Marked words appear in this translation and in no other English translation of this verse. Common small words and older spellings are not marked. The marks show where the wording differs, not where the meaning does.
Talal Itani· published 2012
Otherwise, if a calamity befell them as a result of what their hands have perpetrated, they would say, "Our Lord, if only You had sent us a messenger, we would have followed Your revelations, and been among the believers."
Translation Talal Itani, ClearQuran·Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall1875–1936 · published 1930
Otherwise, if disaster should afflict them because of that which their own hands have sent before (them), they might say: Our Lord! Why sentest Thou no messenger unto us, that we might have followed Thy revelations and been of the believers
Sources
Translation Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran·Public domain — copyright term expired
Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran·1930 translation, digital edition of unverified printing·None — public domain work
·Public domain — copyright term expired·retrieved 24 Aug 2026
Edward Henry Palmer1840–1882 · published 1880
And lest there should befall them a mishap for what their hands have sent before, and they should say, 'Our Lord! why didst thou not send to us an apostle? for we would have followed thy signs and been of the believers
Sources
Translation Edward Henry Palmer, English translation of the Qur'an·Public domain — copyright term expired
And that they should not say when a calamity shall befal them for their previoushandywork, "O our Lord! why hast thou not sent an Apostle to us? Then we should have followed thy signs and have been of the believers
Sources
Translation John Medows Rodwell, English translation of the Qur'an·Public domain — copyright term expired
and lest, if a calamity had befallen them, for that which their hands had previouslycommitted, they should have said, O Lord, since thou hast not sent an apostle unto us, that we might follow thy signs, and becometrue believers, are we not excusable
Sources
Translation George Sale, English translation of the Qur'an·Public domain — copyright term expired
George Sale, English translation of the Qur'an·1734 translation, digital edition of unverified printing·None — public domain work
·Public domain — copyright term expired·retrieved 24 Aug 2026
Other languages (18)Shqip · Albanian
dhe që, kur t'i godasë ndonjë fatkeqësi për shkak të asaj që kanë bërë duart e tyre, të mos thonë: "Zoti ynë, përse nuk na çove ndonjë të dërguar, që të mund t’i pasonim ajetet e Tua e të bëheshim besimtarë?"
Translated by the team of Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.5
বাংলা · Bengali
আর (তাদের কাছে রাসূল না পাঠালে) তাদের কৃতকর্মের কারণে তাদের ওপর কোনো বিপদ (শাস্তি) আসলে তারা যাতে বলতে না পারে, ‘হে আমাদের রব, আপনি আমাদের কাছে কোনো রাসূল পাঠালেন না কেন? তাহলে আমরা আপনার আয়াতসমূহ অনুসরণ করতাম, আর আমরা মু’মিনদের অন্তর্ভুক্ত হতাম।’
Translated by the team of Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Dawah Association in Rabwah, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.1.2
Bosanski · Bosnian
i da ne reknu kad ih kazna stigne zbog onog što su počinili: “Gospodaru naš, zašto nam nisi poslao poslanika, pa da dokaze Tvoje slijedimo i vjernici budemo?”
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 2.0.4
Hrvatski · Croatian
i da ne reknu kad ih kazna stigne zbog onog što su počinili: “Gospodaru naš, zašto nam nisi poslao poslanika, pa da dokaze Tvoje slijedimo i vjernici budemo?”
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.1
Fulfulde · Fulani
Si wonaano fii yo lepte yanir e maɓɓe, sabu ko juuɗe maɓɓe ardini, ɓe wi'ayno: "Joomi amen, ko haɗno imminaa Nulaaɗo e amen? Min njokka nun aayeeje Maa ɗen, men njeyee e gooŋɗimɓe ɓen".
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.2
ქართული · Georgian
და რომ არა (ის, რომ) (ჩვენ) გამოგგზავნეთ შენ მოციქულად, მაშინ, როცა მათ [ურწმუნოებს] უბედურება დაატყდებოდათ თავს იმის გამო, რაც მათმა ხელებმა მოიმზადეს, ისინი იტყოდნენ: «უფალო ჩვენო, ნეტავ გამოგეგზავნა ჩვენთან მოციქული, და ჩვენ გავყვებოდით შენს აიათებს და ვიქნებოდით მორწმუნენი!»
