(24) Is he who shields his face from the evil of the punishment on the Day of Resurrection...

This is an initiation [of a statement] that serves as an explanation for the preceding contrast between the state of the guided and the astray. Regarding the interrogative particle (al-hamza), the connective (fa), and the predicate, the explanation is the same as that which has passed in its parallels.

It is said here, according to one of the two opinions: The estimation is "Are all people the same?" So, is the one whose affair it is to shield with his face—which is his most noble limb—from the evil, severe punishment on the Day of Resurrection, because his hand, with which he used to shield against unpleasant things, is shackled to his neck, like one who is secure, whom no unpleasantness befalls, and who has no need to shield with any of his limbs? Thus, "face" is taken in its literal sense. It may also be taken as such without need for the narration regarding the hand being shackled, as a depiction of the completeness of his shielding and his strenuous effort in it, which is more eloquent. In this vein, the poet's saying proceeds:

It has also been permitted that "face" implies the entire person, as an exaggeration of the shielding, rather than the exaggeration in the former [interpretation]. It is said that shielding with the face is a metonymy for the lack of anything with which to shield, since shielding with the face has no basis; for one does not shield with it, and it is not free from being scratched.

The genitive construction of "evil" (su’) to "punishment" (al-‘adhab) is the addition of a descriptor to the described. "The Day of Resurrection" is the object of the verb "shields," as we have pointed out. It is also permitted that it be a continuation of "evil punishment," meaning: "Is he who shields himself from the punishment of the Day of Resurrection like the one who persists in his disbelief?" This is a sound interpretation. In this case, "face," as in the previous interpretation, is either the entire person as an exaggeration of his shielding, or it is literal as a depiction of the completeness of his shielding and his effort in it, and that is more eloquent. The meaning that naturally comes to mind is the former. The verse was revealed regarding Abu Jahl.

"And it will be said to the wrongdoers..." is a conjunction to "shields," meaning: "And it is said to them by the guardians of the Fire." The past tense form is used to indicate certainty and establishment. It is also said that the "and" (waw) indicates a state (hal), the clause being a state of the pronoun in "shields," with or without an implicit "already" (qad). The explicit noun is placed in the position of the pronoun to record the verdict of wrongdoing against them and to indicate the reason for the command in the words of the Exalted: "Taste what you used to earn." That is: the consequence of what you used to earn in the world, perpetually, of disbelief and disobedience.