Is determining the sex of the fetus through modern means contrary to Allah’s exclusive knowledge of the unseen?
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The questioner : Yes. My lord, O Shaykh, the destinies are part of the knowledge of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He). So how do we reconcile the hadith of Ibn Mas'ud that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) sends an angel to him, and he is commanded to write down the four words mentioned in the hadith?
The Shaykh : What is the problem with that?
The questioner : The angel is informed of his life and his deeds.
The Shaykh : By the command of Allah. Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said:[Al-Jinn 72:26-27] Therefore, the angel knows whether it is a male or a female before the radiating devices that reveal whether it is a male or a female appear. This is a point that we should also be aware of, because some people now deny that the sex of the pregnancy can be known, saying that it is not possible, even though medicine proves it. So the matter becomes confused for them. It is said:
The pregnancy has related matters. First, is it a male or a female? Second, will it be born healthy or die in its mother’s womb? Third, if it is born, will it live a long life or die after a short time? Fourth, its provision. Fifth, its deeds. Sixth, its ultimate end. Is this known to people now? It is not known. Only the sex, male or female, is known, and the male or female sex is known by the angel in charge of the wombs. Yes.
The Shaykh : What is the problem with that?
The questioner : The angel is informed of his life and his deeds.
The Shaykh : By the command of Allah. Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said:
(26) [He is] Knower of the unseen, and He does not disclose His [knowledge of the] unseen to anyone (27) Except whom He has approved of messengers
عَالِمُ الْغَيْبِ فَلَا يُظْهِرُ عَلَىٰ غَيْبِهِ أَحَدًا إِلَّا مَنِ ارْتَضَىٰ مِن رَّسُولٍThe pregnancy has related matters. First, is it a male or a female? Second, will it be born healthy or die in its mother’s womb? Third, if it is born, will it live a long life or die after a short time? Fourth, its provision. Fifth, its deeds. Sixth, its ultimate end. Is this known to people now? It is not known. Only the sex, male or female, is known, and the male or female sex is known by the angel in charge of the wombs. Yes.
Source
قناة «فضيلة الشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين»، 241 - 336 هل معرفة جنس الجنين عبر الوسائل الحديثة مخالف لاستئثار الله بعلم الغيب؟ ابن عثيمين — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.
