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Did he not know that God had already destroyed, before him, several generations, who were mightier than he in strength, and had amassed more abundance of riches? And the wicked shall not be asked to discover thei crimes. And Karûn went forth unto his people, in his pomp. And they who loved this present life said, Oh that we had the like wealth, as hath been given unto Karûn? verily he is master of a great fortune. But those on whom knowledge had been bestowed answered, Alas for you! the reward of GOD in the next life will be better unto him who shall believe and do good works but none shall attain the same, except those who persevere with constancy. And we caused the ground to cleave in sunder, and to swallow up him and his palace: and he had no forces to defend him, besides GOD; neither was he rescued from punishment. morning, those who had coveted his condition the day before said, Aha! verily God bestoweth abundant provision on such of his servants as he pleaseth; and he is sparing unto whom he pleaseth. Unless God had been gracious unto us, certainly the earth had swallowed us up also. Aha! the unbelievers shall not prosper. As to this future mansion of paradise, we will give it unto them who seek not to exalt themselves in the earth, or to do wrong; for the happy issue shall attend the pious. Whoso doth good shall receive a reward which shall exceed the merit thereof: but as to him who doth evil, they who work evil shall be rewarded according to the merit only of that which they shall have wrought. Verily he who hath given thee the Korân for a rule of faith and practice will certainly bring thee back home unto Mecca. Say, My LORD best knoweth who cometh with a true direction, and who is in a manifest error. Thou didst not expect that the book of the Koran should be delivered unto thee: but thou hast received it through the mercy of thy LORD. Be not therefore assisting to the unbelievers; neither let them turn thee aside from the signs of GOD, after they have been sent down unto thee: and invite men unto thy LORD. And be not thou an idolater; neither invoke any other god, together with the true GoD: there is no god but he. Every thing shall perish, except himself: unto him belongeth judgment: and before him shall ye be assembled at the last day.

law, after Moses and Aaron; others pretend he was skilled in chemistry, or in merchandizing, or other arts of gain; and others suppose (as the Jews also fable) that he found out the treasures of Joseph in Egypt.'

It is said he rode on a white mule adorned with trappings of gold, and that he was clothed in purple, and attended by four thousand men, all well mounted and richly dressed.

"The multitude of his slaves could not defend him against the arm of the Almighty, and he had no avenger."-Savary.

This verse, some say, was revealed to Mohammed when he arrived at Johfa, in his flight from Mecca to Medina, to comfort him, and still his complaints.

Vide R. Ghedal. Shaisu. bakkab. p. 13.

Jallalo'ddin, al Beidâwi.

CHAPTER XXIX.

INTITLED, THE SPIDER; REVEALED AT MECCA.

IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.

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A. L. M. Do men imagine that it shall be sufficient for them to say, We believe; will they not be proved? We heretofore proved those who were before them; for God will surely know them who are sincere, and he will surely know the liars. Do they who work evil think that they shall prevent us from taking vengeance on them? An ill judgment do they make. Whoso hopeth to meet GOD, verily GoD's appointed time will certainly come; and he both heareth and knoweth. Whoever striveth to promote the true religion, striveth for the advantage of his own soul; for GoD needeth not any of his creatures: and as to those who believe and work righteousness, we will expiate their evil deeds from them; and we will give them a reward according to the utmost merit of their actions. We have commanded man to show kindness towards his parents: but if they endeavour to prevail with thee to associate with me that concerning which thou hast no knowledge, obey them not. Unto me shall ye return; and 1 will declare unto you what ye have done. Those who shall believe, and shall work righteousness, we will surely introduce into paradise, among the upright. There are some men who say, We believe in GoD: but when such a one is afflicted for God's sake, he esteemeth the persecution of men to be as grievous as the punishment of God. Yet if success cometh from thy LORD, they say, Verily we are with you. Doth not GoD well know that which is in the breasts of his creatures? Verily GoD well knoweth the true believers, and he well knoweth the hypocrites. The unbelievers say unto those who believe, Follow our way, and we will bear your sins. Howbeit they shall not bear any part of their sins; for they are liars: but they shall surely bear their own burdens, and other burdens besides their own burdens; and they shall be examined, on the day of resurrection, con

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b Transient mention is made of this insect towards the middle of the chapter.

Some think the first ten verses, ending with these words, And he well knoweth the hypocrites, were revealed at Medina, and the rest at Mecca; and others believe the reverse. See the Prelim. Disc. sect. iii. p. 42, &c.

Literally, That they shall be let alone, &c.

