جَزاءً بِما كانوا يَعمَلونَ
A reward for what they used to do.
EXEGESIS
A subtle point that may be deduced from verse 24 is that they are not given their selfsame actions as their reward, but they are given a reward for (bi-mā) their actions. If they were to be paid back their own actions as their reward, it would not have been so great and abundant. However, they receive a much greater reward for what they used to do: Whoever brings virtue shall receive [a reward] better than it (27:89, 28:84); Whoever brings virtue shall receive ten times its like (6:160). Then the next two verses (verses 24 and 25) might be something beyond and in addition to that reward.
EXPOSITION
This group of verses discuss some of the mental, spiritual, and psychological rewards of the close ones: they will be held in honour (37:42). What makes their aforementioned rewards more enjoyable is that it is attributed to their own act and virtue, without any reproach or obligation: A reward from your Lord, a bounty well-deserved (78:36); A reward for what they used to do. The verse also suggests to the reader that these are achieved only through action – that is, acting according to God’s commands and seeking His pleasure. Mere belief or hope is not sufficient. It will not be by your fancies nor by the fancies of the People of the Book (4:123). Further, what they used to do means that a person must persistently observe good deeds and moral characters such that they become established in him.
Another beautiful interpretation is that all of these lofty rewards that were mentioned are just what they will get for what they used to do, but they do not include God’s mercy, multiplication, and the extra rewards that He will bestow upon them.
[1] Razi, 29/398.
[2] Razi, 29/400.
[3] Furqan, 28/70.
[4] Murtaza Alidina, series of lectures on the exegesis of Sūrat al-Wāqiʿah, available at <http://www.dartabligh.org >.