Surah Aal-i-Imraan · سُوْرَةُ اٰلِ عِمْرٰنَ · Juz 4
Q 3:98
قُلْ يَـٰٓأَهْلَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ لِمَ تَكْفُرُونَ بِـَٔايَـٰتِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱللَّهُ شَهِيدٌ عَلَىٰ مَا تَعْمَلُونَ
Translations
Say, "O People of the Scripture, why do you disbelieve in the verses of Allah while Allah is Witness over what you do?"- Dis: «O gens du Livre, pourquoi ne croyez-vous pas aux versets d'Allah (al-Qur'ân), alors qu'Allah est témoin de ce que vous faites?»Tafsir
O Prophet, ask the People of the Scripture, the Jews and the Christians, why they reject the proof of the truth of your prophet-hood, including the proofs that came in the Torah and the Gospel, when Allah watches over everything you do, witnessing it, and will reward you accordingly.
Read Ibn Kathir (Ibn Kathir (abridged, English))
Say: "O People of the Scripture (Jews and Christians)! Why do you reject the Ayat of Allah, while Allah is Witness to what you do? (98)Say: "O People of the Scripture (Jews and Christians)! Why do you stop those who have believed, from the path of Allah, seeking to make it seem crooked, while you (yourselves) are witnesses? And Allah is not unaware of what you do. (99)
Chastising the People of the Book for Their Disbelief and Blocking the Path of Allah
In this Ayah Allah criticizes the disbelieving People of the Book for refusing the truth, rejecting Allah's Ayat and hindering those who seek to believe from His path, although they know that what the Messenger ﷺ was sent with is the truth from Allah. They learned this from the previous Prophets and honorable Messengers, may Allah's peace and blessings be on them all. They all brought the glad tidings and the good news of the coming of the unlettered, Arab, Hashimi Prophet ﷺ from Makkah, the master of the Children of Adam, the Final Prophet and the Messenger of the Lord of heavens and earth. Allah has warned the People of the Book against this behavior, stating that He is Witness over what they do, indicating their defiance of the knowledge conveyed to them by the Prophets. They rejected, denied and refused the very Messenger whom they were ordered to convey the glad tidings about his coming. Allah states that He is never unaware of what they do, and He will hold them responsible for their actions,
يَوْمَ لَا يَنفَعُ مَالٌ وَلَا بَنُونَ
(The Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail)[26:88].
Arabic text: Tanzil (Uthmani). Translations: Sahih International (en), Muhammad Hamidullah (fr). tanzil.net