Limited Time Or Eternity In Hell
Limited Time Or Eternity In Hell
A Term
Surah 3
145 No soul can ever die except by Allah's leave and at a term appointed. Whoso desireth the reward of the world, We bestow on him thereof; and whoso desireth the reward of the Hereafter, We bestow on him thereof. We shall reward the thankful.
Surah 6
- 2 He it is Who hath created you from clay, and hath decreed a term for you. A term is fixed with Him. Yet still ye doubt!
- 60 He it is Who gathereth you at night and knoweth that which ye commit by day. Then He raiseth you again to life therein, that the term appointed (for you) may be accomplished. And afterward unto Him is your return. Then He will proclaim unto you what ye used to do.
- 67 For every announcement there is a term, and ye will come to know.
- 70 And forsake those who take their religion for a pastime and a jest, and whom the life of the world beguileth. Remind (mankind) hereby lest a soul be destroyed by what it earneth. It hath beside Allah no protecting ally nor intercessor, and though it offer every compensation it will not be accepted from it. Those are they who perish by their own deserts. For them is drink of boiling water and a painful doom, because they disbelieved.
Surah 6
- 15 Say: I fear if I rebel against my Lord, the retribution of an Awful Day.
- 16 He from whom (such retribution) is averted on that day, (Allah) hath in truth had mercy on him. That will be the signal triumph.
- 36 Only those can accept who hear. As for the dead, Allah will raise them up; then unto Him they will be returned.
- 128 In the day when He will gather them together (He will say): O ye assembly of the jinn! Many of humankind did ye seduce. And their adherents among humankind will say: Our Lord! We enjoyed one another, but now we have arrived at the appointed term which Thou appointedst for us. He will say: Fire is your home. Abide therein for ever, save him whom Allah willeth (to deliver). Lo! thy Lord is Wise, Aware.
Analysis . Limited Time In Hell .
“Abide therein for ever, save him whom Allah willeth (to deliver)” therefore selective, not inclusive of all .
Surah 11
107 Abiding therein so long as the heavens and the earth endure, except as thy Lord please. Surely thy Lord is Doer of what He intends.
Commentary by Maulana Muhammad Ali
Quote 107 . This limitation on the duration of abiding in hell — except as thy Lord please—is given twice in the Holy Qur’ån, here and in 6:128, and it shows clearly that the punishment of hell is not everlasting. A comparison with the verse that follows makes it clearer. There, too, we have that those in paradise will abide there as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except as thy Lord please, but the statement is immediately followed by another: A gift never to be cut off. This shows that in fact there is no limitation upon the eternity of paradise, and the words except as thy Lord please have been used, in the case of paradise, only to express the unbounded power and greatness of the Divine Being and the fact that it is due to God’s pleasure that they are there. In the case of hell, however, the words except as thy Lord please are followed by a statement which corroborates the limitation thus placed, for, Fa“ål, as an attribute of the Divine Being, indicates that He does even those things which seem impossible to others, the word being an intensive form of få‘ßl, meaning doer. It should be noted further that in both cases it is Rabb, lit., the Nourisher to perfection, Whose will is to be exercised. The end is in both cases the same. Man is ultimately to be brought to perfection, but this cannot be, unless those in hell are taken out of it and set on the road to spiritual progress, thrown into the river of Life as a ƒadßth has it.
Various sayings of the Holy Prophet corroborate the statement made above. For instance, the concluding portion of a ƒadßth which is met with in one of the most reliable collections runs thus: “Then will Allåh say: The angels and the prophets and the faithful have all in their turn interceded for the sinners, and now there remains none to intercede for them except the most Merciful of all the merciful ones. So He will take out a handful from the Fire and bring out a people who never worked any good” (B. 97:24).
