Surah 42. Ash-Shura, Ayah 45

The term ahl denotes primarily the "people" of one town, country or family, as well as the "fellow-members" of one race, religion, profession, etc. In its wider, ideological sense it is applied to people who have certain characteristics in common, e.g., ahl al-'ilm ("people of knowledge", i.e., scholars), or who follow one and the same persuasion or belief, e.g., ahlal-kitab ("the followers of [earlier] revelation"), ahl al-Qur'an ("the followers of the Qur'an"), and so forth. Since, as has been pointed out in note

They were very arrogant in their probationary life. Now they will be humbled to the dust. And they will be in utter despair and misery. They will not be able to see the favours and good things of the other life (Cf. xx. 124-126). Even their misery, which will face them as a terrible Reality, they will only be able to look at askance, so thoroughly cowed will be their spirit.

This will be their thought, and their realised experience: 'after all, any troubles and sorrows, any persecutions and taunts which they suffered in the life of probation from the enemies of truth, were of no consequence; the real loss was that revealed at the Judgment at the restoration of true values; the wicked and the arrogant have lost their own souls, and have brought to perdition all who attached themselves to them and followed their evil ways; and this Penalty is one that will endure! How much more real it is!'