What is the difference between the two verses: (Have We not made the earth a resting place?) [An-Naba/6] and (Have We not made the earth a receptacle? For the living and the dead?) [Al-Mursalat/25-26], and why did the wordings differ in them?

The Earth is described in the Quran with attributes such as "a cradle" (مهادًا) and "a container" (كفاتًا), and there is no contradiction between them. "Cradle" (مهاد) signifies a smoothed-out bed for people to traverse, while "container" (كفات) denotes a comprehensive vessel that holds and covers the living upon its surface and encompasses the dead within its belly. The Earth gathers the living in their dwellings and homes, and buries the dead within its interior. This is the meaning of "kafth" (الكفت), which implies enclosing and gathering.