Sūrat As-Sajdah (The Prostration): Verse 17

This means what delights the eye and causes it to cease looking elsewhere. If the eye has nothing else to look toward, it finds rest (قرّت).

This verse contains a subtle point regarding reward:

1. From the Servant: Good deeds (the ʿamal ṣāliḥ).
2. From God (prior): Creation, sustenance, and other blessings.
3. From God (subsequent): Reward and honor.

Allah (Exalted is He) has the right to say: "The reward for good is good" (Jazā’ al-iḥsān iḥsān). He was good first (by granting blessings), and the servant responded with goodness. Thus, the reward is a favor and a gift without obligation.

Alternatively, He could say: "I made the initial blessings a favor for which I seek no recompense. When the servant performs good deeds, he owes nothing, as I have already absolved him of the debt of previous blessings. Therefore, his good deed is performed ab initio (as a fresh act). Since the reward for good is good, it is permissible for Me to make the reward recompense for both the initial blessings and his subsequent deed."

However, the height of generosity is to treat the first set of blessings as a gift, and the second set (the reward) as a true recompense. This is because if the servant is told his deed is merely a repayment, he might not feel secure, even if God is merely being gracious. If he is told the initial blessings are not counted against him, and his current action merits a reward, his heart finds confidence and peace.

When he then realizes this reward is also from God's grace, the servant's duty is to say: "My action is a repayment for God's prior blessings, and I do not deserve a reward for it."

When God rewards him, He says: "What you just performed was a recompense [for your deed]. This is a new act of grace from Me, deserving of praise and thanks." So the servant performs another good deed. God then says: "I have rewarded your previous action." He rewards him a third time, and the servant thanks Him a third time, and God rewards him a fourth time, and so on. This cycle of transaction between the servant and the Lord does not cease.

This is analogous to two friends who love each other. One sends a gift, and the other forgets receiving it. When the recipient remembers and sends a gift in return, the original giver sees this as a response to his forgotten gift, and he reciprocates with another gift, saying: "What I sent was a recompense for your previous gift, and this new one is a gift for which I seek no return." The exchange continues without interruption.

This contrasts with a situation where one sends a gift, and the recipient remembers it. When the recipient sends a return gift, the original sender says: "This is compensation for what I sent you," and then stops sending further gifts, thus terminating the exchange.

Know that while the obligations (takālīf) cease on the Day of Judgment, remembrance, gratitude, and worship do not cease. Rather, the servant will worship his Lord in Paradise even more than he did in the world, just as the angels do, who glorify Him night and day without tiring (cf. Al-Anbiyā’: 20). The difference is that this worship is not due to obligation but is inherent to their nature. This perpetual worship is one of the reasons for the permanence of Paradise's bliss. Furthermore, serving kings is a pleasure and an honor; it is not abandoned upon reaching proximity to the king but rather increases in delight.