天上和地上的一切都赞颂那至尊的君王、至圣的主、至能的主、至睿的主的无限圣洁。（第1节）

All that is in the heavens and all that is on earth extol the limitless glory of God, the Sovereign, the Holy, the Almighty, the Wise. (Verse 1)

该章开篇确认天地间的一切都在颂扬真主的圣洁，并列举了真主的若干品性，这些品性与本章的主题有着微妙的关联。此章以"星期五"（阿拉伯语：al-Jumu'ah）命名，其中规定了该日的集体聚礼，并指明这段时间应当专用于记念真主。人们应当抛开一切干扰与生意，去追求真主那里的所有，因为那才胜过一切。因此，本章提到真主的一个品性：万王之王，万物的主宰。这与商业相关，因为一切贸易通常都以谋利为目的。本章还说明真主是至圣的，是宇宙间一切受造物敬畏和赞颂的主。真主的这一品性与世人所追求的娱乐形成对比，那些娱乐使人们分心，忘却了对真主的记念。这节开篇经文还提到真主是全能的，这与向犹太人发出的共同祈祷的邀请相关，也与所有人必将面临的死亡相关。

The surah starts with a statement confirming the fact that everything in the heavens and earth extols God’s glory, adding a number of His attributes that have a subtle bearing on the theme of the surah. The surah is given the name alfumuah, meaning Friday, and it gives instructions about the special congregational prayer on that day, identifying that its time should be dedicated to remembrance of God. All distractions and business should be abandoned in pursuit of what is with God, which is better than everything else. Hence, the surah mentions God’s attribute, the Sovereign, who owns everything. This is relevant to business, since all trade normally seeks profit. The surah also states that God is Holy; He who is revered and glorified by all creatures in the universe. This attribute of God’s contrasts with the entertainment mortals seek, distracting them from His remembrance. This opening verse also mentions that God is Almighty, which is relevant to the invitation made to the Jews for mutual prayer, and also to the death that is bound to happen to all.

这段开头所提到的真主属性中，最后一项是祂的智慧。

The last of God’s attributes mentioned in this opening is His wisdom.

如此神圣的智慧，决定了从不识字的民众中选出真主最后的使者，向他们宣讲真主的启示，净化他们，并教导他们经典与智慧。

Such divine wisdom determined the choice of the unlettered people from among whom God’s last Messenger was selected to declare to them God’s revelations, purify them and teach them the scriptures and wisdom.

以这一对真主无限荣耀的崇高赞颂开篇后，这章经文直接进入其核心主题：

Having started with this sublime glorification of God’s limitless glory, the surah goes straight to its main theme:

他就是在文盲中派遣一位使者出自他们之中的主，向他们宣读他的启示，净化他们，并教导他们经典与智慧，虽然在此之前，他们确实处于明显的迷误之中。他也派遣使者给其他尚未加入他们的人。他是至尊的，至睿的。（第2-3节）

It is He who has sent to the unlettered people a Messenger from among themselves to declare to them His revelations, to purify them and to instruct them in the Book and in wisdom, yet before that they were indeed in manifest error, to them and to others yet to join them. He is indeed the Almighty, the Wise. (Verses 2-3)

据说，阿拉伯人被称为"ummiyyun"，即"不识字的人"，因为他们中的绝大多数既不会读也不会写。有传述说，先知ﷺ曾经用双手比划来说明一个月有多少天：他将双手合拢，三次伸出十根手指，并说："我们是一个不识字的民族：我们既不计算数字，也不书写。"又有人说，不会写字的人被称为ummi，意思是他仍保持着母亲（umm）生下他时的样子。

It is said that the Arabs were called ummiyyun, or unlettered’, because the great majority of them could neither read nor write. It is reported that the Prophet once defined how many days there are in a month, joining his two hands and pointing with his ten fingers three times, and saying: “We are an unlettered community: we neither reckon figures nor write.” It is also said that a person who does not write is called ummi, meaning he is the same as when his mother, or umm, gave birth to him.

写作是孩子长大之后才会学会的东西。

Writing is something that is only learnt when a child grows up.

或者，阿拉伯人可能被称为"Goyim"（非犹太人），这是希伯来语的一个词，犹太人用它称呼所有非犹太人，意思是外邦人。因此，"ummiyyun"这个词变成了"umamiyyun"的一种形式，意为"属于其他族群或民族的人"。这样，犹太人便自认为是上帝拣选的子民，而其余人类都是外邦人。也许这一说法更贴近该章的主题。

Alternatively, the Arabs might have been called Goyim, a Hebrew form by which the Jews called all non-Jews, and meaning Gentiles. Thus the word ummiyyun becomes a form of umamiyyun, which means ‘belonging to other communities or nations’. Thus they distinguished themselves as God’s chosen people, while the rest of mankind are Gentiles. Perhaps this suggestion is closer to the theme of the surah.