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.7
Deutsch · German
Und (wenn Wir dich nicht gesandt hätten und es) hätte sie (dann) ein Unglück getroffen aufgrund dessen, was ihre Hände vorausgeschickt haben, hätten sie (sich entschuldigend) gesagt: „Unser Herr, hättest Du doch einen Gesandten zu uns gesandt, sodass wir Deinen Zeichen hätten folgen können und zu den Gläubigen hätten gehören können!“
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.15
Ελληνικά · Greek
Αν (πριν σε στείλουμε, ω, Μωχάμμαντ) τους έπληττε μία τιμωρία για ό,τι διέπραξαν, θα έλεγαν: «Κύριέ μας! Αν μας έστελνες έναν Αγγελιαφόρο, θα ακολουθούσαμε τα Εδάφιά Σου, και θα ήμασταν από τους πιστούς!»
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.2
हिन्दी · Hindi
तथा यदि ऐसा न होता कि उन्हें उसके कारण कोई विपत्ति पहुँचेगी जो उनके हाथों ने आगे भेजा, तो वे कहेंगे : ऐ हमारे पालनहार! तूने हमारी ओर कोई रसूल क्यों न भेजा कि हम तेरी आयतों का अनुसरण करते और ईमान वालों में से हो जाते।[12]
Translated by Azizul Haq Al-Omari
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.1.5
Italiano · Italian
E se li coglie una disgrazia per ciò che le loro mani hanno fatto, dicono: «Dio nostro, se ci avessi inviato un Messaggero per poter seguire i Tuoi precetti ed essere tra i credenti!»
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.2
Lietuvių · Lithuanian
47. Ir jei (Mes) nebūtume (siuntę tavęs Mekkos žmonėms) – jei nelaimė užkluptų juos dėl to (veiksmų), ką jų rankos darė, jie būtų sakę: „Mūsų Viešpatie, kodėl Tu neatsiuntei mums Pasiuntinio? Mes tada būtume pasekę Tavo Ajat (Korano Eilutėmis) ir būtume buvę tarp tikinčiųjų.“
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.0
Русский · Russian
И если бы не то, что, когда их постигло бы бедствие за то, что уготовили их руки, они сказали бы: «Господь наш! Почему Ты не послал к нам посланника, чтобы мы последовали за Твоими знамениями и были из числа верующих?», — [Мы подвергли бы их наказанию].
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.1
Српски · Serbian
И да не кажу, када их задеси несрећа због онога што су починили: „Господару наш, зашто нам ниси послао посланика, па да Твоје доказе следимо и да будемо верници?“
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.4
Kiswahili · Swahili
Na usije kuwasibu msiba kwa iliyoyatanguliza mikono yao, wakasema, "Ewe Mola wetu Mlezi, mbona hukututumia Mtume nasi, tukafuata Ishara zako, na tukawa miongoni mwa Waumini?"
Issued by the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.5
Svenska · Swedish
Om inte detta hade skett skulle de, när de drabbades av ett straff för sina handlingar, utbrista: ”Herre! Varför sände du inte ett sändebud till oss så att vi kunde ta till oss dina budskap och bli troende?”
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.2
Türkçe · Turkish
Kendi elleriyle yaptıklarından dolayı başlarına bir musibet geldiğinde: “Rabbimiz, bize bir peygamber gönderseydin de senin ayetlerine tâbi olup Müminlerden olsaydık.” derler.
Translated by the team of the Rowwad Translation Center, in cooperation with the Rabwah Dawah Association, the Islamic Content Service Association in Languages, and the IslamHouse.com website.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.0.4
اردو · Urdu
اگر یہ بات نہ ہوتی کہ انہیں ان کے اپنے ہاتھوں آگے بھیجے ہوئے اعمال کی وجہ سے کوئی مصیبت پہنچتی تو یہ کہہ اٹھتے کہ اے ہمارے رب! تو نے ہماری طرف کوئی رسول کیوں نہ بھیجا؟ کہ ہم تیری آیتوں کی تابعداری کرتے اور ایمان والوں میں سے ہو جاتے.[1]
Translated by Muhammad Ibrahim Junagarhi, developed under the supervision of the Rowwad Translation Center. The original translation is available for the purpose of expressing opinion, evaluation, and continuous development.
From QuranEnc.com, version 1.1.3
About these translations
5 cleared translations, newest first, by year of publication, so the modern English comes before the historical ones. That is an ordering by date, not a judgement. Each is shown complete — this platform never excerpts a translation — and each renders under its translator's name. No translation here is marked as the correct one.
