Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “And none of you but will pass over it.”

The questioner : And for that reason, our Lord, Glorified and Exalted is He, says: “And none of you but will pass over it...”

The Shaykh : First, what is the name of the verse, Abu Ishaq?

The questioner : Abu Mandoor.

The Shaykh : Welcome, Abu Mandoor. First, the verse says: . And second, we must understand the verse. Do you believe that because Allah said this, it means that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) must enter the Fire and be tormented?

The questioner : Because there are no people among the Muslims who died upon the straight path; it is rare, very rare.

The Shaykh : No, that is not the intended meaning of the verse, Abu Mandoor. That is not the intended meaning of the verse. We must also learn the exegesis of the verses. First, the verse has a continuation: . What is the meaning of the verse? By His immense wisdom, our Lord, Mighty and Majestic, has decreed for the two groups, meaning the jinn and the humans, that they must enter the Fire. But they are of two categories: one category falls into the Fire and is tormented, and the second category sees the torment of those being tormented, but the Fire does not touch them with any harm. So they take a lesson and praise their Lord for having saved them from this torment which they saw with their own eyes. So these righteous, God-fearing people pass over it, but the Fire does not touch them with any hardship or torment at all. Therefore, the scholars have three opinions regarding the exegesis of this verse: . The first opinion is that “passing over it” means overlooking it, just as camels are driven to water without entering it or wading in it. The second opinion is: , passing over the bridge, and this bridge is a fixed belief above the Fire. The third opinion, which is the correct one, is that one passes through the Fire. So whoever is among the people of the Fire is dragged into it, and whoever is among the God-fearing, the righteous, is saved, and the Fire does not touch him with any harm at all; it becomes coolness and peace for him, just as it was for Ibrahim (peace be upon him). So, regarding this entering, we must truly take a lesson. One of the righteous Salaf was overtaken by death, so he wept. They said to him, “Why are you weeping when you are one of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?” He said, “I am weeping because our Lord, Mighty and Majestic, has decreed upon us that we must enter it, so I do not know whether I am among those who are saved or among those who fall in.” So our duty is to take the means that will make us among those who are saved, not among those who fall into the Fire, may Allah protect us from that.