In fact...

In fact, this is an emphasis on what was stated at the beginning of the Sura: "Surely We guided...", ie. 'We showed him the Way; whether he be grateful (and assumes it) or ungrateful'. Since some feeble-minded persons may think of the verse as meaning absolute free-will for the servants, the next verse negates their claim by adding: "Yet you will not unless Allah Wills; surely Allah is All-knowing, All-wise".

This is the confirmation of the principle of the medium status between fatalism and the idea of chaotic free-will. On the one hand, it remarks that 'Allah shows the way, and choosing it is up to you'. On the other hand, there is another fact added to it that "Yet you will not unless Allah Wills"; that is, you are not completely independent, but your power and your free-will depends on Allah's Will. It is He who has given them to you and whenever He Wills, He can take them back.

Thus, there is neither an absolute free-will nor an absolute compulsion, but it is a fine, subtle line between them. In other words, there is a kind of freedom which depends on Allah's Will; that at any moment He can take it back, if He Wills. In such a way, the servants are able to fulfill their responsibility, which is the secret of their improvement, while at the same time, they do not feel any independence or self-sufficiency.

In brief, the reason for this idea is so that the servants will not feel independent divine providence, but are in need of His guidance and support. When they are making a decision to do something, they call on his support. Some of the commentators who believe in fatalism have taken this verse as an evidence of their doctrine.

Among them is Fakhr-i-Razi who said: "Take note that this verse is one of the verses in which the waves of fatalism surge." (1) Yes, if we separate this verse from the former ones, this statement can be right, but paying attention to the fact that in one verse the possibility of the influence of Man's 'free-will' is pointed out, and in another one the recognition of Allah's Will is mentioned, the same 'variety of conditions' clearly approves these conditions, (a place between them; a place between two extreme ends) .

It is ironic that those who believe in free-will' have seriously taken to heart this verse, to denote absolute free-will, and those who believe in fatalism have taken stock in the next verse, which addresses only fatalism.