وَآمِنُوا بِمَا أَنْزَلْتُ مُصَدِّقًا لِمَا مَعَكُمْ وَلَا تَكُونُوا أَوَّلَ كَافِرٍ بِهِ وَلَا تَشْتَرُوا بِآيَاتِي ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًا وَإِيَّايَ فَاتَّقُونِ ﴿41﴾ وَلَا تَلْبِسُوا الْحَقَّ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتَكْتُمُوا الْحَقَّ وَأَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ ﴿42﴾ وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَارْكَعُوا مَعَ الرَّاكِعِينَ ﴿43﴾

﴾41﴿ Wa aaminoo bimaaa anzaltu musaddiqal limaa ma'akum wa laa takoonooo awwala kaafirim bihee wa laa tashtaroo bi Aayaatee samanan qaleelanw wa iyyaaya fattaqoon
﴾42﴿ Wa laa talbisul haqqa bilbaatili wa taktumul haqqa wa antum ta'lamoon
﴾43﴿ Wa aqeemus salaata wa aatuz zakaata warka'oo ma'ar raaki'een

﴾41﴿ And believe in the Book that I have revealed, which confirms what is with you, and do not be the first to deny it. And do not sell My signs for a small price, and fear Me alone (by protecting yourselves from the unlawful)
﴾42﴿ And do not mix the truth with falsehood, nor conceal the truth while you know
﴾43﴿ And establish the prayer, and give the zakat, and bow down with those who bow down

[41] In this verse, two commands and two prohibitions are mentioned. The first command (آمِنُوا بِمَا أَنْزَلْتُ) is an invitation to believe through the Qur'an and the sunnah. (وَلَا تَكُونُوا أَوَّلَ كَافِرٍ بِهِ) is a prohibition against disbelief, which is the opposite of faith. The word “first” is used here because if these people (the People of the Book) disbelieve, their followers will also disbelieve, making them the first to reject. Or the word kufr here may mean “to conceal.” Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Children of Israel have passed, and you are now listening to these verses — meaning that this address is also intended for this ummah. (وَلَا تَشْتَرُوا) is a second prohibition, opposing true faith. (بِآيَاتِي) refers to the commands of Allah — or it may refer to altering, rejecting, concealing, distorting, or abandoning the implementation of His verses. The intent is that for the sake of acquiring worldly wealth, status, or rank, you abandon acting upon the verses about Tawhid (monotheism), prophethood, and other commands. It also implies taking payment or food and drink in return for reciting the Qur'an. Recitation done for the reward of the Hereafter loses its benefit when done for such worldly gain. However, taking payment for teaching and instruction is permitted according to authentic hadiths. (ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًا) — "a small price" refers to the whole world, for the world and all that is in it has no value when compared to religion and the Hereafter.
[42] In this verse, two prohibitions are mentioned. In the previous verse, the prohibitions were related to actions that caused their own misguidance. In this one, it refers to actions that lead to the misguidance of others — for example, how scholars mislead through tadlees (confusion or mixing truth with falsehood), and how the unlettered masses (the ummiyoon) are misled through kitman (concealment). (بِالْبَاطِلِ) — meaning they mix words of truth with words of falsehood. Like the Shi’ah, who have inserted their own words into many verses; or using false interpretations and casting doubts upon the truth — for example, rigid blind followers (muqallidīn jāmid) who distort authentic hadiths through far-fetched interpretations, or the Mu'tazilah, Jahmiyyah, Maturidiyyah, and Ashʿarīs who reinterpret verses about Allah’s attributes. (وَأَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ) — this phrase serves as a strong warning: they conceal the truth despite having knowledge of it. If an independent jurist (mujtahid imam) unintentionally misses the truth in some issues, that is not considered intentional concealment. But if it is done knowingly, then it is blameworthy. If someone acts without knowledge, then it is not a sin — but once one knows, hiding the truth becomes a serious offense.
[43] These are actions that strengthen and complete faith. This is evidence that such deeds were also obligatory upon the Children of Israel. (مَعَ الرَّاكِعِينَ) — The intended meaning is to join the congregation of the Companions by following them and loving them. By mentioning ruku‘ (bowing), the aim is to indicate complete prayer. Ruku‘ is specifically mentioned because the Children of Israel were negligent in this aspect and had abandoned it.