His words, Exalted is He:

Verily We created man in the best of forms.

He said:

That is, in the finest stature and form.

Then We reduced him to the lowest of the low,

That is, We transform him from state to state until he is overtaken by old age (haram).^{1Note that we have used the present tense here, since Tustarī is interpreting the verse to indicate an ongoing situation in human beings.}

except those who believe and perform righteous deeds…

in their youth, for when they become weak and old, We command the angels to record for them deeds that they used to do in their youth; for they shall have an unfailing reward, that is, the rewards for their deeds will not cease, even though they are too weak to perform them. But God knows best.