Chapter 84, 25 verses
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. When the heaven is split asunder,
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انشَقَّتْ
When the heaven bursts asunder,
And listens to and obeys its Lord - and it must do so.
وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ
And obeys its Lord and it must.
And when the earth is stretched forth,
وَإِذَا الْأَرْضُ مُدَّتْ
And when the earth is stretched,
And has cast out all that was in it and became empty.
وَأَلْقَتْ مَا فِيهَا وَتَخَلَّتْ
And casts forth what is in it and becomes empty,
And listens to and obeys its Lord - and it must do so.
وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ
And obeys its Lord and it must.
O man! Verily, you are returning towards your Lord with your deeds and actions (good or bad), a sure returning, and you will meet (the results of your deeds which you did).
يَا أَيُّهَا الْإِنسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ كَدْحًا فَمُلَاقِيهِ
O man! surely you must strive (to attain) to your Lord, a hard striving until you meet Him.
Then as for him who will be given his Record in his right hand,
فَأَمَّا مَنْ أُوتِيَ كِتَابَهُ بِيَمِينِهِ
Then as to him who is given his book in his right hand,
He surely will receive an easy reckoning,
فَسَوْفَ يُحَاسَبُ حِسَابًا يَسِيرًا
He shall be reckoned with by an easy reckoning,
And will return to his family in joy!
وَيَنقَلِبُ إِلَىٰ أَهْلِهِ مَسْرُورًا
And he shall go back to his people joyful.
But whosoever is given his Record behind his back,
وَأَمَّا مَنْ أُوتِيَ كِتَابَهُ وَرَاءَ ظَهْرِهِ
And as to him who is given his book behind his back,
He will invoke (for his) destruction,
فَسَوْفَ يَدْعُو ثُبُورًا
He shall call for perdition,
And he shall enter a blazing Fire, and be made to taste its burning.
وَيَصْلَىٰ سَعِيرًا
And enter into burning fire.
Verily, he was among his people in joy!
إِنَّهُ كَانَ فِي أَهْلِهِ مَسْرُورًا
Surely he was (erstwhile) joyful among his followers.
Verily, he thought that he would never come back (to Us)!
إِنَّهُ ظَنَّ أَن لَّن يَحُورَ
Surely he thought that he would never return.
Yes! Verily, his Lord has been ever beholding him!
بَلَىٰ إِنَّ رَبَّهُ كَانَ بِهِ بَصِيرًا
Yea! surely his Lord does ever see him.
So I swear by the afterglow of sunset;
فَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِالشَّفَقِ
But nay! I swear by the sunset redness,
And by the night and whatever it gathers in its darkness,
وَاللَّيْلِ وَمَا وَسَقَ
And the night and that which it drives on,
And by the moon when it is at the full.
وَالْقَمَرِ إِذَا اتَّسَقَ
And the moon when it grows full,
You shall certainly travel from stage to stage (in this life and in the Hereafter).
لَتَرْكَبُنَّ طَبَقًا عَن طَبَقٍ
That you shall most certainly enter one state after another.
What is the matter with them, that they believe not?
فَمَا لَهُمْ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ
But what is the matter with them that they do not believe,
And when the Qur'an is recited to them, they fall not prostrate.
وَإِذَا قُرِئَ عَلَيْهِمُ الْقُرْآنُ لَا يَسْجُدُونَ ۩
And when the Quran is recited to them they do not make obeisance?
Nay, those who disbelieve belie (Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم and whatever he brought, i.e. this Qur'an and Islamic Monotheism, etc.).
بَلِ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا يُكَذِّبُونَ
Nay! those who disbelieve give the lie to the truth.
And Allah knows best what they gather (of good and bad deeds),
وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يُوعُونَ
And Allah knows best what they hide,
So announce to them a painful torment.
فَبَشِّرْهُم بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ
So announce to them a painful punishment~
Save those who believe and do righteous good deeds, for them is a reward that will never come to an end (i.e. Paradise).
إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَهُمْ أَجْرٌ غَيْرُ مَمْنُونٍ
Except those who believe and do good; for them is a reward that shall never be cut off.