Then the Prophet ﷺ said, “Shall I not tell you who the people of the Fire are? Every ʿutul, jawwāẓ, and arrogant person.” These, therefore, are the distinguishing marks of those destined for Hell.

ʿUtul denotes someone coarse and harsh-hearted, whose heart—Allah’s refuge—is like stone or even harder. As for the phrase jawwāẓ mutakabbir (jawwāẓ and arrogant), jawwāẓ has been interpreted in several ways. Some scholars say it describes a hoarder who amasses wealth yet withholds the dues that must be paid on it.

The more apparent meaning, however, is that jawwāẓ refers to a man who cannot endure hardship: he is fretful and impatient, imagining himself so elevated that nothing should ever touch him.

An illustration of this is the story of a man who accompanied the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on a military expedition. He fought with outstanding bravery, leaving no enemy combatant—great or small—without putting him down. Yet the Prophet ﷺ declared, “This man is one of the people of the Fire.” That statement weighed heavily on the Companions, who wondered, “How can he be among the people of Hell when he is in such a state?”

One of them said, “By Allah, I will stay close to him until I see what becomes of him.” He shadowed the man, and the brave fighter was struck by an enemy arrow. Unable to bear the pain, he panicked, seized the tip of his sword, pressed it against his chest, leaned on it until the blade pierced through his back—Allah protect us—and he killed himself.

The observer then came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said, “O Messenger of Allah, I testify that you are truly the Messenger of Allah.” The Prophet asked, “Why is that?” He replied, “Because the man you said was among the people of the Fire has done such-and-such.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “A person may perform the deeds of the people of Paradise as far as people can see, yet he is in reality one of the people of the Fire.” Consider this man: he panicked, could not endure, and so he killed—