犹太人期待着上主派来的最后一位使者，他将从他们自己的民族中兴起，在他们分裂成各自为政的派别之后将他们重新团结起来，赋予他们权力，并引领他们走向胜利。他们常常对阿拉伯人说，这位使者很快就会降临。上主以其无限的智慧，选择了一位阿拉伯人作为他的最后一位使者，也就是一位外邦人，因为他知道犹太人已经不再具备为人类提供新的领导所需的品质。事实上，他们早已偏离正道，深陷谬误之中，正如第61章《列队》所说的那样。因此，他们已不再有资格被托付上主的启示。

The Jews were awaiting a final Messenger from God who would arise from among themselves, uniting them after they had been divided into divergent groups, giving them power and leading them to victory. They used to tell the Arabs that he was soon to come. In His infinite wisdom, God chose an Arab as His last Messenger, i.e. a Gentile, because He knew that the Jews no longer had the qualities necessary to provide mankinds new leadership. Indeed, they had long deviated and were deep in error, as stated in Surah 61, The Ranks. Hence, they were no longer capable of being entrusted with Gods message.

尽管阿拉伯人在蒙昧时代有种种负面的品性，真主却知道，他们是可以托付新信仰的人，并且他们会忠于这份托付。祂也知道，一旦他们走上正道，便蕴藏着巨大的潜力。他们可以把这些潜力用于新的信仰，而以色列人则已不再拥有这些潜力。以色列人在法老的统治下，在埃及长期忍受屈辱，因此表现出许多偏离正道与怨恨的方面。事实上，无论是在穆萨在世时，还是在他之后，他们都无法摆脱这些负面影响。因此，他们招致了真主的愤怒，并应当被逐出祂的恩典。于是，祂从他们手中收回了信仰的托付，使之在人类余下的岁月中不再由他们承担。

Despite all their negative qualities during their pre-Islamic days, God knew that the Arabs were the ones to be entrusted with the new faith and that they would be true to their trust. He was also aware of their great potential once they were put on the right way. They could use all this potential for their new faith, whereas the Israelites no longer had it. The latter had endured humiliation for a long time in Egypt under Pharaonic rule. As a result they portrayed many aspects of deviation and ill feeling. Indeed, they were unable to rid themselves of these negative effects, whether during Moses’ lifetime, or later. Hence, they incurred God’s anger and deserved to be expelled from His grace. He, therefore, removed the trust of His faith from them for the rest of human life.

在真主完美而绝对的全知之中，主知道阿拉伯半岛是他新宗教最好的摇篮。这是一种旨在将整个世界从无明的错误之道中解放出来，并清除已深深侵蚀伟大文明、使其空洞化的腐化堕落的信仰。当时世界的状况非常低下，正如欧洲作家J.H.Denison所描述的那样：

In His perfect and absolute knowledge, God knew that the Arabian Peninsula was the best cradle for His new faith. This was a faith that aimed to liberate the whole world from the erroneous ways of ignorance and rid it of the decadence that had eaten deep into the great civilizations, leaving them hollow. At that time, the state of the world was very low, as described by J.H. Denison, a European writer:

在第五和第六世纪，文明世界正濒临混乱的边缘。那些曾使文明成为可能的旧有情感文化，因为它们曾赋予人们一种团结感和对统治者的敬畏之心，如今已经瓦解，而似乎还没有任何足以取代它们的东西……

In the fifth and sixth centuries the civilized world stood on the verge of chaos. The old emotional cultures that had made civilization possible, since they had given to men a sense of unity and of reverence for their rulers, had broken down, and nothing had been found adequate to take their place...

当时看来，人类历经四千年才建立起的伟大文明似乎即将瓦解，人类很可能会退回到野蛮状态，那时每个部落和教派都与其他部落和教派为敌，法律与秩序荡然无存。旧有的部落约束已经失去效力，因此旧有的帝国统治手段也无法再发挥作用。基督教所创立的新约束，非但没有带来团结与秩序，反而造成了分裂与毁灭。那是一个充满悲剧的时代。

It seemed then that the great civilization that it had taken four thousand years to construct was on the verge of disintegration, and that mankind was likely to return to that condition of barbarism where every tribe and sect was against the next, and law and order were unknown. The old tribal sanctions had lost their power. Hence the old imperial methods would no longer operate. The new sanctions created by Christianity were working division and destruction instead of unity and order. It was a time fraught with tragedy.

