Episode 37: The tree of Zaqqum (Surahs 44-46)

Surah 44: Smoke (Al-Dukhan)

We revealed it on a blessed night

¹ Ha. Mim. 2 This is scripture made plain. ³ We [Allah] revealed it on a blessed night.

Watch out for the smoke

¹⁰ Watch (Muhammad) for the day when there's smoke in the sky. ¹¹ It will envelop the people and will be a painful torment.

¹² They will say, “Oh Lord, stop tormenting us.”

¹³ But they rejected the messenger, saying, “He's a madman.”

¹⁵ If we decrease the torture a little, you'll return to disbelief. ¹⁶ So we'll punish them with an even greater torment.

Give me the slaves of Allah

^17-21 We sent a noble messenger to Pharaoh's folk, who said,

Give me the slaves of Allah. I have a clear warrant. I seek refuge in my Lord and your Lord. So please don't stone me. If you don't believe me, just let me go.

²² And he cried to his Lord, saying, “These folks are guilty.”

^23-24 His Lord said,

Take my slaves at night. You will be followed. Walk across the sea. I'll drown those that try to follow you.

³⁰ And we delivered the Israelites from the Pharaoh and the shameful doom. 32 They were our favorite creatures.

The folk of Tubb'a

³⁴ Some people are saying, “There's no life after death.”

³⁷ Are they better than the folk of Tubb'a? We destroyed them because they were guilty.

^40-41 The day of decision is the day when friends won't be able to help their friends.

The tree of Zaqqum

⁴³ Lo! the tree of Zaqqum. ⁴⁴ The food of the sinner! ^45-46 Like molten brass, it burns their bellies.

⁴⁷ Someone will say, “Drag him to the bottom of hell. ⁴⁸ Then torment him by pouring boiling water on his head. ^49-50 Lo! This is what you used to doubt.”

Lovely eyes

^51-53 Those who kept their duty will be dressed in silk and placed in a garden.

⁵⁴ We will wed them to fair maidens with lovely wide eyes.

⁵⁶ He has saved them from the doom of hell.

⁵⁸ We've made this scripture in your language, so it'll be easy to read.

Surah 45: Crouching (Al-Jathiyah)

Tidings of a painful doom

¹ Ha. Mim. ^7-8 Woe to the sinful liar, who hears Allah's revelations recited to him and rejects them. Give him tidings of a painful doom. ⁹ Those who make fun of the our [Allah's] revelations will have a shameful doom. ¹⁰ They will go to hell. Theirs will be an awful doom. ¹¹ Disbelievers will have a painful doom of wrath.

Allah liked the Jews more than everyone else

¹⁶ We gave the Israelites the scripture, the commandments, and favored them over everyone else.

You laughed at Allah's revelations

²³ Allah purposely sends some people astray, making it impossible for them to hear or see.

²⁴ They say, “We only live once, and then we die. Nothing destroys us except for time.”

^28-29 You'll see each nation crouching. Someone will say to them, “Today you'll pay what you used to do. It's all written down in this book.”

^30-31 Then Allah will say to the disbelievers, “Weren't our revelations recited to you? But you were a scornful and guilty folk.”

³² When you were told that the hour's coming, you said, “We don't know when that will be - and you don't either.”

^34-35 Then someone will say to them, “You're going to live in the fire, and no one will help you. Because you laughed at Allah's revelations.”

³⁶ Praise Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

Surah 46: The Wind-Curved Sandals (Al-Ahqaf)

This is mere magic

¹ Ha. Mim. ^7-8 When our [Allah's] revelations are recited to them, the disbelievers say, “This is mere magic. Did he invent it?”

¹⁵ Be kind to your parents.

The doom of a tremendous day

²⁰ When the disbelievers are exposed to the fire, someone will say to them, “You sought comfort in this world, now you are rewarded with the doom of ignominy.”

²¹ Oh, and be sure to tell them about the brother of A'ad when he warned the people about the wind-curved sandhills. And of the warners who said, “Only serve Allah or face the doom of a tremendous day.”

^24-25 Then they saw a dense cloud coming toward their valleys, and they said, "This is a cloud bringing us rain." But it was a wind with painful torment that completely destroyed them. That's what we do to guilty folk.

²⁷ We have destroyed towns around you and displayed them for you to see.

Jinn who wanted to hear the Quran

²⁹ We inspired some jinn to hear the Quran, and they told the other jinn about it. ^30-32 Some of the jinn believed it and some did not.

³⁴ When disbelievers are exposed to the fire, they'll be asked, “Is the fire real?”

And the disbelievers will say, "Yes, it's real."

Then Allah will say to them, “Taste the doom for disbelieving.”