KHUTAB II - 1. Allah’s Justice and Compassion

1. Allah’s Justice and Compassion

  (30 May, 2003)

أَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ نَحْمَدُهُ وَ نَسْتَعِيْنُهُ وَ نَسْتَغْفِرُهُ وَ نَسْتَهْدِيْهِ وَ نَعُوْذُ بِاللهِ مِنْ شُرُوْرِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَ مِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِناَ، مَنْ يَهْدِ اللهُ  فلاََ مُضِلَّ لَهُ وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلا هَادِيَ لَهُ، وَ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ  وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيْكَ لَهُ، وَ أَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَ رَسُوْلُهُ وَصَفِيُّهُ وَخَلِيْلُهُ وَ كَلِيْمُهُ ، سَلَّ الرِّسَالَةَ وَ أَدَّى اْلأَمَانَةَ وَ نَصَحَ اْلأُمَّةَ ، أَرْسَلَهُ اللهُ بَشِيْراً وَ نَذِيْرًا وَ دَاعِياًّ إِلىَ اللهِ وَ سِرَاجًا مُنِيْرًا مَنْ يُطِعِ اللهَ وَ رَسُوْلَهُ  فَقَدْ رَشَدَ وَ مَنْ يَعْصِهِمَا فَإنَّهُ لا يَضُرُّ إلاّ نَفْسَهُ وَلا يَضُرُّ اللهَ شَيْئًا. أَللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَ سَلِّمْ وَ بَارِكْ عَلىَ عَبْدِكَ وَرَسُوْلِكَ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَ عَلىَ آلِهِ وَ صَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِيْنَ.                                       

           أَمَّا بَعْدُ ، فَيَا أَيُّهَا اْلمُؤْمِنُوْنَ، أُوْصِيْكُمْ وَ إِياَّيَ بِتَقْوَى اللهِ فَقَدْ فَازَ اْلمُتَّقُوْنَ. قاَلَ تَعَالَى وهو أصدق القائلين:” يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ“ . صَدَقَ اللهُ اْلعَظِيْم.

Brothers and sisters in Islam,

Allah says in the Qur’an:

وَنَضَعُ الْمَوَازِينَ الْقِسْطَ لِيَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ فَلَا تُظْلَمُ نَفْسٌ شَيْئًا وَإِنْ كَانَ مِثْقَالَ

حَبَّةٍ مِنْ خَرْدَلٍ أَتَيْنَا بِهَا وَكَفَى بِنَا حَاسِبِينَ (سورة الأنبياء : ٤٧ )

“And We shall set up balances of justice on the Day

of Resurrection, then none will be dealt with unjustly in

 anything.  And if there be the weight of a mustard seed,

We will bring it.  And sufficient are We

 to take account.” (Q. 21:47)

Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s commentary on this verse is this:

“What is meant is that when Allah takes account, His accounting will be perfect: there will be no flaw in it, as there may be in earthly accountants, who require other people’s help in some matters of account which they do not understand for want of knowledge of that particular department they are dealing with. Allah’s knowledge is perfect, and therefore His justice will be perfect also; for He will not fail to take into account all the most intangible things that determine conduct and character.”

In this verse the term  مَوَازِيْن   is in plural rather than the singular مِيْزَان meaning “balance” or “scale”. Different persons have different balances of deed. If we look at how balance is used in this world, we have a special balance (scale) for weighing gold or diamonds, for weighing fruit, for example, bananas. We even have special scales for weighing our weight, used for humans only. For heavier things, such as cars, there is also a special scale. In this world, different scales are used for different objects, depending on size and weight.

In the Hereafter, are there different balances (scales) for weighing different objects? In the Hereafter there will be only one thing to be weighed, our deeds from this world. Yet, Allah mentions the term  مَوَازِيْن  (balances, scales) in plural rather than in the singular مِيْزَان   (a balance, a scale). Apparently, every one of us will have his/her own balance, weighing deeds, good or evil. Why? Because of Allah’s justice, He will consider our personal circumstances.

