done what entitles him to the utmost nearness to Allah, when perhaps what he has done merits only His curse and wrath. He is like someone who brings debased coins to purchase fine goods: when the sellers refuse to sell to him, he thinks they have wronged him, whereas he is the wrongdoer. In this, he resembles one of Adam’s two sons:

“When they both offered a sacrifice, it was accepted from one but not the other. The latter said, ‘I will surely kill you.’ The former replied, ‘Allah only accepts from those who fear Him.’”
Surah al-Mā’idah, 27

The account of ‘Abbās and similar accounts are to be understood in light of this principle. He did not specify what he sought and desired, or what deed he had performed. He sought something without doing the work appropriate to attaining it. As for Allah not willing that he attain his goal, this may have been because he was unworthy of it, or because attaining it would have harmed him. How many people yearn for lofty ranks whose responsibilities they cannot fulfil, so that attaining them would prove disastrous for them!

This also applies to worldly matters, as Allah Most High says:

“Among them are those who pledged to Allah, ‘If He gives us of His bounty, we will surely give in charity and be among the righteous.’ But when He gave them of His bounty, they withheld it and turned away in aversion. So He caused hypocrisy to take root in their hearts until the Day they meet Him.”
Surah al-Tawbah, 75–77