خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا مَا دَامَتِ السَّمَاوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ رَبُّكَ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ فَعَّالٌ لِمَا يُرِيدُ ﴿۱۰۷﴾ وَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ سُعِدُوا فَفِي الْجَنَّةِ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا مَا دَامَتِ السَّمَاوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ رَبُّكَ عَطَاءً غَيْرَ مَجْذُوذٍ ﴿۱۰۸﴾ فَلَا تَكُ فِي مِرْيَةٍ مِمَّا يَعْبُدُ هَؤُلَاءِ مَا يَعْبُدُونَ إِلَّا كَمَا يَعْبُدُ آبَاؤُهُمْ مِنْ قَبْلُ وَإِنَّا لَمُوَفُّوهُمْ نَصِيبَهُمْ غَيْرَ مَنْقُوصٍ ﴿۱۰۹﴾
﴾107﴿ Khaalideena feehaa maa daamatis samaawaatu wal ardu illaa maa shaaa'a Rabbuk; inna Rabbaka fa' 'aalul limaa yureed
﴾108﴿ Wa ammal lazeena su'idoo fafil Jannati khaalideena feehaa maa daamatis samaawaatu wal ardu illaa maa shaaa'a Rabbuk; ataaa'an ghaira majzooz
﴾109﴿ Falaa taku fee miryatim mimmmaa ya'budu haaa'ulaaa'; maa ya'budoona illaa kamaa ya'budu aabaaa'uhum min qabl; wa innaa lamuwaf foohum naseebahum ghaira manqoos
﴾107﴿ They will remain in it forever as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except those whom your Lord wills. Indeed, your Lord is the doer of whatever He wills
﴾108﴿ And those who are blessed will enter Paradise, abiding therein as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except what your Lord wills. It is a bounty without end
﴾109﴿ So do not be in doubt about the reason why these people worship (what they do). They worship nothing but what their forefathers worshipped before them. And indeed, We will give them their full share without any reduction
[107]
The "heavens and the earth" referred to here are those of the Day of Resurrection, based on Verse (48) of Surah Ibrahim; those heavens and earth shall exist forever.
The phrase "except as your Lord wills" (illā mā shā’a rabbuka) refers to:
The sinful believers: Those who are not initially pardoned and are sent to Hell for a limited duration before eventually being brought out. In this case, the exception applies to the term "abiding eternally" (khālidīn).
Alternative forms of punishment: Alternatively, it may refer to other types of torment within Hell—such as Zamhareer (extreme cold) or the specific acts of eating and drinking (the bitter fruit of Zaqqum and boiling water). In this case, the exception applies to the Fire (al-Nār) itself.
[108] And those who are blessed will enter Paradise, abiding therein as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except what your Lord wills. It is a bounty without end -
This verse contains glad tidings for the righteous:
(سُعِدُوا) (blessed) — indicating that true happiness is attained purely through the grace of Allah, not solely by one's deeds.
The phrase (except what your Lord wills) (إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ رَبُّكَ) refers to sinful believers who are not pardoned immediately,
and therefore do not enter Paradise at the very beginning. They may enter after a period of punishment,
so this is an exception from (will enter Paradise) (فَفِي الْجَنَّةِ) — meaning:
“All will enter Paradise — except the sinful believers, who will not enter at the beginning.”
(عَطَاءً غَيْرَ مَجْذُوذٍ) (It is a bounty without end) — means a gift that will never be cut off.
This clarifies that the phrase (إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ رَبُّكَ) does not imply that someone who has entered Paradise will later be removed from it.
Rather, once a person enters Paradise, they will remain in it forever — their reward is everlasting and uninterrupted.
[109] Since the fearful fate of the polytheists and the glad tidings for the monotheists have been mentioned, the conclusion drawn is that shirk is false, and there should be no doubt about its invalidity.
This verse carries two key messages:
1. Do not doubt the truth of tawḥīd, even though polytheists worship others besides Allah — their worship is based on blind imitation, just like their ancestors, and has no evidence or reasoning.
2. Do not doubt the falsehood of worshiping others besides Allah — it is inherently baseless and rejected.
The phrase (وَإِنَّا لَمُوَفُّوهُمْ نَصِيبَهُمْ) — answers a potential question:
“If shirk is false and baseless, why do the disbelievers still have wealth, provision, and worldly success?”
The response is that this portion (naṣīb) is given to them in this world as a test or trial,
or, alternatively, “naṣīb” could refer to their share of punishment, which they will surely receive in full in the Hereafter.