(29) “O you who believe, if you fear Allah, He will grant you a criterion, expiate your misdeeds, and forgive you. Allah is the Possessor of immense bounty.”

A servant’s observance of the fear of his Lord is the hallmark of happiness and the sign of success. Allah has made abundant good in this world and the Hereafter contingent upon fearing Him. Here He mentions that whoever fears Allah will attain four things, each of which is better than this world and all it contains:

The first is the criterion: knowledge and guidance by which one distinguishes guidance from error, truth from falsehood, the lawful from the unlawful, and the people of happiness from the people of misery.

The second and third are the expiation of misdeeds and the forgiveness of sins. When mentioned independently, each includes the other; but when mentioned together, the expiation of misdeeds refers to minor sins, while the forgiveness of sins refers to the expiation of major sins.

The fourth is the immense reward and abundant recompense for whoever fears Him and prefers His pleasure to his own desires. “Allah is the Possessor of immense bounty.”