It is reported in the Sunnah that Allah bears witness against the son of Adam regarding his lie at the time of reckoning. Will the servant be asked about a sin from which he repented?

The questioner : It is reported in the Sunnah that Allah bears witness against the son of Adam regarding his lie at the time of reckoning. Will the servant be asked about a sin from which he repented? And if he is asked, will he answer in the negative based on his repentance, or in the affirmative, exposing himself to punishment? There is a related question: Does Allah forgive a repeated sin that the heart of its doer denies? And does the word "ignorance" in the saying of the Exalted, , mean lack of intention or lack of control over the senses? We begin with the first question: the bearing of witness against the son of Adam regarding his sin from which he repented.

The Shaykh : Whoever repents, Allah turns to him in mercy. The one who commits a sin and then repents to Allah the Mighty and Majestic with sincere repentance, that sin is erased. Indeed, from the favor of his Lord, the matter is more merciful than that, because when the sinner repents, not only is his disobedience erased, but good deeds are placed in its stead. As He said, . This verse is among the verses of glad tidings, meaning it gathered a great deal from the favor of Allah the Mighty and Majestic, to the extent that the minds of some of the exegetes were not broad enough to accept this divine favor. So they said in their interpretation of this verse, , meaning that after he repents from the sin, he does good. This good is the good deeds. No, the Sunnah came to clarify, and despite these narrow-minded people who restrict the mercy of Allah the Mighty and Majestic, it says that He replaces their evil deeds with good deeds in reality. That is, if a person did ninety evil deeds and repented from them, ninety good deeds are recorded for him, and so on around you. But do not be deceived; it does not mean that the repentant sinner is better than the obedient, patient one who walks the path and stays on the straight road. There is a subtle point here: this is the one who abounds in sins and repents, so Allah turns to him in mercy, erases his evil deeds, and places those good deeds in their stead, as we explained. But the believing, obedient, patient one who proceeds in his obedience to Allah the Mighty and Majestic, for every good deed he does, ten are recorded for him in place of it, or a hundred, or seven hundred, or many times over. And Allah multiplies for whom He wills. And if Allah the Mighty and Majestic has manifested His favor toward the disobedient among His servants by turning their evil deeds, from which they repented, into good deeds, then Allah the Mighty and Majestic is even more generous than that regarding the obedient among His servants, for He multiplies their good deeds. Therefore, however much the evil deeds of the disobedient are replaced with good deeds, they are good deeds in place of evil deeds. But if he was obedient, he will find on the Day of Resurrection a store of good deeds by which he will rise in Paradise to the highest ranks. The point is that repentance erases the sin, so the Muslim is not asked on that Day about the sin from which he repented. Otherwise, it would be required to ask all the disbelievers who were guided and embraced Islam. This matter is easy, clear, and evident, and praise be to Allah. What is the second question?

The questioner : If he is asked on the Day of Resurrection ... .

The Shaykh : No.