108 — Repentance Is Coupled with Seeking Forgiveness, and Seeking Forgiveness with Tawhīd

Our foregoing discussion concerned repentance, its virtue and immense importance, the servant’s pressing need for it, and some of the rulings pertaining to it. In the revealed texts, repentance is frequently coupled with seeking forgiveness, as in the words of Allah Most High: “Seek forgiveness from your Lord, then repent to Him. He will grant you good enjoyment for an appointed term and bestow His bounty upon everyone possessed of merit.” 1; the words of Hūd to his people: “Seek forgiveness from your Lord, then repent to Him. He will send abundant rain upon you.” 2; the words of Sālih to his people: “He produced you from the earth and settled you upon it, so seek His forgiveness, then repent to Him. Indeed, my Lord is near and responsive.” 3; and the words of Shuayb: “Seek forgiveness from your Lord, then repent to Him. Indeed, my Lord is Most Merciful, Most Loving.” 4.

This demonstrates the close connection between seeking forgiveness and repentance, and the servant’s pressing need for both as protection against the evils and pernicious consequences of sins. Sins are of two kinds:

“A sin that has already been committed: seeking forgiveness for it means asking to be protected from its evil. And a sin one fears committing: repentance means resolving not to commit it. Returning to Allah encompasses both kinds: returning to Him so that He may protect one from the evil of what has passed, and returning to Him so that He may protect one from whatever