Tafsir of Al-Isra 17:18

"Whoever desires the immediate..." (that is, through his work, as Ibn Abi Hatim recorded from al-Dahhak).

"...the immediate [life]..." (exclusively, without desiring the Hereafter along with it, as indicated by the continuity implied by the addition of the particle kāna here, while restricting the meaning to the absolute desire in its counterpart. It has been said that if it were not restricted, it would apply to one who desires both the immediate life and the Hereafter, and the division [in the verse] negates this partnership. The evidence of the 'desire' for this is that it is the attachment of the heart to a thing and the singleness of one's concern for it; yet, this is not strong. The 'immediate' refers to the worldly abode, as al-Dahhak also narrated, and desiring it means desiring the various pursuits contained within it, similar to His saying: 'Whoever desires the harvest of the world.' It is also permissible that 'the immediate life' is meant, as in His saying: 'Whoever desires the immediate life and its adornment.' The former is preferred because it is more appropriate to His saying: 'We hasten for him therein'—that is, in that immediate life—for such life and its continuation are part of what is hastened. Thus, the preposition min (from) is more fitting, as in His saying: 'And whoever desires the reward of the world, We shall give him thereof...')

"...what We will..." (that is, what We will to hasten for him of its delights, not everything he desires).

"...to whom We will..." (to hasten what We will for him). Abu Ishaq al-Fazari said: "That is, for whom We will his destruction," though no wording in the verse points to this. The prepositional phrase is an appositive (badal) to the preceding prepositional phrase—meaning 'for him'—so it does not require a connector because it is an appositive of individuals. Alternatively, it is an appositive to the pronoun governed by the preposition, by repeating the operative word, with the estimation being: "for whom We will the hastening for him among them." The pronoun returns to 'whoever' (man), which is a relative noun or a conditional noun. In both cases, it indicates plurality, so it is a partial appositive (badal ba'd min kull). From Nafi', it is reported that he read "what He wills" with the ya (third person); it is said the pronoun refers to Allah the Exalted, thus both readings harmonize. It is also said that it refers to 'whoever' (man), and thus is specific to those whom Allah has willed that for—such as Shamrudh and Pharaoh—those whom Allah has assisted toward what they desired as a form of gradual ruin (istidraj). This is supported by the fact that the first reading would necessitate a shift in person (iltifat), and the occurrence of iltifat within a single sentence, if not forbidden, is at least not considered eloquent, as detailed in Arus al-Afrah.

The restriction of what is hastened and the one for whom it is hastened by the aforementioned "will" and "desire" is because the wisdom upon which the sphere of creation revolves does not necessitate that every seeker attains his goal, nor that every reacher attains everything he seeks in its entirety. The "works" in His saying: '...We will render to them their works therein, and they therein will not be wronged' does not refer to the works of all of them, nor all of their works. This has been discussed previously, so recall it. The mention of 'will' in one and 'desire' in the other—if one posits they are synonyms—is for the sake of stylistic variation.

"...then We have assigned for him..." (in place of what We hastened for him).

"...Hell; he will [enter to] burn therein..." (enduring its heat, as al-Khalil said, or entering it, as has been said). The sentence, as Abu al-Baqa said, is a circumstantial clause (hal) for the pronoun in 'for him.' Abu Hayyan said: "It is a circumstantial clause for 'Hell,' which is the first direct object of 'We have assigned,' and 'for him' is the second." It is also permissible that the sentence is a new statement. The author of al-Ghaynan said the second object of 'We have assigned' is omitted, and the estimation is 'a destiny' or 'a recompense,' though there is no need for that.

"...blamed..." (a circumstantial clause for the doer of 'burns therein'). It is from dhamm (blame), the opposite of praise.

"...driven out." (that is, expelled and distanced from the mercy of Allah the Exalted). The Imam said: "Punishment consists of harm coupled with humiliation and blame, on the condition that it be eternal and devoid of any benefit. Thus, His saying: 'We have assigned for him Hell; he will burn therein' is an indication of distance and expulsion from His mercy. This implies that such harm is void of any tinge of benefit or mercy, and it implies its being eternal and void of replacement by comfort or salvation."

It is not hidden that this is apparent in that the verse indicates eternal abiding (khulud). In that case, it is determined in our view that this 'desirer' is among the disbelievers. In Irshad al-'Aql al-Salim, it is stated: "Whoever desires," that is, by his works which he performs—whether the desired outcome results from them as a form of recompense (like acts of righteousness) or as a result of causes leading to effects (like worldly means), or by works of the Hereafter. According to the first, the 'desirer' means the disbelievers and the majority of the defiantly disobedient (fussaq); according to the second, it refers to those who show off, the hypocrites, the one who migrates for worldly gain, and the one who fights for spoils. You know that including the defiantly disobedient, the one migrating for the world, and the one fighting for spoils—if he is a believer—in this illustration, while claiming the verse implies eternal abiding, is something that does not hold up according to our principles. Yes, it is valid according to the principles of the Mu'tazilah. Al-Zamakhshari included the defiantly disobedient in this, and the seeds of I'tizal (Mu'tazilite doctrine) from him—may Allah deal with him according to His justice—are more than can be counted. The manifest speech of Abu Hayyan is the choice that the 'desirer' is among the disbelievers, as he said: "The immediate is the world, and the meaning of desiring it is preferring it over the Hereafter. There must be an omitted element implied by the counterpart in His saying: 'And whoever desires the Hereafter...'—that is: 'Whoever desires the immediate life and strives for it as it deserves while he is a disbeliever, We hasten for him therein what We will, for whom We will.'" It has been said the meaning is: "Whoever desires the immediate life through the works of the Hereafter," such as the hypocrite, the one who shows off, the one fighting for spoils or fame, and the one migrating for the world. He recounted other than the first opinion, and the one which necessitates that the 'desirer' is a disbeliever after he introduced it by "it is said." This is supported by the interpretation of many that "whoever desires the immediate" refers to one whose concern is limited to it, not desiring anything else at all, for that is something that can hardly apply to a believing sinner, as if he had no desire for the Hereafter, he would not have believed in it. On the view that includes the sinner and his likes—those who we do not judge to abide eternally—the claim that the verse indicates eternal abiding is rejected, and it is said regarding the one cast into the Fire that he is distanced from the mercy of Allah as long as he is in it; thus, it applies to the sinner as long as he is in it, just as it applies to the eternally abiding disbeliever.

Some have claimed that the 'desirer' is the hypocrite who raids with the Muslims for the sake of spoils, not for reward, for the verse was revealed regarding him. The response to this is that the fact that the surah is Meccan, with the exception of specific verses—this not being one of them—refutes this, furthermore, the consideration is for the generality of the wording, not the specificity of the cause. So understand.