According to this ƒadßth, such people are called Ôulaqå al-Raƒmån, or the freed ones of the Beneficent, Who exercises His mercy towards those who have done nothing to deserve it. There are also other sayings in the Kanz al-‘Ummål: “Surely a day will come over hell when it will be like a field of corn that has dried up after flourishing for a while”; and again: “Surely a day will come over hell when there will not be a single human being in it” (vol. vii, p. 245). There is also a saying of ‘Umar on record: “Even if the dwellers in hell may be numberless as the sands of the desert, a day will surely come when they will be taken out of it” (FB).
One question, however, remains to be answered, and that is the use of the word abad, which is generally considered as meaning forever. The abiding in hell for abad is mentioned thrice in the Holy Qur’ån, in 4:169, 33:65 and 72:23. It is, however, stated by all lexicologists that abad signifies a long time (LL), being synonymous with dahr Δawßl or a long time (Mgh), as also time without end (T). It is due to its significance as a long time that it has a plural form åbåd, which it could not have if eternity were its only significance. The Qur’ån makes this use of the word clear by stating in 78:23 that the disbelievers will remain in hell for aƒqåb, i.e. long years, the word being plural of ƒuqbah, which means seventy or eighty years (see 78:23a). Unquote
(Surah 4:69 Except the path of hell, to abide in it for a long time. And that is easy to Allah.
Surah 33:65 To abide therein for a long time; they will find no protector nor helper.
Surah 72:23 (Mine is naught) but to deliver (the command) of Allah and His messages. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger, surely for him is the Fire of hell, to abide therein for ages,
Maulana Muhammad Ali)
Four Translators Disagree
23 (Mine is) but conveyance (of the Truth) from Allah, and His messages; and whoso disobeyeth Allah and His messenger, lo! his is fire of hell, wherein such dwell for ever.
(Pickthall)
My sole work is preaching from God, and His message: and for such as shall rebel against God and his apostle is the fire of Hell! they shall remain therein alway,--for ever!
(Rodwell)
Say, 'Verily, as for me none can protect me against God, nor do I find any refuge beside Him,--except delivering the message from God and His errands: and whoso rebels against God and His Apostle, verily, for him is the fire of hell for them to dwell therein for ever and for aye!'
(Palmer)
23. "Unless I proclaim what
I receive from God
And His Messages:
For any that disobey God
And His Apostle,—for them
Is Hell: they shall dwell
Therein for ever.
(Yusuf)
Further Analysis
Surah 35
36 But as for those who disbelieve, for them is fire of hell; it taketh not complete effect upon them so that they can die, nor is its torment lightened for them. Thus We punish every ingrate.
37 And they cry for help there, (saying): Our Lord! Release us; we will do right, not (the wrong) that we used to do. Did not We grant you a life long enough for him who reflected to reflect therein ? And the warner came unto you. Now taste (the flavour of your deeds), for evil-doers have no helper.
Surah 32
14 So taste (the evil of your deeds). Forasmuch as ye forgot the meeting of this your day, lo! We forget you. Taste the doom of immortality because of what ye used to do.
(Pickthall)
But for infidels is the fire of Hell; to die shall never be decreed them, nor shall aught of its torment be made light to them. Thus reward We every infidel!
And therein shall they cry aloud, "Take us hence, O our Lord! righteousness will we work, and not what we wrought of old."--"Prolonged we not your days that whoever would be warned might be warned therein? And the preacher came to you--Taste it then."--There is no protector for the unjust.
"Taste then the recompense of your having forgotten the meeting with this your day. We, too, we have forgotten you: taste then an eternal punishment for that which ye have wrought."
(Rodwell)
But those who misbelieve, for them is the fire of hell; it shall not be decreed for them to die, nor shall aught of the torment be lightened from them; thus do we reward every misbeliever; and they shall shriek therein, 'O our Lord! bring us forth, and we will do right, not what we used to do!'--'Did we not let you grow old enough for everyone who would be mindful to be mindful? and there came to you a warner!-- So taste it, for the unjust shall have none to help!'
