Sharḥ Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (2/480)

Sharḥ Riyāḍ al-ṢāliḥīnIbn al-'Uthaymin

ignorant. Likewise, the son of a devout worshipper does not necessarily grow up devout; he may even turn into an unabashed sinner. Even the son of a messenger is not automatically a believer. Consider Noah’s own son—peace be upon him. One of his children persisted in disbelief. His father kept pleading, “My son, board with us and do not be with the disbelievers” (Hūd 11:42). Yet the son would reply, “I will take refuge on a mountain that will protect me from the water.” Noah answered, “Today there is no protector from Allah’s command except for whomever He shows mercy,” and the waves came between them, so he was among the drowned (Hūd 11:43).

The boy perished alongside the disbelievers—may Allah protect us. Still, Noah had said, “My Lord, my son is of my family; Your promise is surely true, and You are the most just of judges.”

Thus Noah will excuse himself on the Day of Resurrection because he once asked about something for which he had no knowledge. An intercessor cannot harbor any estrangement from the One before whom he intercedes; rather, there must be an unblemished bond of closeness. Although Allah forgave Noah—peace be upon him—and forgave Adam before him, choosing him, accepting his repentance, and pardoning him, their lofty rank made them regard those forgiven slips as sufficient reason to refrain from intercession. All of this springs from their veneration of Allah, their modesty before Him, and their sense of shame.

Next the people will go to Abraham, the Close Friend of Allah—peace be upon him. He will apologize, saying that he told three “lies” for the sake of Allah. In reality they were not falsehoods, for he interpreted the situations, and a legitimate interpretation is not a lie. Yet out of profound awe of Allah he views this as a barrier that prevents him from stepping forward to intercede.

They will then proceed to Moses—peace be upon him—and say, “Allah spoke directly to you and wrote the Torah for you with His own hand.” He will excuse himself on the grounds that he killed a soul whom he had not been commanded to kill, for

جاهلاً، وكذلك ابن العابد لا يأتي عابدأً، وقد يكون فاسقاً فاجراً، ابن الرسول لا يكون مؤمناً بل هذا ابن نوح ﵇ أحد أبنائه كان كافراً كان أبوه يقول: (يَا بُنَيَّ ارْكَبْ مَعَنَا وَلا تَكُنْ مَعَ الْكَافِرِينَ) (هود: ٤٢) فيجيبه قائلاً: (سَآوي إِلَى جَبَلٍ يَعْصِمُنِي مِنَ الْمَاءِ قَالَ لا عَاصِمَ الْيَوْمَ مِنْ أَمْرِ اللَّهِ إِلَّا مَنْ رَحِمَ وَحَالَ بَيْنَهُمَا الْمَوْجُ فَكَانَ مِنَ الْمُغْرَقِينَ) (هود: ٤٣) . غرق الولد مع الكافرين- والعياذ بالله - وكان نوحٌ قد قال ربي إن ابني من أهلي وإن وعدك الحق وأنت أحكم الحاكمين. فيعتذر نوح بأنه سأل ما ليس له به علم، والشافع لا يكون بينه وبين المشفوع إليه جفوة؛ بل لا بد أن يكون بينهما صلى قوية لا يخدشها شئ مع أن نوحاً ﵊ غفر الله له، وآدم غفر الله له، اجتباه ربُه فتاب عليه، فغفر الله له، ولكن لكمال مرتبتهم وعلو مقامهم، جعلوا هذا الذنب الذي غفر لهم جعلوه مانعاً من الشفاعة، كل هذا تعظيماً لله ﷿ وحياء منه، وخجلاً منه. ثم يأتون إلى إبراهيم خليل الله ﷿ ﵊، فيعتذر ويقول: إنه كذب في ذات الله ثلاث كذبات، وهذه الكذبات التي كذبها ليست كذباً في الواقع؛ لأنه ﵊ قد تأوّل فيها، والتأول ليس بكذب، لكن لشدة لله ﷿، رأى أن هذا مانع للشفاعة أي من أن يتقدم للشفاعة لأحد. ثم يأتون موسى ﵊ ويقولون له: إن الله كلمك، وكتب لك التوراة بيده، فيعتذر بأنه قتل نفساً لم يؤمر بقتلها، وذلك أن