for it is incomparably greater and more repugnant, and for that reason Allah, exalted be He, has declared it an even fouler obscenity than adultery. Thus Lot said to his people, “Do you approach the obscene deed such as none among all the worlds has ever preceded you in?” (Q 7:80). Here the verse calls it al-fāḥishah—“the obscene deed par excellence”—whereas with regard to adultery Allah says fāḥishah, “an obscene deed,” meaning one obscenity among many. As for sodomy, He labeled it the supreme obscenity; we ask Allah for safety.

The same applies to theft, drinking wine, and every other forbidden act: Allah is jealous when they are committed. Yet some prohibitions stir His jealousy more than others, in proportion to the gravity of the offense and the harm that follows from it.

This hadith therefore affirms the attribute of jealousy for Allah Most High. The way of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamāʿah with respect to this and to every verse and hadith that speaks of the divine attributes is to affirm them for Allah—glorified and exalted be He—in a manner befitting His majesty. They say: Allah is jealous, but not like the jealousy of created beings; Allah rejoices, but not like the joy of created beings. Allah, exalted be He, possesses perfect attributes suited to Him, utterly unlike the qualities of His creatures: “There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing” (Q 42:11). Allah alone grants success.

65 – Sixth Hadith
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that he heard the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—say: “Three men from among the Children of Israel—a leper, a bald man, and a blind man—Allah wished to test them, so He sent an angel to them. The angel came to the leper and asked, ‘What do you love most?’ He replied, ‘A good complexion, healthy skin, and relief from this condition for which people shun me.’ The angel touched him; his affliction vanished and he was given a fair complexion. The angel then asked, ‘Which wealth do you like best?’ He answered, ‘Camels’—or he said, ‘Cattle’; the narrator was uncertain—so the angel gave him a she-camel in her tenth month of pregnancy and said, ‘May Allah bless it for you.’

The angel then came to the bald man and asked, ‘What do you love most?’ He replied, ‘Fine hair, and to be rid of that which makes people shun me.’ The angel touched him; his blemish disappeared and he was given beautiful hair. He then asked, ‘Which wealth do you like best?’ He replied…”