Tafsir of Surat al-Shura-07b
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The Shaykh :[Ash-Shuraa 42:25] He said: [Ash-Shuraa 42:25] Allah, Mighty and Majestic, accepts the repentance of those who repent, and indeed He loves the repentance of those who repent, as Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said: [Al-Baqarah 2:222] So what is repentance? Repentance is turning away from the disobedience of Allah to the obedience of Allah. It occurs in a general and a partial form. The general form is when a person repents from every sin, and among this is the repentance of the disbeliever, for it is general; Allah the Exalted wipes away with it all that has preceded of his sins, as He, Exalted and Majestic, said: [Al-Anfal 8:38] And the Muslim says: “O Allah, I seek Your forgiveness for all sins and I repent to You.” This is general. The specific repentance is when one repents from a specific sin, such as a person who repented from consuming riba (usury or interest) but is still persisting in drinking intoxicants, may Allah protect us from that. This is a specific, partial repentance; it is not comprehensive. We will speak about it soon, if Allah wills. Repentance has five conditions:
The first: Sincerity for Allah.
The second: Regret for what was done.
And the third: Abandoning it.
The fourth is the resolve not to return to it.
The fifth: That the repentance be before the doors are closed, and that the repentance be in the time of possibility.
Now, sincerity means that the one who drives him to repentance is the fear of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and the hope of drawing near to Him, such that he does not intend by it any worldly gain, status, or anything of the creation of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. He wants nothing but to reach the pleasure of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and the abode of His honor. And sincerity, as you know, may Allah bless you, is a condition in every deed.
The second: Regret for the sin that has passed, such that the person feels sadness and remorse over how this sin occurred from him. Regret is an emotion in the soul that occurs by a person’s action and by other than his action, but our discussion is about regret in repentance that is by his action, meaning that he laments and regrets that the sin occurred from him, and his state is not like the state of one who did not sin.
The third: Ceasing from the sin. If it is a disobedience involving something forbidden, let him abandon it. If it is an excess in an obligatory duty, let him perform it. On this basis, if someone claims that he has repented from backbiting, but he does not let an opportunity for backbiting pass without backbiting, do we say that he has repented? ... Because he has not ceased. Likewise, if someone denies the money of a person and rejects it, and says that he has repented, he must return the money to its owner, otherwise his repentance is not accepted. And if someone backbites a person, meaning he mentions him in his absence with what he dislikes, he must cease from that and seek forgiveness from the one he backbited. He goes to him and says: “Forgive me, release me, for I said about you words from which I have repented.” This is necessary. If he says: “If I go to him to seek his forgiveness, I fear he will think the matter is greater than what I said, and enmity will result,” the answer is, even if that is the case: You absolve your own conscience, and the fact that enmity or something similar results from it is not your concern. Yes, if it is assumed that your companion did not know of your backbiting of him, then here it is sufficient that you regret it, cease from backbiting him in the future, and mention him in the gathering where you backbited him with his good qualities.
The fourth: The resolve not to return to it, meaning that it settles in his heart that he will not return to this disobedience. If he repented but is hesitant about whether, if this disobedience becomes easy for him, he will do it or not, then the repentance is not valid. He must resolve not to return to it. If he returns? Meaning, he resolved not to return, but then he returned afterward, is the repentance invalidated? The answer is: It is not invalidated. The first repentance is valid, but he must renew the repentance for the second sin. For this reason, the phrase is: “The resolve not to return,” and the phrase is not “on the condition that he does not return.” Is there a difference between them? ... If we say: “The resolve not to return,” and he resolved not to return but then returned, the first repentance is valid, but he must renew the repentance for the second sin. But if we say: “On the condition that he does not return,” this implies that if he returned, the repentance would be invalidated, and that is not the case.
The fifth condition, and its greatest aspect, is that the repentance be in the time of possibility. If the time has passed, it does not benefit. The passing of the time is general and specific. The general is the rising of the sun from the west, and the specific is the arrival of death. As for the first, its evidence is the saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted: [Al-An'am: 158]. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) explained some of the verses as being the sun rising from the west. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan Abi Dawud 2479Sahih (Al-Albani) As for the specific, it is the arrival of the term, for when death arrives, repentance is not accepted, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Nisa: 18]. The point is His saying: [An-Nisa 4:18] This condition necessitates that the repentance be immediate without delay. The reason for this is that one does not know when death will come to him; he may die suddenly in his bed, or in his chair, or while prostrating, or while bowing. And at that time, it becomes clear that repentance is obligatory immediately. So make amends, O servant, make amends for yourself if there is a matter between you and Allah or between you and the creation, for you do not know when death will come.
In summary, the conditions for the acceptance of repentance are five, and we enumerate them:
First: Sincerity for Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
Second: Regret for the sin.
Third: Ceasing immediately.
Fourth: The resolve not to return.
Fifth: That the repentance be in the time of possibility. We ask Allah for repentance for us and for you.
