Sura 34, Sheba (Saba´)
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
[34:1] Praise be to GOD - to whom belongs everything in the
heavens and the earth; all praise is also due to Him in the
Hereafter. He is the Most Wise, the Cognizant.
[34:2] He knows everything that goes into the earth, and
everything that comes out of it, and everything that comes down
from the sky, and everything that climbs into it. He is the Most
Merciful, the Forgiving.
[34:3] Those who disbelieve have said, "The Hour will never come
to pass!" Say, "Absolutely - by my Lord - it will most certainly
come to you. He is the Knower of the future. Not even the
equivalent of an atom's weight is hidden from Him, be it in the
heavens or the earth. Not even smaller than that, or larger (is
hidden). All are in a profound record."
[34:4] Most certainly, He will reward those who believe and lead a
righteous life. These have deserved forgiveness and a generous
provision.
[34:5] As for those who constantly challenge our revelations, they
have incurred a retribution of painful humiliation.
[34:6] It is evident to those who are blessed with knowledge that
this revelation from your Lord to you is the truth, and that it
guides to the path of the Almighty, the Most Praiseworthy.
[34:7] Those who disbelieve have said, "Let us show you a man who
tells you that after you are torn apart you will be created anew.
[34:8] "Either he fabricated lies about GOD, or he is crazy."
Indeed, those who disbelieve in the Hereafter have incurred the
worst retribution; they have gone far astray.
[34:9] Have they not seen all the things in front of them and
behind them, in the heaven and the earth? If we willed, we could
have caused the earth to swallow them, or caused masses to fall on
them from the sky. This should be a sufficient proof for every
obedient servant.
David and Solomon
[34:10] We endowed David with blessings from us: "O mountains,
submit with him, and you too, O birds." We softened the iron for
him.
[34:11] "You may make shields that fit perfectly, and work
righteousness. Whatever you do, I am Seer thereof."
The First Oil Field
[34:12] To Solomon we committed the wind at his disposal,
traveling one month coming and one month going. And we caused a
spring of oil to gush out for him. Also, the jinns worked for him,
by his Lord's leave. Any one of them who disregarded our commands,
we subjected him to a severe retribution.
[34:13] They made for him anything he wanted - niches, statues,
deep pools, and heavy cooking pots. O family of David, work
(righteousness) to show your appreciation. Only a few of My
servants are appreciative.
Jinns' Knowledge is Limited
[34:14] When the appointed time for his death came, they had no
clue that he had died. Not until one of the animals tried to eat
his staff, and he fell down, did the jinns realized that he was
dead. They thus realized that if they really knew the unseen, they
would have stopped working so hard as soon as he died.
[34:15] Sheba's homeland used to be a marvel, with two gardens on
the right and the left. Eat from your Lord's provisions, and be
appreciative of Him - good land, and a forgiving Lord.
[34:16] They turned away and, consequently, we poured upon them a
disastrous flood, and we substituted their two gardens into two
gardens of badtasting fruits, thorny plants, and a skimpy harvest.
[34:17] We thus requited them for their disbelief. Do we not
requite only the disbelievers?
[34:18] We placed between them and the communites that we blessed
other oases, and we secured the journey between them: "Travel
therein days and nights in complete security."
[34:19] But they (turned unappreciative and) challenged: "Our
Lord, we do not care if You increase the distance of our journeys
(without any stations)." They thus wronged their own souls.
Consequently, we made them history, and scattered them into small
communities throughout the land. This should provide lessons for
those who are steadfast, appreciative.
Satan Claims the Majority
[34:20] Satan found them readily fulfilling his expectations. They
followed him, except a few believers.
The Objective: Do We Believe in the Hereafter?*
[34:21] He never had any power over them. But we thus distinguish
those who believe in the Hereafter from those who are doubtful
about it.* Your Lord is in full control of all things.
Footnote
[34:22] Say, "Implore the idols you have set up beside GOD. They
do not possess as much as a single atom in the heavens, or the
earth. They possess no partnership therein, nor does He permit
them to be His assistants."
No Intercession
[34:23] Intercession with Him will be in vain, unless it coincides
with His will. When their minds are finally settled down, and they
ask, "What did your Lord say," they will say, "The truth." He is
the Most High, the Most Great.
[34:24] Say, "Who provides for you, from the heavens and the
earth?" Say, "GOD," and "Either we or you are guided, or have gone
far astray."
