English - Chapter 19 - Maryam

KAF. HA. YA. AIN. SAD

A recital of thy Lord's mercy to his servant Zachariah

When he called upon his Lord with secret calling

And said: "O Lord, verily my bones are weakened, and the hoar hairs glisten on my head, And never, Lord, have I prayed to thee with ill success

But now I have fears for my kindred after me; and my wife is barren: Give me, then, a successor as thy special gift

who shall be my heir and an heir of the family of Jacob: and make him, Lord, well pleasing to thee

O Zachariah! verily we announce to thee a son, - his name John: That name We have given to none before him

He said: "O my Lord! how when my wife is barren shall I have a son, and when I have now reached old age, failing in my powers

He said: So shall it be. Thy Lord hath said, Easy is this to me, for I created thee aforetime when thou wast nothing

He said: "Vouchsafe me, O my Lord! a sign." He said: "Thy sign shall be that for three nights, though sound in health, thou speakest not to man

And he came forth from the sanctuary to his people, and made signs to them to sing praises morn and even

We said: "O John! receive the Book with purpose of heart:" - and We bestowed on him wisdom while yet a child

and duteous to his parents; and not proud, rebellious

And peace was on him on the day he was born, and the day of his death, and shall be on the day when he shall be raised to life

And make mention in the Book, of Mary, when she went apart from her family, eastward

And took a veil to shroud herself from them: and we sent our spirit to her, and he took before her the form of a perfect man

She said: "I fly for refuge from thee to the God of Mercy! If thou fearest Him, begone from me

He said: "I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a holy son

She said: "How shall I have a son, when man hath never touched me? and I am not unchaste

He said: "So shall it be. Thy Lord hath said: 'Easy is this with me;' and we will make him a sign to mankind, and a mercy from us. For it is a thing decreed

And she conceived him, and retired with him to a far-off place

And the throes came upon her by the trunk of a palm. She said: "Oh, would that I had died ere this, and been a thing forgotten, forgotten quite

And one cried to her from below her: "Grieve not thou, thy Lord hath provided a streamlet at thy feet

And shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee: it will drop fresh ripe dates upon thee

Eat then and drink, and be of cheerful eye: and shouldst thou see a man, Say, - Verily, I have vowed abstinence to the God of mercy. - To no one will I speak this day

Then came she with the babe to her people, bearing him. They said, "O Mary! now hast thou done a strange thing

O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of wickedness, nor unchaste thy mother

And she made a sign to them, pointing towards the babe. They said, "How shall we speak with him who is in the cradle, an infant

It said, "Verily, I am the servant of God; He hath given me the Book, and He hath made me a prophet

And He hath made me blessed wherever I may be, and hath enjoined me prayer and almsgiving so long as I shall live

And to be duteous to her that bare me: and he hath not made me proud, depraved

And the peace of God was on me the day I was born, and will be the day I shall die, and the day I shall be raised to life

This is Jesus, the son of Mary; this is a statement of the truth concerning which they doubt

It beseemeth not God to beget a son. Glory be to Him! when he decreeth a thing, He only saith to it, Be, and it Is

And verily, God is my Lord and your Lord; adore Him then. This is the right way

But the Sects have fallen to variance among themselves about Jesus: but woe, because of the assembly of a great day, to those who believe not

Make them hear, make them behold the day when they shall come before us! But the offenders this day are in a manifest error

Warn them of the day of sighing when the decree shall be accomplished, while they are sunk in heedlessness and while they believe not

Verily, we will inherit the earth and all who are upon it. To us shall they be brought back

Make mention also in the Book of Abraham; for he was a man of truth, a Prophet

When he said to his Father, "O my Father! why dost thou worship that which neither seeth nor heareth, nor profiteth thee aught

O my Father! verily now hath knowledge come to me which hath not come to thee. Follow me therefore - I will guide thee into an even path

O my Father! worship not Satan, for Satan is a rebel against the God of Mercy

O my Father! indeed I fear lest a chastisement from the God of Mercy light upon thee, and thou become Satan's vassal

He said, "Castest thou off my gods, O Abraham? If thou forbear not, I will surely stone thee. Begone from me for a length of time

He said, "Peace be on thee! I will pray my Lord for thy forgiveness, for he is gracious to me

But I will separate myself from you, and the gods ye call on beside God, and on my Lord will I call. Haply, my prayers to my Lord will not be with ill success

