An Explanation of the Shaykh al-Islam's Statement on Supporting a Just State, Even If It Is a Disbelieving One
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Question:
The questioner says: May Allah bless you. How do we understand the words of the Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) when he said, “Allah supports the just state, even if it is a disbeliever’s state, and He does not support the unjust state, even if it is a believer’s state”? Because some preachers cite Ibn Taymiyyah’s statement as evidence for the permissibility of rising against unjust rulers.
Answer:
The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not permit rising against unjust rulers in this hadith. Rather, he prohibited rising against the imams, even if they are unjust, even if they are oppressive, and even if they are open sinners, as long as they do not leave Islam, as long as they do not commit apostasy from Islam. As long as they are Muslims, even if they are open sinners, even if they are unjust, it is not permissible to rise against them. This is because remaining in obedience to them, remaining in obedience to them, is better for the Muslims than rising against them, due to the great harms that follow from rising against them: the shedding of blood, the loss of wealth, and the disruption of security. Therefore, averting harms takes precedence over seeking benefits. This is choosing the lesser of two harms to avert the greater of them. “Allah supports the just state, even if it is a disbeliever’s state.” This is recompense in this world. If a disbeliever does a good deed in this world, he is recompensed for it in this world. But in the Hereafter, no, he has no righteous deed.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you,
The questioner says: May Allah bless you. How do we understand the words of the Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) when he said, “Allah supports the just state, even if it is a disbeliever’s state, and He does not support the unjust state, even if it is a believer’s state”? Because some preachers cite Ibn Taymiyyah’s statement as evidence for the permissibility of rising against unjust rulers.
Answer:
The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not permit rising against unjust rulers in this hadith. Rather, he prohibited rising against the imams, even if they are unjust, even if they are oppressive, and even if they are open sinners, as long as they do not leave Islam, as long as they do not commit apostasy from Islam. As long as they are Muslims, even if they are open sinners, even if they are unjust, it is not permissible to rise against them. This is because remaining in obedience to them, remaining in obedience to them, is better for the Muslims than rising against them, due to the great harms that follow from rising against them: the shedding of blood, the loss of wealth, and the disruption of security. Therefore, averting harms takes precedence over seeking benefits. This is choosing the lesser of two harms to avert the greater of them. “Allah supports the just state, even if it is a disbeliever’s state.” This is recompense in this world. If a disbeliever does a good deed in this world, he is recompensed for it in this world. But in the Hereafter, no, he has no righteous deed.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you,
Source
شرح كتاب التوحيد [ صالح الفوزان ]، تابع باب ما جاء من التغليظ فيمن عبد الله عند قبر رجل صالح، فكيف إذا عبده ؟ - 2 — islamhouse.com (14:28)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.