We request clarification of faith in divine decree, its good and its evil, and an explanation of the meaning of its evil?

The questioner : His EminenceThe Shaykh : On the occasion of discussing Surat al-Qadr, we request that you give us a brief overview of the sixth pillar of faith, which is faith in divine decree, its good and its evil, and clarify the word "evil" regarding what the speech about it may imply?

The Shaykh : How much time is left, my brother Mustafa?

The questioner : By Allah, it appears the time is running out; we will postpone it if it requires elaboration.

The Shaykh : Yes, speaking about divine decree is not easy; it is one of the greatest issues. But in any case, we will answer the last point, which is evil in faith in divine decree, its good and its evil. All divine decree is from Allah; all divine decree is from Allah. Allah the Exalted said: Is there evil in the decree of Allah? The answer is that we say: If by decree one means Allah’s determination of a thing, then it is not evil, because Allah does not determine anything except that it is good, and He does not determine anything except that it is good. Even illness, death, fear, fighting, and earthquakes are, with regard to Allah’s determination of them, good, due to His saying, the Exalted: The result is But with regard to the decreed thing, that is where good and evil lie. The decreed, the acted-upon, the created thing is that in which there is good and evil. So His saying: The meaning of evil here is the evil of the decreed thing, not the evil of the decree. As for the decree, which is Allah’s determination, it is all good. The decreed things, as you see, the wolf is among Allah’s decreed things; is it evil or good? Evil, right? The sheep is among Allah’s decreed things; is it good or evil? Good. So evil and good are in the decreed things, but not in the determination. And for this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: We ask Allah the Exalted to determine for us, for you, and for all Muslims what is in it good and well-being. And we ask Allah the Exalted, in this place, in the arrival of this blessed time for one of the obligations of Allah, to support our brothers in Chechnya and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to destroy the state of the Russians and tear it apart completely and scatter it completely. And we ask Allah the Exalted to make it a lesson for the two worlds in humiliation, separation, and dispersion. And we ask Allah, who scattered the Soviet Union, to scatter the states of the Russians until they are torn into pieces, soon and not delayed. And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and all his companions.