As for His words, “they say, ‘Indeed, we belong to Allah,’” whenever calamity strikes them they acknowledge Allah’s all-encompassing ownership: they are His property, and He is free to dispose of what is His as He wills. For this reason the Prophet—may blessings and peace be upon him—said to one of his daughters: “Indeed, Allah has taken what is His, and to Him belongs what He gave.” You are but a possession of your Lord, and He does with you as His exalted wisdom decrees.

He then says, “and indeed, to Him we shall return.” They admit that they must inevitably return to Allah, who will requite them: if they respond with resentment, He will recompense them for their resentment; but if they are patient—as these people are—Allah will reward them for their patience in the face of adversity. Allah tests with affliction and rewards the one who endures it.

The Exalted also says, “Such people are those upon whom are prayers from their Lord and mercy” (al-Baqarah 2:157). “Such people” refers to the patient; upon them rest salawat (prayers)—the plural of salah—which here means Allah’s commendation of them in the highest assembly, His praise of them before the angels, along with His mercy.

And His words, “those are the rightly guided,” describe those whom Allah has guided when calamities descend: they did not show displeasure but remained patient with what befell them. This verse proves that Allah’s salawat are not identical to His mercy; rather, they are more specific, more complete, and superior. Hence, the scholars who interpreted Allah’s prayer as mere mercy