14. Surah Ibrahim

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

وَآتَاكُم مِّن كُلِّ مَا سَأَلْتُمُوهُ...   

14:34.  And He giveth you of all that ye ask for.

C1910. Sincere and true prayer in faith is answered by Allah. Thus He gives us everything which a wise and benevolent Providence can give.

...وَإِن تَعُدُّواْ نِعْمَتَ اللّهِ لاَ تُحْصُوهَا...

But if ye count the favors of Allah, never will ye be able to number them:

...إِنَّ الإِنسَانَ لَظَلُومٌ كَفَّارٌ ﴿٣٤﴾

verily, man is given up to injustice and ingratitude.

C1911. I have tried to render the intensive forms of the Arabic by what I consider their near equivalent here:

the phrase "given up to injustice and ingratitude" suggests habitual ignoring of just values and ingratitude for the innumerable gifts and favours which Allah has showered on mankind.

Other versions:

14: 34

Asad And does He give you something out of what you may be asking of Him; and should you try to count God’s blessings, you could never compute them. [And yet] behold, man is indeed most persistent in wrongdoing, stubbornly ingrate!

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Pickthall And He giveth you of all ye ask of Him, and if ye would count the bounty of Allah ye cannot reckon it. Lo! man is verily a wrong-doer, an ingrate.

Transliteration Wa a_ta_kum min kulli ma_ sa'altumu_h(u), wa in ta'uddu_ ni'matalla_hi la_ tuhsa_ha_, innal insa_na lazalu_mun kaffa_r(un).

[Ali’s note: 1910 Sincere and true prayer in faith is answered by Allah. Thus He gives us everything which a wise and benevolent Providence can give. (14.34)

1911. I have tried to render the intensive forms of the Arabic by what I consider their near equivalent here: the phrase "given up to injustice and ingratitude" suggests habitual ignoring of just values and ingratitude for the innumerable gifts and favours which Allah has showered on mankind. (14.34)]

[Asad note 47: God satisfies every one of man’s desires, provided that His unfathomable wisdom regards its satisfaction as ultimately beneficial to the human being concerned: this is the meaning of the preposition min preceding the phrase “what you may be asking”. ]