O Ye who believe! Choose not for guardians such of those who received the Scripture before you, and of the disbelievers, as make a jest and sport of your religion. But keep your duty to Allah if ye are true believers. 57 (Nor make friends with) those who, when you call (the faithful) to prayer, make mock of it and jest, because they do not understand. 58 Say: "O people of the Book! Do ye disapprove of us for no other reason than that we believe in Allah, and the revelation that hath come to us and that which came before (us), and (perhaps) that most of you are rebellious and disobedient?" 59 Say, "Should I tell you who will receive the worst punishment from God? Those whom God has condemned, afflicted with His anger, made apes out of them, swine and worshippers of Satan, will have the worst dwelling and will wander far away from the right path." 60 When they come to you, they say, 'We believe'; but they have entered in unbelief, and so they have departed in it; God knows very well what they were hiding. 61 And you will see many of them striving with one another to hasten in sin and exceeding the limits, and their eating of what is unlawfully acquired; certainly evil is that which they do. 62 Why do not the rabbis and the doctors of Law forbid them from their (habit of) uttering sinful words and eating things forbidden? Evil indeed are their works. 63 The Jews have said, "God's hands are bound." May they themselves be handcuffed and condemned for what they have said! God's hands are free and He distributes His favors to His creatures however He wants. The rebellion and disbelief of many of them will be intensified against you because of what has been revealed to you from your Lord. We have induced hostility and hatred among them which will remain with them up until the Day of Judgment. Whenever they kindle the fire of war, God extinguishes it. They try to destroy the land but God does not love the evil-doers. 64 If the people of the Book had believed and feared, We would surely have absolved them of their sins, and admitted them to gardens of delight. 65 If they had established the Torah and the Gospel and what was sent down to them from their Lord they would be eating from above them and from beneath their feet. Some of them are a righteous nation; but many of them evil is what they do. 66