A glimpse into God's Mercy
Researched by A. Mohamed
This article is an attempt to have a mere glimpse into God's immense mercy.
The human being is unable to comprehend the greatness of God:
They did not value God according to His true worth. Indeed, God is Powerful, Dignified. 22:74
The human being is not able to fathom the immeasurable mercy of God:
My mercy encompasses all things. 7:156
FIRST:
The starting point of this research is the following verse containing words spoken by Jesus to God:
If You punish them, they are Your servants and if You forgive them, You are the Aziz (Dignified), the Hakeem (Wise). 5:118
Who was Jesus speaking about when he said "if You punish them"? He can only be referring to those who deserved a punishment. And if we read 5:116, we would know that the ones spoken of in 5:118 are the ones who set up Jesus and his mother as gods besides God, and who were the subject of God's question to Jesus in 5:116.
Now why did Jesus say the following words: "If You forgive them, You are the Dignified, the Wise."?
The normal words to address God with when seeking God's forgiveness would have been:"If You forgive them, You are the Forgiver, the Merciful." So why did Jesus say: "the Dignified, the Wise" instead of the Forgiver, the Merciful?
1- First reason is because Jesus does not know what God will do, for as Jesus says in 5:116:
You know what is within myself, while I do not know what is within Yourself.
Nor does Jesus know the future, again Jesus says in 5:116:
You are the Knower of the 'ghuyoob' (the future and all that is hidden).
2- The second reason why Jesus used those specific words actually shows great wisdom on the part of Jesus. Jesus does not know if God will forgive them or not, thus if Jesus used the words: "if You forgive them, You are the Forgiver, the Merciful”, this would imply that "if" God did not forgive them, then God is not Forgiver nor Merciful.
In contrast, the use of the words: “if You forgive them, You are the Dignified, the Wise” would not imply that God is not forgiving them if forgiveness is not granted. Rather, any decision taken by God (to forgive or not forgive) is a dignified decision and one that is taken with great wisdom.
The true significance of Jesus' choice of words will be seen when we review other glorious Quranic words.
SECOND:
Let us now look at the following verse:
God will then reward the truthful for their truthfulness and punish the hypocrites if He so wills or redeem them. Indeed, God is Forgiver, Merciful.33:24
1- To fully understand the significance of the above words, we must first be reminded that nothing in the Quran is coincidental. Every word in the Quran is placed to signify a deliberate meaning.
2- In 33:24 God speaks about two groups of people, the truthful and also the hypocrites.
3- For the truthful, we read of only one outcome, they shall be rewarded. As for the hypocrites, God speaks of two options: they will be punished or they will be redeemed, all in accordance with God's will.
4- A key word used in this verse is "yatoob" which means to redeem, it is different from the word "yaghfir" which is also used in the Quran, but which means to forgive.Someone who is forgiven would not incur any punishment, or in other words, his sins are wiped out as if he never sinned. But someone who is redeemed means, he was punished for a while, then he was pardoned. The question here is that if the hypocrites are destined to only one possible fate (eternal doom in Hell), then why does God mention two possible options in 33:24?
5- Of more significance are the words which follow in 33:24: "God is Forgiver, Merciful". Why does God, after giving the two options, end this verse with these words?
In 5:118 (above) we have read how Jesus did not use the words Forgiver, Merciful because he was not sure what God would do.In contrast, God knows for certain what He will do, and God chose to use the words: "God is Forgiver, Merciful".God used these words in full knowledge that if He would not redeem them then there would be a question as to whether He is truly Forgiver, Merciful. But with all authority God declares Himself to be "Forgiver, Merciful". Is God telling us that He will choose the second option and that even the hypocrites will eventually be pardoned after they have initially received some kind of punishment?
6- We must also note the significance of the deliberate use of the word "hypocrites" in 33:24 rather than the word “disbelievers”. We are told in the Quran that the hypocrites are the worst of all disbelievers. The reason is because they are both disbelievers and also liars. As a result, they will be destined to the worst of all punishments:
The hypocrites are committed to the lowest pit of the Fire, and you will find no supporter for them. 4:145
Therefore, it can be said that if the worst of all disbelievers (the hypocrites) may be redeemed at some stage, then ipso facto all other sinners may also be redeemed.
THIRD:
The awesome message derived from 33:24 is repeated in the following verse:
To God belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth. He forgives whom He wills and punishes whom He wills. God is Forgiver, Merciful. 48:14
1- Once again, we are reminded that nothing in the Quran is coincidental.
2- In 33:24 God spoke about those whom He will either punish or redeem. However, in 48:14 God spoke about those who will be punished or forgiven. There is great significance in the options mentioned in 48:14. Redemption can be after an initial period of punishment, while forgiveness means there is no punishment given in the first place.
3- Once again, God ends the verse with exactly the same words, "God is Forgiver, Merciful".
God knows for certain what He will do, and God chose to use the words: "God is Forgiver, Merciful".
FOURTH:
We have further evidence, along the same lines of 33:24, to confirm that the disbelievers may be pardoned after being punished for a while:
Then God brought down His tranquility upon His messenger and upon the believers, and He brought down soldiers you did not see, and He punished those who disbelieved. Such is the penalty of the disbelievers. After that, God redeems whom He wills. God is Forgiver, Merciful. 9:26-27
Once again we read in 9:26 about the punishment which awaits the disbelievers, but once again this is immediately followed by the words:
After that, God redeems whom He wills.
This is then followed with the same names of God which we see at the end of 33:24 and they are: God is Forgiver, Merciful.
