And we hold that the sinner has no argument for his sin by the decree of Allah the Exalted
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The Shaykh : He said: "And we hold that the sinner has no argument for his sin by the decree of Allah", meaning the sinner has no argument by the decree of Allah for his sin. The sinner argues for his sin by the decree, saying: "By Allah, this was forced upon me; it is something decreed. Shall I raise the decreed?"
The answer is: You do not raise the decreed. So how do you blame me? This is what sinners often argue with now. If you advise them, you say: "This is forbidden, and this is earning sins, and this contains..." and he says: "By Allah, my complaint is to Allah; this is the decree of Allah." So he argues, what? He argues with the decree. Does he have an argument? We look.
He says: "He has no argument for his sins by the decree of Allah, because the sinner proceeds to the sin by his own choice, without knowing that Allah the Exalted has decreed it upon him".
The sinner proceeds to the sin by his own choice, is that not so? Does he know that Allah has decreed it upon him?
The student: He does not know.
The Shaykh : Of course, except after it occurs. After it occurs, he knows that Allah has decreed it upon him, but before that, he does not know. We say: You have now proceeded to the sin before knowing that Allah has decreed it upon you, so how do you argue with something that is not an argument for you? Is that clear?
Good. So he has no argument; he has no argument for his sin by the decree of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. They mentioned that the Commander of the Faithful, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), was brought a thief, and he ordered his hand to be cut off. The thief said: "Wait, O Commander of the Faithful! By Allah, I did not steal except by the decree of Allah." Correct? Correct. Yes. He said:. So he argued against him with the same thing he had argued with, even though the Commander of the Faithful (may Allah be pleased with him) had two arguments: an invalid argument, but he wanted to bind his opponent with it, which is arguing with the decree of Allah, and a valid argument, which is arguing with the Shari'ah of Allah. That is to say: If we cut off the hand of the thief, we cut it off by the Shari'ah of Allah and by the decree of Allah, but if he stole, he stole by the decree of Allah, did he not? Not by the Shari'ah of Allah. Is that clear, everyone?
Good. So the sinner has no argument in his sin; he has no argument for his sin by the decree of Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
He says: "Because the sinner proceeds to the sin by his own choice, without knowing that Allah the Exalted has decreed it upon him, since no one knows the decree of Allah the Exalted except after what He has decreed has occurred". The author cited as evidence His saying:[Luqman 31:34]. Does any of you know what he will earn tomorrow? But he estimates, saying: "Tomorrow I will come to the lesson, for example, and read such-and-such a book. I will review my memorizations, I will review my courses, and so on." He estimates this, but does he know that he will earn it? Because it is not possible for him to earn it until he actually does it. And so Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says: [Luqman 31:34] We all do not know; we estimate and estimate, and then the decree comes contrary to what we estimated. We are prevented from what we estimated, either by the negation of the resolve and the turning of the resolve to something else, or by the occurrence of a cause that necessitates that we do not do what we had estimated. Is that clear?
And for this reason, Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Kahf 18:23-24]. But if you said that by way of reporting, is it necessary for you to say "if Allah wills"?
The student: It is not necessary.
The Shaykh : Do you see this is a subtle difference, everyone? If a person says: "Are you traveling tomorrow?" and you say: "Yes," and you do not intend to actually travel, but you mean tomorrow according to what is in your intention, this is permissible without saying "if Allah wills," because it is reporting what is in your heart, and what is in your heart is a reality that does not require you to say "if Allah wills," because Allah has willed it as a reality. meaning: he will actually do it. So be aware of this difference. Some people prohibit saying "I will do such-and-such tomorrow," even if it is a report of what is in your heart, saying: "You must say 'if Allah wills.'" I say: When must I say "if Allah wills"? When I intend to actually do it. But if I intend to report what is in my heart, this does not require mentioning the will, because Allah has willed it and placed it in your heart.
And for this reason, some scholars prohibited saying "I did it, if Allah wills" about something you have already done. For example, you say: "I put on my clothes, if Allah wills." Yes? If someone asked you: "Did you have breakfast?" after you got up from the meal, full, did you have breakfast? He said: "If Allah wills." Does this make sense or not? It does not make sense. Good. Did you pray? After you finished the prayer, did you say: "If Allah wills"? No, this is actually possible, because the prayer may be negated by the negation of its spirit and humility, for example, and I say "if Allah wills," meaning: I prayed a prayer that is pleasing to Allah. But if you intend by "I prayed" that you actually did it, there is no need to say "if Allah wills," because you prayed. Yes.
