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264
THE QUR'ÂN.
LVI, 38-66.
A crowd of those of yore, and a crowd of those of the latter day!
[40] And the fellows of the left-what unlucky fellows!
In hot blasts and boiling water;
And a shade of pitchy smoke,
Neither cool nor generous!
Verily, they were affluent ere this, [45] and did persist
in mighty crime; and used to say, 'What, when we Idie and have become dust and bones, shall we then indeed be raised? or our fathers of yore?' Say, 'Verily, those of yore and those of the latter day [50] shall surely be gathered together unto the tryst of the well-known day.'
Then ye, O ye who err! who say it is a lie! shall
eat of the Zaqqûm tree! and fill your bellies with it! and drink thereon of boiling water! [55] and drink as drinks the thirsty camel.
This is their entertainment on the judgment day! We created you, then why do ye not credit?
Have ye considered what ye emit?
Do we create it, or are we the creators? [60] We have decreed amongst you death; but we are not forestalled from making the likes of you in exchange, or producing you as ye know not of. Ye do know the first production-why then do ye not mind?
Have ye considered what ye till?
Do ye make it bear seed, or do we make it bear seed? [65] If we pleased we could make it mere grit, so that ye would pause to marvel:
'Verily,we have got into debt1 and we are excluded?.'
2 From reaping the fruits of it.
1 I. e. for seed and labour.
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