God pardon thee! Why gavest thou them leave, till it was clear to thee which of them spoke the truth, and thou knewest the liars? 43 Those who believe in God and the Last Day will never ask you to exempt them from striving with their wealth and their lives, God best knows the righteous, 44 Only those would ask permission of you who do not believe in Allah and the Last Day and whose hearts have doubted, and they, in their doubt, are hesitating. 45 ۞ Had they (the hypocrites) wanted to join your army, they would have prepared themselves, but God did not wish to motivate them, so He caused them to linger behind with those whose joining you in battle would be of no use. 46 Had they marched out with you, they would have added to you nothing except disorder, and they would have hurried about in your midst (spreading corruption) and sowing sedition among you, and there are some among you who would have listened to them. And Allah is the All-Knower of the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.). 47 Indeed they had sought to cause turmoil at the outset, and O dear Prophet the scheme turned otherwise* for you, so much so that the truth came and the command of Allah appeared, and they disliked it. (* In your favour.) 48 Some of them ask you, "Make us exempt from taking part in the battle and do not try to tempt us by telling us what we may gain from the battle; many people have died in the battle." Hell certainly encompasses the unbelievers. 49 If good befalls you, it grieves them, and if hardship afflicts you, they say: Indeed we had taken care of our affair before; and they turn back and are glad. 50 Say: "Nothing will happen to us except what Allah has decreed for us: He is our protector": and on Allah let the Believers put their trust. 51 For us, you can anticipate nothing other than Paradise if we are killed or success if we triumph. However, what we can anticipate for you is either punishment by the hands of God or by ours. Wait and we, too, are waiting with you. 52 Say, "Whether you spend your wealth for the cause of God, willingly or reluctantly, it will never be accepted from you; you are an evil doing people." 53 And naught preventeth their expendings being accepted except that they have disbelieved in Allah and His apostle, and they perform not prayer except as sluggards and expend not except as those averse. 54 So let not their riches nor their children please thee (O Muhammad). Allah thereby intendeth but to punish them in the life of the world and that their souls shall pass away while they are disbelievers. 55 They swear by God that they are believers like you; but they are not. They are afraid [to appear in their true colours]: 56 If they could find a refuge or cave or a place to enter into, they would certainly have turned thereto, running away in all haste. 57 Among them there are some who find fault with you concerning the distribution of alms. If a share is given to them, they are pleased, but if they receive nothing, they grow resentful. 58 Would that they had been pleased with what God and His Messenger had given them and had said, "God is All-Sufficient for us. God and His Messenger will soon do us more favors and we have hope in God's mercy." 59