Most Merciful.”

“Allah’s perfect words, beyond which neither the righteous nor the wicked can pass” are those by which He brought all things into being. Neither the righteous nor the wicked can escape His creative act, His will, or His power. As for His “words pertaining to religion”—His revealed Books and the commands and prohibitions they contain—the righteous obey them, while the wicked disobey them. Allah’s pious allies are those who obey His words, His ordaining, His permission, and His will in matters of religion.

As for His words pertaining to the created order, beyond which neither the righteous nor the wicked can pass, all creation falls under them, including Iblīs and his hosts, all disbelievers, and everyone else who enters the Fire. Although all creatures are alike in being encompassed by His creation, will, power, and decree, they differ with respect to His commands and prohibitions, His love, pleasure, and anger.

Allah’s pious allies are those who do what is commanded, refrain from what is forbidden, and patiently endure what is decreed. He loves them and they love Him; He is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him. His enemies, the allies of the devils, although subject to His power, are those whom He hates, with whom He is angry, whom He curses, and to whom He is an enemy.

A detailed explanation of these points belongs elsewhere. I have written here only to draw attention to the principal aspects of “the distinction between the allies of the Most Merciful and the allies of Satan.” The essential distinction between the two lies in