Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “But as for the questioner, do not drive him away,” and the ruling on answering questioners
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
He asks: Does the saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic,[Ad-Duhaa 93:10] include the one who asks about the rulings of his religion? If so, what is your advice to some of the students of knowledge who are deficient in answering people’s questions or do not conduct themselves well in their interaction with them?
Answer:
The saying of Allah the Exalted, “But as for the questioner, do not drive him away,” includes, first and foremost, the one who asks about knowledge, and likewise the one who asks about wealth; it includes both, but the one who asks about knowledge is the primary case. If his question does not involve a prohibited matter, then it is obligatory to answer him. This is because Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said:[An-Nahl 16:43], thereby making it obligatory for the common people to ask the scholars, and making it obligatory for the scholars to answer and explain the knowledge. [Ali 'Imran 3:187] It is obligatory for him to disseminate knowledge, even if he is not asked; how much more so if he is asked? If he is asked, the obligation upon him becomes more emphatic, unless answering him would lead to a greater harm. In that case, he is not to be answered, because the public interest requires it.
For this reason, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed Mu'adh ibn Jabal that Allah would notSahih al-Bukhari 2856 punish anyone who does not associate anything with Him, Mu'adh said: “Shall I not inform the people, O Messenger of Allah?” He said: “No, do not inform them, lest they become complacent, relying on hope, and become lax in their sins. It is permissible to conceal knowledge at times and not to answer if the situation requires it and the public interest lies in not answering. In this case, it is permissible for the questioner not to be answered, but in other cases, it is obligatory for him to answer the questioner.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you.
He asks: Does the saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic,
And as for the petitioner, do not repel [him].
وَأَمَّا السَّائِلَ فَلَا تَنْهَرْAnswer:
The saying of Allah the Exalted, “But as for the questioner, do not drive him away,” includes, first and foremost, the one who asks about knowledge, and likewise the one who asks about wealth; it includes both, but the one who asks about knowledge is the primary case. If his question does not involve a prohibited matter, then it is obligatory to answer him. This is because Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said:
So ask the people of the message if you do not know.
فَاسْأَلُوا أَهْلَ الذِّكْرِ إِن كُنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَAnd [mention, O Muhammad], when Allah took a covenant from those who were given the Scripture, [saying], "You must make it clear to the people and not conceal it." But they threw it away behind their backs and exchanged it for a small price. And wretched is that which they purchased.
وَإِذْ أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ لَتُبَيِّنُنَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ وَلَا تَكْتُمُونَهُ فَنَبَذُوهُ وَرَاءَ ظُهُورِهِمْ وَاشْتَرَوْا بِهِ ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًا فَبِئْسَ مَا يَشْتَرُونَFor this reason, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed Mu'adh ibn Jabal that Allah would not
slave's right on Allah is that He should not
حق العباد على الله ان لاThe presenter:
May Allah reward you.
Source
لقاء مفتوح [الزلفي] — alfawzan.live (14:51)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.