“Nay, their hearts are ignorant of all this; and their deeds too vary from the way. They will persist in these deeds until We seize with Our chastisement those of them who are given to luxuriant ways. They will then begin to groan.”
(Al-Qur’ān – 23:63-64)
The unbelievers are oblivious of the fact that all their deeds, sayings and thoughts are being recorded and that a time will come when they will be held to account for them. The word mutrafīn in the Arabic text,translated as ‘those given to luxuriant ways’, is used for those who, having obtained worldly riches, have immersed themselves in the pursuit of pleasure, and have, thus, become oblivious of their duties to God and to His creatures. The ‘chastisement’ which is mentioned in the verse 23:64 is not the chastisement with which they will be confronted in the Hereafter. Instead, it refers to the chastisement that will seize them here in this world.
The verb yaja’roon used here is derived from the word ju’ār which signifies the lowing of the oxen produced in a state of severe pain. In its present usage, the word does not simply denote groaning, but the groaning of one who does not deserve any mercy. The word also carries the nuances of contempt and sarcasm. The meaning conveyed here is: ‘You were completely engaged in your misdeeds. But now that the time for the retribution of those deeds has come, you have burst out in piteous lamentation.’ And the wrong-doers will be told to put a stop to their groaning.