As He, the Exalted, said: {And they plot, and Allah plots, and Allah is the best of plotters}, and His saying: {Indeed, they plot a plot.}

The Shaykh :"Such as His saying:

But they plan, and Allah plans. And Allah is the best of planners.

وَيَمْكُرُونَ وَيَمْكُرُ اللَّهُ وَاللَّهُ خَيْرُ الْمَاكِرِينَ

[Al-Anfal 8:30]

" Plotting is causing harm to an opponent without their awareness; that is, you cause harm to your opponent without them realizing it. This is plotting, and it is an attribute of perfection if it is in its proper place, otherwise it is a deficiency. It is mentioned that 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) was challenged to single combat by 'Amr ibn Wad in battle, so he accepted. When 'Amr ibn Wad turned toward 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), he shouted at the top of his voice: "I did not come out to single combat with two men". So 'Amr ibn Wad turned around, thinking there was a man behind him, and he struck him with the sword. This is deception, but it was in its proper place because the man had come out to kill him, and he intended to reach the killing of him by a means that was more effective and quicker. Good. We mentioned an example of this yesterday. "And His saying:

⁽¹⁵⁾ Indeed, they are planning a plan, ⁽¹⁶⁾ But I am planning a plan.

إِنَّهُمْ يَكِيدُونَ كَيْداً وَأَكِيدُ كَيْداً

[At-Tariq 86:15-16]

" {Indeed, they plot a plot} means a great plot, and by this He means the disbelievers of Quraysh. And {I plot a plot} means I plot a plot, that is, a greater one, as Allah, the Exalted, said: So if these people plot a great plot, then Allah plots a greater plot. Reflect on how He said {and I plot} and did not say {and We plot a plot}, to indicate that He alone, Glorified is He, is capable of plotting against them, so there is no need to mention what indicates magnification, because He alone is sufficient for that. "And His saying:

⁽¹⁸²⁾ But those who deny Our signs - We will progressively lead them [to destruction] from where they do not know. ⁽¹⁸³⁾ And I will give them time. Indeed, my plan is firm.

وَالَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآياتِنَا سَنَسْتَدْرِجُهُمْ مِنْ حَيْثُ لا يَعْلَمُونَ*وَأُمْلِي لَهُمْ إِنَّ كَيْدِي مَتِينٌ

[Al-A'raf 7:182-183]

" We seek refuge in Allah from that. Those who disbelieved in Our verses are the disbelievers. That is, We lead them on from one state to another. By what? By showering blessings upon them and warding off calamities from them, so they think they are in the pleasure of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and they continue in their disbelief. {Indeed, My plan is firm}. In the meaning of this is His saying, the Exalted: We ask Allah for safety. The scholars said: "If you see that Allah has showered blessings upon His servant while he is challenging Him with disobedience, know that that is what? It is leading on (istidraj), because Allah, Mighty and Majestic, grants them respite despite their disobedience, so this becomes leading on." They descend, He lowers them from bad to worse. And {We grant them respite; indeed, My plan is firm} means great and strong. He said: "And His saying:

Indeed, the hypocrites [think to] deceive Allah, but He is deceiving them

إن المنافقين يخادعون الله وهو خادعهم

[An-Nisa 4:142]

" {Indeed, the hypocrites deceive Allah}. They show that they are Muslims, indeed that they are believers, while they are liars. They do this to deceive Allah and His Messenger and the believers, because if they say they are believers, the Muslims will leave them alone and refrain from fighting them. For this reason, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sought permission to fight them, he said: And praise be to Allah for this ruling of supreme wisdom, because if we wanted to say, "We will kill the hypocrites because they are hypocrites," it would be possible for every tyrant among the rulers to kill the people of good and say, "They are hypocrites." But the Shari'ah closed this door and cut it off, and made the treatment of people in this world based on the apparent, and in the Hereafter based on the hidden. We ask Allah to rectify our inner selves. These people deceive Allah and those who believe. When they meet those who believe, they say, "We believe, and we are with you." And everything they say, they confirm to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) that they testify that he is the Messenger of Allah. But Allah deceives them; He grants them respite and conceals things from them until they persist in this hypocrisy and deserve to be in the lowest depth of the Fire. And His saying, the Exalted: Allah, the Exalted, said: By whom? By the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) and his Companions. Allah, the Exalted, said: The point is that such descriptions: is it perfection in one state and deficiency in another? If it is in opposition to an enemy who mocks you and deceives you, then it is perfection; otherwise, it is a deficiency. Good. If the attribute is a deficiency in all cases, it is prohibited for Allah, Mighty and Majestic, from that. Yes.