This passage reprehends the impatience of some of the prophet's companions, under the hardships which they sustained in defence of their religion, and the losses which they suffered from the infidels; representing to them that such trials and afflictions were necessary to distinguish the sincere person from the hypocrite, and the steady from the wavering. Some suppose it to have been occasioned by the death of Mabja, Omar's slave, killed by an arrow at the battle of Bedr, which was deeply lamented and laid to heart by his wife and parents.

That is, if they endeavour to pervert thee to idolatry. The passage is said to have been revealed on account of Saad Ebn Abi Wakkas, and his mother Hamna, who, when she heard that her son had embraced Mohammedism, swore that she would neither eat not drink till he returned to his old religion, and kept her oath for three days.'

viz. The guilt of seducing others, which shall be added to the guilt of their own obstinacy, without diminishing the guilt of such as shall be seduced by them.

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cerning that which they have falsely devised.

We heretofore sent Noah unto his people; and he tarried among them one thousand years, save fifty years and the deluge took them away, while they were acting unjustly; but we delivered him and those who were in the ark, and we made the same a sign unto all creatures. We also sent Abraham; when he said unto his people, Serve God, and fear him; this will be better for you; if ye understand. Ye only worship idols besides GoD, and forge a lie. Verily those which ye worship, besides GOD, are not able to make any provision for you: seek therefore your provision from GOD; and serve him, and give thanks unto him; unto him shall ye return. If ye charge me with imposture, verily sundry nations before you likewise charged their prophets with imposture: but public preaching only is incumbent on an apostle. Do they not see how GOD produceth creatures, and afterwards restoreth them? Verily this is easy with God. Say, go through the earth, and see how he originally produceth creatures: afterwards will GoD reproduce another production; for GoD is almighty. He will punish whom he pleaseth, and he will have mercy on whom he pleaseth. Before him shall ye be brought at the day of judgment and ye shall not escape his reach, either in earth, or in heaven: " neither shall ye have any patron or defender besides GOD. As for those who believe not in the signs of GoD, or that they shall meet him at the resurrection, they shall despair of my mercy, and for them is a painful punishment prepared. And the answer of his people was no other than that they said, Slay him, or burn him. But GoD saved him from the fire. Verily herein were signs unto people who believed. And Abraham said,

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They shall bear only the burden of their own iniquities, and at the day of resurrection they shall be called on to answer for their falsehood.”—Savary.

This is true, if the whole life of Noah be reckoned; and accordingly Abu'lfeda says he was sent to preach in his two hundred and fiftieth year, and that he lived in all nine hundred and fifty: but the text seeming to speak of those years only which he spent in preaching to the wicked antediluvians, the commentators suppose him to have lived much longer. Some say the whole length of his life was a thousand and fifty years; that his mission happened in the fortieth year of his age, and that he lived after the flood sixty years: and others give different numbers; one, in particular, pretending that Noah lived near sixteen hundred years."

This circumstance, says al Beidâwi, was mentioned to encourage Mohammed, and to assure him that God, who supported Noah so many years against the opposition and plots of the antediluvian infidels, would not fail to defend him against all attempts of the idolatrous Meccans and their partisans.

i e. The ark.

This seems to be part of Abraham's speech to his people: but some suppose that God here speaks, by way of apostrophe, first to the Koreish, and afterwards to Mohammed; and that the parenthesis is continued to these words, And the answer of his people was no other, &c. In which case we should have said, If ye charge Mohammed your apostle with imposture, &c.

The infidels are bid to consider how God causeth the fruits of the earth to spring forth, and reneweth them every year, as in the preceding; which is an argument of his power to raise man, whom he created at first, to life again after death, at his own appointed time.

"Have they not seen how God produceth a creature? It is thus that he will call i to life again. This miracle is easy unto his power."-Savary