Which translations appear here is set by copyright: they are the ones whose rights could be documented and cleared. The selection is not a judgement that these are the best.
About easy-read
Easy-read
Easy-read is a simplified pronunciation,
not authoritative — a rule-by-rule romanisation, not a reading.
Each verse ends in its pause form, as it is said when you stop there. Pauses inside a verse and other tajwid rules are not shown. It is derived from the Tanzil
Simple edition, while the Arabic above is the
Uthmani edition; both are cleared, but they are not the
same edition and their orthography differs.
Easy-read (simplified)walaakinnaa ansha'naa quroonan fatataawala 'alayhimu l-'umuru wamaa kunta thaawiyan fee ahli madyana tatloo 'alayhim aayaatinaa walaakinnaa kunnaa mursileen
DIN 31635walākinnā ʾanšaʾnā qurūnan fataṭāwala ʿalayhimu l-ʿumuru wamā kunta ṯāwiyan fī ʾahli madyana tatlū ʿalayhim ʾāyātinā walākinnā kunnā mursilīna
The translators word this verse differently
Talal Itani2012 But We established many generations, and time took its toll on them. Nor were you among the people of Median, reciting Our revelations to them. But We kept sending messengers.
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall1930 But We brought forth generations, and their lives dragged on for them. And thou wast not a dweller in Midian, reciting unto them Our revelations, but We kept sending (messengers to men)
Edward Henry Palmer1880 But we raised up (other) generations, and life was prolonged for them; and thou wast not staying amidst the people of Midian, reciting to them our signs; but we were sending our apostles
John Medows Rodwell1861 But we raised up generations after Moses, men whose days were lengthened; neither didst thou dwell among the inhabitants of Madian to rehearse to them our signs, but we sent Apostles to them
George Sale1734 But we raised up several generations after Moses; and life was prolonged unto them. Neither didst thou dwell among the inhabitants of Madian, rehearsing unto them our signs; but We have sent thee fully instructed in every particular
Easy-read (simplified)wamaa kunta bijaanibi t-toori idh naadaynaa walaakin rahmatan min rabbika litundhira qawman maa ataahum min nadheerin min qablika la'allahum yatadhakkaroon
DIN 31635wamā kunta biǧānibi ṭ-ṭūri ʾiḏ nādaynā walākin raḥmatan min rabbika litunḏira qawman mā ʾatāhum min naḏīrin min qablika laʿallahum yataḏakkarūna
Talal Itani2012 Nor were you by the side of the Mount when We proclaimed. Rather, it was a mercy from your Lord, that you may warn people who received no warner before you, so that they may take heed.
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall1930 And thou was not beside the Mount when We did call; but (the knowledge of it is) a mercy from thy Lord that thou mayst warn a folk unto whom no warner came before thee, that haply they may give heed
Edward Henry Palmer1880 Nor wast thou by the side of the mountain when we called; but it is a mercy from thy Lord, that thou mayest warn a people to whom no warner has come before thee; haply they may be mindful
John Medows Rodwell1861 Nor wast thou on the slope of Sinai when we called to Moses, but it is of the mercy of thy Lord that thou warnest a people, to whom no warner had come before thee, to the intent that they should reflect
George Sale1734 Nor wast thou present on the side of the mount, when We called unto Moses: But thou art sent as a mercy from they Lord; that thou mightest preach unto a people to whom no preacher hath come before thee, that peradventure they may be warned
Easy-read (simplified)falammaa jaa'ahumu l-haqqu min 'indinaa qaaloo lawlaa ootiya mithla maa ootiya moosaa awalam yakfuroo bimaa ootiya moosaa min qablu qaaloo sihraani tazaaharaa waqaaloo innaa bikullin kaafiroon
DIN 31635falammā ǧāʾahumu l-ḥaqqu min ʿindinā qālū lawlā ʾūtiya miṯla mā ʾūtiya mūsā ʾawalam yakfurū bimā ʾūtiya mūsā min qablu qālū siḥrāni taẓāharā waqālū ʾinnā bikullin kāfirūna
Talal Itani2012 But when the truth came to them from Us, they said, "If only he was given the like of what was given to Moses." Did they not disbelieve in what was given to Moses in the past? They said, "Two works of magic backing one another." And they said, "We are disbelieving in both."
