And His provision is of two kinds:

Allah Most High says: “Indeed, Allah is the All-Provider” 1; “There is no creature on earth but that its provision rests with Allah” 2 3.

The first is beneficial provision that carries no adverse consequences and leads the servant to the highest goals. It comes through the Messenger—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—through his guidance and instruction. This, too, is of two kinds. The first is nourishing hearts with beneficial knowledge and sound faith. Hearts cannot become sound, prosper, or find satisfaction until they acquire knowledge of beneficial truths and correct beliefs, then cultivate noble character and shun base traits. What the Messenger brought ensures both in the most perfect manner; there is no way to attain them except through him.

The second is that Allah makes His servant content with what He has made lawful, without need of what He has forbidden, and, through His bounty, independent of all others.

The first is the supreme objective, while the second is a means and an aid to it. When Allah grants a servant beneficial knowledge, sound faith, lawful provision, and contentment with what Allah has given him, his affairs are complete, and his religious and bodily well-being are set right. This is the kind of provision praised in the prophetic texts and sought in beneficial supplications.

As for the second kind, it is the Creator’s delivery of all the sustenance that nourishes His creatures, righteous and wicked alike, whether accountable for their deeds or not. This may come through unlawful means just as it may come through lawful ones. This distinction settles the dispute over whether what is unlawful may be called provision. If what is meant is the first kind—provision in the unqualified sense, which carries no adverse consequences—then what is unlawful is not included, for