أَبا لَهَبٍ تَبَّت يَداكَ أَبا لَهَب

وَتَبَّت يَداها تِلكَ حَمّالَةَ الحَطَب

Abu Lahab, may your hands perish

O Abu Lahab, may your hands perish, O Abu Lahab,

and may they perish too - those hands that carry the firewood.

And may her hands perish too—that carrier of the firewood.

خَذَلتَ نَبيّاً خَيرَ مَن وَطِئَ الحَصى

فَكُنتَ كَمَن باعَ السَلامَةَ بِالعَطَب

You abandoned the best Prophet to tread the stones.

You forsook a Prophet, the best of those who ever trod the earth,

So you are like one who sells well-being for misfortune.

And became like one who sold salvation for ruin.

وَخِفتَ أَبا جَهلٍ فَأَصبَحتَ تابِعاً

لَهُ وَكَذاكَ الرَأسُ يتبَعُهُ الذَنَب

You feared Abu Jahl and so became his follower,

You feared Abu Jahl, so you became a follower

just as the tail follows the head.

To him—and thus does the tail follow the head.

فَأَصبَحَ ذاكَ الأَمرُ عاراً يُهيلُهُ

عَلَيكَ حَجيجُ البَيتِ في مَوسِمِ العَرَب

So that matter became a disgrace that covers you,

So that deed became a disgrace heaped upon you

as pilgrims of the House heap reproaches upon you during the season of pilgrimage of the Arabs.

By the pilgrims of the House during the season of the Arabs.

وَلَو كانَ مِن بَعضِ الأَعادي مُحَمَّدٌ

لَحامَيتُ عَنهُ بِالرِماحِ وَبِالقَضَب

And if Muhammad had been from some other enemy

And were Muhammad from among the enemies,

I would have defended him with spears and staffs.

I would have defended him with spears and sharp swords.

وَلَم يَسلِموهُ أَو يُضَرَّعَ حَولَهُ

رِجالُ بِلاءٍ بِالحُروبِ ذَوو حَسَب

And they would not have surrendered him, nor gathered humbly around him,

And they would not surrender him until laid low around him

men of trials, hardened in wars, of noble lineage.

Were men of tested valor in war, possessors of noble lineage.