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall1930 But when there came unto them the Truth from Our presence, they said: Why is he not given the like of what was given unto Moses? Did they not disbelieve in that which was given unto Moses of old? They say: Two magics that support each other; and they say: Lo! in both we are disbelievers
Edward Henry Palmer1880 And when the truth comes to them from us they say, 'We are given the like of what Moses was given.' Did they not disbelieve in what Moses was given before?- they say, 'Two works of sorcery back up each other;' and they say, 'Verily, we do disbelieve in all
John Medows Rodwell1861 Yet when the truth came to them from our very presence, they said, "Unless the like powers be given to him that were given to Moses. . . ." But did they not disbelieve in what of old was given to Moses? They said, "Two works of sorcery have helped each other;" and they said, "We disbelieve them both
George Sale1734 Yet when the truth is come unto them from before us, they say, unless he receive the same power to work miracles as Moses received, we will not believe. Have they not likewise rejected the revelation which was heretofore given unto Moses? They say, two cunning impostures have mutually assisted one another: And they say, verily we reject them both
Easy-read (simplified)qul fa'too bikitaabin min 'indi llaahi huwa ahdaa minhumaa attabi'hu in kuntum saadiqeen
DIN 31635qul faʾtū bikitābin min ʿindi llāhi huwa ʾahdā minhumā ʾattabiʿhu ʾin kuntum ṣādiqīna
Talal Itani2012 Say, "Then bring a scripture from God, more conductive to guidance than both, and I will follow it, if you are truthful."
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall1930 Say (unto them, O Muhammad): Then bring a scripture from the presence of Allah that giveth clearer guidance than these two (that) I may follow it, if ye are truthful
Edward Henry Palmer1880 Say, 'Bring, then, a book from God which shall be a better guide than both, and I will follow it, if ye do tell the truth
John Medows Rodwell1861 SAY: Bring then a Book from before God which shall be a better guide than these, that I may follow it; if ye speak the truth
George Sale1734 Say, produce therefore a book from God, which is more right than these two, that I may follow it; if ye speak truth
These figures count the words the translations share. They measure wording, not meaning, and they do not say which translation is right.
Derived measure: mean pairwise Jaccard distance over the
lowercased word sets of the 5 renderings above —
0.62 on a scale
where 0 means identical wording and 1 means no shared words. It is
computed, not judged.
The page says a verse is worded differently only above the cut below. The cut is a stated convention, not a property of the text, and it can be changed.
The cut
0.644
Share of measured verses above it
33%
Verses above it
2,079
Verses measured
6,236
Talal Itani · George Sale0.75
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall · George Sale0.67
Talal Itani · John Medows Rodwell0.67
Talal Itani · Edward Henry Palmer0.63
Edward Henry Palmer · George Sale0.62
Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall · John Medows Rodwell0.60
Edward Henry Palmer · Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall0.60
John Medows Rodwell · George Sale0.58
Talal Itani · Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall0.57
Edward Henry Palmer · John Medows Rodwell0.47
One bar per pair of renderings, longest bar for the pair
sharing fewest words. Every pair is shown; none is singled out.
Method Wording differences — derived 13 September 2026
Method
Mean pairwise Jaccard distance over the lowercased word sets of the cleared translations of each verse. A verse is marked as worded differently when its score falls in the top third of the corpus — the cut set out in Analysis details.
As at
13 September 2026, 10:56 UTC
Gate
verify/divergence_gate.py re-derives and fails on drift
The platform does not say which is right, and does not
characterise what the difference means. The renderings are placed
together so the difference is visible; reading it is the reader's work.
7 sources
stand behind this page. Each is listed once, in the order the page first
cites it, with the licence it was cleared under and what was actually read.
Nothing on this page rests on a source that is not here.
Source Tanzil Qur'an text (Uthmani) · Uthmani, Version 1.1
Hafs/Kufan verse numbering, 6236 ayahs. The bismillah is delivered as a separate `bismillah` attribute on ayah 1 and is NOT fused into the ayah text. 112 surahs carry one: every surah except al-Fatiha, where the bismillah is ayah 1:1 itself, and at-Tawba, which has none. Sourced from the XML output; the plain-text output of the same release DOES fuse it, which is defect D1.
CLEARED. Licence read verbatim from the block embedded in this very file. Ingested exactly as shipped: no normalisation, no stripping of marks, no Unicode recomposition.
