15. al-Hijr, Mecca 54

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

إِلاَّ عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ ﴿٤٠﴾

15: 40.  "Except Thy servants among them, sincere and purified (by Thy grace)."

قَالَ هَذَا صِرَاطٌ عَلَيَّ مُسْتَقِيمٌ ﴿٤١﴾

15: 41.  (Allah) said:

"This (Way of My sincere servants) is indeed a Way that leads straight to Me.

C1976. To be sincere in the worship of Allah is to obtain purification from all stain of evil and exemption from all influence of evil. It changes the whole nature of man. After that, evil cannot touch him. Evil will acknowledge him to be beyond its power and will not even tempt him.

Apart from such purified souls, everyone who worships Allah invites Allah's grace to protect him. But if he puts himself in the way of wrong and deliberately chooses evil, he must take the consequences. The blame is not even on Satan, the power of evil, it is on the sinner himself, who puts himself into his power; 14:22: 15:42.

إِنَّ عِبَادِي لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَانٌ...   

15: 42.  "For over My servants no authority shalt thou have,

...إِلاَّ مَنِ اتَّبَعَكَ مِنَ الْغَاوِينَ ﴿٤٢﴾

except such as put themselves in the wrong and follow thee."

Other Versions:

15: 40

Pickthall Save such of them as are Thy perfectly devoted slaves.

Yuksel "Except Your devoted servants."

Transliteration Illa_ 'iba_daka minhumul mukhlasin(a).

15: 41

Pickthall He said: This is a right course incumbent upon Me:

Yuksel He said, "This is a straight path to Me."

Transliteration Qa_la ha_za_ sira_tun 'alayya mustaqim(un).

15: 42

Pickthall Lo! as for My slaves, thou hast no power over any of them save such of the froward as follow thee,

Yuksel "For My servants, you shall have no authority over them, except those who are misled and follow you."

Transliteration Inna 'iba_di laisa laka 'alaihim sulta_nun illa_ man-ittaba'aka minal ga_win(a).