(71–72) “There is none among you who will not come to it. This is a decree upon your Lord that must be fulfilled. * Then We will save those who were mindful of Allah and leave the wrongdoers therein on their knees.”

This is addressed to all created beings—the righteous and the wicked, the believers and the disbelievers. Not one of them will fail to come to the Fire. This is a decree Allah has made binding upon Himself and with which He has warned His servants. It must inevitably be carried out, and there is no avoiding its occurrence.

Scholars differed concerning the meaning of coming to it. It was said that it means all created beings will be brought into its presence, so that everyone experiences dread; thereafter, Allah will save those who were mindful of Him. It was also said that it means entering it, in which case it will be coolness and safety for the believers ⦗499⦘. It was further said that it means crossing the Sirāt, which spans Hell. People will cross according to their deeds: some as swiftly as the blink of an eye, some like the wind, some like the finest horses, and some like the finest riding mounts. Some will run, some will walk, some will crawl, and some will be snatched away and cast into the Fire—each according to his mindfulness of Allah.

Hence He says: “Then We will save those who were mindful of” Allah Most High by doing what He commanded and avoiding what He forbade, “and leave the wrongdoers”—those who wronged themselves through disbelief and sin—“therein on their knees.” Because of their wrongdoing and disbelief, eternal abiding became obligatory for them (1), the punishment became their due, and every means of escape was cut off from them.