Whoever desires the reward of this world - We will give him of it; and whoever desires the reward of the Hereafter - We will give him of it. And We will reward the grateful.
“Whoever desires the reward of this world - We will give him of it; and whoever desires the reward of the Hereafter - We will give him of it. And We will reward the grateful.”
No person can die except by the divine decree of Allah, when the time Allah has written for them has come to an end and their set time of death has arrived: their life will not be made longer or shorter.
The plain meaning, from Al-Mukhtasar fi at-Tafsir
وَمَا كَانَ لِنَفْسٍ أَن تَمُوتَ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ ٱللَّهِ كِتَٰبًا مُّؤَجَّلًا ۗ وَمَن يُرِدْ ثَوَابَ ٱلدُّنْيَا نُؤْتِهِۦ مِنْهَا وَمَن يُرِدْ ثَوَابَ ٱلْءَاخِرَةِ نُؤْتِهِۦ مِنْهَا ۚ وَسَنَجْزِى ٱلشَّٰكِرِينَ
And it is not possible for one to die except by permission of Allah at a decree determined. And whoever desires the reward of this world - We will give him thereof; and whoever desires the reward of the Hereafter - We will give him thereof. And We will reward the grateful.
What does Quran 3:145 mean?
The verses around this were revealed after Uhud, when a rumour that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had been killed went through the ranks and some turned back. The passage answers it bluntly — he is a messenger, and messengers have passed away before him — then says no soul dies except by Allah’s leave at a fixed term. This verse follows: you get what you aimed at. The one thing named as rewarded beyond that is gratitude.
Written from Al-Mukhtasar fi at-Tafsir