His saying, exalted and majestic is He:

﴿And those who were given knowledge said, 'Woe to you! The reward of Allah is better for whoever believes and does righteous deeds, and none will attain it except the patient.'﴾ ﴿So We caused the earth to swallow him and his dwelling, and he had no group to help him against Allah, nor was he among those who could be victorious.﴾ ﴿And those who had wished for his position the day before were saying, 'Woe to us! How Allah extends provision to whom He wills of His servants and restricts it. If it were not for the favor of Allah upon us, He would have caused the earth to swallow us! Woe to us! The disbelievers will never succeed.'﴾

Allah, the Most High, informed about those who were given knowledge and understanding of Allah, the Most High, and the truth of obedience to Him and faith in Him. They admonished the foolish ones who wished for the state of Qarun and guided them to the best way, which is that contemplation and wishing should be in matters of the Hereafter. The state of the believing doer who awaits the reward of Allah is better than the state of anyone who possesses worldly matters.

Then Allah, the Most High, informed about this inclination and this strength in goodness in religion that it is not granted, meaning: it is not enabled or bestowed except upon the one who is patient in obedience to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, and against the desires of his soul. This is the essence of all goodness. The pronoun in 'it is not granted' refers to what has not been previously mentioned, as the speech indicates it. This is similar to: ﴿It was concealed by the veil﴾ [Sad: 32], and ﴿Every soul upon it will perish﴾ [Ar-Rahman: 26]. Al-Tabari said: The pronoun refers to the word, which is His saying: ﴿The reward of Allah is better for whoever believes and does righteous deeds.﴾ That is, this word is not granted except to the patient, and it originates from them.

It has been narrated regarding the swallowing of Qarun and his dwelling that when Musa, blessings and peace be upon him, was distressed by Qarun's actions against him, and his slander regarding the matter of the woman, and other than that from his actions, he sought refuge in Allah, the Most High, and wept and asked for victory. Allah, the Most High, revealed to him: 'Do not be concerned, for I have commanded the earth to obey you regarding Qarun and his family and his followers.' Musa, blessings and peace be upon him, said to the earth: 'Seize them.' So it took them up to the knees. They cried out to Musa, 'O Musa!' He said: 'Seize them.' So it took them gradually, and they kept calling out to him each time, and he persisted until the swallowing was completed. Allah, the Most High, revealed to him: 'O Musa, they called out to you for help, and you did not have mercy on them. If they had called out to Me and repented to Me, I would have had mercy on them and removed what was upon them.' And Qatadah and Malik ibn Dinar said: 'It has been narrated to us that he is swallowed every day a span, and he will continue to be shaken until the Day of Resurrection.'

And 'the group' refers to the supportive group to which a person seeking help turns.

And the story of Qarun is after their crossing of the sea; for the narrators mentioned that he was among those who memorized the Torah and would recite it.

Then Allah, the Most High, informed about the state of those who wished for his position yesterday, and their regret and their realization that power and might belong to Allah, the Most High. And His saying: "And it is as if" is the view of Sibawayh and Al-Khalil that "wa" is a particle of indication, and it is separate from "ka'anna." However, it was added in the writing due to its frequent use. [And the meaning is that the people became aware and spoke according to their knowledge, or they were alerted and it was said to them: Does it not seem that this is thus with you?] So they said in a manner of astonishment and regret: Indeed, Allah expands provision.

And Abu Hatim and a group of grammarians said: "Waika" is "wailaka," its lam was omitted and it was used in speech in this way. And from this is the saying of Antarah:

And truly it has healed my soul and cured its ailment, the saying of the knights: Woe to you, Antarah, advance.

So the meaning is: Woe to you, know that Allah, and similar to this is the implicitness of the action.

And a group of grammarians said: "Waika'anna" in its entirety without the estimation of separating a word is like your saying: Did you not see that.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And the separation in it is strengthened by what Sibawayh said; because it comes with "anna" and with "an." Sibawayh recited:

Woe to him who has a grip, and he who is in need lives a life of hardship.

And this verse is for Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufail.

Al-A'mash read: "If it were not for the grace of Allah" by omitting "an," and it was narrated from him: "If it were not for grace" with the noon raised, and added to "Allah." The majority read: "Lakhusifa" with a damm on the khā and a kasr on the sīn, and Asim read with a fath on the khā and sīn. Al-A'mash and Talhah ibn Musarif read: "Lanakhusifa" as if it were a present tense action intended to mean that the earth was being affected. And it was narrated from Al-Kisai that he would pause at "wa" and begin with "ka'anna," and it was narrated from him that he would connect like the majority. And it was narrated from Abu Amr that he would pause at "waika" and begin with "Indeed, Allah," and on this meaning Al-Hasan said: If you wish: "Waika anna" or "Waika inna" with the hamzah opened and broken, so likewise in "Waika'annah."