Tafsir Ibn Kathir -> Surah Al-Ahzab -> The Curse on the Disbelievers and its Eternity and their Regret

Then Allah says:

﴿إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَعَنَ الْكَـفِرِينَ﴾

(Verily, Allah has cursed the disbelievers,) means, He has distanced them from His mercy.

﴿وَأَعَدَّ لَهُمْ سَعِيراً﴾

(and has prepared for them a flaming Fire (Hell).) means, in the Hereafter. e

﴿خَـلِدِينَ فِيهَآ أَبَداً﴾

(Wherein they will abide forever,) means, they will stay there forever and ever, never leaving or finding relief from it.

﴿لاَّ يَجِدُونَ وَلِيّاً وَلاَ نَصِيراً﴾

(and they will find neither a a protector nor a helper.) means, they will have no saviour to help them or rescue them from their predicament. Then Allah says:

﴿يَوْمَ تُقَلَّبُ وُجُوهُهُمْ فِى النَّارِ يَقُولُونَ يلَيْتَنَآ أَطَعْنَا اللَّهَ وَأَطَعْنَا الرَّسُولاَ ﴾

(On the Day when their faces will be turned over in the Fire, they will say: "Oh, would that we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger.'') means, they will be dragged into the Fire on their faces and their faces will be contorted in Hell, and in that state they will wish that they had been among those who had obeyed Allah and His Messenger in this world. Allah describes how they will be in the Hereafter:

﴿وَيَوْمَ يَعَضُّ الظَّـلِمُ عَلَى يَدَيْهِ يَقُولُ يلَيْتَنِى اتَّخَذْتُ مَعَ الرَّسُولِ سَبِيلاً - يوَيْلَتَا لَيْتَنِى لَمْ أَتَّخِذْ فُلاَناً خَلِيلاً ﴾

﴿لَّقَدْ أَضَلَّنِى عَنِ الذِّكْرِ بَعْدَ إِذْ جَآءَنِى وَكَانَ الشَّيْطَـنُ لِلإِنْسَـنِ خَذُولاً ﴾

(And the Day when the wrongdoer will bite at his hands, he will say: "Oh! Would that I had taken a path with the Messenger. Ah! Woe to me! Would that I had never taken so-and-so as an intimate friend! He indeed led me astray from the Reminder after it had come to me. And Shaytan is to man ever a deserter in the hour of need.'') (25:27-29)

﴿رُّبَمَا يَوَدُّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ لَوْ كَانُواْ مُسْلِمِينَ ﴾

(How much would those who disbelieved wish that they had been Muslims.) (15:2) And here too, Allah tells us that when they are in this state, they will wish that they had obeyed Allah and His Messenger in this world:

﴿وَقَالُواْ رَبَّنَآ إِنَّآ أَطَعْنَا سَادَتَنَا وَكُبَرَآءَنَا فَأَضَلُّونَا السَّبِيلاْ ﴾

(And they will say: "Our Lord! Verily, we obeyed our chiefs and our great ones, and they misled us from the way.'') Tawus said: " `Our chiefs' means their nobles and `our great ones' means their scholars.''

﴿رَبَّنَآ ءَاتِهِمْ ضِعْفَيْنِ مِنَ الْعَذَابِ﴾

(Our Lord! Give them double torment) means, `for their disbelief and because they mislead us.' Abu Al-Qasim At-Tabarani recorded from Abu Rafi` that among the names of those who fought with `Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, was Al-Hajjaj bin `Amr bin Ghaziyah, and he was the one who, when they met, said; "O people of the Ansar! Do you want to say when we meet our Lord:

﴿وَقَالُواْ رَبَّنَآ إِنَّآ أَطَعْنَا سَادَتَنَا وَكُبَرَآءَنَا فَأَضَلُّونَا السَّبِيلاْ - رَبَّنَآ ءَاتِهِمْ ضِعْفَيْنِ مِنَ الْعَذَابِ وَالْعَنْهُمْ لَعْناً كَبِيراً ﴾

(Our Lord! Verily, we obeyed our chiefs and our great ones, and they misled us from the way. Our Lord! Give them double torment and curse them with a mighty curse!)''

﴿يأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ لاَ تَكُونُواْ كَالَّذِينَ ءَاذَوْاْ مُوسَى فَبرَّأَهُ اللَّهُ مِمَّا قَالُواْ وَكَانَ عِندَ اللَّهِ وَجِيهاً ﴾

(69. O you who believe! Be not like those who annoyed Musa, but Allah cleared him of that which they alleged, and he was honorable before Allah.)