of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Allah may pardon every sin except that of one who dies an unbeliever or deliberately kills a believer.”

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This—and Allah knows best—is because killing involves both a right owed to Allah and a right owed to the wronged victim.

For repentance from wrongs against others to be valid, one must obtain their pardon and restore what is owed to them. The killer has no way of doing this unless he reaches the victim before the latter dies, and the victim willingly pardons him and absolves him of taking his life.

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Those who held this view differed over the status of the two Quranic passages concerning the taking of a life that Allah has made sacred: the verse in al-Nisā’, in which the Exalted says:

“Whoever deliberately kills a believer, his recompense is Hell, abiding therein. Allah is angry with him, has cursed him, and has prepared for him a tremendous punishment.” [al-Nisā’: 93]

And the passage in al-Furqān, in which He says:

“And those who do not invoke another god besides Allah, nor take a life that Allah has made sacred except with right, nor engage in unlawful sexual intercourse. Whoever does that will face punishment.” [al-Furqān: 68]

“His punishment will be multiplied on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein in humiliation.” [al-Furqān: 69]

“Except one who repents.” [al-Furqān: 70]

Some of them held that both passages remain in force: the passage in al-Furqān was revealed concerning the polytheists, whereas the verse in al-Nisā’ was revealed concerning Muslims. They interpreted the abiding mentioned in the latter as not being everlasting, since only unbelievers remain in the Fire for all eternity.