321 — Abū Zakariyyā Yahyā ibn Muhammad al-Hinnā’ī informed us, saying: Muhammad ibn Ubayd ibn Hassāb narrated to us, saying: Hammād ibn Zayd narrated to us, saying: Yūnus, Hishām, and al-Muallā ibn Ziyād narrated to us, from al-Hasan, who said:

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said, “One supplication the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) frequently made was: ‘O Turner of hearts, keep my heart steadfast upon ⦗731⦘ Your religion.’” She said, “I then asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, what is this supplication that I hear you make so often?’ He replied, ‘There is no one whose heart is not between two fingers of Allah Most High. If He wills to keep it upright, He keeps it upright; and if He wills to cause it to deviate, He causes it to deviate.’”

Muhammad ibn al-Husayn (may Allah have mercy on him) said: We shall next cite what the prophets (peace be upon them) said, contrary to what the Qadariyya say.

Noah (peace be upon him) said to his people when they said:

“O Noah, you have disputed with us and prolonged the dispute. Bring upon us what you threaten us with, if you are truthful.” He said, “Only Allah will bring it upon you, if He wills, and you cannot escape. My counsel will not benefit you, even if I wish to counsel you, if Allah wills to lead you astray. He is your Lord, and to Him you will be returned.”

Shuayb also said to his people. Allah Most High said:

“The arrogant chiefs among his people said, ‘We shall surely expel you, O Shuayb, and those who believe with you from our town, unless you return to our creed.’ He said, ‘Even if we detest it? We would have fabricated a lie against Allah if we returned to your creed ⦗732⦘ after Allah had delivered us from it. It is not for us to return to it unless Allah, our Lord, wills. Our Lord encompasses all things in knowledge. In Allah we place our trust. Our Lord, judge between us and our people’”—to the end of the verse.

Shuayb also said to his people:

“I do not intend to contradict you by doing what I forbid you from doing. I seek only reform to the best of my ability. My success comes only through Allah. In Him I place my trust, and to Him I turn” [Hūd: 88].

Allah Most High said in the account of Joseph (peace be upon him):

“She certainly desired him, and he would have desired her had he not seen the proof of his Lord. Thus We turned evil and indecency away from him. He was truly one of Our chosen servants” [Yūsuf: 24].

Joseph (peace be upon him) said:

“My Lord, prison is dearer to me than what they are inviting me to. Unless You turn their schemes away from me, I may incline toward them and become one of the ignorant” [Yūsuf: 33].

Allah—Glorious and Exalted is He—said:

“So his Lord answered him and turned their schemes away from him. Indeed, He alone is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing” [Yūsuf: 34].

Abraham (peace be upon him) said:

“My Lord, make this city secure, and keep me and my sons from worshipping idols” [Ibrāhīm: 35].

When Moses (peace be upon him) supplicated against his people, he said:

“Our Lord, ⦗733⦘ You have given Pharaoh and his chiefs splendour and wealth in the life of this world, our Lord, so that they may lead others away from Your path. Our Lord, obliterate their wealth and harden their hearts, so that they will not believe until they see the painful punishment.” He said, “The supplication of you both has been answered, so remain steadfast” [Yūnus: 89].

Allah Most High said, relating what the people of the Fire will say:

“They will all appear before Allah. Then the weak will say to those who were arrogant, ‘We were your followers, so can you relieve us of any portion of Allah’s punishment?’ They will say, ‘Had Allah guided us, we would have guided you. It makes no difference whether we despair or remain patient; there is no escape for us’” [Ibrāhīm: 21].

Muhammad ibn al-Husayn said: Thus, the people of the Fire acknowledged that guidance comes from Allah, not from themselves.

Muhammad ibn al-Husayn said: Reflect—may Allah have mercy on you—upon the words of the prophets (peace be upon them) and the words of the people of the Fire. All of this constitutes proof against the Qadariyya.

Know—may Allah have mercy on you—that Allah, Glorious and Exalted is He, sent His messengers and commanded them to convey the message, thereby establishing the proof against those to whom they were sent. None responded to them by believing except those for whom guidance had already gone forth from Allah Most High. As for those who had not been granted prior guidance from Allah and who, by His decree, were among the wretched inhabitants of the Fire, they did not respond to them but remained firm in their unbelief. Allah Most High has informed you of this ⦗734⦘, O Muslims.

Indeed, our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), as well as the prophets before him, earnestly desired the guidance of their nations. Yet their eagerness is of no avail when Allah has decreed that they will not believe. If someone asks, “Explain this matter to us from the Book of Allah Most High, for we need to understand it,” he should be told:

Allah Most High said in Sūrat al-Nahl:

“We certainly sent a messenger to every nation, proclaiming, ‘Worship Allah and shun false gods.’ Some of them Allah guided, while others were rightly destined to stray. So travel throughout the land and see what was the fate of those who denied the truth” [al-Nahl: 36].

He then said to His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):

“Even if you are eager for their guidance, Allah does not guide those whom He causes to stray, and they will have no helpers” [al-Nahl: 37].

Then, when His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) desired the guidance of someone he loved, Allah Most High revealed:

“You cannot guide whomever you love, but Allah guides whomever He wills, and He knows best who will be guided.”

He also said to His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):

“Say, ‘I have no power to benefit or harm myself except as Allah wills. Had I known the unseen, I would have acquired much good, and no harm would have touched me. I am ⦗735⦘ only a warner and a bearer of good news to people who believe’” [al-Aʿrāf: 188].

Allah Most High also said:

“We did not send any messenger except in the language of his people, so that he might make the message clear to them. Allah then causes whomever He wills to stray and guides whomever He wills. He is the Almighty, the All-Wise” [Ibrāhīm: 4].

Muhammad ibn al-Husayn (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Through all of this, the Lord Most High has made clear to you that the prophets were sent only as bearers of good news, warners, and a proof against creation. Whoever Allah Most High willed faith for believed, and whoever He did not will faith for did not believe. Allah Most High has already decreed all things. He decreed obedience for some people and disobedience for others. He shows mercy to some after they have disobeyed Him and accepts their repentance, while others He neither shows mercy to nor accepts in repentance: “He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned” [al-Anbiyāʾ: 23].