Whenever they rebel and deny, He transfers them to that from which they were [previously] transferred, until one of them reaches the pinnacle of his disbelief and rebellion; at that point, he is transferred into the most difficult of the metamorphosed forms and is returned through its various types.

Despite this, He does not exempt [the soul] from being returned to human form, where the Oneness is presented to it. The more intense its rebellion becomes, the more intense its torment becomes in that to which it is transferred. For the Lord—Exalted and Sublime—does not punish His servant out of malice, nor does He feel regret (asaf); rather, only he who fears loss feels malice or regret.

[4] This is supported by what was narrated on the authority of the Knower (al-'Alim)—exalted is His might—when he was asked about: {And We will surely let them taste the nearer punishment short of the greater punishment that perhaps they will return} ¹ . He said: "Verily, God—Exalted and Sublime—is too Merciful toward His servants to punish them with wrath or burn them with fire ² . Whoever claims that God appears to His creation with wrath, or punishes out of malice, or feels regret, has surely disbelieved. Only he who fears loss feels regret, and only he who transitions from a state of pleasure to a state of anger feels wrath.