َ وَذَكَرَ اسْمَ رَبِّهِ فَصَلَّى ﴿۱۵﴾ بَلْ تُؤْثِرُونَ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا ﴿۱۶﴾ وَالْآخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ وَأَبْقَى ﴿۱۷﴾ إِنَّ هَذَا لَفِي الصُّحُفِ الْأُولَى ﴿۱۸﴾ صُحُفِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَمُوسَى ﴿۱۹﴾

﴾15﴿ Wa zakaras ma Rabbihee fasallaa
﴾16﴿ Bal tu'siroonal hayaatad dunyaa
﴾17﴿ Wal Aakhiratu khairunw wa abqaa
﴾18﴿ Inna haazaa lafis suhu fil oolaa
﴾19﴿ Suhufi Ibraaheema wa Moosaa

﴾15﴿ And remembers the name of his Lord, then prays
﴾16﴿ But you prefer the life of this world
﴾17﴿ While the Hereafter is better and everlasting
﴾18﴿ Surely, this is in the earlier scriptures
﴾19﴿ The scriptures of Ibrahim and Musa (peace be upon them)

[16,17] This is the third claim of the Surah — a rebuke for the love of the world: “But” (بَلْ) here indicates a shift and intensification — meaning: you do not purify yourselves, but rather you prefer worldly life. You give it priority over the Hereafter, strive for it, but do not strive for the Hereafter.
The reason the Hereafter is better is because it contains both physical and spiritual bliss, while the world does not. Likewise, the pleasures of this world are mixed with hardships, whereas the pleasures of the Hereafter are pure.
The blessings of the Hereafter are eternal, while the possessions of this world are fleeting.
[18,19] This is transmitted proof from the earlier scriptures. “This” (هَذَا) refers, according to Abū Al-‘Āliyah, to the content of the entire surah; according to Ibn Jarīr, to the content of “Qad aflaha” (the verse “He has succeeded…”); and according to Ḍaḥḥāk, to the content of the Qur’an.
“The scriptures of Abraham and Moses” (صُحُفِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَمُوسَى) — a similar reference is found in Surah An-Najm (53:36–37). The specification of these two prophets is due to the fact that the people of Makkah claimed to follow the religion of Abraham, and the followers of Moses (peace be upon him) were present nearby at the time.