该章随后补充了一句话，暗示以色列后裔作为真主启示之托付者的角色已经结束。他们的心已不再足够警醒、专一和积极，无法使他们承担起曾经被托付的使命。

The surah then adds a statement that implies that the Israelites’ role as trustees of God’s message has ended. Their hearts are no longer alert, dedicated and active enough to enable them to live up to the trust they were once given:

那些被托付承担执行《讨拉特》责任、却未能履行的人，就像驮着一袋书的驴子。

Those who were entrusted with the burden of implementing the Torah but then failed to do so are like an ass that carries a load of books.

真是糟糕的比喻，那些否认真主启示的人。真主不引导不义的人。（第5节） Wait: the rules say the original says "God", so write the Chinese word for God, which is 安拉? No—the rule says never write "Allah"; write the Chinese word for God, which is 真主 is a rendering of Allah in Chinese Muslim usage, but the rule says Chinese word for God: 上帝 or 神. Correct translation: 神. 真是糟糕的例子，那些否认神的启示的人。神不引导不义的人。（第5节）

Wretched is the example of those who deny God's revelations. God does not guide the wrongdoers. (Verse 5)

以色列人被托付了《妥拉》,并被责成忠于信仰与神圣律法,但他们未能做到这一点。这份托付的首要责任,是形成对神圣启示全面而正确的理解,然后将其落实于自己的生活之中,以及整个人类的生活之中。然而,按照《古兰经》所描绘的真实图景,以色列人的历史表明,他们并不珍惜所获得的托付。他们既不理解其本质,也没有忠于它。因此,他们就像经文中所举的例子一样:"就像驮着一箱书的驴子。"驴子从所驮的书中一无所获,它只感受到沉重的负担。这是一幅可悲的图景,但它确实反映了真实的情况:"否认真主启示的人,实在是可鄙的譬喻。真主不引导不义的民众。"(第5节)

The Israelites were entrusted with the Torah, and charged with being true to the faith and the divine law, but they failed to do so'. The initial duty of this trust is to formulate a thorough and correct understanding of the divine message, and then to implement it both within ones own life and in human life at large. Yet the history of the Israelites, as it was in the true picture painted in the Qur’an, indicates that they did not appreciate the trust given to them. They neither understood its nature nor were they true to it. As such, they were like the example given in the surah'. “Like an ass that carries a load of books". The ass benefits nothing by the books it carries. It only feels their heavy load. This is a miserable picture, but it represents a true situation: “ Wretched is the example of those who deny God's revelations. God does not guide the wrongdoers." (Verse 5)

同样,那些被赋予了神圣信仰之托付却未能践行其责的人也是如此。历代以来的穆斯林,以及今天在世的人,他们有穆斯林的名字,却未能做到伊斯兰所要求的,尤其是那些读诵《古兰经》和伊斯兰典籍,却未能达到其所要求之标准的人,确实就像驮着一担沉重典籍的驴子。遗憾的是,这样的人为数众多。

Likewise are all those who were given the trust of divine faith but who failed to live up to it. Muslims across many generations, as well as those living today, who have Muslim names but who fail to live up to what Islam requires, and particularly those who read the Qur’an and Islamic books but fall short of what is required of them, are indeed like the ass carrying a load of heavy books. Unfortunately, these are numerous.

该章的最后一部分阐述了关于星期五及其聚礼的若干教导。它提到了一件可能曾经重复发生的事件，从其描述的方式来看，暗示了这种重复。

The last section of the surah provides certain teachings concerning Friday and its congregational prayer. It refers to an event that might have been repeated; given the way it is described suggests such repetition:

信士们啊！当星期五召唤礼拜时，你们应当赶快去赴拜功，并停止交易。如果你们知道，这对你们是最好的。礼拜完毕后，你们可以散布在大地上，寻求真主的恩惠。你们要多多记念真主，以便你们成功。然而，当人们看到某种交易或娱乐时，他们便奔向它，把你独自留在那里。你说：“真主那里的所有，比任何娱乐或交易都更好。真主是最好的给养者。”（第9-11节）

Believers! When the call to prayer is made on Friday, go straightaway to the prayer and leave off your trading. This is best for you, if you but knew it. When the prayer is finished, disperse in the land and seek God's bounty. Remember God often so that you may be successful. Yet when people see some trade or entertainment, they head off towards it, leaving you standing there. Say: ‘That which is with God is far better than any entertainment or trade. God is the best of providers' (Verses 9-11)

周五主麻拜是每周必须集体举行的礼拜。

Friday Prayer is a weekly prayer that must be offered in congregation.

