Second: The authentic hadith states:

“He descends to the lowest heaven, then says, ‘I ask no one else about My servants.’”

It is well known that these are Allah’s words, which no one else can say.

Third: He said:

“He descends to the lowest heaven and says, ‘Who will call upon Me, that I may answer him? Who will ask of Me, that I may give him? Who will seek My forgiveness, that I may forgive him?’—until dawn breaks.”

It is well known that none but Allah answers supplications, forgives sins, and grants every petitioner what he asks. His command and His mercy do none of these things.

Fourth: His command and His mercy can only descend from Him. This therefore requires that He be above the world, so the very interpretation he advances invalidates his own position. Thus, one of those who deny this said to someone who affirms it, “His command and His mercy descend.” The latter replied, “From whom, then, do they descend? According to you, there is nothing above, so neither command nor mercy nor anything else can descend from Him.” The denier was confounded, although he was a leading figure among them.

(Fifth: Several hadiths contain the wording, “Then He ascends,” and another wording states, “Then He rises.”

Sixth: If it were supposed that the one descending is an angel who calls out on Allah’s behalf—as some have distorted the wording of the hadith, reporting it as “yunzilu” (“He sends down”), using the transitive Form IV verb, meaning that He commands a herald to call out—then the angel would have had to say, “Who will call upon Allah, that He may answer him? Who will ask of Him, that He may give him? Who will seek His forgiveness, that He may forgive him?” This is as established in the two Sahīh collections and the Muwatta’ of