The same message can be seen in the following verse:
To God belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth. He forgives whom He wills and punishes whom He wills. God is Forgiver, Merciful. 48:14
FIFTH:
The following glorious words have further amazing clues:
The Day it comes to pass, no self will speak except with His permission. Some of them will be miserable and others happy. As for the miserable ones, they will be in the Fire. For them, there will be exhaling and inhaling therein. Therein they shall permanently remain, for as long as the heavens and the earth endure, save for what your Lord wills. Your Lord is doer of what He wills. 11:105-107
In 11:105 God speaks of the Hereafter and about two groups, those who will be miserable (due to their idolatry 11:101) and those who will be happy (the believers).
In 11:107 we are told of the miserable ones who will "permanently remain" in the Fire. This is followed with the words: "as long as the heavens and the earth endure", which is then followed with the words: "save for what your Lord wills". The inclusion of these words gives the understanding that if God should will, they will not permanently remain in the Fire. Then to confirm this right which God reserves for Himself, God ends the verse with the words: "Your Lord is doer of what He wills" which again confirms that the disbelievers may not necessarily abide in Hell forever if God decrees otherwise.
Initially, this may not seem significant enough, but it will be when we read the following:
As for those who were granted happiness, they are in Paradise. Therein they shall permanently remain, for as long as the heavens and the earth endure, save for what your Lord wills; an uninterrupted donation. 11:108
In the above words, which describe the fate of the believers, we read the same sequence. They are in Paradise, and once again, "therein they shall permanently remain", and also, "as long as the heavens and the earth endure", then once again "save for what your Lord wills". But then we read the glorious words "an uninterrupted donation" which confirm that "what your Lord wills" deems that their fate in Paradise will indeed be eternal.
The difference in the ending of 11:107, which speaks of the fate of the disbelievers, as opposed to the ending of 11:108, which speaks of the fate of the believers is truly remarkable and it is not coincidental.
SIXTH:
Let us take another look at 11:105-107. The words tell us that remaining in Hell "permanently" is conditioned to, "as long as the heavens and the earth endure."
Now let us read the following verse:
The Day when the earth will be replaced with another earth, as well as the heavens, and they are brought forward before God, the One, the All-Conquering. 14:48
When we pair 11:105-107 with 14:48, we find that the condition for remaining in Hell "permanently" is cancelled out. That is because the heavens and the earth that we know will not endure, but will be replaced with others.
SEVENTH:
The addition of only one word can indeed be of very significant implications. Let us read the following Quranic words:
Indeed, those who disbelieved among the People of the Book, as well as the mushrikeen, will be in the fire of Hell. Therein, they shall permanently remain. They are the worst of creatures. Indeed, those who believed and did good deeds, they are the best of creatures. Their reward at their Lord is the Gardens of Eden beneath which rivers flow. Therein, they shall 'abada' (forever) remain. God is pleased with them, and they are pleased with Him. Such is for those who fear their Lord. 98:6-8
The addition of the word 'abada' (forever) in 98:8, which speaks of the reward of the believers, as well as the conspicuous absence of the same word in 98:6, which speaks of the punishment of the disbelievers, is also very significant and confirms the theme of this research.
EIGHTH:
It then remains to explain why did God say in a number of verses that the disbelievers will remain in Hell permanently, when in fact God may eventually pardon them all. The following is an example of such verses:
Those who disbelieved, neither their wealth nor their children will avail them in any way against God. They are the companions of the Fire. Therein, they shall permanently remain. 3:116
The same is said about the hypocrites:
God has promised the hypocrite men, the hypocrite women, and the disbelievers, the fire of Hell, wherein they shall permanently remain; it suffices them. God has cursed them, and they shall have an everlasting punishment. 9:68
We also read about those who set up equals to God:
Among the people are those who take other than God as equals, loving them as the love of God. However, those who believe have a much greater love for God. If only the transgressors were to see themselves when they witness the punishment, they would realise that all power belongs to God and that God's punishment is severe. 2:165
They will never exit Hell:
Those who followed said, "If only we had another chance, we would disown them as they have disowned us." God thus shows them their deeds bringing remorse upon them. They will not exit the Fire. 2:167
In view of the above, we are left with what seems like a contradiction. On one hand, we read that the wicked will never exit Hell, yet on the other hand, the verses previewed above seem to indicate that God will (at some stage) pardon them all.
To analyse this issue, it would be justified to accept 3:116, 9:68 and 2:167 to represent the general rule. It follows that if God pardons any disbelievers or any hypocrite then, by definition, God would be breaking His Own rule in 3:116, 9:68 and 2:167.This is where we get a glimpse of God's infinite mercy by reading the following glorious words:
Your Lord has decreed mercy upon Himself. 6:54
It is easy to gloss over these words without paying attention to their true significance. These words carry a great weight and their implications are truly profound. First, we note that nowhere else in the Quran does God make such an enforced commitment on Himself. God does not say in 6:54 that His mercy is great or that He is the Most Merciful, but that He decreed mercy upon Himself. What this actually tells us is that God has imposed a mandatory law upon Himself. The outcome of this self-imposed law means that, at a time deemed right by God, His Mercy will prevail over all other considerations, and over all other rules which were set by God Himself in the first place.
In this case, the breaking of a rule set by God would not be a sign of weakness nor a sign of indecision; it would be a sign of divine compassion.God does not expect us humans to understand this awesome mercy, for the nature of the human being is full of bitterness and eagerness for revenge, thus God tells us:
Say, "If you possessed my Lord's treasuries of mercy, you would have held back for fear of spending. Indeed, the human being is stingy." 17:100
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To conclude, we must never doubt God's mercy, in fact, the only matter which remains in great doubt is whether we, the human race, are worthy of this infinite divine mercy.