وَقالُوا الحَمدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذي صَدَقَنا وَعدَهُ وَأَورَثَنَا الأَرضَ نَتَبَوَّأُ مِنَ الجَنَّةِ حَيثُ نَشاءُ ۖ فَنِعمَ أَجرُ العامِلينَ

They will say: ‘All praise belongs to Allah, who has fulfilled His promise to us and made us heirs to the earth, that we may settle in paradise wherever we may wish!’ How excellent is the reward of the workers [of righteousness]!

EXEGESIS

Awrathanā: made us heirs, made us to inherit, bequeathed upon us. It is from the root waratha, which means receiving some wealth, material or spiritual, without any contract or agreement, whether formal or informal.^{‎[1]Raghib; Tahqiq; Qamus, under w-r-th.} It is apparently not limited to receiving something after one’s death, although that is a common usage and a clear example of it.

Natabawwaʾu: settle, descend to reside.^{‎[2]Bahrayn; Tahqiq, under b-w-ʾ.}

ʿĀmilīn: workers, doers, actors. Both faith and action are needed for one to be considered God-wary and enter paradise. However, the verse only refers to ʿamal (work, act, deed). There are a few possible explanations for this: 1. It is to emphasise the role of action in God-wariness and its importance in achieving paradise. It is an implicit refutation of those who neglect on action and simply rely on their faith.^{‎[3]Furqan, 25/394, with some elaboration.} It is also a subtle indication that the inhabitants of hell were those who fell short in terms of action and righteous deeds.^{‎[4]Alusi, 12/289.} 2. It could be that action here includes faith as well, for it is an action of the heart. Indeed, faith and action are interconnected; they mutually reinforce and establish one another, and each of them in its general and comprehensive sense includes the other. 3. ʿAmal might mean effort in this verse. Hence, the verse is emphasising the fact that the path to paradise involves effort and hardship, whether in the form of maintaining a pure and true faith, or performing sincere righteous deeds (90:11-18), as the Prophet said: ‘Paradise is surrounded by unpleasant things, while hell is surrounded by desires.’^{‎[5]Ahmad, 2/380, 3/153; Bukhari, 7/186; Muslim, 8/142-143; Nahj, sermon 176; Rawḍat al-Wāʿiẓīn, 2/421.} Imagine how much time and effort it takes to obtain a PhD or become a homeowner; then imagine how much effort and diligence is required to enter paradise forever. It is for this reason that Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Nay! One cannot deceive God about His paradise, and His pleasure cannot be secured save by His obedience.’^{‎[6]Nahj, sermon 129.}

EXPOSITION

They will praise God for fulfilling His promise of rewarding the God-wary with paradise. His promise could also refer to the promise of the truth of the hereafter in general, or the specific promise of giving paradise to the God-wary as inheritance:^{‎[7]Mizan, 17/298.} This is the paradise We will give as inheritance to those of Our servants who are God-wary (19:63).

There are two points to be clarified in this verse: 1. The meaning of earth. 2. The meaning of being heirs.

There are a few possibilities for the meaning of earth: 1. The verse has used earth and paradise interchangeably. This synonymy is confirmed by other similar verses that only talk about being heirs to paradise. The earth here refers to the transformed earth of the hereafter (14:48), which will glow with the light of her Lord (verse 69). 2. The word earth in this verse is the equivalent of earth in that world. It is the existential plane and place where paradise is situated.^{‎[8]Alusi, 12/289, with some elaboration.} 3. Another (less likely) possibility is that earth in this verse refers to the earth in this world (dunyā), and what is meant is that God made us the inheritors of the ultimate result and the good reward that follows the current life (of dunyā): For such will be the reward of the [ultimate] abode: the gardens of Eden, which they will enter along with whoever is righteous from among their forebears, their spouses, and their descendants, and the angels will call on them from every door: ‘Peace be to you, for your patience.’ How excellent is the reward of the [ultimate] abode! (13:22-24). The following two verses could also be interpreted in this light: The earth indeed belongs to Allah, and He gives its inheritance to whomever He wishes of His servants, and the outcome will be in favour of the God-wary (7:128); Indeed My righteous servants shall inherit the earth (21:105).

The meaning of inheritance: there are several other verses in the Quran that talk about inheriting paradise (7:43, 19:63, 23:10-11, 26:85, 43:72), and there are other verses that talk about inheriting the earth, a land, or a scripture. There are a few possible explanations for the usage of this term for paradise: 1. It simply means that God gave us paradise as a consequence and result of our deeds. In Arabic, it is common to use the verb awratha (bring about as inheritance) to talk about the result of an act or situation.^{‎[9]Razi, 27/480.} 2. Any wealth, property, or pleasure in this world is transient and cannot be enjoyed forever, but God will be its ultimate inheritor (3:180, 15:23, 19:40, 21:89, 28:58, 57:10). Therefore, if one is given a bounty to have and enjoy indefinitely, that would be a true inheritance, as it remains for the person forever.^{‎[10]Tabrisi, 8/796, with some elaboration.} 3. One’s inheritance completely belongs to him, and he can use and manage it as he wishes. Likewise, inheriting paradise refers to their full authority and entitlement to the reward that they receive, without any limitation or any responsibility in return.^{‎[11]Kashif, 6/435.} In other words, being heirs to the earth is interpreted by what follows in the verse: that we may settle in paradise wherever we may wish. Of course, they will not wish anything contrary to God’s wish and pleasure.^{‎[12]Furqan, 25/394.} 4. The gardens of paradise are much more than what the God-wary deserve according to their efforts. The size of the reward that they get is rather due to God’s mercy and munificence. In this sense, their reward is like an inheritance that one receives without any effort, as opposed to a remuneration to which one is entitled according to his work. However, this neither means that paradise is given for free, nor does it mean that one’s reward has no connection with one’s acts and efforts. Rather, it only refers to the aspect of one’s reward being multiplied beyond what he deserves solely based on his effort. 5. God has decreed the creation of paradise and hell for His servants, and has decreed what beliefs and actions will lead one to either destination. Therefore, when one qualifies for paradise by meeting those conditions (in terms of belief and action), then he is effectively ‘inheriting’ a reward that God had set aside. This could be the meaning of some narrations that talk about each person having a place in paradise and one in hell (see 64:9), as noted by several exegetes. Meanwhile, it should be noted that the term inheritance has not been used for hell.

