Sawab, Siyab & Libas (Q18:31)

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اِنَّ الَّذِيۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا وَعَمِلُوا الصّٰلِحٰتِ اِنَّا لَا نُضِيۡعُ اَجۡرَ مَنۡ اَحۡسَنَ عَمَلًا​ ۚ‏ ٣٠

اُولٰۤٮِٕكَ لَهُمۡ جَنّٰتُ عَدۡنٍ تَجۡرِىۡ مِنۡ تَحۡتِهِمُ الۡاَنۡهٰرُ يُحَلَّوۡنَ فِيۡهَا مِنۡ اَسَاوِرَ مِنۡ ذَهَبٍ وَّ يَلۡبَسُوۡنَ ثِيَابًا خُضۡرًا مِّنۡ سُنۡدُسٍ وَّاِسۡتَبۡرَقٍ مُّتَّكِــِٕيۡنَ فِيۡهَا عَلَى الۡاَرَآٮِٕكِ​ؕ نِعۡمَ الثَّوَابُ ؕ وَحَسُنَتۡ مُرۡتَفَقًا‏ ٣١

As to those who believe and work righteousness, verily We shall not suffer to perish the reward of any who do a (single) righteous deed.

For them will be Gardens of Eternity; beneath them rivers will flow; they will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold, and they will wear green garments of fine silk and heavy brocade: They will recline therein on raised thrones. How good the recompense! How beautiful a couch to recline on!

[Al-Quran 18:30-31, Translation: Abdullah Yusuf Ali]

The focus of this study are the four words highlighted in red in the above ayat: adorned, wear, garments, recompense. The root letter of the last two highlighted words is the same (copied from corpus.quran.com): 

(18:31:9)

يُحَلَّوْنَ

yuḥallawna

They will be adorned V – 3rd person masculine plural (form II) passive imperfect verb

PRON – subject pronoun

فعل مضارع مبني للمجهول والواو ضمير متصل في محل رفع نائب فاعل

(18:31:15)

وَيَلْبَسُونَ

wayalbasūna

and will wear CONJ – prefixed conjunction wa (and)

V – 3rd person masculine plural imperfect verb

PRON – subject pronoun

الواو عاطفة

فعل مضارع والواو ضمير متصل في محل رفع فاعل

(18:31:16) 

ثِيَابًا

thiyāban

garments, N – accusative masculine plural indefinite noun

اسم منصوب

(18:31:26)

الثَّوَابُ

l-thawābu

(is) the reward, N – nominative masculine noun

اسم مرفوع

A common word we keep hearing is that doing certain deeds will earn us 'sawab'.  Garments (ثِيَابًا) and Reward (الثَّوَابُ) share the same root. 

The Quran informs us that we were an excellent creation, who have suffered bodily loss. We were removed from our state of comfort by the deception of, and due to heeding to the temptations whispered by the Devil. Our parents: Adam and his wife, were stripped of their natural clothing. Thereafter, Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى‎ granted clothes to the Children of Adam, to beautify them, and to hide their nakedness. Our parents: Adam and his wife, were not originally naked. They were beautifully adorned. 

Disobedience to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى‎ caused them a legal loss. They became lowest of the low. They were sentenced to Earth for a temporary stay. The family of Adam عليه السلام has been blessed with a chance to try and follow the guidance of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى .  

Deen (the Law of Recompense) will come into effect on the Day that humans will be judged by Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى‎ . Those who are pardoned and granted entry into the Gardens of Eternity will be re-adorned beautifully, as described in Q18:31.  

Links to posts on The Natural Clothing 

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