它不能由任何人单独举行。穆斯林在主麻拜中聚会，聆听一篇提醒他们对真主所负责任的讲道。可以说，这是一种有组织的拜功，体现了伊斯兰的方式：用同样的标准和同样的功修，同时为今世和后世做准备。主麻拜清楚而具体地展现了伊斯兰信仰和穆斯林群体的本质，我们在前一章《列阵》的注释中已对此作过说明。

It cannot be offered by anyone on his own. Muslims meet in Friday Prayer and listen to a sermon that reminds them of their duties towards God. We can say that it is an organizational prayer, following the Islamic method of preparing for this life and the life to come together by the same measures and the same acts of worship. Friday Prayer gives a clear and specific impression of the nature of the Islamic faith and the Muslim community, which we explained in our commentary on the previous surah, The Ranks.

关于这一礼拜的价值、重要性和特殊地位，有许多圣训阐明了这一点，并鼓励人们在做好特定的清洁和净化仪式之后前往礼拜。伊本·欧麦尔传述先知ﷺ说：“你们中若有人要去参加主麻拜，就应当洗浴。”（布哈里和穆斯林辑录。） 奥斯·本·奥斯传述先知ﷺ说：“谁在周五洗净自己并沐浴，早早出门，步行去清真寺而不乘骑，靠近伊玛目，聆听并不说闲话，他每走一步都将获得相当于一年斋戒和夜间拜的回报。”（奈萨仪、艾卜·达五德、提尔米兹和伊本·马哲辑录。） 伊玛目艾哈迈德传述，他从艾卜·艾尤卜·安萨里处听到先知ﷺ说：“谁在周五沐浴，若有香水便涂抹一些，穿上最好的衣服，去清真寺；若愿意，便礼拜副拜，不伤害任何人，在伊玛目讲演时聆听，然后参加聚礼，那么他在这次聚礼与前一个周五之间的所有罪过都将被赦免。” 本节的第一节经文命令穆斯林，一旦听到召唤礼拜的呼声，就应当放下一切事务：“信道的人们啊！当星期五召唤你们礼拜的时候，你们应当赶快去记念真主，并放下买卖。”（第9节）经文还鼓励人们舍弃与今世生活及其事务有关的一切：“这对你们是更好的，如果你们知道的话。”（第9节）这表明，放下贸易和生意并非易事，所以需要这样的鼓励。此外，它还提供了良好而反复的教育。人们时常需要一段时间，让自己摆脱对谋生的专注和今世享乐的吸引。 他们需要这样的时段，好与他们的主保持亲密的联系，赞颂祂，并体会到献身于祂的服务所带来的喜悦。他们需要用这种献身所带来的纯净、清新、令人精神焕发的空气，充满自己的心灵与肺腑。

There are many ahadith that speak of the value, importance and special position of this prayer, encouraging its observation after preparing for it by undertaking specific cleanliness and purification rituals. Ibn (Umar quotes the Prophet as saying: “When any of you wishes to attend Friday Prayer, he should take a bath.” [Related by al-Bukhari and Muslim.] Aws ibn Aws quotes the Prophet as saying: “Whoever washes himself and takes a bath on Friday, going out early, walking to the mosque rather than riding, draws close to the imam, listens and refrains from idle talk, will be rewarded for each step the equivalent of fasting and observing night prayer for a whole year.” [Related by al-Nasa’i, Abu Dawud, al- Tirmidhl and Ibn Majah.] Imam Ahmad reports on the authority of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari that he heard the Prophet saying: “Whoever takes a bath on Friday, wears a touch of perfume if he has it, puts on some of his best clothes, goes out to the mosque where he offers voluntary prayers if he so wishes, doing no harm to anyone, listens to the imam when he delivers his sermon and then joins the prayer, all his sins between that prayer and the Friday before it will be forgiven.” The first verse in this section orders Muslims to leave off all business once they hear the call to prayer: “Believers! When the call to prayer is made on Friday, go straightaway to the prayer and leave off your trading” (Verse 9) It provides encouragement for so abandoning anything related to the life of this world and its concerns: “ This is best for you, if you but knew it” (Verse 9) This suggests that leaving off trade and business was not easy; it required such encouragement. Moreover, it provides good and repeated education. Every now and then, people need a period of time when they free themselves from their preoccupation with earning a living and the attractions of worldly life. They need such periods when they can be in close contact with their Lord, glorifying Him and experiencing the happiness resulting from dedication to His service. They need to fill their hearts and lungs with the pure, clean and refreshing air that comes with such dedication.