“Our Lord…”

And when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the house: “Our Lord: be Thou accepting of us; Thou art the Hearing, the Knowing.

“Our Lord: make Thou us submitting to Thee, and of our progeny a community submitting to Thee; and show Thou us our rites, and turn Thou towards us; Thou art the Accepting of Repentance, the Merciful.

“Our Lord: raise Thou up among them a messenger from among them who will recite to them Thy proofs, and teach them the Writ and wisdom, and increase them in purity; Thou art the Exalted in Might, the Wise.”

And when you have concluded your rites, remember God like your remembrance of your fathers, or with stronger remembrance. And among men is he who says: “Our Lord: give Thou to us in the World,” and he has no portion in the Hereafter.

And among them is he who says: “Our Lord: give Thou to us in the World good, and in the Hereafter good, and protect Thou us from the punishment of the Fire.”

And when they emerged against Goliath and his forces, they said: “Our Lord: pour Thou out patience upon us, and make Thou firm our feet; and help Thou us against the people of the false claimers of guidance.”

The Messenger believes in what is sent down to him from his Lord, as do the believers; each believes in God and His angels, and His Writs and His messengers: “We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” And they say: “We hear and we obey; Thy forgiveness our Lord. And to Thee is the journey’s end.”

God burdens not a soul save to its capacity; it has what it earned, and it answers for what it acquired. “Our Lord: take Thou us not to task if we forget or commit offence. Our Lord: lay Thou not upon us a burden as Thou didst lay upon those before us. Our Lord: give Thou us not to bear what we have not strength for. And excuse Thou us, and forgive Thou us, and have Thou mercy upon us; Thou art our protector. And help Thou us against the people of the false claimers of guidance.”

“Our Lord: make Thou not our hearts to deviate after Thou hast guided us; and bestow Thou upon us mercy from Thyself; Thou art the Bestower.

“Our Lord: Thou art gathering mankind to a day about which there is no doubt”; God will not break the appointment.

Those who say: “Our Lord: we believe, so forgive Thou us our transgressions, and protect Thou us from the punishment of the Fire,”

“Our Lord: we believe in what Thou hast sent down, and we follow the Messenger, so write Thou us down with the witnesses.”

And their word was only that they said: “Our Lord: forgive Thou us our transgressions, and our excess in our affair, and make Thou firm our feet; and help Thou us against the people of the false claimers of guidance.”

Those who remember God, standing and sitting and on their sides, and reflect upon the creation of the heavens and the earth: “Our Lord: Thou createdst not this to no purpose. Glory be to Thee! And protect Thou us from the punishment of the Fire!

“Our Lord: whom Thou causest to enter the Fire: him hast Thou disgraced”; and there are for the wrongdoers no helpers.

“Our Lord: we have heard a caller calling to faith: ‘Believe in your Lord!’ And we have believed. Our Lord: forgive Thou us our transgressions, and remove Thou from us our evil deeds; and take Thou us with the virtuous.

“Our Lord: give Thou us what Thou hast promised us by Thy messengers, and disgrace Thou us not on the Day of Resurrection; Thou wilt not break the appointment.”

And why should you not fight in the cause of God, and of the oppressed among the men, and the women, and the children who say: “Our Lord: take Thou us out of this city whose people are wrongdoers; and give Thou us from Thyself an ally; and give Thou us from Thyself a helper”?

Hast thou not considered those to whom it was said: “Restrain your hands; and uphold the duty, and render the purity,” but when fighting is prescribed for them, then a faction among them fears men like the fear of God, or a stronger fear? And they said: “Our Lord: why hast Thou prescribed fighting for us? Oh, that Thou wouldst but delay us a little while!” Say thou: “Little is the enjoyment of the World”; and the Hereafter is better for him who is in prudent fear; and you will not be wronged a hair upon a date-stone.

And when they listen to what has been sent down to the Messenger, thou seest their eyes overflow with tears because of what they recognise of the truth. They say: “Our Lord: we believe, so write Thou us down among the witnesses;

Jesus, son of Mary said: “O God, our Lord: send Thou down upon us a table spread from the sky to be a feast for us — for the first of us and the last of us — and a proof from Thee; and give Thou us provision; and Thou art the best of providers.”

And the day He gathers them all together: “O congregation of domini: you have desired many among the servi.” And their allies among the servi will say: “Our Lord: we benefited one another; but we have reached our term which Thou appointedst for us.” He will say: “The Fire is your dwelling, you abiding eternally therein!” save that God should will; thy Lord is wise and knowing.

They said: “Our Lord: we have wronged our souls; and if Thou forgive us not and have not mercy on us, we will be among the losers.”

He will say: “Enter among the communities that have passed away before you of domini and servi into the Fire!” Whenever a community enters, it curses its sister; when they have followed one another therein all together, the last of them will say to the first of them: “Our Lord: these led us astray; so give Thou them double punishment of the Fire!” He will say: “For each is double, but you know not.”

And when their eyes are turned towards the companions of the Fire, they say: “Our Lord: place Thou not us with the wrongdoing people.”

“We should have invented a lie about God if we returned to your creed after God has delivered us from it. It is not for us to return to it save if God our Lord should will. Our Lord encompasses all things in knowledge. In God have we placed our trust.” — “Our Lord, decide Thou between us and our people with justice, for Thou art the best of those who give decision.”

“And thou resentest us only that we believed in the proofs of our Lord when they came to us.” — “Our Lord: pour Thou out patience upon us, and take Thou us as ones submitting.”

