Al-A'la: (13) Then he will not die...

There are two issues concerning this verse:

The First Issue: Commentators have two interpretations:

1. He will not die, thus finding rest, nor will he live a life that benefits him. This is like the saying: $\text{{It will not be decreed for them that they should die, nor will their torment be lightened from them}} (Fatir: 36). This aligns with the usage among the Arabs when describing someone afflicted with severe torment: they are neither truly alive nor truly dead.
2. The meaning is that the soul of one of them will be in his throat, unable to exit so he might die, and unable to return to its place in the body so he might live.

The Second Issue: The word "Then" (ثم) is used because this state (of not dying) is more terrifying and greater than the burning (in the Fire). Thus, it is subsequent to the burning in the degrees of severity.

As for the Almighty's saying:

\text{{He has succeeded who purifies himself}}$