AL MUZZAMMIL (The Enfolded One)
In the Name of God,1 the Gracious, the Merciful 2
1 O you folded in garments!
2 Stand by night, but not all night,
3 Half of it, or a little less,
4 Or a little more; and recite the Quran in slow, measured rhythmic tones.
5 Soon shall we send down to you a weighty message.
6 Truly rising by night is most effective and most suitable for the word.
7 True, there is for you by day prolonged occupation with ordinary duties:
8 But keep in remembrance the name of your Lord and devote yourself to him wholeheartedly.
9 Lord of the east and the west: there is no god but he: take him therefore for disposer of affairs.
10 And have patience with what they say, and leave them with noble dignity.
11 And leave me those who have the good things of life, who deny the truth; and bear with them for a little while.
12 With us are fetters and a fire,
13 And a food that chokes, and a penalty grievous.
14 One day the earth and the mountains will be in violent commotion. And the mountains will be as a heap of sand poured out and flowing down.
15 We have sent to you a messenger to be a witness concerning you, even as we sent a messenger to Firaun.
16 But Firaun disobeyed the messenger; so we seized him with a heavy punishment.
17 If you deny, how shall you guard yourselves against a day that will turn children’s hair grey?
18 On which the sky will be split apart? His promise needs must be accomplished.
19 Truly this is an admonition: therefore, whoever will, let him take a path to his Lord!
20 Your Lord knows that you stand forth almost two thirds of the night, or half the night, or a third of the night, and so does a party of those with you. But God appoints night and day in due measure. He knows that you are unable to keep count of it. So he has turned to you: read therefore, of the Quran as much as may be easy for you. He knows that there may be some among you in ill health; others travelling through the land, seeking of God’s bounty; yet others fighting in God’s cause. Read therefore, as much of the Quran as may be easy; and establish regular prayer and give regular charity; and loan to God a beautiful loan. And whatever good you send forth for your souls, you shall find it in God’s presence, yes, better and greater, in reward. And seek the grace of God: for God is oft-forgiving, most merciful.
- God, in Arabic allah, referring to the one true God, as opposed to an idol or “god.” It is the Arabic equivalent of elohim and eloah (Hebrew), alaha (Syriac), and theos (Greek), all of which accurately translate into English as “God.” This translation choice is consistent with respected English Quran translations including those of A. Yusuf Ali (original edition), S.H. Nasr (Study Quran), T.B. Irving, and T. Itani (Clear Quran). ↩︎
- the Gracious, the Merciful, the highlighting of God’s grace and mercy predates the Quran, coming down from the many hundreds of references in the Taurat, Zabur, and Injil. A few samples follow:
Taurat, Exodus 34:6 — …YAHWEH, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth.
Zabur 145:8 — YAHWEH is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great loving kindness.
Taurat, Joel 2:13 — Tear your heart, and not your garments, and turn to YAHWEH your God; for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and relents from sending calamity.
Taurat, Yunus 4:2 — …I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and you relent of doing harm.”
Injil, 1 Timothy 1:2 — …Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and AL-MASIH ‘ISA our Lord.
Injil, Hebrews 4:16 — Let us therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace for help in time of need. ↩︎