﴿ قُل لَّآ أَمْلِكُ لِنَفْسِى ضَرًّۭا وَلَا نَفْعًا إِلَّا مَا شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ ۗ لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلٌ ۚ إِذَا جَآءَ أَجَلُهُمْ فَلَا يَسْتَـْٔخِرُونَ سَاعَةًۭ ۖ وَلَا يَسْتَقْدِمُونَ ﴾

“Say [O Prophet]: "It is not within my power to avert harm from, or bring benefit to, myself, except as God may please. For all people a term has been set: when the end of their term approaches, they can neither delay it by a single moment, nor hasten it."”

Man finds himself free in this world. It seems to him that whatever he may do, there is nobody to catch hold of him and nobody to punish him. This state of affairs makes him unheeding, so much so that when the preacher warns him on behalf of God about the outcome of his deeds, he ridicules the missionary and asks, ‘When will the warning of retribution for my arrogance which you have been giving me materialise?’ The reason behind all such talk is nothing but foolishness; because this punishment is executed not on behalf of the preacher but on behalf of God; and at all times God is revealing in this world of His that His way is not that of inordinate haste. If a boat has a hole in it and if a sailor heedlessly sets sail in it, then in accordance with the law of God, it will sink. But such a boat does not sink immediately. It does so only at its appointed time and according to God’s law. Such instances abound in the world and they acquaint man with the methods of God. But, in spite of observing all this, man says, ‘If all such deeds entail God’s punishment, why does not this punishment come soon?’ The reason for asking such pointless questions is that man is not serious about God’s scourge.