Exegesis of the Noble Verse (And every human being We have fastened his deeds upon his neck, and We will bring forth for him on the Day of Resurrection a book)

Question:
The presenter: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may the blessings and peace be upon the leader of the white-forelocked, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. O Allah, teach us what benefits us, benefit us with what You have taught us, and increase us in knowledge, O the Generous. We welcome the brothers and sisters with the most beautiful welcome to this noble, blessed gathering that brings us together with the honorable scholar, the distinguished Shaykh Salih ibn Fawzan al-Fawzan, a member of the Committee of Senior Scholars and a member of the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta. Welcome, Shaykh Salih, to the brothers and sisters. The Shaykh: May Allah greet you and bless you. The questioner: We are inquiring about the Noble Verse in the saying of the Truthful, Blessed and Exalted is He: I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan. In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful: (And every human being We have fastened his deeds upon his neck, and We will bring forth for him on the Day of Resurrection a book that he will meet spread out. Read your book. Sufficient for you today as a reckoner is your own self).

Answer:
The answer: Yes, in these verses Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, mentions that He has fastened upon every human being from the children of Adam his deeds; that is, the work he has done, whether good or evil. (And every human being We have fastened his deeds upon his neck) means that what is decreed for him must befall him in his life, whether good or evil. Then he acts in accordance with what is decreed for him, by the permission of Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. He acts by his own choice; he is not compelled. Allah gave him choice. Allah gave him hearing, sight, and intellect, and He made clear to him what is harmful and what is beneficial. He is a rational, perceiving human being, so he chooses for himself. Either he does good by his choice, or he does evil by his choice and will. This is the meaning of (And every human being We have fastened his deeds upon his neck), meaning what is decreed for him of good or evil. (And We will bring forth for him on the Day of Resurrection), when he is resurrected on the Day of Resurrection, rising from the graves to the gathering and resurrection, and meeting Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, and standing before Him for reckoning and recompense. (And We will bring forth for him on the Day of Resurrection a book), the book that he dictated in his life, of good deeds and bad deeds that he did in this world, all recorded in the hands of the Preservers and the Writers who accompany him in his life. They record for him everything he does of good or evil in the scrolls with the Preservers. These scrolls are brought forth for him on the Day of Resurrection. (And We will bring forth for him on the Day of Resurrection a book that he will meet spread out), open, so he reads it, sees it, and perceives it. Then it is said to him: (Read your book). He reads it, whether he used to read and write in this world or not, whether he could not read or write. Every human being reads his book. Read the book that you dictated in this world, of good or evil. (Read your book. Sufficient for you today as a reckoner is your own self), on the Day of Resurrection; (Sufficient for you today as a reckoner is your own self), so you are only facing a deed that you did in this world, which was recorded against you and which you will meet on the Day of Resurrection (spread out). Everyone reads his book; the one who reads and writes in this world and the one who does not read or write, they all read their books. (Read your book. Sufficient for you today as a reckoner is your own self), meaning a reckoner, and that Allah, Exalted and Majestic is He, has not wronged you, but rather you are the one who presented this deed for yourself by your choice, your willingness, your will, and your power. (Sufficient for you today as a reckoner is your own self), so if there is in it something that distresses you, do not blame anyone but yourself.