And when they meet those who have attained to faith, they assert, "We believe [as you believe]"; but when they find themselves alone with their- evil impulses,* they say, "Verily, we are with you; we were only mocking!"

verily, We shall suffice thee against all who [now] deride [this message - all]

AND LO! Moses said unto his people: "Behold, God bids you to sacrifice a cow."* They said: "Dost thou mock at us?" He answered: "I seek refuge with God against being so ignorant!"*

And so, when you divorce women and they are about to reach the end of their waiting-term, then either retain them in a fair manner or let them go in a fair manner. But do not retain them against their will in order to hurt [them]: for he who does so sins indeed against himself. And do not take [these] messages of God in a frivolous spirit; and remember the blessings with which God has graced you, and all the revelation and the wisdom which He has bestowed on you from on high in order to admonish you thereby; and remain conscious of God, and know that God has full knowledge of everything.

O you who have attained to faith! Do not take for your friends such as mock at your, faith and make a jest of it-be they from among those who have been vouchsafed revelation before your time, or [from among] those who deny the truth [of revelation as such] -but remain conscious of God, if you are [truly] believers:

for, when you call to prayer, they mock at it and make a jest of it-simply because they are people who do not use their reason.

But We send [Our] message-bearers only as heralds of glad tidings and as warners - whereas those who are bent on denying the truth contend [against them] with fallacious arguments, so as to render void the truth thereby, and to make My messages and warnings a target of their mockery.

That will be their recompense - [their] hell -for having denied the truth and made My messages and My apostles a target of their mockery.

But [thus it is:] whenever they who are bent on denying the truth consider thee,* they make thee but a target of their mockery, [saying to one another,] “Is this the one who speaks [so contemptuously] of your gods?''* and yet, it is they themselves who, at [every] mention of the Most Gracious, are wont to deny the truth!*

Hence, whenever they consider thee, [O Muhammad,] they but make thee a target of their mockery, [saying:] “Is this the one whom God has sent as an apostle?

But among men there is many a one that prefers a mere play with words [to divine guidance],* so as to lead [those] without knowledge astray from the path of God, and to turn it to ridicule: for such there is shameful suffering in store.

for when he does become aware of any of Our messages, he makes them a target of his mockery! For all such there is shameful suffering in store.

this, because you made God's messages the target of your mockery, having allowed the life of this world to beguile you!"* On that Day, therefore, they will not be brought out of the fire,* nor will they be allowed to make amends.

God will requite them for their mockery,* and will leave them for a while in their overweening arrogance, blindly stumbling to and fro:

And, indeed, He has enjoined upon you in this divine writ that whenever you hear people deny the truth of God's messages and mock at them, you shall avoid their company until they begin to talk of other things* - or else, verily, you will become like them. Behold, together with those who deny the truth God will gather in hell the hypocrites,

and so they give the lie to this truth now that it has come unto them. In time, however, they will come to understand what it was that they were wont to deride.*

And, indeed, [even] before thy time have apostles been derided - but those who scoffed at them were [in the end] overwhelmed by the very thing which they were wont to deride.*

[Some of] the hypocrites dread lest a [new] surah be revealed [in evidence] against them, making them understand what is [really] in their hearts.* Say: "Go on mocking! Behold, God will bring to light the very thing that you are dreading!"*

Yet, indeed, if thou wert to question them. they would surely answer, "We were only indulging in idle talk, and were playing [with words].* Say: "Were you, then. mocking at God and His messages and His Apostle?

And thus it is: if We defer their suffering until a time-limit set [by Us],* they are sure to say, "What is preventing it [from coming now]?"* Oh, verily, on the Day when it befalls them there will be nothing to avert it from them; and they shall be overwhelmed by the very thing which they were wont to deride.*

And, indeed, [even] before thy time have [God's] apostles been derided, and for a while I gave rein to those who were [thus] bent on denying the truth: but then I took them to task - and how awesome was My retribution!

and never yet came an apostle to them without their deriding him.

for all the evil that they had done fell [back] upon them, and they were overwhelmed by the very thing which they had been wont to deride.*

And, indeed, [O Muhammad, even] before thy time have [God's] apostles been derided - but those who scoffed at them were [in the end] overwhelmed by the very thing which they had been wont to deride.*

thus, indeed, have they given the lie (to this message as well). But [in time] they will come to understand what it was that they were wont to deride!*

And once again:* evil is bound to be the end of those who do evil by giving the lie to God's messages and deriding them.

OH, THE REGRETS that [most] human beings will have to bear!* Never has an apostle come to them without their deriding him!

and obvious to them will have become the evil that they had wrought [in life]: and thus shall they be overwhelmed by the very truth which they were wont to deride.*

for when their apostles came to them with all evidence of the truth, they arrogantly exulted in whatever knowledge they [already] possessed:* and [so, in the end,] they were overwhelmed by the very thing which they were wont to deride.*

But never yet came a prophet to them without their deriding him –

And [on that Day,] the evil of their doings will become obvious to them, and they will be over­whelmed by the very thing which they were wont to deride.*

And yet, We had established them securely in a manner in which We have never established you, [O people of later times;]* and We had endowed them with hearing, and sight, and [knowledgeable] hearts:* but neither their hearing, nor their sight, nor their hearts were of the least avail to them, seeing that they went on rejecting God's messages; and [in the end] they were overwhelmed* by the very thing which they had been wont to deride.