(5–6) “Whoever hopes to meet Allah, then surely Allah’s appointed time is coming. And He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing. Whoever strives does so only for his own benefit. Indeed, Allah is free of need of all creation.”

That is: O you who love your Lord, yearn to draw near to Him and meet Him, and hasten to seek His pleasure, rejoice at the nearness of meeting the Beloved. It is certainly coming, and whatever is coming is near. So prepare provisions for meeting Him and journey toward Him, holding fast to hope and aspiring to reach Him. Yet not everyone who makes a claim is granted what he claims, nor is everyone who wishes for something given what he wishes for. Allah hears every voice and knows every intention. Whoever is sincere in this will be granted what he hopes for, while whoever is false will derive no benefit from his claim. He knows best who is fit for His love and who is not.

“Whoever strives” against his own self, Satan, and his disbelieving enemy “does so only for his own benefit,” because the benefit and fruits of his striving return to him. Allah is free of need of all creation. He did not command them to do what He commanded for His own benefit, nor did He forbid them what He forbade out of miserliness toward them.

It is well known that obeying commands and prohibitions requires the morally responsible person to strive: his own self is naturally sluggish in doing good, Satan dissuades him from it, and his disbelieving enemy prevents him from establishing his religion as he should. All these are obstacles that require strenuous striving and earnest effort.