Surah 10. Yunus

And [so, O Prophet,] if they give thee the lie, say: "To me [shall be accounted] my doings, and to you, your doings: you are not accountable for what I am doing, and I am not accountable for whatever you do."

  - Mohammad Asad

If they do not believe you, say: "I am responsible for my actions and you are for yours! You are not accountable for my actions, nor I am responsible for what you do."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And if they deny thee, say: Unto me my work, and unto you your work. Ye are innocent of what I do, and I am innocent of what ye do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And there are among them such as [pretend to] listen to thee: but canst thou cause the deaf to hearken even though they will not use their reason?

  - Mohammad Asad

There are some among them who pretend to hear you what you say: but can you make the deaf listen to you, incapable as they are of understanding?

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And of them are some who listen unto thee. But canst thou make the deaf to hear even though they apprehend not?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And there are among them such as [pretend to] look towards thee: but canst thou show the right way to the blind even though they cannot see?

  - Mohammad Asad

Then there are some among them who pretend to look at you: but can you show the way to blind, bereft as they are of sight?

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And of them is he who looketh toward thee. But canst thou guide the blind even though they see not?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Verily, God does not do the least wrong unto men, but it is men who wrong themselves.

  - Mohammad Asad

The fact is that Allah does not do injustice to mankind in any way: but men are unjust to their own souls.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Lo! Allah wrongeth not mankind in aught; but mankind wrong themselves.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And on the Day when He shall gather them [unto Himself, it will seem to them] as if they had not tarried [on earth] longer than an hour of a day, knowing one another;⁶⁵ [and] lost indeed will be they who [in their lifetime] considered it a lie that they were destined to meet God and [thus] failed to find the right way.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., their past sojourn in this world, during which they were bound to one another by various ties of human relationship, will appear to them like a short moment as compared with the timeless duration of the life that awaits them after resurrection (see note [19] on {79:46), with all their past relationships cut asunder. See also 6:94 , which describes the condition of the deniers of the truth on the Day of Resurrection: "And now, indeed, you have come unto Us in a lonely state, even as We created you in the first instance"; and later on, in that same verse: "Indeed, all the bonds between you [and your earthly life] are now severed...."

On that Day when He will gather them all together, it will appear to them as if they had not stayed in this world but an hour of a day to get to know each other. At that time they will realize that: in fact the losers are those who denied the meeting with Allah and were not rightly guided.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And on the day when He shall gather them together, (when it will seem) as though they had tarried but an hour of the day, recognizing one another, those will verily have perished who denied the meeting with Allah and were not guided.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And whether We show thee [in this world] something of what We hold in store for those [deniers of the truth],⁶⁶ or whether We cause thee to die [before that retribution takes place - know that, in the end], it is unto Us that they must return; and God is witness to all that they do.⁶⁷

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "of what We promise them" or "of what We threaten them with" - i.e., the inevitable retribution, sometimes even in this world, which a deliberate denial of the truth brings in its wake.

The above verse is addressed, in the first instance, to the Prophet, and relates to those of his contemporaries who refused to acknowledge the truth of the Qur'anic revelation. In its wider sense, however, it is addressed to every believer who might find it incomprehensible that life-long suffering is often the lot of the righteous, while many wrongdoers and deniers of the truth apparently remain unscathed and are allowed to enjoy the good things of life. The Qur'an solves this apparent paradox by making it clear that, in comparison with the life to come, the life in this world is but a brief moment, and that it is only in the hereafter that man's destiny reveals itself in all its true aspects. Cf. 3:185 - "only on the Day of Resurrection will you be requited in full [for whatever you have done]...for the life of this world is nothing but an enjoyment of self-delusion".

Whether We show you in your lifetime some consequences of what We have promised them, or cause you to die before that, in any case they will have to return to Us: moreover Allah is watching all their actions.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Whether We let thee (O Muhammad) behold something of that which We promise them or (whether We) cause thee to die, still unto Us is their return, and Allah, moreover, is Witness over what they do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

NOW every community has had an apostle; and only after their apostle has appeared [and delivered his message] is judgment passed on them, in all equity;⁶⁸ and never are they wronged.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "and when their apostle has come, a decision is made between them in all equity". This verse stresses (a) the continuity of religious revelation in mankind's history and the fact that in the long run no community, period or civilization (which latter is one of the meanings attributable to the term ummah) has been left without prophetic guidance, and (b) the doctrine that God does not punish "a community for its wrongdoing so long as its people are still unaware [of the meaning of right and wrong]: for all shall be judged according to their [conscious] deeds" ({6:131-132}).

Every nation was sent a Rasool. Once their Rasool came, judgement was passed between them with all fairness and they were not wronged in the least.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And for every nation there is a messenger. And when their messenger cometh (on the Day of Judgment) it will be judged between them fairly, and they will not be wronged.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And yet, they [who deny the truth] are wont to ask, "When is that promise [of resurrection and judgment] to be fulfilled? [Answer this, O you who believe in it,] if you are men of truth!"

  - Mohammad Asad

They ask: "When will this promise be fulfilled, tell us if what you say be true?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And they say: When will this promise be fulfilled, if ye are truthful?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Say [O Prophet]: "It is not within my power to avert harm from, or bring benefit to, myself, except as God may please.⁶⁹ For all people a term has been set: when the end of their term approaches, they can neither delay it by a single moment, nor hasten it."⁷⁰

  - Mohammad Asad

Sc., "and since I do not possess any supernatural powers, I cannot predict that which is beyond the reach of human perception (al-ghayb)".

