• If Allah tests a person with calamity because of his sin, and he bears it with patience and gratitude, Allah, may He be exalted, will forgive him his sin, raise him in status in Paradise and give him the reward of those who are patient and seek reward with Him. • If the one who is affected is a disbeliever, then his calamity cannot be to raise him in status. • If the one who is affected is a Muslim who commits sin openly or is a blatant evildoer, then it is most likely that he is being requited and punished with this calamity. • If the Muslim is a devoted worshipper, obedient and righteous, and there is nothing between him and Allah but true servitude, gratitude, praise, repentance and submission to Him, may He be glorified, then it is most likely that this calamity is a kind of honour and raising in status. • If the one who is affected shows displeasure and panic, then it cannot be thought that his calamity is an honour from Allah to raise him in status. • The practical benefit that one should think about is that every calamity and test is good for him and will bring reward if he is patient and seeks reward with Allah, and that every test and calamity is bad for him if he panics and gets angry.

To sum up our answer:  Allah, may He be exalted, informs some of the angels (namely the angelic scribes) of the events that will happen in the coming year, and He instructs them to copy it from al-Lawh al-Mahfooz.  With regard to any additional information about the giving of individual instructions to each of the angels from those pages, there is no evidence to support that.  And Allah knows best.