Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “And when there comes to them a matter of public safety or fear, they spread it about”
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
May Allah bless you. We are pleased to begin with this message, Your Eminence the Shaykh. This person asks about the interpretation of the saying of Allah the Exalted in Surat al-Nisa:[An-Nisa 4:83]. [An-Nisa 4:83].
The Shaykh:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. Allah mentioned that the hypocrites use spreading rumors and instilling fear among the Muslims.[An-Nisa 4:83] Among the general matters that concern the society, they broadcast it, spread it, and hastened to spread it in order to terrify the Muslims.
[An-Nisa 4:83], they spread it, and this was among the matters that are not to be spread, but rather it is referred to the people of authority and decision-making among the scholars and rulers who take charge of it and deal with it as is required, without spreading rumors or instilling fear in the Muslims. For this reason, He said: [An-Nisa 4:83]. And this is referred to those who hold the power of decision-making, and to the scholars who have the explanation of the Shari'ah rulings by which this matter is dealt with.
But they do not want reform; they only want to instill fear, spread rumors, and cast terror into the hearts of the weak in faith among the Muslims. This is their method. So there are matters among events that are not referred to the general public or the masses, but rather they are referred to the scholars and to the people of authority and decision-making among the rulers to deal with them, without the general public being informed of it. Yes.
The questioner:
May Allah reward you. That includes the rumor. May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh:
Yes, it is the rumors that circulate; it is not permissible to mention them to people or in gatherings, in newspapers, or on Twitter and the tools in people's hands. Rather, this is referred to the scholars and to the rulers. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you.
May Allah bless you. We are pleased to begin with this message, Your Eminence the Shaykh. This person asks about the interpretation of the saying of Allah the Exalted in Surat al-Nisa:
And when there comes to them information about [public] security or fear, they spread it around
وَإِذَا جَاءَهُمْ أَمْرٌ مِّنَ الْأَمْنِ أَوِ الْخَوْفِ أَذَاعُوا بِهِBut if they had referred it back to the Messenger or to those of authority among them, then the ones who [can] draw correct conclusions from it would have known about it. And if not for the favor of Allah upon you and His mercy, you would have followed Satan, except for a few.
وَلَوْ رَدُّوهُ إِلَى الرَّسُولِ وَإِلَىٰ أُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْهُمْ لَعَلِمَهُ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَنبِطُونَهُ مِنْهُمْ وَلَوْلَا فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُ لَاتَّبَعْتُمُ الشَّيْطَانَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًاThe Shaykh:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. Allah mentioned that the hypocrites use spreading rumors and instilling fear among the Muslims.
And when there comes to them information about [public] security or fear
وَإِذَا جَاءَهُمْ أَمْرٌ مِّنَ الْأَمْنِ أَوِ الْخَوْفِAnd when there comes to them information about [public] security or fear, they spread it around
وَإِذَا جَاءَهُمْ أَمْرٌ مِّنَ الْأَمْنِ أَوِ الْخَوْفِ أَذَاعُوا بِهِBut if they had referred it back to the Messenger or to those of authority among them
وَلَوْ رَدُّوهُ إِلَى الرَّسُولِ وَإِلَىٰ أُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْهُمْBut they do not want reform; they only want to instill fear, spread rumors, and cast terror into the hearts of the weak in faith among the Muslims. This is their method. So there are matters among events that are not referred to the general public or the masses, but rather they are referred to the scholars and to the people of authority and decision-making among the rulers to deal with them, without the general public being informed of it. Yes.
The questioner:
May Allah reward you. That includes the rumor. May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh:
Yes, it is the rumors that circulate; it is not permissible to mention them to people or in gatherings, in newspapers, or on Twitter and the tools in people's hands. Rather, this is referred to the scholars and to the rulers. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، برنامج (فتاوى) (184) لمعالي الشيخ صالح الفوزان بتاريخ [1440-06-09] - كبار العلماء — youtube.com (0:50)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.