Good. In any case, we say: His saying, the Exalted:[Luqman 31:34] indicates that the sinner has no argument by the decree of Allah, because he does not know what Allah has decreed upon him, so he has proceeded to something merely by his own desire. "So how is it valid to argue with an argument that the one arguing with it does not know at the time he proceeds to what he excused himself with? And Allah has invalidated this argument by His saying: [Al-An'am 6:148]" How did He invalidate the argument? [Al-An'am 6:148] meaning: if you argue with them in shirk [Al-An'am 6:148] and they have forbidden the sa'ibah, the wasilah, the ham, and the bahirah. Likewise, Allah the Exalted said that same denial because they argue with the decree, and they know that they have no argument in it, but they argue with it to ward off the debate and the argumentation.
This phrase indicates that it is an argument for them. If they had an argument, they would not have tasted the wrath of Allah; Allah would have excused them and would not have sent down His wrath upon them. So that indicates that their argument is invalid. Is that clear, everyone?
Allah the Exalted said to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him):[Al-An'am 6:107] Yes? How does he say: [Al-An'am 6:107] making the will an excuse in their shirk? And in another verse, this excuse was invalidated, and the Qur'an does not contradict itself?
We say: Allah the Exalted said it to the Messenger as consolation for him, so that he would be satisfied with their shirk in a decree-based sense, not a Shari'ah-based sense, because Allah said before this:[Al-An'am 6:106-107] So Allah mentioned that as consolation for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), so that he would be satisfied and submit to what? To the decree. And if the polytheists had argued with the will of Allah, being satisfied with the will of Allah, but they had abandoned their shirk, what? Their argument would have been valid. But they said: "If Allah had willed, we would not have associated partners with Him," continuing in their shirk. And this is a subtle difference that a student of knowledge must be aware of. So the saying of Allah: [Al-An'am 6:107] is the saying of the polytheists [Al-An'am 6:148] but there is a difference between them. The polytheists mentioned it as an argument by the decree of Allah for their sin, and Allah the Exalted mentioned it as consolation for the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and satisfaction with the decree of Allah, so that he would not perish [Al-Kahf 18:6] Good.
Then he said: "And we say to the sinner".
So the first point is clear: that he does it by his own choice and that he is not forced.
And we say in the second point, we say to the sinner who argues with the decree: "Why did you not proceed to obedience, estimating that Allah the Exalted has written it for you? For there is no difference between it and the sin in the ignorance of the decreed before the action issues from you". Correct?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Except, which verse? Did we mention it and not complete it? We completed it, we completed it, but we only explained the intended meaning of it.
The answer is: You do not raise the decreed. So how do you blame me? This is what sinners often argue with now. If you advise them, you say: "This is forbidden, and this is earning sins, and this contains..." and he says: "By Allah, my complaint is to Allah; this is the decree of Allah." So he argues, what? He argues with the decree. Does he have an argument? We look.
He says: "He has no argument for his sins by the decree of Allah, because the sinner proceeds to the sin by his own choice, without knowing that Allah the Exalted has decreed it upon him".
The sinner proceeds to the sin by his own choice, is that not so? Does he know that Allah has decreed it upon him?
The student: He does not know.
The Shaykh : Of course, except after it occurs. After it occurs, he knows that Allah has decreed it upon him, but before that, he does not know. We say: You have now proceeded to the sin before knowing that Allah has decreed it upon you, so how do you argue with something that is not an argument for you? Is that clear?
Good. So he has no argument; he has no argument for his sin by the decree of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. They mentioned that the Commander of the Faithful, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), was brought a thief, and he ordered his hand to be cut off. The thief said: "Wait, O Commander of the Faithful! By Allah, I did not steal except by the decree of Allah." Correct? Correct. Yes. He said:
And we do not cut off your hand except by the decree of Allah
ونحن لا نقطع يدك إلا بقدر اللهGood. So the sinner has no argument in his sin; he has no argument for his sin by the decree of Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
He says: "Because the sinner proceeds to the sin by his own choice, without knowing that Allah the Exalted has decreed it upon him, since no one knows the decree of Allah the Exalted except after what He has decreed has occurred". The author cited as evidence His saying:
no soul perceives what it will earn tomorrow
وما تدري نفس ماذا تكسب غداno soul perceives what it will earn tomorrow
وما تدري نفس ماذا تكسب غداAnd for this reason, Allah the Exalted said:
(23) And never say of anything, "Indeed, I will do that tomorrow," (24) Except [when adding], "If Allah wills."
