The hypocrites seek to outwit God -- but it is He who outwits them. And when they stand up for prayer, they do so reluctantly and to be seen by others, and they hardly remember God at all. 142 (They are) distracted in mind even in the midst of it,- being (sincerely) for neither one group nor for another whom Allah leaves straying,- never wilt thou find for him the way. 143 O believers, take not the unbelievers as friends instead of the believers; or do you desire to give God over you a clear authority? 144 Verily the hypocrites shall be in the lowest abyss of the Fire; and thou wilt not find for them a helper. 145 But those who repent and mend their ways, who hold fast to God and are sincere in their worship of God will be joined with the believers; and God will bestow a great reward upon the believers. 146 And what will Allah gain by punishing you, if you acknowledge the truth and accept faith? And Allah is Most Appreciative, All Knowing. 147 ۞ Allah does not like speaking evil publicly unless one has been wronged. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. 148 If you display good or hide it, or pardon an evil, surely, Allah is the Pardoner, the Powerful. 149 Those who disbelieve in God and His Messengers try to create differences between God and His Messengers (by rejecting their message). They say, "We believe in some but not in others." Thus, they try to find a middle way 150 It is they, indeed they, who are, beyond all doubt, unbelievers; and for the unbelievers We have prepared a humiliating chastisement. 151 But those who believe in God and His apostles and make no distinction among any of them, will be given by Him their recompense; for God is forgiving and kind. 152