Surah Al-'Aĥzāb (The Combined Forces) in English

1. وإذ أخذنا من النبيين ميثاقهم ومنك ومن نوح وإبراهيم وموسى وعيسى ابن مريم وأخذنا منهم ميثاقا غليظا

   7

   [Recall] when We took a pledge from the prophets, and from you and from Noah and Abraham and Moses and Jesus son of Mary, and We took from them a solemn pledge,

   wa-ʾidh ʾakhadhnā mina n-nabiyyīna mīthāqahum wa-minka wa-min nūḥin wa-ʾibrāhīma wa-mūsā wa-ʿīsā bni maryama wa-ʾakhadhnā minhum mīthāqan ghalīẓan

2. ليسأل الصادقين عن صدقهم وأعد للكافرين عذابا أليما

   8

   so that He may question the truthful concerning their truthfulness. And He has prepared for the faithless a painful punishment.

   li-yasʾala ṣ-ṣādiqīna ʿan ṣidqihim wa-ʾaʿadda li-l-kāfirīna ʿadhāban ʾalīman

3. يا أيها الذين آمنوا اذكروا نعمة الله عليكم إذ جاءتكم جنود فأرسلنا عليهم ريحا وجنودا لم تروها وكان الله بما تعملون بصيرا

   9

   O you who have faith! Remember Allah’s blessing upon you when the hosts came at you, and We sent against them a gale and hosts whom you did not see, and Allah sees best what you do.

   yā-ʾayyuhā lladhīna ʾāmanū dhkurū niʿmata llāhi ʿalaykum ʾidh jāʾatkum junūdun fa-ʾarsalnā ʿalayhim rīḥan wa-junūdan lam tarawhā wa-kāna llāhu bi-mā taʿmalūna baṣīran

4. إذ جاءوكم من فوقكم ومن أسفل منكم وإذ زاغت الأبصار وبلغت القلوب الحناجر وتظنون بالله الظنونا

   10

   When they came at you from above and below you, and when the eyes rolled [with fear] and the hearts leapt to the throats, and you entertained misgivings about Allah,

   ʾidh jāʾūkum min fawqikum wa-min ʾasfala minkum wa-ʾidh zāghati l-ʾabṣāru wa-balaghati l-qulūbu l-ḥanājira wa-taẓunnūna bi-llāhi ẓ-ẓunūna

5. هنالك ابتلي المؤمنون وزلزلوا زلزالا شديدا

   11

   it was there that the faithful were tested and jolted with a severe agitation.

   hunālika btuliya l-muʾminūna wa-zulzilū zilzālan shadīdan

6. وإذ يقول المنافقون والذين في قلوبهم مرض ما وعدنا الله ورسوله إلا غرورا

   12

   When the hypocrites, as well as those in whose hearts is a sickness, were saying, ‘Allah and His Apostle did not promise us [anything] except delusion.’

   wa-ʾidh yaqūlu l-munāfiqūna wa-lladhīna fī qulūbihim maraḍun mā waʿadanā llāhu wa-rasūluhū ʾillā ghurūran

7. وإذ قالت طائفة منهم يا أهل يثرب لا مقام لكم فارجعوا ويستأذن فريق منهم النبي يقولون إن بيوتنا عورة وما هي بعورة إن يريدون إلا فرارا

   13

   And when a group of them said, ‘O people of Yathrib! [This is] not a place for you, so go back!’ A group of them sought the Prophet’s permission [to leave the scene of battle], saying, ‘Our homes lie exposed [to the enemy],’ although they were not exposed. They only sought to flee.

   wa-ʾidh qālat ṭāʾifatun minhum yā-ʾahla yathriba lā muqāma lakum fa-rjiʿū wa-yastaʾdhinu farīqun minhumu n-nabiyya yaqūlūna ʾinna buyūtanā ʿawratun wa-mā hiya bi-ʿawratin ʾin yurīdūna ʾillā firāran

8. ولو دخلت عليهم من أقطارها ثم سئلوا الفتنة لآتوها وما تلبثوا بها إلا يسيرا

   14

   Had they been invaded from its flanks and had they been asked to apostatize, they would have done so with only a mild hesitation,

   wa-law dukhilat ʿalayhim min ʾaqṭārihā thumma suʾilū l-fitnata la-ʾātawhā wa-mā talabbathū bihā ʾillā yasīran

9. ولقد كانوا عاهدوا الله من قبل لا يولون الأدبار وكان عهد الله مسئولا

   15

   though they had already pledged to Allah before that they would not turn their backs [to flee], and pledges given to Allah are accountable.

   wa-la-qad kānū ʿāhadū llāha min qablu lā yuwallūna l-ʾadbāra wa-kāna ʿahdu llāhi masʾūlan