And when he had separated himself from them and that which they worshipped beside God, we bestowed on him Isaac and Jacob, and each of them we made a prophet

And we bestowed gifts on them in our mercy, and gave them the lofty tongue of truth

And commemorate Moses in "the Book;" for he was a man of purity: moreover he was an Apostle, a Prophet

From the right side of the mountain we called to him, and caused him to draw nigh to us for secret converse

And we bestowed on him in our mercy his brother Aaron, a Prophet

And commemorate Ismael in "the Book;" for he was true to his promise, and was an Apostle, a Prophet

And he enjoined prayer and almsgiving on his people, and was well pleasing to his Lord

And commemorate Edris in "the Book;" for he was a man of truth, a Prophet

And we uplifted him to a place on high

These are they among the prophets of the posterity of Adam, and among those whom we bare with Noah, and among the posterity of Abraham and Israel, and among those whom we have guided and chosen, to whom God hath shewed favour. When the signs of the God of Mercy were rehearsed to them, they bowed them down worshipping and weeping

But others have come in their place after them: they have made an end of prayer, and have gone after their own lusts; and in the end they shall meet with evil

Save those who turn and believe and do that which is right, these shall enter the Garden, and in nought shall they be wronged

The Garden of Eden, which the God of Mercy hath promised to his servants, though yet unseen: for his promise shall come to pass

No vain discourse shall they hear therein, but only "Peace;" and their food shall be given them at morn and even

This is the Paradise which we will make the heritage of those our servants who fear us

We come not down from Heaven but by thy Lord's command. His, whatever is before us and whatever is behind us, and whatever is between the two! And thy Lord is not forgetful

Lord of the Heavens and of the Earth, and of all that is between them! Worship Him, then, and abide thou steadfast in his worship. Knowest thou any other of the same name

Man saith: "What! after I am dead, shall I in the end be brought forth alive

Doth not man bear in mind that we made him at first, when he was nought

And I swear by thy Lord, we will surely gather together them and the Satans: then will we set them on their knees round Hell

Then will we take forth from each band those of them who have been stoutest in rebellion against the God of Mercy

Then shall we know right well to whom its burning is most due

No one is there of you who shall not go down unto it - This is a settled decree with thy Lord

Then will we deliver those who had the fear of God, and the wicked will we leave in it on their knees

And when our clear signs are rehearsed to them, the infidels say to those who believe: "Which of the two parties is in the best plight? and which is the most goodly company

But how many generations have we brought to ruin before them, who surpassed them in riches and in splendour

SAY: As to those who are in error, the God of Mercy will lengthen out to them a length of days Until they see that with which they are threatened, whether it be some present chastisement, or whether it be "the Hour," and they shall then know which is in the worse state, and which the more weak in forces

But God will increase the guidance of the already guided. And good works which abide, are in thy Lord's sight better in respect of guerdon, and better in the issue than all worldly good

Hast thou marked him who believeth not in our signs, and saith, "I shall surely have riches and children bestowed upon me

Hath he mounted up into the secrets of God? Hath he made a compact with the God of Mercy

No! we will certainly write down what he saith, and will lengthen the length of his chastisement

And we will inherit what he spake of, and he shall come before us all alone

They have taken other gods beside God to be their help

But it shall not be. Those gods will disavow their worship and will become their enemies

Seest thou not that we send the Satans against the Infidels to urge them into sin

Wherefore be not thou in haste with them; for a small number of days do we number to them

One day we will gather the God-fearing before the God of Mercy with honours due

But the sinners will we drive unto Hell, like flocks driven to the watering

None shall have power to intercede, save he who hath received permission at the hands of the God of Mercy

They say: "The God of Mercy hath gotten offspring

Now have ye done a monstrous thing

Almost might the very Heavens be rent thereat, and the Earth cleave asunder, and the mountains fall down in fragments

That they ascribe a son to the God of Mercy

when it beseemeth not the God of Mercy to beget a son

Verily there is none in the Heavens and in the Earth but shall approach the God of Mercy as a servant

He hath taken note of them, and numbered them with exact numbering

And each of them shall come to Him, on the day of Resurrection, singly

But love will the God of Mercy vouchsafe to those who believe and do the things that be right

Verily we have made this Koran easy and in thine own tongue, that thou mayest announce glad tidings by it to the God-fearing, and that thou mayest warn the contentious by it

How many generations have we destroyed before them! Canst thou search out one of them? or canst thou hear a whisper from them