Surah Al-Israa (17) — Ayah 18

(Ayah 18) ➊ { مَنْ كَانَ يُرِيْدُ الْعَاجِلَةَ … :} The author of Kashshaf said: That person whose objective is only what is quickly attained (i.e., the world) and who has no other purpose, as is the case with the disbelievers and most of the defiantly disobedient, We grant from the benefits of the world as much as We will and to whom We will. So Allah Almighty has placed two restrictions in this matter: one is that We give as much of the worldly thing as We will, and the second restriction is that We give it only to whom We intend. And indeed, it is so; you will see that many of them, no matter how much they desire, receive only a portion of it, and sometimes they receive nothing at all. Thus, for them, the poverty of this world and the poverty of the Hereafter are both combined. As for the righteous believer, his only objective is the Hereafter, so his being rich in the Hereafter is certain; he does not care whether he attains the comforts of this world or not. If he receives them in the world, he is grateful; if not, he is patient. Then, many times, poverty is better for him and more helpful in attaining his goal. See also Surah Hud (15, 16) and Surah Ash-Shura (20).

➋ {’’ مَذْمُوْمًا ‘‘ ’’ذَمٌّ‘‘} is a passive participle, which is the opposite of praise. {’’ مَدْحُوْرًا ‘‘ ’’دُحُوْرٌ‘‘} is a passive participle, which means to remove or repel, i.e., in the Hereafter, none of his deeds will be accepted in any way.