10. Yunus

And recite, O Muhammad (s), to them, that is, [to] the Meccan disbelievers, the story, the tale, of Noah (Nūhin is substituted by [the following, idh qāla]) when he said to his people, ‘O my people, if my sojourn, my stay among you, is too great [to bear], is a hardship, for you, as is my reminding you, my admonishing you, by the signs of God, in God have I put my trust; so decide upon your course of action, resolve upon what you will do to me, together with your associates (wa-shurakā’akum: the wāw [wa-] means here ‘with’), then let not your decision be a secret between you, concealed, nay, manifest it and proclaim it to me; then implement it against me, carry out what you desire, and do not put it off, [do not] give me respite, for I am not concerned by you.

But if you turn away, from my reminding [you], I have not asked you for any wage, any reward for it, so turn [and go] away: my wage, my reward, falls only on God, and I have been commanded to be of those who submit [to God]’.

But they denied him, so We saved him and those with him in the Ark, and made them, that is, those with him, successors, in the earth, and We drowned those who denied Our signs, by [unleashing] the Flood. Behold then the nature of the consequence for those who had been warned!, in that they were destroyed: likewise We deal with those who deny.

Then, after him, that is, [after] Noah, We sent messengers to their people, such as Abraham, Hūd and Sālih, and they brought them clear proofs, miracles, but it was not for them to believe in that which they had denied before, that is, before the sending of messengers to them. Thus do We seal, stamp [upon], the hearts of the transgressors — so that they cannot accept faith — in the same way that We sealed the hearts of those [before].

Then, after them, We sent Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh and his council, that is, his folk, with Our, nine, signs, but they were disdainful, to believe in them, and were a sinful folk.

So, when the Truth came to them from Us, they said, ‘Surely this is manifest sorcery’, [sorcery that is] clear and evident.

Moses said, ‘Do you say [so] of the Truth when it has come to you, that it is sorcery? Is this sorcery?, when the one who has brought it has indeed prospered and has invalidated the sorcery of the sorcerers? Now sorcerers do not prosper’ (the interrogative in both instances is meant as a disavowal).

They said, ‘Have you come to us to divert us, to turn us away, from what we found our fathers following, and that yours both might be the greatness, the kingship, in the land, the land of Egypt? We will not believe you two’.

And Pharaoh said, ‘Bring me every cunning sorcerer’, [every] individual excelling in the art of sorcery.

And when the sorcerers came, Moses said to them, after they had said to him, Either you cast, or we shall be the casters! [Q. 7:115]: ‘Cast your cast!’