For example, a person may be born into a pious family, with a father who is a shaykh, a great scholar of Islam, his mother a practising Muslim and raises him in Islamic way, teaching him from an early age of what is wrong and what is right. His account of deeds would be different from a person who was born in an isolated place from poor and uneducated parents who worked hard just to survive. Family environment has strong influences on an individual. Even the neighbourhood, the village, the city, or the country an individual lives in has a strong influence on the development of the person. For example, a person born in Makkah (Mecca) and raised there would have a different scale from a person born in Paris.  Even the poor will have different scales from the rich; everything is according to their circumstances.

The other aspect of judgement of deeds using the differentiation of scale is the concept of time (era). In weighing our deeds, Allah in the Hereafter will also consider the time a person lives in and his social circumstances. A person living in the time of the Prophet as opposed to a person living in present times will have different scales. These are the balances of justice by Allah the Just. Allah has ninety-nine names (attributes), and one of them is الْعَدْل (the Just).

Brothers and sisters in Islam,

Another name of Allah is  الرَّحْمَن(the Most Gracious). There are eight characteristics of  عِبَادُ الرَّحْمَنِ(the faithful slaves of the Most Gracious, Allah) mentioned in the Qur’ān, surah al-Furqān (chapter 25) verse 63-77. The first one is as follows:

وَعِبَادُ الرَّحْمَنِ الَّذِينَ يَمْشُونَ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ هَوْنًا وَإِذَا خَاطَبَهُمُ الْجَاهِلُونَ قَالُوا سَلَامًا (الفرقان : ٦٣)

“And the (faithful) slaves of the Most Gracious (Allah)

are those who walk of the earth in humility and sedateness,

and when the foolish address them (with bad words) they

reply back with mild words of gentleness” (Q. 25:63)

The last characteristic of the faithful slaves of the Most Gracious is that they pray and make supplication to Him, as mentioned in surah al-Furqān (chapter 25) verse 74, as follows:

وَالَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَاجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّاتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا (الفرقان : ٧٤)

“And those who say ‘Our Lord! Bestow on us from

 our wives and our offspring the comfort of our eyes

 and make us leaders of the pious.” (Q. 25:74)

In surah al-Qas.as. (chapter 28) verse 9 the term قُرَّةُ عَيْنٍ  (comfort for the eye) is also mentioned. When Pharaoh knew that in the future, a man from the children of Israel would conquer his kingdom and power, he ordered to kill every baby born by Jewish women in Egypt. But when the baby Moses was brought to him, his wife says as mentioned in the Qur’ān as follows:

وَقَالَتِ امْرَأَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ قُرَّةُ عَيْنٍ لِي وَلَكَ لَا تَقْتُلُوهُ عَسَى أَنْ يَنْفَعَنَا

أَوْ نَتَّخِذَهُ وَلَدًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ (القصص : ٩)

“And the wife of Fir‘aun (Pharaoh) said: ‘A comfort for

  the eye for me and for you.  Kill him not, perhaps he may

be of benefit to us, or we may adopt him as a son’ And

they perceived not (the result of that)” (Q. 28:9)

How could he kill every Jewish baby in his kingdom for fear of being a threat for his kingdom, and at the same time agreed to adopt a baby of unknown origin who became a comfort for their eyes? Amazing!

The term qurrat al-‘ayn means “consolation for the eye, delight of the eye; joy, pleasure, delight; darling”. It literally means “settlement of the eye”.  If you like something beautiful and attractive, you fix and settle your eyes on it. It gives delight to the eyes. The Pharaoh and his wife, as well as those who had seen the baby Moses became delighted, and nobody had intentions to harm him, let alone kill him, despite Pharaoh’s order to kill every baby of Jewish women in Egypt. The secret of this is that Allah had promised to protect Moses, to make any person who saw him, love him.  Allah says

وَلَقَدْ مَنَنَّا عَلَيْكَ مَرَّةً أُخْرَى. إِذْ أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَى أُمِّكَ مَا يُوحَى. أَنِ اقْذِفِيهِ

 فِي التَّابُوتِ فَاقْذِفِيهِ فِي الْيَمِّ فَلْيُلْقِهِ الْيَمُّ بِالسَّاحِلِ يَأْخُذْهُ عَدُوٌّ لِي وَعَدُوٌّ لَهُ

