قل لعبد القويِّ أنت قويٌّ

قل لعبد القويِّ أنت قويٌّ

فاتَّقِ اللَّهَ وَيْكَ في الضعفاءِ

فاتَّقِ اللَّهَ وَيْكَ في الضعفاءِ

Tell ʿAbd al-Qawī: “You are indeed strong—”

Tell ʿAbd al-Qawi: You are strong,

so fear God concerning the weak.

so fear God—woe to you—in your treatment of the weak.

نحن جُمٌّ وأنت أَقْرَنُ واللَّـ

نحن جُمٌّ وأنت أَقْرَنُ واللَّـ

ـه حَسيبُ القَرْناء للَجمّاءِ

ـه حَسيبُ القَرْناء للَجمّاءِ

We are hornless, while you are horned; and God

We are hornless, and you are horned; and God—

is the Reckoner who calls the horned to account for the hornless.

—holds the horned to account on behalf of the hornless.

لو علمتَ الخفيَّ من كلّ علمٍ

لو علمتَ الخفيَّ من كلّ علمٍ

جامعاً بينه وبين البِغاءِ

جامعاً بينه وبين البِغاءِ

Had you known what lies hidden in every field of knowledge,

If you knew the secrets of every branch of knowledge,

while joining that knowledge to prostitution,

combining that knowledge with prostitution,

أعجبَ الناسَ ما وَعَيْتَ وقالوا

أعجبَ الناسَ ما وَعَيْتَ وقالوا

عسلٌ طيبٌ خبيثُ الوِعاء

عسلٌ طيبٌ خبيثُ الوِعاء

people would marvel at what you had taken in, and say:

people would admire what you had learned and say:

“Good honey in a foul vessel.”

“Fine honey in a foul vessel.”