In His saying, the Exalted: “And We did not punish [anyone] before We sent a messenger...,” is there evidence for the one who says that those who died before the mission are excused?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : In His saying, the Exalted: [Al-Isra 17:15] and others, is there evidence for the one who says that those who died before the mission will not be punished?
The Shaykh : That is, they will not be punished except for those whom we have informed of by explicit text; otherwise, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, will test them on the Day of Resurrection with what Allah knows. If they respond and comply, they will enter Paradise; otherwise, they will not. This is the correct view regarding the people of the interval.
And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.
وما كنّا معذّبين حتى نبعث رسولاThe Shaykh : That is, they will not be punished except for those whom we have informed of by explicit text; otherwise, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, will test them on the Day of Resurrection with what Allah knows. If they respond and comply, they will enter Paradise; otherwise, they will not. This is the correct view regarding the people of the interval.