وَأَلْقَيْتُ عَلَيْكَ مَحَبَّةً مِنِّي وَلِتُصْنَعَ عَلَى عَيْنِي (طه :٣٧-٣٩)

“(Allah said): ‘And indeed We conferred a favour on you

 another time (before). When We inspired your mother with that

 which We inspired. Saying: “Put him (the child) into the Tabut

 (a box or a case or a chest) and put it into the river (Nile);

 then the river shall cast it up on the bank, and there ,an

  enemy of Mine and an enemy of his shall take him”. And

  I endued you with love from Me, in order that you may

  be brought up under My Eye.’” (Q. 20:37-39)

Speaking about Allah’s love, a Prophetic tradition runs as follows:

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ

ِإنَّ اللَّهَ إِذَا أَحَبَّ عَبْدًا دَعَا جِبْرِيلَ فَقَالَ إِنِّي أُحِبُّ فُلَانًا فَأَحِبَّهُ قَالَ

فَيُحِبُّهُ جِبْرِيلُ ثُمَّ يُنَادِي فِي السَّمَاءِ فَيَقُولُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ فُلَانًا فَأَحِبُّوهُ

فَيُحِبُّهُ أَهْلُ السَّمَاءِ قَالَ ثُمَّ يُوضَعُ لَهُ الْقَبُولُ فِي الْأَرْضِ

(رواه البخاري و مسلم و أحمد)

Abū Hurayrah narrated that the Messenger of Allah

s.a.w. said: “Whenever Allah loves a servant of Him he calls

Gabriel, and says, ‘O Gabriel, verily I love so-and-so, so love

 Him (too)’; so, Gabriel loves him; then he calls the angels (the heavenly host) and says, ‘O angels, verily Allah loves so-and-so,

 so love him (too),’ then he becomes well accepted in the earth.”

(Reported by Bukhārī, Muslim, and Aḥmad)

It means people love him.

 We pray that the Most Gracious Allah may include us among His pious obedient servants and make our spouses and our offspring the comfort of our eyes and make us leaders of the pious. Now let us pray together.

Conclusion: In the day of Resurrection Allah will take into account perfectly of what we did on this earth. Allah the Just is also the Merciful. When He loves His obedient servants, the angles and people also love them.                   

Brothers and sisters in Islam,

Let us pray together in this second khut.bah.

أَللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِلْمُسْلِمِيْنَ وَ الْمُسْلِمَاتِ وَالْمُؤْمِنِيْنَ وَ الْمُؤْمِنَاتِ الْأَحْيَاءِ مِنْهُمْ وَ اْلأَمْوَاتِ،

 إنَّكَ يَا مَوْلانَا سَمِيْعٌ قَرِيْبٌ مُجِيْبُ الدَّعَوَاتِ وَ قَاضِي الْحَاجَاتِ يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِيْنَ

O Allah! Forgive the Muslims, males and females, the believers,

males and females, the living among them as well as the dead!

 Verily, You are, O our Lord, the All-Hearing and Near, Who

 answer (our) prayers, and  fulfil (our) needs, O the

 Lord of all creatures.

أَللَّهُمَّ نَوِّرْ عَلَى أَهْلِ اْلقُبُوِْر قُبُوْرَهُمْ؛ اَللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِلْأٍٍَحْيَاءِ وَ يَسِّرْ لَهُمْ أُمُوْرَهُمْ.

 O Allah! Lighten the graves of the dead, O Allah,

forgive the living and facilitate their affairs.

أَللَّهُمَّ تُبْ عَلَى التَّائِبِيْنَ وَ اغْفِرْ ذُنُوْبَ اْلمُذْنِبِيْنَ وَ اشْفِ مَرْضَى اْلمُسْلِمِيْنَ وَ اكْتُبِ

الصِّحَّةَ  وَ الْعَافِيَةَ وَ التَّوْفِيْقَ وَ الْهِدَايَةَ لَنَا وَ لِكَافَّةِ أُمَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ أَجْمَعِيْنَ.

 O Allah! Forgive the repentant, forgive the sins of the

sinners, heal the sick among the Muslims, prescribe well-

being, vitality, prosperity and guidance for us and

 for the entire community of Muhammad.

