Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: (Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing)
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Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: (Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing)]
Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Hujurat: 1] This statement serves as a warning to us against falling into what we have been forbidden from, namely rushing ahead of Allah and His Messenger, or opposing what we have been commanded to do in terms of fearing Him. (Hearing) means: Hearing what you say. (Knowing) means: Knowing what you say and what you do; for knowledge is more comprehensive and broader, since hearing pertains to what is heard, while knowledge pertains to what is known. And Allah the Exalted encompasses everything with knowledge [Al-Imran: 5].
The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) say: The hearing by which the Lord, Mighty and Majestic, is described is divided into two categories: hearing of perception, and hearing of response.
So the hearing of perception means: That Allah hears every voice, whether hidden or apparent, to the extent that He, Mighty and Majestic, says to His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): [Al-Mujadilah: 1] Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: [Praise be to Allah, whose hearing encompasses all voices. I was in the chamber—meaning the chamber of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)—and the woman was arguing with him while he was conversing with her, and some of her speech was hidden from me] And Allah, Mighty and Majestic, informed that He heard, and He hears everything that passed between this woman and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him),This is what we say about it: This is hearing of perception.
Then, hearing of perception may be intended to indicate comprehensiveness and inclusiveness, or it may be intended as a threat, or it may be intended as support,So these are three types: It may be intended to indicate comprehensiveness and inclusiveness, such as this verse.
And it may be intended as a threat, such as His saying, the Exalted: [Al-Imran: 181] And look at how He said: [Ali 'Imran 3:181] when they described Allah the Exalted with deficiency, before He said: which indicates that describing Allah the Exalted with deficiency is greater than killing the prophets.
The third: Hearing intended as support includes His saying, Blessed and Exalted is He, to Moses and Aaron: Do not fear, indeed I am with you, hearing and seeing [Ta-Ha: 46] So the intended meaning of hearing here is support,Meaning: I hear what you two say and what is said to you.
As for the hearing of response, its meaning is: That Allah responds to whoever calls upon Him,And from this is the supplication of Ibrahim: [Ibrahim: 39] meaning: The One who responds to supplication,And from this is the saying of the one praying: Allah hears whoever praises Him,Meaning: He responded to whoever praised Him by rewarding them. I do not know whether we grasp the meaning of what we say in our prayer, or whether we say it as an act of worship without knowing the meaning.When you say: Allah is the Greatest in the takbir of ihram means: Greater than everything, and we do not encompass that; for He is too great to be encompassed by minds.And when we say: Allah hears whoever praises Him,Meaning: Allah responded to whoever praised Him. The meaning is not that He only hears; for Allah hears whoever praises Him and whoever does not praise Him when they speak. But the intended meaning is that He responds to whoever praises Him with reward. So this hearing necessitates responding to whoever calls upon Him.
As for His saying, the Exalted: (Knowing) So the intended meaning is that He is the One with vast knowledge. Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Talaq: 12].
When you believe—O brother—that Allah is Hearing and that Allah is Knowing, is it possible for you, in your sound mind, to say what He does not approve of? No; for He hears. So it is not befitting for you to let Allah hear what He does not approve of from you. Let Him hear what He loves and approves of. If you truly believe that Allah is Hearing, if your father forbade you from saying certain things, would you dare to let him hear what he forbade you from? No.
So Allah is greater and more noble. So beware of letting Allah hear what He does not approve of from you. If you believe that He is Knowing of everything, and this is broader than hearing; for it includes speech, action, and the whispers of the heart. Even what your soul whispers, He, Mighty and Majestic, knows. If you know that, is it possible for you to do something He does not approve of? No.
For the purpose of Allah informing that He is Knowing of everything is not for us to know this and believe it, no.
The purpose is this, and the purpose is something else, which is the fruit and result that follows from our knowledge that He is Knowing of everything. If we know that He is Knowing of everything, will we say what He does not approve of? No.
For He will know it. If we know that He is Knowing of everything, will we believe what He does not approve of? No.
For we know that He knows what is in our hearts,Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Baqarah: 235] Rather, Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Anfal: 24] He interposes between you and your heart.
In any case: It is obligatory upon us—O brothers—when a name of Allah or an attribute of Allah passes by us, to believe in this name and this attribute, and to perform what is the fruit of believing in this name and attribute.
I ask Allah the Exalted to grant us and you uprightness in our religion and our worldly affairs, and to bestow upon us from Him mercy. Indeed, He is the Bestower.