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Ye have taken idols, besides GoD, to cement affection between you in this life but on the day of resurrection, the one of you shall deny the other, and the one of you shall curse the other; and your abode shall be hell fire, and there shall be none to deliver you.* And Lot believed op him. And Abraham said, Verily I fly from my people, unto the place which my LORD hath commanded me; for he is the mighty, the wise. And we gave him Isaac and Jacob; and we placed among his descendants the gift of prophecy and the scriptures: and we gave him his reward in this world; and in the next he shall be one of the righteous. We also sent Lot; when he said unto his people, Do ye commit filthiness which no creature hath committed before you? Do ye approach lustfully unto men, and lay wait in the highways, and commit wickedness in your assembly? And the answer of his people was no other than that they said, Bring down the vengeance of GOD upon us, if thou speakest truth. Lot said, O Lord, defend me against the corrupt people. And when our messengers came unto Abraham with good tidings," they said, We will surely destroy the inhabitants of this city; for the inhabitants thereof are unjust doers. Abraham answered, Verily Lot dwelleth there. They replied, We well know who dwelleth therein we will surely deliver him and his family, except his wife; she shall be one of those who remain behind. And when ou. messengers came unto Lot, he was troubled for them, and his arm was straitened concerning them. But they said, Fear not, neither be grieved; for we will deliver thee and thy family, except thy wife; for she shall be one of those who remain behind. We will surely bring down upon the inhabitants of this city vengeance from heaven, for that they have been wicked doers; and we have left thereof a manifest sign unto people who understand. And unto the inhabitants of Madian we sent their brother Shoaib; and he said unto them, O my people, serve GOD, and expect the last day; and transgress not, acting corruptly in the earth. But they accused him of imposture; wherefore a storm from heaven" assailed them,† and in the morning they were found in their dwellings dead and prostrate. And we also destroyed the tribes of Ad, and Thamud; and this is well known unto you from what yet remains of their dwellings. And Satan prepared their works for them, and turned them aside from the way of truth, although they were sagacious people. And we likewise destroyed Karun,

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* "You have lavished, said he, your incense and your love on impotent deities: at the day of resurrection one part of you shall disown the other, and shall load it with curses. Your abode shall be hell, and ye shall not find a defender."-Savary.

Some suppose the Sodomites robbed and murdered the passengers; others, that they unnaturally abused their bodies.

Their meetings being scenes of obscenity and riot.

See chap. 11, p. 182.

See ibid. p. 183.

viz. The story of its destruction, handed down by common tradition; or else its ruins, or some other footsteps of this signal judgment: it being pretended that several of the stones, which fell from heaven on those cities, are still to be seen, and that the ground where they stood appears burnt and blackish.

"See chap. 7, p. 126.

"An earthquake caused them to perish."-Savary.

"The tempter hid vice for them under flowers."-Savary.

Dispute not against those mildest manner:a except

and Pharaoh, and Haman. Moses came unto them with evident miracles, and they behaved themselves insolently in the earth: but they could not escape our vengeance. Every of them did we destroy in his sin. Against some of them we sent a violent wind:▾ some of them did a terrible noise from heaven destroy: some of them did we cause the earth to swallow up: and some of them we drowned. Neither was God disposed to treat them unjustly; but they dealt unjustly with their own souls. The likeness of those who take other patrons besides GoD is as the likeness of the spider, which maketh herself a house: but the weakest of all houses surely is the house of the spider; if they knew this. Moreover God knoweth what things they invoke, besides him; and he is the mighty, the wise. These similitudes do we propound unto men: but none understand them, except the wise. God hath created the heavens and the earth in truth; verily herein is a sign unto the true believers. *[XXI.] Rehearse that which hath been revealed unto thee of the book of the Korân: and be constant at prayer; for prayer preserveth a man from filthy crimes, and from that which is blameable; and the remembering of GOD is surely a most important duty. GOD knoweth that which ye do. who have received the scriptures, unless in the against such of them as behave injuriously towards you: and say, We believe in the revelation which hath been sent down unto us, and also in that which hath been sent down unto you; our GoD and your God is one, and unto him are we resigned. Thus have we sent down the book of the Koran unto thee: and they unto whom we have given the former scriptures believe therein; and of these Arabians also there is who believeth therein and none reject our signs, except the obstinate infidels. Thou couldest not read any book before this; neither couldest thou write it with thy right hand then had the gainsayers justly doubted of the divine original thereof. But the same is evident signs in the breasts of those who have received understanding: for none reject our signs except the unjust. They say, Unless a sign be sent down unto him from his LORD, we will not believe. Answer, Signs are in the power of God alone; and I am no more than a public preacher. Is it not sufficient for them that we have sent down unto thee the book of the Korân, to be read unto them? Verily herein is a mercy, and an admonition unto people who believe. Say, GOD is a sufficient witness between me and you: he knoweth whatever is in heaven and earth; and those who believe in vain idols, and deny Gon, they shall perish. They will urge thee to hasten the punishment which they defy thee to bring down upon them: if there had not been a determined time for

The original word properly signifies a wind that drives the gravel and small stones be fore it; by which the storm, or shower of stones, which destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, seems to be intended.

Which was the end of Ad and Thamud.

As it did Karûn.

As the unbelievers in Noah's time, and Pharaoh and his army.

i. e. Without ill language, or passion. This verse is generally supposed to have been abrogated by that of the sword; though some think it relates only to those who are in ulliance with the Moslems.

See chap. 6, p. 103.

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