barren, scattering all kinds of creatures over it; in the changing of the winds and clouds that run their appointed courses between the sky and earth: there are signs in all these for those who use their minds. 165 Even so, there are some who choose to worship others besides God as rivals to Him, loving them with the love due to God, but the believers have greater love for God. If only the idolaters could see– as they will see when they face the torment– that all power belongs to God, and that God punishes severely. 166 When those who have been followed disown their followers, when they all see the suffering, when all bonds between them are severed, 167 the followers will say, ‘If only we had one last chance, we would disown them as they now disown us.’ In this way, God will make them see their deeds as a source of bitter regret: they shall not leave the Fire.
Righteousness explained
168 People, eat what is good and lawful from the earth, and do not follow Satan’s footsteps, for he is your sworn enemy. 169 He always commands you to do what is evil and indecent, and to say things about God that you do not really know. [e] 170 But when it is said to them, ‘Follow the message that God has sent down,’ they answer, ‘We follow the ways of our fathers.’ What! Even though their fathers understood nothing and were not guided? 171 Calling to disbelievers [f] is like a herdsman calling to things that hear nothing but a shout and a cry: they are deaf, dumb, and blind, and they understand nothing. 172 You who believe, eat the good things We have provided for you and be grateful to God, if it is Him that you worship. 173 He has only forbidden you carrion, blood, pig’s meat, and animals over which any name other than God’s has been invoked. But if anyone is forced to eat such things by hunger, rather than desire or excess, he commits no sin: God is most merciful and forgiving.
174 As for those who conceal the Scripture that God sent down and sell it for a small price, they only fill their bellies with Fire. God will not speak to them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He purify them: an agonizing torment awaits them. 175 These are the ones who exchange guidance for error, and forgiveness for torment. What can make them patient in the face of the Fire? 176 This is because God has sent the Scripture with the Truth; those who pursue differences in the Scripture are deeply entrenched in opposition.
174 As for those who conceal the Scripture that God sent down and sell it for a small price, they only fill their bellies with Fire. God will not speak to them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He purify them: an agonizing torment awaits them. 175 These are the ones who exchange guidance for error, and forgiveness for torment. What can make them patient in the face of the Fire? 176 This is because God has sent the Scripture with the Truth; those who pursue differences in the Scripture are deeply entrenched in opposition.
Footnotes
a. Two hills adjacent to the Ka'ba between which a pilgrim and visitor should walk up and down in commemoration of what Hagar did in search of water for her baby, Ishmael.
b. The minor pilgrimage ('umra) can be done during the pilgrimage season or at any other time during the year.
c. The Ka'ba, which is central both to the direction of prayer and to the rites of pilgrimage as established by Abraham at God’s command.
d. The Muslims were reluctant to perform this rite, as the polytheists had installed two idols on these hills. Here it is reclaimed for God.
e. See 6: 138, 145.
f. It is also possible to interpret this as referring to the disbelievers calling on their idols, who cannot respond.
The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)
The Qur'an / a new translation by M. A. S. Abdel Haleem, copyright © 2004 Oxford World's Classics (Oxford University Press). Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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