Al-Qalam: (45) And I grant them respite...

"And I grant them respite" means I prolong their time and their stay. Al-Malāwah (الملاوة) is the duration of time. It is said: Amlā Allāhu lahu (أملى الله له), meaning God prolonged his time and his stay (al-malāwah), which refers to the night and the day. Al-Malā’ (المَلأ) (with a short vowel on the mīm) means the vast earth, so named because of its expanse.

It is also said that {And I grant them respite} means regarding death, i.e., I do not hasten it upon them. Furthermore, His granting of favor is called a "plot" (kayd) just as He called it "enticement" (istidrāj) because it takes the form of a plot, and it is described as "strong" (matīn) due to the powerful effect of His favor in leading to ruin.

Know that the [Mu'tazilite] scholars used this verse as evidence in the issue of the Divine Will concerning created acts. They argued that this thing which He calls istidrāj (enticement) and that kayd (plot) must either have an effect in favoring the side of action over the side of inaction, or it must not have an effect.

1. The first case is false, because if it had an effect, then all external matters would be on the same level, and it would not be istidrāj at all, nor kayd.
2. The second case implies that the Exalted One wills that action towards which this istidrāj and kayd lead. This is because if the Exalted One constantly reinforces one side and weakens the other, this reinforcement must ultimately lead to the action occurring and coming into existence. Therefore, He must will that action to come into existence, which is what is sought [by the Ash'arites].

Al-Ka'bi responded to this by saying: The meaning is, "We will entice them towards death from where they do not perceive." This is what wisdom necessitates, for if they knew the time of their death, they would feel secure until that time and would commit sins. This would lead to encouraging sin.

Al-Jubbā'ī responded by saying: "We will entice them towards punishment in the Hereafter from where they do not perceive, and We grant them respite in this world to strengthen the argument against them, so that My plot is strong. Thus, I delay them and remove excuses from them, so that whoever perishes does so with clear evidence, and whoever lives does so with clear evidence." This is the intended meaning of the strong plot (al-kayd al-matīn).

He then said: What indicates that this is the intended meaning is that the Exalted One said just before this verse: {So leave Me with those who deny this saying} (Al-Qalam: 44). There is no doubt that this threat pertains to the punishment of the Hereafter. Therefore, the istidrāj and kayd mentioned immediately after must refer to the punishment of the Hereafter, or the punishment that occurs at the moment of death.

Know that our [Ash'arite] colleagues said that the point we mentioned is that if this respite leads to transgression, then the One who is pleased with the respite, knowing that it leads to transgression, must necessarily be pleased with that transgression.

Know that the statement {We will entice them...} up to His saying {Indeed, My plot is strong} has been explained in Surah Al-A'rāf.