HOW COULD they who ascribe divinity to aught beside God be granted a covenant by God and His Apostle, unless it be those [of them] with whom you [O believers] have made a covenant in the vicinity of the Inviolable House of Worship? [As for the latter,] so long as they remain true to you, be true to them: for, verily, God loves those who are conscious of Him. 7 How (can they be trusted)? If they prevail against you they will neither observe pacts nor good faith with you. They flatter you with their tongues, but their hearts are averse to you, for most of them are iniquitous. 8 They barter away the words of God for a petty price, and obstruct (others) from His path. How evil indeed are the things they do! 9 They do not observe toward a believer any pact of kinship or covenant of protection. And it is they who are the transgressors. 10 Yet if they repent, and perform the prayer, and pay the alms, then they are your brothers in religion; and We distinguish the signs for a people who know. 11 But if they break faith after pledging it and revile your religion, then fight these leaders of unbelief, so that they may desist, for they have no regard for their pledged word. 12 Will you not fight the people who broke their promises, and intended to expel the Noble Messenger whereas they had started it? Do you fear them? So Allah has more right that you should fear Him, if you have faith. 13 Fight them, Allah will punish them by your hands and bring them to disgrace, and assist you against them and heal the hearts of a believing people. 14 and will remove the wrath that is in their hearts. And God will turn in His mercy unto whom He wills: for, God is all-knowing, wise. 15 Deem ye that ye would be left alone while yet Allah hath not known those of you who have striven hard and have not taken an ally besides Allah and His apostle and the believers? And Allah is Aware of that which ye work. 16