Tafsir of Fatir 35:32

If you ask: What is the meaning of His saying: {Then We caused to inherit the Book}? I say: There are two interpretations:

The first: We revealed the Qur’an to you, then We caused those after you to inherit it—meaning, We decreed its inheritance. Or, He said "We caused to inherit" (past tense) while intending "We will cause to inherit" (future), because of God’s promise: {those whom We have chosen from among Our servants}. These are his nation—the Companions, the Successors, those who followed them, and those who come after them until the Day of Resurrection. For God chose them over all other nations and made them a "middle nation" to be witnesses over mankind. He distinguished them with the honor of belonging to the best of God’s messengers and carrying the Book, which is the best of God’s books. Then, He divided them into:

1. A wrongdoer to himself (the sinner): He who delays God’s command.
2. A moderate one: He who mixed a righteous deed with another that was evil.
3. A forerunner in good deeds: One of the foremost.

The second: He previously mentioned sending a messenger to every nation, and that they denied their messengers despite them coming with clear proofs, scriptures, and the illuminating Book. Then He said: {And that which We have revealed to you of the Book is the truth}. Then He said: {Then We caused to inherit the Book those whom We have chosen from among Our servants}—meaning, after those previously mentioned. By "the chosen from His servants," He means the people of the Hanifiyyah (monotheistic) religion.

If you ask: How is {Gardens of Eden} made a substitute for the "great bounty," which is the "forerunning in good deeds" referred to by "that"? I say: Because the cause of attaining the reward is placed in the position of the effect, as if it is the reward itself; thus, Gardens of Eden is substituted for it. In specifying the forerunners after the division, while remaining silent about the others, there is a necessity for caution. Let the moderate one and the wrongdoer to himself be cautious, and let them both seek sincere, pure repentance from God’s punishment. Let them not be deceived by what Umar (may God be pleased with him) narrated from the Messenger of God (peace be upon him): "Our forerunner is a forerunner, our moderate one is saved, and our wrongdoer is forgiven." This is conditioned upon the soundness of repentance, as the Almighty said: {Perhaps God will accept their repentance} (At-Tawbah: 102) and {He may punish them or accept their repentance} (At-Tawbah: 106). The Qur’an has spoken of this in places; whoever examines them will grasp the reality of the matter and not deceive himself with illusions.

• "By the permission of God": By His facilitation and success.
• Why was the wrongdoer mentioned first, then the moderate, then the forerunner? To signal the abundance and prevalence of the sinners, that the moderate are few in comparison to them, and the forerunners are fewer than few.
• "Gardens of Eden": Some read it as singular (Jannat 'Adn), as if it is a garden specific to the forerunners. The accusative case (Jannatin) implies a hidden verb, i.e., "they enter Gardens of Eden."
• "They are adorned": From the root huliya (to be adorned). {And pearls} is conjoined to the place of "bracelets." The "from" (min) denotes partiality; they are adorned with some bracelets of gold, as if some are superior to others, just as those wearing them are superior to others. It is said that this gold is in the clarity of pearls.
• "The sorrow": The sorrow of the God-fearing, which is what concerns them regarding the fear of an evil outcome, like His saying: {Indeed, we were before among our people fearful} (At-Tur: 26). So God favored us and protected us from the punishment of the scorching fire. Ibn Abbas said: It is the sorrow of separation and calamities. Others said: The sorrow of death, or the whisperings of Iblis, or the hardships of livelihood, or the loss of blessings. They have elaborated so much that some even said: "the rent of the house." It means it encompasses every sorrow of religion and the world.
• The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "There is no loneliness for the people of 'La ilaha illa Allah' in their graves, nor in their gathering place, nor in their journey. It is as if I see the people of 'La ilaha illa Allah' emerging from their graves, shaking the dust from their heads, saying: 'Praise be to God who has removed from us the sorrow.'"
• "The Ever-Thankful": A proof that the people have many good deeds.
• "The Abode": Meaning the place of residence.
• "From His bounty": From His giving and grace. It is not "bounty" in the sense of supererogatory favor, because the reward is like a deserved wage, whereas favor is like a donation.
• "Fatigue" (Lughub): It is the noun for that which causes fatigue. It means: "Do not burden yourselves with work that fatigues us." Or it is an infinitive, or an attribute of the infinitive.
• Difference between Nasab (toil) and Lughub (fatigue): Nasab is the exhaustion and hardship that befalls one who stands for a task. Lughub is the lethargy that follows due to that toil—the result of the hardship and the weariness it produces.