“O you who believe, fear Allah, seek the means of nearness to Him, and strive in His cause so that you may succeed.” (35) [al-Mā’idah 35]

And He, Most High, says:

“Those whom they invoke themselves seek the means of nearness to their Lord, striving to see which of them will be nearest.” [al-Isrā’ 57]

And He, Most High, says:

“Prostrate and draw near.” (19) [al-‘Alaq 19]

And He, Most High, says:

“Those who take protectors besides Him say, ‘We worship them only so that they may bring us nearer to Allah.’” [al-Zumar 3]

And He, Most High, says:

“Indeed, he has nearness to Us and an excellent place of return.” (25) [Sād 25]

This occurs in the account of David and Solomon, peace be upon them both. And He says:

“They are of varying ranks with Allah.” [Āl ‘Imrān 163]

As for the Prophetic hadiths, such references are numerous. The statements of the early generations, the imams, and Muslims generally concerning nearness to Allah Most High, what brings one near to Allah, and the like are beyond counting by anyone but Allah Most High.

Once this is understood, the wording in this hadith—“The believer draws near to his Lord,” or “Allah draws the believer near,” or “The believer will be brought on the Day of Resurrection, and Allah will draw him near to Himself”—speaks only of his being brought near and drawn close to Allah Most High. This has parallels that Allah alone can count. Some have already been mentioned, and some of them suffice to establish necessary knowledge that the texts indicate drawing near to Allah Most High and closeness to Him. The texts indicating this are many times more numerous than