THE WORD OF GOD

How many towns We have destroyed. Our scourge fell upon them by night or at midday when they were resting: and when Our scourge fell upon them, their only cry was, ‘We were indeed wrongdoers!’ Then shall We question those to whom Our message was sent and those through whom We sent it with full knowledge, We shall tell them what they did, for We have never been away from them. Truth alone will be of weight that Day. Those whose scales are heavy shall be successful, and those whose good deeds are light [in the balance] will be the ones who have lost themselves because they wrongfully rejected Our signs. (7: 4-9) In this world, the importance of an individual is gauged by the material splendour surrounding him, and his ability to influence people with his impressive words, and thus have a massive following. Since the preacher is not generally in such a happy position, his word is valueless in the eyes of worldly people, while the words of his opponents, who bask in material grandeur have a greater impact. But when Doomsday uncovers all the facts, the position will be just the opposite. Now, all the weight will be on the side of the Truth: Falsehood will be divested of all its arguments and will be rendered valueless. We established you in the land and provided you with a means of livelihood there: yet you are seldom thankful. (7: 10) Whatever God has bestowed upon man in this world has been given for the purpose of eliciting his gratitude. But this is the very thing which man does not offer to his Lord. The reason is that Satan contrives to distort his feelings and steers him away from any expression of gratitude. o