إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَوْ أَنَّ لَهُمْ مَا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا وَمِثْلَهُ مَعَهُ لِيَفْتَدُوا بِهِ مِنْ عَذَابِ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ مَا تُقُبِّلَ مِنْهُمْ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ ﴿۳۶﴾ يُرِيدُونَ أَنْ يَخْرُجُوا مِنَ النَّارِ وَمَا هُمْ بِخَارِجِينَ مِنْهَا وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ مُقِيمٌ ﴿۳۷﴾ وَالسَّارِقُ وَالسَّارِقَةُ فَاقْطَعُوا أَيْدِيَهُمَا جَزَاءً بِمَا كَسَبَا نَكَالًا مِنَ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ ﴿۳۸﴾

﴾36﴿ Innal lazeena kafaroo law anna lahum maa fil ardi jamee'anw wa mislahoo ma'ahoo liyaftadoo bihee min 'azaabi Yawmil Qiyaamati maa tuqubbila minhum wa lahum azaabun aleem
﴾37﴿ Yureedoona ai yakhrujoo minan Naari wa maa hum bikhaari jeena minhaa wa lahum 'azaabum muqeem
﴾38﴿ Wassaariqu wassaariqatu faqta'oo aidiyahumaa jazaaa'am bimaa kasabaa nakaalam minal laah; wallaahu 'Azeezun hakeem

﴾36﴿ Surely those who disbelieve—if they had all that is in the earth and as much again with it to offer as ransom to escape the punishment of the Day of Resurrection—it would never be accepted from them, and for them is a painful punishment.
﴾37﴿ They will wish to come out of the Fire, but they will never be able to leave it. And for them is a lasting punishment.
﴾38﴿ As for the male thief and the female thief, cut off their hands as a punishment for what they have earned—a deterrent from Allah. And Allah is Mighty, All-Knowing.

[36] This is a warning about the punishment of the Hereafter, indicating that three qualities are essential for salvation, and whoever lacks them cannot be saved from Allah's punishment — even if they offer the greatest possible ransom.
The verse refers to disbelievers (كَفَرُوا) — meaning those who lack these three essential traits.
"It will not be accepted from them (مَا تُقُبِّلَ مِنْهُمْ)" — This refers to a hadith narrated in Bukhari and Muslim, where:
On the Day of Judgment, it will be said to the disbeliever:
“If you had the entire earth full of gold, would you give it as ransom to save yourself from the punishment?”
He will say: “Yes, O Lord!”
But Allah will say:
“I asked you for something much easier in the world — that you not associate partners with Me — but you refused.”
This hadith shows that no ransom will be accepted in the Hereafter, and that true salvation lies in faith, sincere deeds, and avoiding shirk.
[37] Previously, it was stated that disbelievers cannot be saved from punishment by offering any ransom. Now, this verse adds that they also cannot escape punishment by trying to flee.
"Yurīdūn" (يُرِيدُونَ) — as al-Sam‘ānī explains — here means "to desire or wish." The verse refers specifically to the disbelievers, so it does not contradict the concept that sinful believers may eventually be taken out of Hell through intercession (shafā‘ah).
In other words:
Disbelievers can neither ransom themselves nor flee from punishment.
Believing sinners, on the other hand, may be punished temporarily, but are not eternally doomed — they may be forgiven or removed from Hell by Allah’s mercy or the intercession of the Prophet (peace be upon him), with Allah’s permission.
[38] The connection here is that it removes a misconception: namely, that if it is said that ransom is not accepted, it would be because worldly wealth has no respect before Allah the Exalted.
The answer is that the respect of wealth in the Shariah is shown by the fact that the hand is cut for theft of property, as in the verse “And the thief…” (wa-s-sāriq).
Although the verse is general and unrestricted, the authentic hadiths specify the minimum threshold (niṣāb) of the stolen property, which is the value of a mijn (shield), as mentioned in a sound hadith.
Even though there is disagreement among the jurists regarding this, the Kharijites—because of their rejection of hadiths—do not accept the niṣāb for theft.
“(fa-qṭaʿū)” means cutting in the sense of severing, such that it is separated from the body. Question: In Surah Yusuf it is said,
“(wa-qaṭṭaʿna)”, where the meaning is to wound or cut superficially, and the words are close to one another; so how can the meaning here correctly be taken as cutting off and severing?
Answer: In Surah Yusuf the figurative meaning is intended due to a contextual indicator, as stated by some commentators. It is therefore not necessary that the meaning of cutting elsewhere be the same. Rather, in a place where the literal meaning is possible and there is no contextual indicator for metaphor, the word is carried upon its literal meaning. In the verse of theft there is no such indicator, and there is no statement from the early scholars of interpretation that the meaning of cutting should be taken metaphorically.
“(jazāʾan bimā kasabā)” means a recompense appropriate to the deed; it indicates that this act—stealing—is carried out by the hand, so it is fitting that the punishment be applied to the hand.
“(nakālan mina Allāh)” means a punishment that serves as a deterrent, by which the perpetrator is restrained from committing this kind of act in the future, and likewise those who witness it are deterred.