Parsed structurally from the EPUB: an h3 names the surah, one p per verse with its number in its own span. An unnumbered p is the basmala and is not a verse, except in surah 1 where the basmala IS verse 1. 112 unnumbered paragraphs were found, which is 114 surahs less surah 1 and surah 9. Text is stored VERBATIM: NFC normalisation and XML entity unescaping only, because CC BY-ND forbids modification.
CLEARED on a licence read first-hand from the translator's own download page, not from an aggregator. Tanzil also hosts this translation, but under a blanket "non-commercial purposes only" term that directs the user to the translator or publisher for permission - a hosting disclaimer, not a grant - so the grant was taken from the licensor directly. The "God" edition was ingested; ClearQuran also publishes an "Allah" edition, differing in how the divine name is rendered, which is not ingested.
CLEARED ON THE WORK, WITH TWO RECORDED CAVEATS ON THIS COPY. (1) Rights basis is the expired copyright term, NOT the redistributing repository's licence. That repository dedicates its contents to the public domain under the Unlicense while also redistributing plainly in-copyright translations (Abdel Haleem, Saheeh International, The Study Quran), so it is dedicating rights it cannot hold and its blanket grant is not relied upon here. (2) The file declares its own upstream as tanzil.net, and Tanzil attaches a non-commercial condition to its TRANSLATION distributions, though not to its Qur'anic text. Since Pickthall's copyright has expired, nobody holds rights in these words and no licence is required from anyone; Tanzil's terms are a contract binding those who download from Tanzil, which we did not. The chain is nonetheless not spotless and Anwar may prefer a clean digitisation of the 1930 printing. NOT VERIFIED: that this digital text matches the 1930 first printing rather than a later revised edition. No page images were collated. Recorded as unverified rather than presented as established. SERVED TEXT DIFFERS FROM THE CITED FILE AT ONE VERSE, 37:97: the file reads "red-hotfire" (a glued token, also in Gutenberg #16955); the served row reads "red-hot fire", restored 2026-09-13 from Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran (London: George Allen & Unwin, printed for Alfred A. Knopf; 1930), p. 460, XXXVII 97 - scan archive.org in.ernet.dli.2015.216140, PDF page 475; banked data/derivation-sources/pickthall-1930-dli-2015.216140-text.pdf (sha256 70e81146c97fa3a590243a82e04e349108546074787e2551a78c616202138870) on Anwar Malik's grant.
Hafs/Kufan verse numbering, 6236 verses, keyed to mushaf order. The
bismillah is not fused into ayah 1: 1:1 carries it and no other verse
does. Verified against content check C3 at ingest.
CLEARED ON THE WORK. Term expired by every measure. The digital edition's upstream is not stated by the redistributor and the printing is unverified. No statement of purpose is recorded for Palmer because none was sourced from his own preface in this pass; nothing is asserted on his behalf.
Hafs/Kufan verse numbering, 6236 verses, keyed to mushaf order. The
bismillah is not fused into ayah 1: 1:1 carries it and no other verse
does. Verified against content check C3 at ingest.
CLEARED ON THE WORK. Term expired by every measure. TWO edition caveats. (1) The upstream is not stated by the redistributor. (2) Rodwell's own edition PRESENTS THE SURAHS IN HIS OWN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, not the mushaf order — he says so in his preface. This digital text is keyed to mushaf order, so it derives from a restored-order printing (such as the Everyman edition) rather than from Rodwell's own arrangement. Which printing is not stated and has not been established.
Hafs/Kufan verse numbering, 6236 verses, keyed to mushaf order. The
bismillah is not fused into ayah 1: 1:1 carries it and no other verse
does. Verified against content check C3 at ingest.
CLEARED ON THE WORK. Term expired by every measure. The digital edition's upstream is NOT STATED by the redistributor, so the printing it represents is unverified; Sale's text was reprinted and re-edited many times between 1734 and 1900. Recorded as unverified rather than assumed to be the first edition.
Hafs/Kufan verse numbering, 6236 ayahs. The bismillah is delivered as a separate `bismillah` attribute on ayah 1 and is NOT fused into the ayah text. 112 surahs carry one: every surah except al-Fatiha, where the bismillah is ayah 1:1 itself, and at-Tawba, which has none. Sourced from the XML output; the plain-text output of the same release DOES fuse it, which is defect D1.
CLEARED. Parallel edition, held in ayah_text_variants. It sits alongside the Uthmani spine for search normalisation and is never used to correct it.