[34:25] Say, "You are not responsible for our crimes, nor are we
responsible for what you do."
[34:26] Say, "Our Lord will gather us all together before Him,
then He will judge between us equitably. He is the Judge, the
Omniscient."
[34:27] Say, "Show me the idols you have set up as partners with
Him!" Say, "No; He is the one GOD, the Almighty, Most Wise."
God's Messenger of the Covenant
[34:28] We have sent you (O Rashad)* to all the people, a bearer
of good news, as well as a warner, but most people do not know.
Footnote
[34:29] They challenge, "When will this promise come to pass, if
you are truthful?"
[34:30] Say, "You have a specific time, on a specific day, that
you cannot delay by one hour, nor advance."
[34:31] Those who disbelieve have said, "We will not believe in
this Quran, nor in the previous scriptures." If you could only
envision these transgressors when they stand before their Lord!
They will argue with one another back and forth. The followers
will tell their leaders, "If it were not for you, we would have
been believers."
On the Day of Resurrection
[34:32] The leaders will say to those who followed them, "Are we
the ones who diverted you from the guidance after it came to you?
No; it is you who were wicked."
[34:33] The followers will say to their leaders, "It was you who
schemed night and day, then commanded us to be unappreciative of
GOD, and to set up idols to rank with Him." They will be ridden
with remorse, when they see the retribution, for we will place
shackles around the necks of those who disbelieved. Are they not
justly requited for what they did?
Every Time!
[34:34] Every time we sent a warner to a community, the leaders of
that community said, "We reject the message you are sent with."
[34:35] They also said, "We are more powerful, with more money and
children, and we will not be punished."
[34:36] Say, "My Lord is the One who controls all provisions; He
grants the provisions to whomever He wills, or reduces them, but
most people do not know."
[34:37] It is not your money or your children that bring you
closer to us. Only those who believe and lead a righteous life
will receive the reward for their works, multiplied manifold. In
the abode of Paradise they will live in perfect peace.
[34:38] As for those who consistently challenge our revelations,
they will abide in retribution.
[34:39] Say, "My Lord is the One who controls all provisions; He
increases the provisions for whomever He chooses from among His
servants, or reduces them. Anything you spend (in the cause of
God), He will reward you for it; He is the Best Provider."
[34:40] On the day when He summons them all, He will say to the
angels, "Did these people worship you?"
[34:41] They will answer, "Be You glorified. You are our Lord and
Master, not them. Instead, they were worshiping the jinns; most of
them were believers therein."
[34:42] On that day, you possess no power to help or harm one
another, and we will say to the transgressors, "Taste the
retribution of the Hell that you used to deny."
Mathematical Miracle of the Quran*
[34:43] When our proofs were recited to them, perfectly clear,
they said, "This is simply a man who wants to divert you from the
way your parents are worshiping." They also said, "These are
fabricated lies." Those who disbelieved also said about the truth
that came to them, "This is obviously magic."
Footnote
[34:44] We did not give them any other books to study, nor did we
send to them before you another warner.
[34:45] Those before them disbelieved, and even though they did
not see one-tenth* of (the miracle) we have given to this
generation, when they disbelieved My messengers, how severe was My
retribution!
Footnote
God's Messenger of the Covenant*
[34:46] Say, "I ask you to do one thing: Devote yourselves to GOD,
in pairs or as individuals, then reflect. Your friend (Rashad) is
not crazy. He is a manifest warner to you, just before the advent
of a terrible retribution."
Footnote
[34:47] Say, "I do not ask you for any wage; you can keep it. My
wage comes only from GOD. He witnesses all things."
[34:48] Say, "My Lord causes the truth to prevail. He is the
Knower of all secrets."
[34:49] Say, "The truth has come; while falsehood can neither
initiate anything, nor repeat it."
[34:50] Say, "If I go astray, I go astray because of my own
shortcomings. And if I am guided, it is because of my Lord's
inspiration. He is Hearer, Near."
[34:51] If you could only see them when the great terror strikes
them; they cannot escape then, and they will be taken away
forcibly.
[34:52] They will then say, "We now believe in it," but it will be
far too late.
[34:53] They have rejected it in the past; they have decided
instead to uphold conjecture and guesswork.*
Footnote
[34:54] Consequently, they were deprived of everything they longed
for. This is the same fate as their counterparts in the previous
generations. They harbored too many doubts.
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