Having mentioned what He has prepared for His enemies—the followers of Iblis—of exemplary punishment and severe torment, Allah the Exalted then mentioned the immense bounty and everlasting bliss He has prepared for His allies. He said:
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(45–50) “Indeed, the righteous will be amid gardens and springs. Enter them in peace and security. We shall remove all rancor from their hearts; as brothers, they will be upon couches facing one another. No weariness will touch them there, nor will they ever be expelled from it. Tell My servants that I am indeed the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful, and that My punishment is truly the painful punishment.”
Allah the Exalted says: “Indeed, the righteous”—those who guarded themselves against obeying Satan and against all the sins and disobedience to which he calls them—“will be amid gardens and springs,” containing every kind of tree, where every delicious fruit ripens at all times.
As they enter, they will be told: “Enter them in peace and security”—safe from death, sleep, weariness, exhaustion, the loss or diminution of any part of the bliss they enjoy, illness, sorrow, anxiety, and every other disturbance. “We shall remove all rancor from their hearts,” so that their hearts will remain free of every trace of malice (1) and envy, pure toward one another and filled with mutual love. “As brothers, they will be upon couches facing one another.”
This indicates that they will visit and gather with one another, and that they will display the finest manners among themselves: each will face the others rather than turn his back to them, while reclining upon couches adorned with fine bedding, pearls, and all kinds of jewels.
“No weariness will touch them there,” whether outward or inward, because Allah will create them anew in a perfect form and life that are not susceptible to any affliction. “Nor will they ever be expelled from it” at any time whatsoever.
Having mentioned what inspires hope and fear among the things Allah has created—Paradise and Hell—He then mentioned the attributes of Allah the Exalted that inspire the same. He said: “Tell My servants”—that is, inform them with certainty, supported by evidence—“that I am indeed the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.” When they recognize the perfection of His mercy and forgiveness, they will pursue the means (2) that lead to His mercy, abandon their sins, and repent from them so that they may attain His forgiveness.
At the same time, their hope must not carry them so far that they feel secure and become presumptuous. Therefore, tell them “that My punishment is truly the painful punishment.” That is, in truth, no punishment compares with Allah’s punishment, whose magnitude cannot be measured and whose full reality cannot be fathomed. We seek refuge in Him from His punishment. When they know that “none punishes as He punishes, and none binds as He binds,” they will become wary and keep far away from every cause that would bring punishment upon them.
A servant’s heart should therefore always remain between fear and hope, longing and dread. When he considers his Lord’s mercy, forgiveness, generosity, and beneficence, this gives rise within him to hope and longing. When he considers his own sins and his failure to fulfill his Lord’s rights, this gives rise within him to fear and dread and prompts him to abandon those sins.