Allah the Exalted said:
Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌfrom Allah nothing is hidden in the earth nor in the heaven.
لا يَخْفَى عَلَيْهِ شَيْءٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلا فِي السَّمَاءِThe scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) say: The hearing by which the Lord, Mighty and Majestic, is described is divided into two categories: hearing of perception, and hearing of response.
So the hearing of perception means: That Allah hears every voice, whether hidden or apparent, to the extent that He, Mighty and Majestic, says to His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
Certainly has Allah heard the speech of the one who argues with you, [O Muhammad], concerning her husband and directs her complaint to Allah. And Allah hears your dialogue; indeed, Allah is Hearing and Seeing.
قَدْ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ قَوْلَ الَّتِي تُجَادِلُكَ فِي زَوْجِهَا وَتَشْتَكِي إِلَى اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ يَسْمَعُ تَحَاوُرَكُمَا إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ بَصِيرٌThen, hearing of perception may be intended to indicate comprehensiveness and inclusiveness, or it may be intended as a threat, or it may be intended as support,So these are three types: It may be intended to indicate comprehensiveness and inclusiveness, such as this verse.
And it may be intended as a threat, such as His saying, the Exalted:
Allah has certainly heard the statement of those [Jews] who said, "Indeed, Allah is poor, while we are rich." We will record what they said and their killing of the prophets without right and will say, "Taste the punishment of the Burning Fire.
لَقَدْ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ قَوْلَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ فَقِيرٌ وَنَحْنُ أَغْنِيَاءُ سَنَكْتُبُ مَا قَالُوا وَقَتْلَهُمُ الْأَنْبِيَاءَ بِغَيْرِ حَقٍّ وَنَقُولُ ذُوقُوا عَذَابَ الْحَرِيقِWe will record what they said
سَنَكْتُبُ مَا قَالُواAnd their killing of the prophets [Al-Imran: 181]
وَقَتْلَهُمُ الْأَنْبِيَاء َ) [آل عمران:١٨١]The third: Hearing intended as support includes His saying, Blessed and Exalted is He, to Moses and Aaron: Do not fear, indeed I am with you, hearing and seeing [Ta-Ha: 46] So the intended meaning of hearing here is support,Meaning: I hear what you two say and what is said to you.
As for the hearing of response, its meaning is: That Allah responds to whoever calls upon Him,And from this is the supplication of Ibrahim:
Indeed, my Lord is the Hearer of supplication.
إِنَّ رَبِّي لَسَمِيعُ الدُّعَاءِAs for His saying, the Exalted: (Knowing) So the intended meaning is that He is the One with vast knowledge. Allah the Exalted said:
so you may know that Allah is over all things competent and that Allah has encompassed all things in knowledge.
لِتَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ أَحَاَطَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عِلْماًWhen you believe—O brother—that Allah is Hearing and that Allah is Knowing, is it possible for you, in your sound mind, to say what He does not approve of? No; for He hears. So it is not befitting for you to let Allah hear what He does not approve of from you. Let Him hear what He loves and approves of. If you truly believe that Allah is Hearing, if your father forbade you from saying certain things, would you dare to let him hear what he forbade you from? No.
So Allah is greater and more noble. So beware of letting Allah hear what He does not approve of from you. If you believe that He is Knowing of everything, and this is broader than hearing; for it includes speech, action, and the whispers of the heart. Even what your soul whispers, He, Mighty and Majestic, knows. If you know that, is it possible for you to do something He does not approve of? No.
For the purpose of Allah informing that He is Knowing of everything is not for us to know this and believe it, no.
The purpose is this, and the purpose is something else, which is the fruit and result that follows from our knowledge that He is Knowing of everything. If we know that He is Knowing of everything, will we say what He does not approve of? No.
For He will know it. If we know that He is Knowing of everything, will we believe what He does not approve of? No.
For we know that He knows what is in our hearts,Allah the Exalted said:
And know that Allah knows what is within yourselves, so beware of Him
وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَعْلَمُ مَا فِي أَنْفُسِكُمْ فَاحْذَرُوهُAnd know that Allah intervenes between a man and his heart
وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَحُولُ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَقَلْبِهِIn any case: It is obligatory upon us—O brothers—when a name of Allah or an attribute of Allah passes by us, to believe in this name and this attribute, and to perform what is the fruit of believing in this name and attribute.
I ask Allah the Exalted to grant us and you uprightness in our religion and our worldly affairs, and to bestow upon us from Him mercy. Indeed, He is the Bestower.