رَبَّنَا اغْفِرْ لَنَا وَ لِوَالِدِيْنَا وَ ارْحَمْهُمَا كَمَا رَبَّيَانَا صِغَارًا

 O Lord! Forgive us as well as our parents and

 bestow on them Your mercy as they did bring

 us up when we were young.

  أَللَّهُمَّ اْصْلِح لَنَا دِيْنَنَا الَّذِيْ هُوَ عِصْمَةُ أَمْرِنَا، وَ اصْلِحْ لَنَا دُنْيَانَا الَّتِيْ فِيْهَا مَعَاشُنَا،

وَ اصْلِحْ لَنَا آخِرَتَنَا الَّتِيْ إِلَيْهَا مَعَادُنَا، وَ اجْعَلِ الْحَيَاةَ زِيَادَةً لنَاَ فِيْ كُلِّ خَيْرٍ

 وَ اجْعَلِ الْمَوْتَ رَاحَةً لَنَا مِنْ كُلِّ شَرٍّ

O Allah! Bring prosperity to our affairs in this

 world  that is the  preservation of our lives, and

 in the  next world to which we shall return, and

 increase our good deeds in our lives,

 and make our death repose from evil.

أَللَّهُمَّ أَرِنَا الْحَقَّ حَقًّا وَارْزُقْنَا اتِّبَاعَهُ وَأَرِنَا اْلبَاطِلَ بَاطِلاً وَارْزُقْنَا اجْتِنَابَهُ

O Allah! Show us the truth as truth, and guide

 to follow it, and show us the falsehood as

 falsehood, and guide us to avoid it.

رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِنْ نَسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا رَبَّنَا وَلَا تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى

 الَّذِينَ  مِنْ قَبْلِنَا رَبَّنَا وَلَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا

 أَنْتَ  مَوْلَانَا فَانْصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ (البقرة : ٢٨٦)

Or Lord! Do not punish us if we forget or make a mistake.

 Our Lord! Do not lay on us such a burden as You placed

 on those before us. Our Lord! Do not lay on us a burden

 that which we have not the strength to bear! Forgive us,

 have mercy on us. You are our protector, help us

against the unbelievers.(Q. 2:286)

أَللَّهُمَّ وَحِّدْ صُفُوْفَ الْمُسْلِمِيْنَ وَوَحِّد كَلِمَتَهُمْ وَانْصُرْهُمْ عَلَى أَعْدَائِهِمْ

O Allah, unite the Muslims and assist

 them against their enemies.

رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَاجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّاتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا

 Our Lord! Bestow on us, our spouses and our

 offspring the comfort of our eyes and

 make us leaders of the pious.

أللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْنَا مُتَحَابِّيْنَ فِيْ جَلالِكَ مُجْتَمِعِيْنَ عَلَى كَلامِكَ وَ أَظِلَِنَا تَحْتَ

ظِلِّ عَرْشِكَ يَوْمَ لا ظِلَّ ِإلاّ ظِلُّهُ وَ تَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِيْنَ وَ أَلْحِقْنَا بِالصَّالِحِيْنَ

وَاجْعَلْ خَيْرَ أَعْمَالِنَا خَوَاتِمِهَا وَ اجْعَلِْ خَيْرَ أَيَّامْنَا يَوْمَ لِقَائِكَ.

O Allah! Make us love each other in Your Majesty and

agree on Your sayings, and shade us with Your Throne on

the day there will be no shade  except its shade, and make

us die as Muslims, and join us with pious people, and

 make our best deed its last one, and our best day

 the day we meet You.

  رَبَّنَا آَتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الْآَخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ. اللَّهُمَّ آمِيْن يَا رَبَّ اْلعَالَمِيْن

Our Lord! Give us the goodness, both in this world and

 in the Hereafter and save us from the torment of Hellfire.  

عِبَادَ الله، إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَى وَيَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ. اُذْكُرُوا اللهَ يَذْكُرُكُمْ  وَ اشْكُرُوْهُ عَلىَ نِعَمِهِ يَزِدْكُمْ وَ لَذِكْرُ اللهِ أَكْبَرُ وَ اللهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُوْن. أَقِمِ الصَّلاة !!!