The intercessor, then, appeals to Allah—glorified and exalted be He—to pardon the sinner; or, if someone has actually entered the Fire because of a sin, the intercessor beseeches Allah to bring him out and lift the punishment from him. This is what is called intercession on behalf of those who commit major sins.

Yet intercession before Allah is bound by two conditions:

1. Divine permission. No one may intercede with Allah unless He has granted leave; He alone authorizes the intercessor to do so. Until that permission is given, no one can advance before Him, as He says: “Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His leave?” (Al-Baqarah 2:255). Unlike a human ruler—before whom people might press forward to intercede without prior consent—Allah, majestic and exalted, allows no one to intercede except by His permission.

2. The person for whom intercession is sought must belong to the people of tawḥīd and faith, those whose words and deeds Allah approves. “They do not intercede except for those with whom He is well pleased” (Al-Anbiyāʾ 21:28), meaning that Allah is pleased with his statements and actions. Both conditions are combined in His words: “Except after Allah has given permission to whom He wills and with whom He is pleased” (An-Najm 53:26): His granting permission is the first condition, and His being pleased is the second.

As for the disbeliever, no intercession will benefit him: “So the intercession of the intercessors will not help them” (Al-Muddaththir 74:48); “For the wrongdoers there will be no devoted friend and no intercessor…”