Say: 'If you love God, follow me, and God will love you, and forgive you your sins; God is All-forgiving, All-compassionate.' 31 Say: Obey Allah and the Apostle; but if they turn back, then surely Allah does not love the unbelievers. 32 ۞ Allah did choose Adam and Noah, the family of Abraham, and the family of 'Imran above all people,- 33 Descendants, some of them from others. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing. 34 (Remember) when the wife of 'Imran said: 'Lord, I have vowed to You in dedication that which is hidden inside me. Accept this from me. You are the Hearer, the Knower' 35 So when she brought forth, she said: My Lord! Surely I have brought it forth a female-- and Allah knew best what she brought forth-- and the male is not like the female, and I have named it Marium, and I commend her and her offspring into Thy protection from the accursed Shaitan. 36 So her Lord accepted her with a good acceptance and made her grow up a good growing, and gave her into the charge of Zakariya; whenever Zakariya entered the sanctuary to (see) her, he found with her food. He said: O Marium! whence comes this to you? She said: It is from Allah. Surely Allah gives to whom He pleases without measure. 37 Then Zechariah prayed to his Lord: 'O Lord! Grant me from Yourself out of Your grace the gift of a goodly offspring, for indeed You alone heed all Prayers.' 38 And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous. 39 He said, "How can there be a son for me when I am already senile and my wife is barren." The angel replied, "God does as He wills." 40 Zechariah said: 'O my Lord! Appoint a sign for me.' The angel said: 'The sign for you shall be that you shall not speak to men for three days except by gesture. Remember your Lord and extol His glory by night and by day.' 41