إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَىٰ قَوْمِهِ أَنْ أَنْذِرْ قَوْمَكَ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ يَأْتِيَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
BEHOLD, We sent Noah unto his people, [saying:] "Warn thy people ere grievous suffering befall them!" (1)
قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ إِنِّي لَكُمْ نَذِيرٌ مُبِينٌ
[And Noah] said: "O my people! I am but a plain warner to you, [sent to tell you] (2)
أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاتَّقُوهُ وَأَطِيعُونِ
that you should worship God [alone] and be conscious of Him. "Now do pay heed unto me, (3)
يَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ مِنْ ذُنُوبِكُمْ وَيُؤَخِّرْكُمْ إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ مُسَمًّى إِنَّ أَجَلَ اللَّهِ إِذَا جَاءَ لَا يُؤَخَّرُ لَوْ كُنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ
so that He may forgive you some of your sins, and grant you respite until a term known [to Him alone]: but, behold, when the term appointed by God does come, it can never be put back – if you but knew it!" (4)
قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّي دَعَوْتُ قَوْمِي لَيْلًا وَنَهَارًا
[And after a time, Noah] said: "O my Sustainer! Verily, I have been calling unto my people night and day, (5)
فَلَمْ يَزِدْهُمْ دُعَائِي إِلَّا فِرَارًا
but my call has only caused them to flee farther and farther away [from Thee]. (6)
وَإِنِّي كُلَّمَا دَعَوْتُهُمْ لِتَغْفِرَ لَهُمْ جَعَلُوا أَصَابِعَهُمْ فِي آذَانِهِمْ وَاسْتَغْشَوْا ثِيَابَهُمْ وَأَصَرُّوا وَاسْتَكْبَرُوا اسْتِكْبَارًا
And, behold, whenever I called unto them with a view to Thy granting them forgiveness, they put their fingers into their ears, and wrapped themselves up in their garments [of sin], and grew obstinate, and became [yet more] arrogant in their false pride. (7)
ثُمَّ إِنِّي دَعَوْتُهُمْ جِهَارًا
"And, behold, I called unto them openly; (8)
ثُمَّ إِنِّي أَعْلَنْتُ لَهُمْ وَأَسْرَرْتُ لَهُمْ إِسْرَارًا
and, behold, I preached to them in public; and I spoke to them secretly, in private; (9)
فَقُلْتُ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّكُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ غَفَّارًا
and I said: "`Ask your Sustainer to forgive you your sins – for, verily, He is all-forgiving! (10)
يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِدْرَارًا
He will shower upon you heavenly blessings abundant, (11)
وَيُمْدِدْكُمْ بِأَمْوَالٍ وَبَنِينَ وَيَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ جَنَّاتٍ وَيَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ أَنْهَارًا
and will aid you with worldly goods and children, and will bestow upon you gardens, and bestow upon you running waters. (12)
مَا لَكُمْ لَا تَرْجُونَ لِلَّهِ وَقَارًا
"What is amiss with you that you cannot look forward to God's majesty, (13)
وَقَدْ خَلَقَكُمْ أَطْوَارًا
seeing that He has created [every one of] you in successive stages? (14)
أَلَمْ تَرَوْا كَيْفَ خَلَقَ اللَّهُ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ طِبَاقًا
"Do you not see how God has created seven heavens in full harmony with one another, (15)
وَجَعَلَ الْقَمَرَ فِيهِنَّ نُورًا وَجَعَلَ الشَّمْسَ سِرَاجًا
and has set up within them the moon as a light [reflected], and set up the sun as a [radiant] lamp? (16)
وَاللَّهُ أَنْبَتَكُمْ مِنَ الْأَرْضِ نَبَاتًا
"And God has caused you to grow out of the earth in [gradual] growth; and thereafter He will return you to it [in death]: (17)
ثُمَّ يُعِيدُكُمْ فِيهَا وَيُخْرِجُكُمْ إِخْرَاجًا
and [then] He will bring you forth [from it] in resurrection. (18)
وَاللَّهُ جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْأَرْضَ بِسَاطًا
"And God has made the earth a wide expanse for you, (19)
لِتَسْلُكُوا مِنْهَا سُبُلًا فِجَاجًا
so that you might walk thereon on spacious paths.'" (20)
- And behold, whenever I called unto them with a view to Thy granting them forgiveness, they put their fingers into their ears, and wrapped themselves up in their garments [of sin];3 and grew obstinate, and became [yet more] arrogant in their false pride.
- 3 For the reason of the above interpolation - which endows the concept of "garments" with a metaphorical meaning - see note 2 on 74:4; cf. also the expression "garment of God-consciousness" (libas at-taqwa) in 7:26.
- "And every time I have called to them, that Thou mightest forgive them, they have (only) thrust their fingers into their ears, covered themselves up with5710 their garments, grown obstinate, and given themselves up to arrogance.
- 5710 The literal meaning would be that, just as they thrust their fingers into their ears to prevent the voice of the admonisher reaching them, so they covered their bodies with their garments that the light of truth should not penetrate to them and that they should not even be seen by the Preacher. But there is a further symbolic meaning. "Their garments" are the adornments of vanities, their evil habits, customs, and traditions, and their ephemeral interests and standards. They drew them closer round them to prevent the higher Light reaching them. They grew obstinate and gave themselves up to the grossest form of selfish arrogance.
-
"And every time I have called to them, that Thou mightest forgive them, they have (only) thrust their fingers into their ears, covered themselves up with their garments, grown obstinate, and given themselves up to arrogance.
— Abdullah Yusuf Ali -
And lo! whenever I call unto them that Thou mayst pardon them they thrust their fingers in their ears and cover themselves with their garments and persist (in their refusal) and magnify themselves in pride.
— Marmaduke Pickthall -
And whenever I have called them that Thou mayest forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, cover themselves with their garments, and persist and are puffed up with pride:
— M. Habib Shakir -
"And verily! Every time I called unto them that You might forgive them, they thrust their fingers into their ears, covered themselves up with their garments, and persisted (in their refusal), and magnified themselves in pride.
— Taqiuddin Hilali and M. Mohsin Khan -
And verily so oft as I call them, that Thou mayest forgive them, they place their fingers into their ears, and wrap themselves with their garments, and persist, and are stiff-necked.
— Abdul-Majid Daryabadi -
Each time I called them so that You might forgive them, they thrust their fingers in their ears and wrapped themselves in their garments, and persisted becomingvery proud.
— Hasan Qaribullah and Ahmed Darwish -
And whenever I called them that Thou mightest forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, wrapped them in their garments, became stubborn, and showed great arrogance.
— Ayub Khan -
And every time I called them that Thou mightest forgive them, they put their fingers into their ears, and drew close their garments, and persisted in their iniquities and were disdainfully proud;
— Sher Ali -
And, behold, whenever I called unto them with a view to Thy granting them forgiveness, they put their fingers into their ears, and wrapped themselves up in their garments [of sin], and grew obstinate, and became [yet more] arrogant in their false pride.
— Muhammad Asad -
And whenever I called them, that Thou mightest forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, and wrapped them in their garments, and persisted, and waxed very proud.
— Arthur Arberry -
And every time I called them so that You might forgive them,{{9}} they thrust their fingers into their ears and wrapped up their faces with their garments{{10}} and obstinately clung to their attitude, and waxed very proud.{{11}}
— Abu'l Ala Maududi