Tafsir of Al-An'am 6:135

{Say, O my people}: This is a command to the Prophet, may Allah the Exalted bless him and grant him peace, to confront the disbelievers by intensifying the threat and reiterating the warning. It demonstrates his extreme steadfastness in the religion, his ultimate confidence in his affair, and his complete indifference toward them, following his explanation of their state and their ultimate destiny. That is, say, O Muhammad, to these disbelievers:

{Work according to your station}: That is, according to the extent of your capability and capacity. "Makanah" is a noun of state, meaning if you are established in the most extreme degree of establishment. It has also been permitted that it be a noun of place, similar to al-maqam and al-maqamah. Hence, Ibn Abbas, may Allah the Exalted be pleased with them both, as narrated by Ibn al-Mundhir, interpreted it as "side" (or position). Those who interpreted it as "state" used it metaphorically, meaning: work according to the state you are in.

Abu Bakr’s recitation from Asim uses the plural (makanatikum) throughout the entire Quran. Al-Wahidi claimed that the singular is the correct form, but this is debatable. The meaning is: remain fixed upon your disbelief and your hostility toward me.

{Indeed, I am working according to my station}: That is, I am steadfast upon Islam and upon enduring your opposition.

The imperative form here, as noted by more than one scholar, is a hyperbole in threatening. It is as if the one threatening intends to punish the others, being firmly resolved upon it, and thus commands them to do that which leads to it. It is a registration that the threatened party cannot perform anything but evil, just like the one commanded who cannot escape what he is ordered to do. The second signifier [al-Alusi refers here to scholars of rhetoric] considered this a type of isti'arah tamthiliyyah (representational metaphor), likening that meaning to the commanded meaning—a necessity that must come to pass for those upon whom misery has been decreed.

{For you will come to know to whom the final result of the home belongs}: That is, you will certainly come to know this, without a doubt. The sawfa (will) is to emphasize the content of the sentence. The "knowing" is irfani (intuitive/experiential), so it takes one object. "Man" (who) is interrogative and has been suspended from taking an object; it is in the nominative position as an initial (mubtada'), and the sentence following it is its predicate; together, they occupy the place of the objects of "knowing."

The intended "home" is the present world (the Dunya), not the Abode of Peace (Paradise), as some have said. The "final result" is the good end—that is, the end of good—for it is the essence, as the Exalted has made the world a farm for the Hereafter and a bridge for passing to it. He desired from His servants the deeds of goodness so that they might attain a good conclusion.

As for the end of evil, it is of no account, because it is among the results of the subversion of the wicked. That is: you will come to know which of us will have the good outcome for which Allah the Exalted created this abode. It is also permissible for "ma" (what/who) to be a relative pronoun, in which case it is in the accusative position as the object of "know"—meaning: you will come to know the one to whom the final result of the home belongs. This contains, along with the warning derived from the threat, fairness in discourse and an alerting to the complete confidence of the warner in his cause. Hamzah and al-Kisa'i recited yakun (masculine verb) because the feminine gender of al-'aqibah (final result) is non-essential (ghayr haqiqi).

{Indeed, it is that the wrongdoers will not succeed}: That is, they will not attain what they seek. The term "wrongdoing" (zulm) was placed in the stead of "disbelief" (kufr) because it is more general and carries more utility; for if the wrongdoer does not succeed, how then would the disbeliever, who is characterized by the greatest form of wrongdoing, succeed?