See 7:34 and the corresponding notes [25] and [26]. In the above context, the "end of the term" refers, in particular, to the coming of the Last Hour and the Day of Judgment.

Say: "I have no control over any harm or benefit to myself, except what Allah wills. For every nation there is a deadline: when their deadline comes, it can neither be delayed for even a moment, nor it can be advanced.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Say: I have no power to hurt or benefit myself, save that which Allah willeth. For every nation there is an appointed time. When their time cometh, then they cannot put it off an hour, nor hasten (it).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Say: "Have you ever considered [how you would feel] if His chastisement were to befall you by night or by day? What could there be in that prospect that people lost in sin should wish to hasten?⁷¹

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "What [part] thereof might the people lost in sin (al-mujrimun) wish to hasten" - meaning, according to Zamakhshari, that "all of [God's] chastisement is awful and bitter, and should inspire one with the desire to flee therefrom;...and there is nothing in it that ought to make one wish to hasten it". This is an allusion to the incredulous inquiry of the deniers of the truth about the coming of the Last Hour (verse {48} above), as well as to their sarcastic demand that they should be immediately chastised by God in proof of Muhammad's prophetic mission (cf. {6:57-58} and 8:32 , as well as the corresponding notes). - The expression "by night or by day" occurring in the preceding sentence denotes the suddenness and unexpectedness with which doom is bound to encompass the evildoers on the Day of Judgment.

Say: "Have you ever considered that if his scourge fall upon you by night or by day you can do nothing to avert it? What then is there that the criminals wish to hasten?

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Say: Have ye thought: When His doom cometh unto you as a raid by night, or in the (busy) day; what is there of it that the guilty ones desire to hasten?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Will you, then, believe in it [only] after it has come to pass - [on the Day when you will be asked, 'Do you believe in it] now,⁷² after having [contemptuously] called for its speedy advent?'

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., "when it is too late" (Tabari, Zamakhshari, Razi; my interpolation at the beginning of this sentence is based on these authorities).

Would you believe it when it actually overtakes you? Then you would beg it to be removed although it had been your own wish to hurry it on."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Is it (only) then, when it hath befallen you, that ye will believe? What! (Believe) now, when (until now) ye have been hastening it on (through disbelief)?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

- whereupon those who [in their lifetime] were bent on evildoing will be told, 'Taste suffering abiding! Is this requital anything but the just due for what you were wont to do?'"⁷³

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "Are you being requited for anything but for what you were wont to earn?"

Then it will be said to the wrongdoers: "Taste the everlasting punishment! Should you not be rewarded according to your deeds?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then will it be said unto those who dealt unjustly: Taste the torment of eternity. Are ye requited aught save what ye used to earn?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And some people⁷⁴ ask thee, "Is all this true?" Say: "Yea, by my Sustainer! It is most certainly true, and you cannot elude [the final reckoning]!"

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "they" - i.e., those of the unbelievers who are wavering in their agnosticism and - as mentioned in verse {36} above - "follow nothing but conjecture" (Manar XI, 394).

They ask you: "Is what you say really true?" Tell them: "Yes! By my Rabb, it is absolutely true! And you will not be able to avert it."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And they ask thee to inform them (saying): Is it true? Say: Yea, by my Lord, verily it is true, and ye cannot escape.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And all human beings that have been doing evil⁷⁵ would surely, if they possessed all that is on earth, offer it as ransom [on Judgment Day];⁷⁶ and when they see the suffering [that awaits them], they will be unable to express their remorse.⁷⁷ But judgment will be passed on them in all equity; and they will not be wronged.

  - Mohammad Asad

In this instance, by deliberately giving the lie to the Prophet and rejecting the message of the Qur'an.

Cf. 3:91 and the corresponding note [71].

The primary meaning of the verb asarrahu is "he concealed it" or "he kept it secret", thus the phrase asarru 'n-nadamah (expressed in the past tense but in the above context obviously denoting a future event) could be rendered as "they will conceal their remorse". In view, however, of the many statements in the Qur'an that on the Day of Judgment the sinners will not only not conceal but will, rather, stress their remorse, some of the commentators (e.g., Baghawi, on the authority of Abu'Ubaydah) are of the opinion that in this particular verse the verb asarra denotes the opposite of its primary meaning and, accordingly, interpret the phrase as "they will manifest their remorse". But the linguistic validity of this rather forced interpretation has been emphatically contested by many philologists, and particularly by Abu Mansur al-Azhari (cf. Lane IV, 1337); and since there is no convincing reason to disregard the original significance of the verb asarra with its implication of "concealment", the above Qur'anic phrase must be understood (as Zamakhshari understands it), in the metonymical sense of an involuntary "concealment", that is, the sinners' inability to express the full depth of their remorse.

If every person that has done injustice possessed all that the earth contains, he would be willing to offer it all in ransom to redeem himself if he could. They will regret in their hearts when they see the punishment of Hell. The decision between them will be made with justice and no wrong will be done to them.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And if each soul that doeth wrong had all that is in the earth it would seek to ransom itself therewith; and they will feel remorse within them, when they see the doom. But it hath been judged between them fairly and they are not wronged.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Oh, verily, unto God belongs all that is in the heavens and on earth! Oh, verily, God's promise always comes true - but most of them know it not!

  - Mohammad Asad

Be aware! All that is in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allah. Be aware! The promise of Allah is true, yet most of them do not know.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Lo! verily all that is in the heavens and the earth is Allah's. Lo! verily Allah's promise is true. But most of them know not.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall