۞ And Allah had already taken a covenant from the Children of Israel, and We delegated from among them twelve leaders. And Allah said, "I am with you. If you establish prayer and give zakah and believe in My messengers and support them and loan Allah a goodly loan, I will surely remove from you your misdeeds and admit you to gardens beneath which rivers flow. But whoever of you disbelieves after that has certainly strayed from the soundness of the way." 12 And because of their breaking their covenant, We have cursed them and made hard their hearts. They change words from their context and forget a part of that whereof they were admonished. Thou wilt not cease to discover treachery from all save a few of them. But bear with them and pardon them. Lo! Allah loveth the kindly. 13 We had made a solemn covenant with those who call themselves Christians, but they forgot their share of the guidance that was sent to them. We have induced hatred and animosity among them which will remain with them until the Day of Judgment when God will tell them about what they had done. 14 O People given the Book(s)! Indeed this Noble Messenger (Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him) of Ours has come to you, revealing to you a lot of the things which you had hidden in the Book, and forgiving a lot of them; indeed towards you has come a light* from Allah, and a clear Book. (* The Holy Prophet is a light from Allah). 15 through which Allah shows to all who seek to please Him the paths leading to safety. He brings them out, by His leave, from darkness to light and directs them on to the straight way. 16 Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely, Allah-- He is the Messiah, son of Marium. Say: Who then could control anything as against Allah when He wished to destroy the Messiah son of Marium and his mother and all those on the earth? And Allah's is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and what is between them; He creates what He pleases; and Allah has power over all things, 17 The Jews and the Christians said, “We are the sons of Allah and His beloved ones”; say, “Why does He then punish you for your sins? In fact you are human beings, part of His creation; He forgives whomever He wills, and punishes whomever He wills; and for Allah only is the kingship of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them – and towards Him is the return.” 18 People of the Book! After a long interlude during which no Messengers have appeared there has come to you Our Messenger to elucidate the teaching of the true faith lest you say: 'No bearer of glad tidings and no warner has come to us.' For now there indeed has come to you a bearer of glad tidings and a warner, Allah is All-Powerful. 19