And they said: “In God have we placed our trust.” — “Our Lord: make Thou not us a means of denial for the wrongdoing people,

And Moses said: “Our Lord: Thou hast given Pharaoh and his eminent ones adornment and wealth in the life of this world, our Lord, that they might lead astray from Thy path. Our Lord: destroy Thou their wealth, and harden Thou their hearts, so that they believe not until they see the painful punishment.”

“Our Lord: I have settled some of my progeny in an uncultivated valley by Thy inviolable house, our Lord, that they uphold the duty; so make Thou hearts among men incline towards them, and provide Thou them some fruits, that they might be grateful.

“Our Lord: Thou knowest what we hide, and what we make known; and nothing is hidden from God in the earth or in the heaven.

“My Lord: make Thou me one upholding the duty, and of my progeny, our Lord, and accept Thou my supplication.

“Our Lord: forgive Thou me, and my parents, and the believers, the day the reckoning takes place.”)

And warn thou mankind of a day the punishment will come upon them, and those who did wrong will say: “Our Lord: delay Thou us for a short term: we will respond to Thy call and follow the messengers.” — “Did you not swear before that there would be no end for you?

And when those who ascribe a partnership see their partners, they will say: “Our Lord: these are our partners to whom we called, rather than to Thee.” But they will cast at them the word: “You are liars!”

(When the young men took shelter in the cave and said: “Our Lord: give Thou us mercy from Thyself, and furnish Thou us out of our affair with rectitude,”

They said: “Our Lord: we fear lest he hasten against us, or that he will transgress.”

And had We destroyed them with a punishment before him, they would have said: “Our Lord: oh, that Thou hadst but sent to us a messenger, so we might have followed Thy proofs before we were humiliated and disgraced!”

They will say: “Our Lord: our wretchedness overcame us, and we were a people astray.

“Our Lord: turn Thou us out therefrom; if we return, then are we wrongdoers.”

“A faction among My servants said: ‘Our Lord: we believe, then forgive Thou us, and have mercy on us; and Thou art the best of those who have mercy.’

And who say: “Our Lord: avert Thou from us the punishment of Gehenna”; (the punishment thereof is unrelenting,

And who say: “Our Lord: give Thou to us from our wives and our progeny a comfort of the eyes, and make Thou us a model for those of prudent fear,”

And were it not that calamity should befall them because of what their hands sent ahead. Then will they say: “Our Lord: oh, that Thou hadst but sent for us a messenger, then would we have followed Thy proofs and been among the believers!”

Those upon whom the word has become binding will say: “Our Lord: these are they whom we caused to err. We caused them to err even as we ourselves did err. We declare our innocence to Thee; it was not us that they served.”

And if thou couldst see when the lawbreakers will hang their heads before their Lord: “Our Lord: we have seen and heard, so send Thou us back. We will work righteousness! We are those who are certain!”

And they will say: “Our Lord: we obeyed our masters and our great men, but they led us astray in the path.

“Our Lord: give Thou them double punishment, and curse Thou them with a great curse!”

But they said: “Long has our Lord made the distance between our journeys”; and they wronged their souls, and We made them tales told, and scattered them utterly. In that are proofs for everyone patient and grateful.

And they will cry out therein: “Our Lord: take Thou us out! We will work righteousness — other than what we did!” — “Did We not give you life, that there should take heed therein whoso would take heed? And the warner came to you — so taste!” And the wrongdoers have no helper.

And they say: “Our Lord: hasten Thou for us our lot before the Day of Reckoning!”

They will say: “Our Lord: whoso sent this ahead for us, increase Thou for him a double punishment in the Fire.”

Those who bear the Throne and those round about it give glory with the praise of their Lord, and believe in Him, and ask forgiveness for those who heed warning: “Our Lord: Thou encompassest all things in mercy and knowledge, so forgive Thou those who have repented and followed Thy path, and protect Thou them from the punishment of Hell!

“Our Lord: make Thou them enter the Gardens of Perpetual Abode which Thou hast promised them and whoso was righteous among their fathers, and their wives, and their progeny — Thou art the Exalted in Might, the Wise —

(They will say: “Our Lord: twice hast Thou given us death, and twice hast Thou given us life; and we have confessed our transgressions — is there to a way out any path?”)

And those who ignore warning will say: “Our Lord: show Thou us those who led us astray of the domini and the servi; we will place them under our feet, that they might be among the lowest!”

“Our Lord: remove Thou from us the punishment; we are believers!”

His companion will say: “Our Lord: I did not cause him to transgress, but he was in extreme error.”

And those who came after them, they say: “Our Lord: forgive Thou us and our brethren who preceded us in faith, and put Thou not in our hearts rancour towards those who heed warning. Our Lord: thou art kind and merciful.”

There was for you a good model in Abraham and those with him when they said to their people: “We are quit of you and what you serve besides God. We deny you, and become clear between us and you are enmity and hatred forever until you believe in God alone,” — save the saying of Abraham to his father: “I will ask forgiveness for thee, but I have no power for thee against God.” — “Our Lord: in Thee we place our trust; and to Thee have we turned; and to Thee is the journey’s end.

“Our Lord: make Thou not us a means of denial for those who ignore warning; and forgive Thou us. Our Lord: thou art the Exalted in Might, the Wise.”

O you who heed warning: turn to God in sincere repentance. It may be that your Lord will remove from you your evil deeds, and make you enter gardens beneath which rivers flow. The day God will not disgrace the Prophet and those who heed warning with him, their light running before them and on their right hand, they will say: “Our Lord: perfect Thou for us our light, and forgive Thou us; Thou art over all things powerful.”