Wedding reading
Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy
The Qur’an
“Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy” by The Qur’an is a scripture reading read at a wedding ceremony. It takes about 30 seconds read aloud, usually by the officiant. It is in the public domain, but we do not set the words here — the note below says what to bring instead, and why.
Why the words are not printed here
The verse most couples ask for, and the one we do not set. The Arabic is ancient; every English of it is a modern translator’s work, and no public-domain translation of this surah could be checked against the printing it came from. Ask the couple for the English in their own copy, or ask the imam to recite it and give you the translation they use — paste it in and it prints in the script exactly as they gave it.
Pieces still in copyright are listed by title and author only — we name them and tell you where to get them, but we do not reproduce the words. Public-domain text is printed in your script in full.
What it is about
The wedding verse — love and mercy ordained between two people. Paste in the couple’s own translation and it prints in full.
Read at a wedding ceremony. Themes: love and mercy · peace found in one another · made for one another · the wedding verse · Muslim wedding · a Muslim family.
Questions about reading it aloud
How long does “Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy” take to read aloud?
“Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy” takes about 30 seconds read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.
Who usually reads “Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy”?
Usually the officiant rather than a guest reader. “Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy” runs about 30 seconds, which sits inside the part of the service the officiant is already leading, and keeping it there means it is carried by the person who has rehearsed it.
Can “Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy” be printed in a ceremony script?
Not in full here. The verse most couples ask for, and the one we do not set. The Arabic is ancient; every English of it is a modern translator’s work, and no public-domain translation of this surah could be checked against the printing it came from. Ask the couple for the English in their own copy, or ask the imam to recite it and give you the translation they use — paste it in and it prints in the script exactly as they gave it.
Can a friend or family member lead “Surah Ar-Rum 30:21 — the verse of love and mercy”?
Usually recited in Arabic as part of the nikah itself, which an imam or a Muslim officiant leads. Where that is happening, the English beside it is the whole of the lay officiant’s part. Ask what the couple would like read, and in which language, before the day.
A reading is two minutes of the hour.
The rest is the welcome, the vows, the ring exchange, the pronouncement — and the timing that holds them together. Answer some questions about the couple and get the whole ceremony, written out, with this reading in its place.
Other readings that suit the same service
- Surah An-Nisa 4:1 — created from a single soul35 secondsThe Qur’an, tr. Marmaduke Pickthall (1930)
- 1 Corinthians 13:4–8a45 secondsKing James Bible
- 1 Corinthians 13:1–13two minutesKing James Bible
- Genesis 2:18–24a minute and a halfKing James Bible
- Ruth 1:16–17a30 secondsKing James Bible
- Song of Solomon 2:10–1340 secondsKing James Bible