less. For neglecting the obligatory duty to enjoin what is right is a sin. Someone who moves from one sin to a greater sin is like someone seeking refuge from scorching ground in a fire. Moving from one sin to another is like moving from one false religion to another: the second may be worse than the first, less evil, or equally evil. The same applies to someone who falls short in enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and someone who oversteps the bounds in doing so: either one’s sin may be greater than the other’s, or they may be equal.

We know, through the signs Allah has shown us in the world around us and within ourselves, and through what He has testified to in His Book, that sins cause calamities. The evils of calamity and punishment arise from evil deeds, while obedience brings blessings: doing good is a cause of Allah’s goodness toward us. He, Most High, says:

“Whatever calamity befalls you is because of what your own hands have earned, and He pardons much.”

He, Most High, also says:

“Whatever good befalls you is from Allah, and whatever evil befalls you is from yourself.”

He, Most High, says:

“Those of you who turned away on the day the two armies met—it was Satan who caused them to slip because of some of what they had earned. But Allah has certainly pardoned them.”

He says:

“When a calamity befell you, although you had inflicted twice as much, did you say, ‘How has this happened?’ Say, ‘It is from yourselves.’”

He says:

“Or He could destroy them for what they have earned, yet He pardons much.”

He says:

“But if some evil befalls them because of what their own hands have sent forth, then man is indeed ungrateful.”

He, Most High, says:

“Allah would not punish them while you were among them, nor would Allah punish them while they sought forgiveness.”