And it is He who accepts repentance from his servants and pardons misdeeds, and He knows what you do.
وهو الذي يقبل التوبة عن عباده ويعفوا عن السيئات ويعلم ما تفعلونAnd it is He who accepts repentance
وهو الذي يقبل التوبةIndeed, Allah loves those who are constantly repentant and loves those who purify themselves."
إن الله يجب التوابين ويحب المتطهرينSay to those who have disbelieved [that] if they cease, what has previously occurred will be forgiven for them
قل للذين كفروا إن ينتهوا يغفر لهم ما قد سلفThe first: Sincerity for Allah.
The second: Regret for what was done.
And the third: Abandoning it.
The fourth is the resolve not to return to it.
The fifth: That the repentance be before the doors are closed, and that the repentance be in the time of possibility.
Now, sincerity means that the one who drives him to repentance is the fear of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and the hope of drawing near to Him, such that he does not intend by it any worldly gain, status, or anything of the creation of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. He wants nothing but to reach the pleasure of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and the abode of His honor. And sincerity, as you know, may Allah bless you, is a condition in every deed.
The second: Regret for the sin that has passed, such that the person feels sadness and remorse over how this sin occurred from him. Regret is an emotion in the soul that occurs by a person’s action and by other than his action, but our discussion is about regret in repentance that is by his action, meaning that he laments and regrets that the sin occurred from him, and his state is not like the state of one who did not sin.
The third: Ceasing from the sin. If it is a disobedience involving something forbidden, let him abandon it. If it is an excess in an obligatory duty, let him perform it. On this basis, if someone claims that he has repented from backbiting, but he does not let an opportunity for backbiting pass without backbiting, do we say that he has repented? ... Because he has not ceased. Likewise, if someone denies the money of a person and rejects it, and says that he has repented, he must return the money to its owner, otherwise his repentance is not accepted. And if someone backbites a person, meaning he mentions him in his absence with what he dislikes, he must cease from that and seek forgiveness from the one he backbited. He goes to him and says: “Forgive me, release me, for I said about you words from which I have repented.” This is necessary. If he says: “If I go to him to seek his forgiveness, I fear he will think the matter is greater than what I said, and enmity will result,” the answer is, even if that is the case: You absolve your own conscience, and the fact that enmity or something similar results from it is not your concern. Yes, if it is assumed that your companion did not know of your backbiting of him, then here it is sufficient that you regret it, cease from backbiting him in the future, and mention him in the gathering where you backbited him with his good qualities.
The fourth: The resolve not to return to it, meaning that it settles in his heart that he will not return to this disobedience. If he repented but is hesitant about whether, if this disobedience becomes easy for him, he will do it or not, then the repentance is not valid. He must resolve not to return to it. If he returns? Meaning, he resolved not to return, but then he returned afterward, is the repentance invalidated? The answer is: It is not invalidated. The first repentance is valid, but he must renew the repentance for the second sin. For this reason, the phrase is: “The resolve not to return,” and the phrase is not “on the condition that he does not return.” Is there a difference between them? ... If we say: “The resolve not to return,” and he resolved not to return but then returned, the first repentance is valid, but he must renew the repentance for the second sin. But if we say: “On the condition that he does not return,” this implies that if he returned, the repentance would be invalidated, and that is not the case.
The fifth condition, and its greatest aspect, is that the repentance be in the time of possibility. If the time has passed, it does not benefit. The passing of the time is general and specific. The general is the rising of the sun from the west, and the specific is the arrival of death. As for the first, its evidence is the saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted:
The Day that some of the signs of your Lord will come no soul will benefit from its faith as long as it had not believed before or had earned through its faith some good.
يَوْمَ يَأْتِي بَعْضُ آيَاتِ رَبِّكَ لا يَنفَعُ نَفْسًا إِيمَانُهَا لَمْ تَكُنْ آمَنَتْ مِنْ قَبْلُ أَوْ كَسَبَتْ فِي إِيمَانِهَا خَيْرًاMigration will not end until repentance ends, and repentance will not end until the sun rises in the west.
لا تنقطع الهجرة حتى تنقطع التوبة، ولا تنقطع التوبة حتى تخرج الشمس من مغربهاBut repentance is not [accepted] of those who [continue to] do evil deeds up until, when death comes to one of them, he says, "Indeed, I have repented now," or of those who die while they are disbelievers
وَلَيْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السَّيِّئَاتِ حَتَّى إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّي تُبْتُ الآنَ وَلا الَّذِينَ يَمُوتُونَ وَهُمْ كُفَّارٌup until, when death comes to one of them, he says, "Indeed, I have repented now,"
حتى إذا حضر أحدهم الموت قال إني تبت الآنIn summary, the conditions for the acceptance of repentance are five, and we enumerate them:
First: Sincerity for Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
Second: Regret for the sin.
Third: Ceasing immediately.
Fourth: The resolve not to return.
Fifth: That the repentance be in the time of possibility. We ask Allah for repentance for us and for you.