۞ Believers, do not follow the footsteps of satan; whoever does so will be made by satan to commit indecency and sin. Were it not for the favor and mercy of God, none of you would ever have been purified. God purifies whomever He wants. God is All-hearing and All-knowing. 21 Let not those of you who possess bounty and plenty swear off giving kinsmen and the poor and those who emigrate in the way of God; but let them pardon and forgive. Do you not wish that God should forgive you? God is All-forgiving, All-compassionate. 22 Those who slander chaste women, indiscreet but believing, are cursed in this life and in the Hereafter: for them is a grievous Penalty,- 23 The day their tongues and hands and feet bear witness to what they had done, 24 On that Day Allah will pay them back (all) their just dues, and they will realise that Allah is the (very) Truth, that makes all things manifest. 25 Vile women for vile men, and vile men for vile women; and virtuous women for virtuous men, and virtuous men for virtuous women; such are innocent of what these people say; for them are forgiveness, and an honourable sustenance. 26