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XLIV, 17-39.
me God's servants; verily, I am to you a faithful apostle; and, 'Exalt not yourselves above God; verily, I come to you with obvious authority. And, verily, I seek refuge in my Lord and your Lord, that ye stone me not. [20] And if ye believe not in me then let me alone!'
THE CHAPTER OF SMOKE.
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Then he called upon his Lord, 'Verily, these are a sinful people.' So journey with my servants by night verily, ye will be pursued. But leave the sea in quiet verily, they are a host to be drowned! How many gardens and springs have they left, [25] and corn lands and a noble place, and comfort wherein they did enjoy themselves!
Thus and we gave them for an inheritance to another people. And the heaven wept not for them, nor the earth, nor were they respited.
But we saved the children of Israel from shameful woe!-[30]-from Pharaoh; verily, he was haughty, one of the extravagant! And we did choose them, wittingly, above the worlds; and we gave them signs wherein was an obvious trial!
Verily, these1 say, 'It is but our first death, so bring our fathers, if ye do speak the truth!'
[35] Are they better than the people of Tubbâ'h3, and those before them? We destroyed them— verily, they were sinners!
Nor did we create the heavens and the earth, and what is between the two in sport: we did but create them in truth, though most of them know it not!
1 The Meccans.
2 I. e. we shall only die once.
The Himyarite Arabs, whose kings were called Tubbâ'h, i. e. 'successors.'
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