أَفَمَن حَقَّ عَلَيهِ كَلِمَةُ العَذابِ أَفَأَنتَ تُنقِذُ مَن فِي النّارِ
لٰكِنِ الَّذينَ اتَّقَوا رَبَّهُم لَهُم غُرَفٌ مِن فَوقِها غُرَفٌ مَبنِيَّةٌ تَجري مِن تَحتِهَا الأَنهارُ ۖ وَعدَ اللَّهِ ۖ لا يُخلِفُ اللَّهُ الميعادَ
Can he against whom the word of punishment has become due …? Can you rescue someone who is in the fire?
But as for those who are wary of their Lord, for them there will be lofty abodes with [other] lofty abodes built above them, with streams running beneath them – a promise of Allah. Allah does not break His promise.
EXEGESIS
Kalimat al-ʿadhāb (word of punishment) is God’s decree and threat of punishment and wretchedness. Ḥaqqa ʿalayhi means to be realised and established. Those against whom the word of punishment has become due have been identified in many other verses in the Quran as those who set partners with God, refuse to obey Him, and follow Satan and his hosts (7:30, 17:16, 22:18, 28:63, 37:30-35, 41:25, 46:18). It can be inferred from the next verse that those against whom the word of punishment has become due are those who are not wary of their Lord. In other words, God’s punishment is not established for anyone except due to his own misdeeds.
Ghuraf is the plural of ghurfah, meaning an elevated building or chamber. It refers to the lofty position of the God-wary, and their supervision and encompassment of others in the hereafter: But those who are God-wary shall be above them [the faithless] on the Day of Resurrection (2:212). Both the singular and plural forms of the word have been used in the Quran, in definite and indefinite forms (25:75, 29:58, 34:37). These various usages could be a reference to the different degrees and stations of the inhabitants of paradise. Based on the other verses that talk about the elevated heavenly abodes, patience is a key quality that brings about such a reward (25:75, 29:58-59).
EXPOSITION
Verses 19-20 sum up the earlier discussion by classifying people into two groups: it comes down to being either among those who are wary of their Lord or being one against whom the word of punishment has become due. The same contrast is seen in verses 71-73, where the faithless are described as those against whom the word of punishment has become due, as opposed to those who are wary of their Lord. This indicates that the threat of punishment applies to the faithless, while the promise of reward awaits the God-wary.
Can you rescue someone who is in the fire? in verse 19 is a rhetorical question, which serves the purpose of emphasis, and it also answers the first part of verse 19. The verse says that once a person has exhausted all his chances for salvation and has closed all of the doors of deliverance upon himself, then not even the Prophet can rescue him from damnation. This is because God’s punishment is not an arbitrary penalty, but a necessary consequence of one’s beliefs and actions. Based on this, someone who is in the fire could mean one who is, in reality, in the fire right now, because the fire is nothing but the wrong beliefs and conduct in which he is immersed. The same idea can be inferred from verse 20 concerning heavenly rewards: their palaces are already built (mabniyyah) and ready, not that they will be constructed later on.
There are also other verses in the Quran that leave it out of the Prophet’s hand to guide or rescue whomever he wants (2:272, 3:128, 16:37, 28:56, 35:8, 63:6). These verses could involve a subtle reference to the utmost eagerness of the Prophet to guide everyone (6:35, 9:80, 9:128, 16:37, 18:6, 20:1-2, 26:3, 35:8). According to Ibn Abbas, this verse was revealed concerning the faithless members of the Prophet’s family such as his uncle, Abū Lahab. According to others, it is about Abū Jahl and his crew. These could be particular applications of the universal message of the verse.
Verse 20: But as for those who are wary of their Lord: the contrast between verses 19 and 20 shows that the only way to salvation is to be wary of God (taqwā), as repeatedly emphasised in the Quran. Verse 16 says, My servants, be wary of Me, and this verse presents the reward of acting upon that command. Then the verse further stresses this promise: a promise of Allah. Allah does not break His promise. This is also among the solid Quranic principles, that God never breaks His promise (3:9, 3:194, 9:111, 13:31, 30:6).
A simple approximation for chambers or palaces above one another would be multistorey palaces. However, we should remember that the reality of heavenly rewards is beyond our imagination and mental capacity, for we are accustomed to the world of matter and physical dimensions. There are a few possible interpretations for lofty abodes with [other] lofty abodes built above them: 1. They refer to the multiple levels and degrees of heaven, according to one’s degree of God-wariness. 2. They refer to the limitless nature of heavenly rewards. 3. The expression contrasts verse 16: There will be canopies of fire above them, and [similar] canopies beneath them. 4. Moral virtues and spiritual perfections build upon one another; for example, one reaches the station of satisfaction (riḍā) after mastering patience (ṣabr). This manifests in the hereafter by lofty abodes with [other] lofty abodes built above them. More generally speaking, heavenly abodes above one another could be a manifestation of how one true belief or righteous deed leads into another. The God-wary acquire the preliminary beliefs and the basics of their religion in this world, and then build on it. The reward of this growth in knowledge and practice is lofty abodes with [other] lofty abodes built above them. All of these explanations could be true.
INSIGHTS FROM HADITH
- Imam Ali (a) asked the Prophet: ‘O Messenger of God, teach us about the lofty abodes with [other] lofty abodes built above them. What are they built of?’ The Prophet replied: ‘O Ali, those are abodes that God, mighty and majestic is He, has built for His friends with pearl, ruby, and emerald. Their ceilings are of gold, interlocked with silver. Each abode has a thousand doors, with an angel attending each door.’
Note: This tradition continues into a long description of several other magnificent bounties of paradise, many of which correspond to other verses of the Quran.
- Imam al-Bāqir (a) said: ‘If a believer has these four qualities, God will house him at the top of the highest ʿilliyyūn, in lofty abodes above abodes, in a place of absolute honour: 1. One who houses an orphan, looks after him, and treats him as a compassionate father. 2. One who shows mercy to a weak person, helps him out, and takes care of his needs. 3. One who pays the expenses of his parents, is lenient toward them, does good to them, and does not make them dissatisfied. 4. One who is not harsh toward his slave [i.e. servant, inferior], helps him in the duties that he assigns to him, and does not lay upon him a burden that he cannot carry.’
[1] Alusi, 12/244.
[2] Tabrisi, 8/770.
[3] Qurtubi, 15/244.
[4] Alusi, 12/243.
[5] Tibyan, 9/18.
[6] Abd al-Razzaq, 2/201.
[7] Razi, 26/439.
[8] Qummi, 2/246; Kafi, 8/97.
[9] Amali.M, p. 167.