Texts of Islam

The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'ân,: 38. Sad: Sad

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This is Surah 38 (Sad) from M.M. Pickthall's early 20th-century English translation of the Quran, a reverent rendering that preserves archaic biblical diction ("Lo!", "thee/thou") to convey the text's solemnity. The surah opens by rebuking Meccan leaders who dismiss the Prophet as a fraud and reject monotheism, then grounds their fate in a pattern of earlier peoples — Noah's folk, ʿĀd, Thamūd, Lot's people — who likewise rejected messengers and were destroyed. The chapter's substantial middle section retells the stories of David (tested by the parable of the unjust shepherd, appointed as God's viceroy on earth), Solomon (granted dominion over wind and spirits after a moment of worldly distraction), and Job (afflicted by Satan and ultimately restored), presenting each as a model of repentance and steadfast servitude. A sharp contrast is then drawn between the reward awaiting the righteous — lush Gardens of Eden — and the punishment of the transgressors in Hell, where misleaders and the misled blame each other bitterly. The surah closes with the primordial story of Iblis (Satan), who refused to prostrate before Adam out of pride in his fiery origin and was cursed, vowing to lead humanity astray — establishing the archetypal context for the disbelief the chapter opens by condemning. Muhammad's role throughout is framed as that of a plain warner with no personal stake, delivering a universal reminder whose truth will ultimately be confirmed.

The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'ân,: 38. Sad: Sad

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