The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)

A Meccan sura that emphasizes the divine source of the Qur
an and defends it
from the charge of being poetry made by man (verses 
5–6, 69–70). It warns of
the fate of men who are stubborn and always mock God’s revelations. They are
reminded of the punishment that befell earlier generations, and of God’s power
as shown in His Creation. The end of the sura gives strong arguments for the
reality of the Resurrection.
In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy
1Ya Sin
2By the wise
a
Qur
an, 3you [Muhammad] are truly one of the mes-
sengers sent 
4on a straight path, 5with a revelation from the
Almighty, the Lord of Mercy, 
6to warn a people whose forefathers
were not warned, and so they are unaware. 
7The verdict has been
passed against most of them, for they refuse to believe. 
8[It is as if]
We had placed [iron] collars around their necks, right up to their
chins so that their heads are forced up 
9and set barriers before and
behind them, blocking their vision: they cannot see. 
10It is all the
same to them whether you warn them or not: they will not believe.
11You can warn only those who will follow the Quran and hold the
Merciful One in awe, though they cannot see Him: give such people
the glad news of forgiveness and a noble reward. 
12We shall certainly
bring the dead back to life, and We record what they send ahead of
them as well as what they leave behind: We keep an account of
everything in a clear Record.
13Give them the example of the people to whose town messengers
came. 
14We sent two messengers but they rejected both. Then We
reinforced them with a third. 
15They said, ‘Truly, we are messengers
to you,’ 
16but they answered, ‘You are only men like ourselves. The
Lord of Mercy has sent nothing; you are just lying.’ They said,
‘Our Lord knows that we have been sent to you. 
17Our duty is only to
deliver the message to you,’ 
18but they answered, ‘We think you are
a
See note to 
10: 1.

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an evil omen. If you do not stop, we shall stone you, and in
flict a
painful torment on you.’
19The messengers said, ‘The evil omen is
within yourselves. Why do you take it as an evil omen when you are
reminded of the Truth? You are going too far!’
20Then, from the
furthest part of the city, a man came running. He said, ‘My people,
follow the messengers. 
21Follow them: they are not asking you to
reward them and they are rightly guided. 
22Why should I not wor-
ship the One who created me? It is to Him that you will be returned.
23How could I take besides Him any other gods, whose intercession
will not help me and who would not be able to save me if the Lord of
Mercy wished to harm me? 
24Then I would clearly be in the wrong.
25I believe in your Lord, so listen to me.’
26He was told, ‘Enter the Garden,’
a
so he said, ‘If only my people
knew 
27how my Lord has forgiven me and set me among the highly
honoured.’
28After him We did not send any army from heaven
against his people, nor were We about to: 
29there was just one blast,
and they fell down lifeless.
30Alas for human beings! Whenever a messenger comes to them
they ridicule him. 
31Do they not see how many generations We have
destroyed before them, none of whom will ever come back to them?
b
32[Yet] all of them will be brought before Us. 33There is a sign for
them in the lifeless earth: We give it life and We produce grain from it
for them to eat; 
34We have put gardens of date palms and grapes in
the earth, and We have made springs of water gush out of it 
35so that
they could eat its fruit. It was not their own hands that made all this.
How can they not give thanks? 
36Glory be to Him who created all the
pairs
c
of things that the earth produces, as well as themselves and
other things they do not know about. 
37The night is also a sign for
them: We strip the daylight from it, and –
– lo and behold! –
– they are
in darkness. 
38The sun, too, runs its determined course laid down for
it by the Almighty, the All Knowing. 
39We have determined phases
for the moon until 
finally it becomes like an old date-stalk. 40The sun
cannot overtake the moon, nor can the night outrun the day: each
floats in [its own] orbit.
41Another sign for them is that We carried their seed in the laden