Between Hope and Fear

Allah (swt) speaks of Paradise in that detail. May Allah grant us Paradise, and how forgiving He will be.

These are very promising verses, and there is much optimism in them. In verse 49 Allah (swt) says nabbiʾ ʿibādī annī anā al-ghafūru al-raḥīm. After speaking of Paradise, Allah says: let My servants know that I am the Forgiving, the Merciful. But, wa anna ʿadhābī huwa al-ʿadhābu al-alīm: My punishment also is a most severe punishment. A most severe punishment.

And this is exactly what Allah would have us be: between hope and fear. We have fear, but not so much as to debilitate us; and we need hope, but not so much that we have no fear. And subḥānAllāh, there are a great many people without any fear at all; that is the greater difficulty. There are a few to be found with an extreme fear that debilitates them. But most suffer from an abundance of hope that becomes whimsical and fanciful. That is why Allah gives us sufficient fear, khashyah, such as keeps us steadfast.