The Noble Verse in Surat Fatir: “Then We bequeathed the Book to those We chose from among Our servants, and among them is one who is oppressive to himself, and among them is one who is moderate, and among them is one who is foremost in good deeds”
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The questioner : He says in his question that he is inquiring about the Noble Verse, I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan, in Surat Fatir: [Fatir 35:32].
The Shaykh : Yes. What does he want?
The questioner : He says, “I ask for clarification of these three categories?”
The Shaykh : Yes. Allah the Mighty and Majestic says:[Fatir 35:32] He means by this this Ummah (the Muslim community). Allah bequeathed them the Book, so their Book, which is the Noble Qur'an, was the last Book that Allah the Exalted sent down to the people of the earth, because it was sent down to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), the Seal of the Prophets. Allah bequeathed them the Book, and Allah made clear in this verse that Allah chose this Ummah over other nations and divided this Ummah into three categories: one who is oppressive to himself, one who is moderate, and one who is foremost in good deeds.
The one who is oppressive to himself is the one who wrongs himself by doing what is not permissible or by leaving what is obligatory. The one who is moderate is the one who limits himself to doing the obligatory and leaving the forbidden. The one who is foremost in good deeds is the one who performs the obligatory and what exceeds it in voluntary acts, avoids the disliked, and avoids the forbidden, the disliked, and the permissible from which he gains nothing.
An example of the first, the one who is oppressive to himself: a man who prays but does not fulfill what is obligatory in the prayer in terms of conditions, pillars, or obligations. This is one who is oppressive to himself. A man who pays zakah but does not exercise caution and does not pay zakah on all of his wealth that is subject to zakah. This is one who is oppressive to himself.
And an example of the second: a man who prays but delays the prayer until the last moment of its time and does not perform its complements. He limits his tasbih to one, limits his recitation to al-Fatihah, limits his ruku' and sujud to the minimum that is obligatory, and so on.
And in charity, he gives the obligatory zakah and does not add to it.
As for the third, the one who is foremost in good deeds, he is the one who performs the obligations and does what complements them from the recommended practices. He prays the prayer in its most complete and perfect form, performs the rawatib (the regular voluntary prayers attached to the obligatory ones) associated with it, and prays voluntary prayers. Likewise, he pays the zakah and gives charity in addition to that. This is the one who is foremost in good deeds.
Then He concluded the verse by saying:[Fatir 35:32] Meaning that this being foremost in good deeds is the great favor, for there is no greater favor than Allah the Exalted bestowing upon a person the race to good and doing what he is able of the obligatory and recommended acts of worship. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you. This is a message received from a listener of the program from Khamis Mushait, who symbolized his name with A A A, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He says:
Then we caused to inherit the Book those We have chosen of Our servants; and among them is he who wrongs himself, and among them is he who is moderate, and among them is he who is foremost in good deeds by permission of Allah. That [inheritance] is what is the great bounty.
ثُمَّ أَوْرَثْنَا الْكِتَابَ الَّذِينَ اصْطَفَيْنَا مِنْ عِبَادِنَا فَمِنْهُمْ ظَالِمٌ لِنَفْسِهِ وَمِنْهُمْ مُقْتَصِدٌ وَمِنْهُمْ سَابِقٌ بِالْخَيْرَاتِ بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ ذَلِكَ هُوَ الْفَضْلُ الْكَبِيرُThe Shaykh : Yes. What does he want?
The questioner : He says, “I ask for clarification of these three categories?”
The Shaykh : Yes. Allah the Mighty and Majestic says:
Then we caused to inherit the Book those We have chosen of Our servants
ثُمَّ أَوْرَثْنَا الْكِتَابَ الَّذِينَ اصْطَفَيْنَا مِنْ عِبَادِنَاThe one who is oppressive to himself is the one who wrongs himself by doing what is not permissible or by leaving what is obligatory. The one who is moderate is the one who limits himself to doing the obligatory and leaving the forbidden. The one who is foremost in good deeds is the one who performs the obligatory and what exceeds it in voluntary acts, avoids the disliked, and avoids the forbidden, the disliked, and the permissible from which he gains nothing.
An example of the first, the one who is oppressive to himself: a man who prays but does not fulfill what is obligatory in the prayer in terms of conditions, pillars, or obligations. This is one who is oppressive to himself. A man who pays zakah but does not exercise caution and does not pay zakah on all of his wealth that is subject to zakah. This is one who is oppressive to himself.
And an example of the second: a man who prays but delays the prayer until the last moment of its time and does not perform its complements. He limits his tasbih to one, limits his recitation to al-Fatihah, limits his ruku' and sujud to the minimum that is obligatory, and so on.
And in charity, he gives the obligatory zakah and does not add to it.
As for the third, the one who is foremost in good deeds, he is the one who performs the obligations and does what complements them from the recommended practices. He prays the prayer in its most complete and perfect form, performs the rawatib (the regular voluntary prayers attached to the obligatory ones) associated with it, and prays voluntary prayers. Likewise, he pays the zakah and gives charity in addition to that. This is the one who is foremost in good deeds.
Then He concluded the verse by saying:
That [inheritance] is what is the great bounty.
ذَلِكَ هُوَ الْفَضْلُ الْكَبِيرُThe questioner : May Allah bless you. This is a message received from a listener of the program from Khamis Mushait, who symbolized his name with A A A, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He says: