Then the author cites the final ḥadīth in this chapter, the report of Abū Bakrah, in which the Messenger — peace and blessings be upon him — said: “Whoever humiliates the ruler, Allah will humiliate him.”

There are several ways a ruler may be humiliated:

• One is to ridicule his commands. When the ruler issues an order, someone sneers, “Look at what he’s saying!”

• Another is to scoff at his deeds. Whenever the ruler does something the critic dislikes, he says, “Look, look at what he’s doing!” His aim is to make the ruler seem trivial in people’s eyes, for once they belittle the ruler they will treat him with contempt, fail to carry out his orders, and ignore his prohibitions.

Accordingly, whoever demeans the ruler by broadcasting his faults among the people, reviling him, sensationalising his errors, and publicly exposing him lays himself open to being humiliated by Allah. When a person attacks the ruler in these ways, people rebel against the ruler and disobey him; that, in turn, becomes a source of corruption, and so Allah humiliates the culprit.

If Allah humiliates him in this world, he has already received his punishment. If He does not humiliate him here, he still deserves humiliation in the Hereafter — and we seek refuge in Allah from that — for the Prophet’s words are true: “Whoever humiliates the ruler, Allah will humiliate him.”

By the same token, whoever supports the ruler, Allah will support him, because he is assisting in goodness and righteousness. When you explain to the people what they owe the ruler and help them to obey him in matters that do not involve sin, you are performing a great service — provided the assistance promotes piety, righteousness, and all that is good.

We ask Allah for ourselves and for you to protect us from whatever incurs His anger and to grant us success in whatever He loves and is pleased with.

May Allah shower His blessings, peace, and grace upon our Prophet Muḥammad, his family, and all his Companions.

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