۞ O YOU who have attained to faith! Be ever steadfast in upholding equity, bearing witness to the truth for the sake of God, even though it be against your own selves or your parents and kinsfolk. Whether the person concerned be rich or poor, God's claim takes precedence over [the claims of] either of them. Do not, then, follow your own desires, lest you swerve from justice: for if you distort [the truth,] behold, God is indeed aware of all that you do! 135 O you who believe! believe in Allah and His Apostle and the Book which He has revealed to His Apostle and the Book which He revealed before; and whoever disbelieves in Allah and His angels and His apostles and the last day, he indeed strays off into a remote error. 136 Those who believe, and then disbelieve, and then believe, and then disbelieve, and increase in disbelief Allah is not to forgive them nor guide them on a way. 137 Give tidings of painful chastisement to the hypocrites. 138 Those who take disbelievers for Auliya' (protectors or helpers or friends) instead of believers, do they seek honour, power and glory with them? Verily, then to Allah belongs all honour, power and glory. 139 You have been commanded in the Book that whensoever you hear God's messages denied or derided, do not sit in that company until they begin talking of other things, or you will be no different from them. Indeed God will put the hypocrites and infidels together in Hell. 140 (As for) those who lay in wait for you. If a victory comes to you from Allah they say: 'Were we not with you' But if the unbelievers get a portion, they say, 'Were we not mightier than you, and did we not defend you from the believers' Allah will judge between you on the Day of Resurrection. Allah will not grant the unbelievers any way over the believers. 141