"[O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm in justice]" until His saying: "[Then Allah is more worthy of both of them]." He says: Testify against yourselves, your children, your fathers, your mothers, and your relatives, whether they be rich or poor. "[If he is rich or poor, then Allah is more worthy of both of them]"—meaning: He is more worthy of their richness and their poverty than you are.
Qatada said: He means, let not the richness of a rich person, nor the poverty of a poor person, prevent you from testifying against him according to what you know. "[So do not follow personal inclination, lest you not be just]"—(meaning: so that you do not abandon) the testimony. "[And if you distort]" your tongues, thus altering the testimony, "[or refuse]"—that is, by not testifying with it—"[then indeed Allah is ever, with what you do, Acquainted]."
﴿يَا أَيهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُونُوا قَوَّامِينَ بِالْقِسْطِ﴾ إِلَى قَوْله: ﴿فَاللَّهُ أَوْلَى بِهِمَا﴾ يَقُولُ: اشْهَدُوا على أَنفسكُم وعَلى أَبْنَائِكُم [وعَلى آبائكم] وأمهاتكم وقراباتكم؛ أَغْنِيَاء كَانُوا أَو فُقَرَاء ﴿إِنْ يَكُنْ غَنِيًّا أَوْ فَقِيرًا فَاللَّهُ أولى بهما﴾ أَي: أولى بغناه وَفَقره مِنْكُم.
قَالَ قَتَادَة: يَقُولُ: لَا يمنعنك غنى غَنِي، وَلَا فقر فَقير أَن تشهد عَلَيْهِ بِمَا تعلم. ﴿فَلا تَتَّبِعُوا الْهَوَى أَنْ تَعْدِلُوا﴾ (فتدعوا) الشَّهَادَة. ﴿وَإِن تلووا﴾ أَلْسِنَتكُم فتحرفوا الشَّهَادَة ﴿أَوْ تُعْرِضُوا﴾ فَلَا تشهدوا بهَا ﴿فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرًا﴾