ولا تقولن لشيء إني فاعل ذلك غدا إلا أن يشاء اللهThe student: It is not necessary.
The Shaykh : Do you see this is a subtle difference, everyone? If a person says: "Are you traveling tomorrow?" and you say: "Yes," and you do not intend to actually travel, but you mean tomorrow according to what is in your intention, this is permissible without saying "if Allah wills," because it is reporting what is in your heart, and what is in your heart is a reality that does not require you to say "if Allah wills," because Allah has willed it as a reality.
And do not say of anything, "I will do that tomorrow"
ولا تقولن لشيء إني فاعل ذلك غداAnd for this reason, some scholars prohibited saying "I did it, if Allah wills" about something you have already done. For example, you say: "I put on my clothes, if Allah wills." Yes? If someone asked you: "Did you have breakfast?" after you got up from the meal, full, did you have breakfast? He said: "If Allah wills." Does this make sense or not? It does not make sense. Good. Did you pray? After you finished the prayer, did you say: "If Allah wills"? No, this is actually possible, because the prayer may be negated by the negation of its spirit and humility, for example, and I say "if Allah wills," meaning: I prayed a prayer that is pleasing to Allah. But if you intend by "I prayed" that you actually did it, there is no need to say "if Allah wills," because you prayed. Yes.
Good. In any case, we say: His saying, the Exalted:
no soul perceives what it will earn tomorrow
وما تدري نفس ماذا تكسب غداThose who associated with Allah will say, "If Allah had willed, we would not have associated [anything] and neither would our fathers, nor would we have prohibited anything." Likewise did those before deny until they tasted Our punishment. Say, "Do you have any knowledge that you can produce for us? You follow not except assumption, and you are not but falsifying."
سيقول الذين أشركوا لو شاء الله ما أشركنا ولا آباؤنا ولا حرمنا من شيء كذلك كذب الذين من قبلهم حتى ذاقوا بأسنا قل هل عندكم من علم فتخرجوه لنا إن تتبعون إلا الظن وإن أنتم إلا تخرصونThose who associated with Allah will say
سيقول الذين أشركواIf Allah had willed, we would not have associated [anything] and neither would our fathers, nor would we have prohibited anything.
لو شاء الله ما أشركنا ولا آباؤنا ولا حرمنا من شيءThe disbelievers before them lied
كذب الذي من قبلهمuntil they tasted Our punishment
حتى ذاقوا بأسناAllah the Exalted said to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him):
But if Allah had willed, they would not have associated. And We have not appointed you over them as a guardian, nor are you a manager over them.
ولو شاء الله ما أشركوا وما جعلناك عليهم حفيظا وما أنت عليهم بوكيلBut if Allah had willed, they would not have associated
لو شاء الله ما أشركواWe say: Allah the Exalted said it to the Messenger as consolation for him, so that he would be satisfied with their shirk in a decree-based sense, not a Shari'ah-based sense, because Allah said before this:
(106) Follow, [O Muhammad], what has been revealed to you from your Lord - there is no deity except Him - and turn away from those who associate others with Allah. (107) But if Allah had willed, they would not have associated. And We have not appointed you over them as a guardian, nor are you a manager over them.
اتبع ما أوحي إليك من ربك لا إله إلا هو وأعرض عن المشركين ولو شاء الله ما أشركواBut if Allah had willed, they would not have associated
لو شاء الله ما أشركواIf Allah had willed, we would not have associated
لو شاء الله ما أشركناThen perhaps you would kill yourself through grief over them, [O Muhammad], if they do not believe in this message, [and] out of sorrow.
لعلك باخع نفسك على آثارهم إن لم يؤمنوا بهذا الحديث أسفاThen he said: "And we say to the sinner".
So the first point is clear: that he does it by his own choice and that he is not forced.
And we say in the second point, we say to the sinner who argues with the decree: "Why did you not proceed to obedience, estimating that Allah the Exalted has written it for you? For there is no difference between it and the sin in the ignorance of the decreed before the action issues from you". Correct?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Except, which verse? Did we mention it and not complete it? We completed it, we completed it, but we only explained the intended meaning of it.