but Allah” outweighed those sins, because he uttered them with a degree of truthfulness and sincerity that erases sins. Likewise, Allah forgave the prostitute for giving a dog water because of the faith that arose in her heart at that moment. There are many similar examples.

The third means: good deeds that erase sins. Allah Most High says:

“Establish prayer at the two ends of the day and in the early hours of the night. Indeed, good deeds do away with misdeeds.”

The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:

“The five daily prayers, one Friday prayer to the next, and one Ramadan to the next expiate the sins committed between them, provided major sins are avoided.”

He also said:

“Whoever fasts Ramadan out of faith and seeking Allah’s reward will have his past sins forgiven.”

He said:

“Whoever spends the Night of Decree in prayer out of faith and seeking Allah’s reward will have his past sins forgiven.”

He said:

“Whoever performs pilgrimage to this House, neither engaging in sexual indecency nor committing sin, will return free of sins as on the day his mother bore him.”

He said:

“The trials a man faces concerning his family, wealth, and children are expiated by prayer, fasting, charity, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong.”

He said:

“Whoever frees a believing slave, Allah will free every part of his body from the Fire in return for the corresponding part of the slave’s body—even his private parts in return for the slave’s private parts.”

These hadiths and others like them are found in the authentic collections.

He also said:

“Charity extinguishes sin as water extinguishes fire, and envy consumes good deeds as fire consumes firewood.”

Their objection to this line of reasoning is to say that good deeds expiate only minor sins, whereas major sins are forgiven only through repentance, as stated in some hadiths:

“So long as major sins are avoided.”

This objection may be answered in several ways.