all, you will indeed die and be returned to the lowest of the low—except those who believe and do righteous deeds.” As He says:

“We have certainly created man in the finest form.”

“Then We returned him to the lowest of the low.”

“Except those who believe and do righteous deeds, for they will have an uninterrupted reward.”

This return takes place through death, for man descends to the lowest of the low, except those who believe and do righteous deeds. As He says:

“No! Indeed, the record of the wicked is in Sijjīn.”

And He says:

“Indeed, the record of the righteous is in Illiyyīn.”

There are two interpretations of His words, “the lowest of the low.” One is that they refer to decrepit old age; the other is that they refer to punishment after death. The latter is what the verse definitively indicates, for He places man among the lowest of the low, with the exception of the believers.

People fall into two categories: after death, the disbeliever is punished among the lowest of the low, while the believer is in Illiyyīn. As for the first interpretation, it is open to question. Not everyone other than the believers reaches decrepit old age and is thus returned to the lowest of the low. Rather, many disbelievers die before reaching decrepitude, while many believers do reach it. Even if the believer’s condition in old age is better than the disbeliever’s, the believer’s condition is likewise better than the disbeliever’s in youth. Thus, interpreting the return to the lowest of the low as occurring at the end of life, and restricting it to disbelievers, is a weak interpretation. Hence some have said that, on this interpretation, the exception is disjunctive; this, too, is