… that we may settle in paradise wherever we may wish. This applies to each individual with respect to his own paradise: each of them can settle wherever he wishes in his garden. There are a few points concerning this sentence: 1. It is a specific application of a more universal principle about paradise: There they will have whatever they wish (25:16); therein will be whatever the souls desire (43:71); you will have in it whatever your souls desire (41:31). 2. It might also be a reference to the breadth and vastness of paradise (3:133, 57:21). Each person will have such a vast garden that will suffice him, and where he can settle wherever he wishes without any encroachment on another person’s garden.^{‎[13]Zamakhshari, 4/147.} 3. Another possible meaning is that everyone is attracted to the place reserved for them based on their ranks and actions. They only wish to live there and nowhere else because of the connection that exists between that place and the person’s heart. 4. In fact, there is no place for conflict or disagreement in paradise; it is by nature different from this world, which is characterised by limitation and whose people are characterised by possessiveness and debarment. To those who were God-wary it will be said: ‘What is it that your Lord has sent down?’ They will say: ‘Good.’ For those who do good in this world there will be a good [reward], and the abode of the hereafter is better, and the abode of the God-wary is surely excellent: the gardens of Eden, which they will enter, with streams running in them. There they will have whatever they wish, and thus does Allah reward the God-wary (16:30-31).

How excellent is the reward of the workers [of righteousness]! This could be a continuation of the speech of the God-wary.^{‎[14]Mizan, 17/298.} However, it is more likely that it is a word of praise by God or some of His angels or special servants, as per the following verse: And the call would be made to them: ‘This is paradise, which you have been given to inherit because of what you used to do!’ (7:43). It is very similar to the welcome greeting of the keepers of paradise: Well done! It could also (more likely) be God’s praise of their work and reward as He describes and reports a future event for us today. It is an implicit encouragement and urge to strive for such a lofty reward: Let all the workers work for the like of this! (37:61); for such let the viers vie (83:26); Those who have faith and do righteous deeds, We will surely settle them in lofty abodes of paradise with streams running in them, to remain in them [forever]. How excellent is the reward of the workers! (29:58).

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. Imam Ali (a) described the people of God’s remembrance as follows: ‘The angels are surrounding them; composure descends upon them; and the gates of the heavens are opened for them. They are provided with honorific seats, in such a place where God looks upon them; He is pleased with their effort and exalts their position.’^{‎[15]Nahj, sermon 222.}

Notes: 1. The opening of the gates of paradise is the result of knocking and opening the gates of the spiritual world in this world by one’s righteous deeds, supplications, and remembrance of God. 2. One’s praise of God is accompanied by His praise of the person – a general rule deduced from the Quran (for example see 2:152 and 47:7). Therefore, the praise of the God-wary of God in paradise is a sign of God’s praise of them and His satisfaction with them, which is the highest heavenly reward (9:72).

2. Imam al-Bāqir (a) interpreted heirs to the earth as ‘the earth of paradise’.^{‎[16]Qummi, 2/254.}
3. It is narrated that when Imam al-Sajjād (a) was about to die, he passed out thrice. On the last time he became conscious, he said: ‘‘All praise belongs to Allah, who has fulfilled His promise to us and made us heirs to the earth, that we may settle in paradise wherever we may wish!’ How excellent is the reward of the workers [of righteousness]!’ Then he passed away. In another narration, he recited chapters 56 and 48 before reciting this verse, and then he passed away.^{‎[17]Qummi, 2/254; Kafi, 1/468, h. 5; Daqaiq, 11/347.}

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

One suggested explanation for the usage of inheritance in this verse is that the God-wary will enter the same garden that was given to Adam and Eve. Therefore, they are the inheritors of their original parents.

This is an unlikely possibility, as the garden of Adam and Eve was of a different nature to the eternal gardens of paradise. See verses 2:35 and 7:19.^{‎[18]Razi, 27/480.}

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

The idea of inheriting the earth is found in Jesus’ Beatitudes:

1. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.^{‎[19]Matthew 5:5.}

[1] Raghib; Tahqiq; Qamus, under w-r-th.
[2] Bahrayn; Tahqiq, under b-w-ʾ.
[3] Furqan, 25/394, with some elaboration.
[4] Alusi, 12/289.
[5] Ahmad, 2/380, 3/153; Bukhari, 7/186; Muslim, 8/142-143; Nahj, sermon 176; Rawḍat al-Wāʿiẓīn, 2/421.
[6] Nahj, sermon 129.
[7] Mizan, 17/298.
[8] Alusi, 12/289, with some elaboration.
[9] Razi, 27/480.
[10] Tabrisi, 8/796, with some elaboration.
[11] Kashif, 6/435.
[12] Furqan, 25/394.
[13] Zamakhshari, 4/147.
[14] Mizan, 17/298.
[15] Nahj, sermon 222.
[16] Qummi, 2/254.
[17] Qummi, 2/254; Kafi, 1/468, h. 5; Daqaiq, 11/347.
[18] Razi, 27/480.
[19] Matthew 5:5.