Indeed those who have brought this great accusation are a group from among you; do not consider it bad for you; on the contrary, it is good for you; for each man among them is the sin that he has earned; and for the one among them who played the greatest part in it – for him is a terrible punishment. 11 Why, when you heard it, did the believing men and women not of their own account think good thoughts, and say, 'This is a manifest calumny'? 12 Why did the slanderers not bring four witnesses (to prove their charge)? Now that they have not brought witnesses, they themselves are liars in the sight of Allah. 13 Had there not been Allah's grace upon you and His mercy in the world and the Hereafter, surely there would have touched you, for that wherein ye had rushed, torment mighty. 14 When you were spreading it with your tongues and saying with your mouths things of which you had no knowledge, you considered it to be a trivial matter, but, in God's sight, it was very serious. 15 Why did you not say when you heard it: "It is not for us to speak of it? God preserve us, it is a great calumny!" 16 God counsels you not to do a thing like this, if you are believers. 17 And Allah clearly explains the verses for you; and Allah is All Knowing, Wise. 18 Indeed those who wish that slander should spread among the Muslims – for them is a painful punishment in this world and in the Hereafter; and Allah knows, and you do not know. 19 Were it not for the grace and mercy of Allah on you, and that Allah is full of kindness and mercy, (ye would be ruined indeed). 20