Had We pleased We would have given to everything its guidance; but the sentence was due from me;--I will surely fill hell with the ginns and with men all together: 'So taste ye, for that ye forgat the meeting of this day of yours,--verily, we have forgotten you! and taste ye the torment of eternity for that which ye have done!'
(Palmer)
Surah 7
179 We have created for hell many of the ginn and of mankind; they have hearts and they discern not therewith; they have eyes and they see not therewith; they have ears and they hear not therewith; they are like cattle, nay, they go more astray! these it is who care not.
(Palmer)
Many, moreover, of the Djinn and men have we created for Hell. Hearts have they with which they understand not, and eyes have they with which they see not, and ears have they with which they hearken not. They are like the brutes: Yea, they go more astray: these are the heedless.
(Rodwell)
179 Already have We urged unto hell many of the jinn and humankind, having hearts wherewith they understand not, and having eyes wherewith they see not, and having ears wherewith they hear not. These are as the cattle - nay, but they are worse! These are the neglectful.
(Pickthall)
179. Many are the Jinns and men
We have made for Hell:
They have hearts wherewith they
Understand not, eyes wherewith
They see not, and ears wherewith
They hear not. They are
Like cattle,—nay more
Misguided: for they
Are heedless (of warning).
(Yusuf Ali)
178. Whomsoever Allah guides, he is the guided one, and whomsoever He sends astray, those! They are the losers.
179. And surely, We have created many of the jinns and mankind for Hell. They have hearts wherewith they understand not, they have eyes wherewith they see not, and they have ears wherewith they hear not (the truth). They are like cattle, nay even more astray; those! They are the heedless ones.
181. And of those whom We have created, there is a community who guides (others) with the truth, and establishes justice therewith.
(Noble Quran)
179 And certainly We have created for Hell many of the jinn
and the people — they have hearts with which they do not understand, and they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. They are as cattle; rather, they are more astray. These are the heedless ones.
181 And of those whom We have created is a community who guide with the truth and with it they do justice.
Surah 11
117And your Lord would not destroy towns unjustly, while their people acted well.
118And if your Lord pleased, He would have made people a single nation. And they do not cease to differ,
119 except those on whom your Lord has mercy; and for this did He create them. And the word of your Lord is fulfilled: I will certainly fill hell with jinn and people, all together.
(Maulana)
(179) Whomsoever God shall direct, he will be rightly directed, and whomsoever he shall lead astray, they shall perish.
(180) Moreover we have created for hell many of the genii and of men; they have hearts by which they understand not, and they have eyes by which they see not, and they have ears by which they hear not. These are like the brute beasts; yea, they go more astray; these are the negligent.
(182) And of those whom we have created there are a people who direct others with truth, and act justly according thereto.
Commentary
(179, 180) This passage clearly makes God the author of evil He is said to create genii and men for the express purpose of filling hell with them. Comp. chap. xi. II 9. But see notes on chap. iii. I45 , 155. The creation of the righteous is mentioned in ver. . I82.
Surah xi
(119) And if thy LORD pleased, he would have made all men of one religion; but they shall not cease to differ among themselves, unless those on whom thy LORD shall have mercy: and unto this hath he created them ; for the word of thy LORD
shall be fulfilled when he said, Verily I will fill hell altogether
with genii and men.
Surah iii
(145) No soul can die unless by the permission of GOD, according to what is written in the book containing the determination of things. And whoso chooseth the reward of this world,we will give him thereof: but whoso chooseth the reward of the world to come, we will give him thereof:and we will surely reward the thankful.
(155) Then he sent down upon you after affliction security : a soft sleep which fell on some part of you; but other part were
troubled by their own souls; falsely dlinking of GOD, a
foolish imagination, saying, Will anything of the matter
happen unto us? Say,Verily, the matter belongeth wholly
unto GOD. They concealed in their minds what they declared
not unto thee : saying, If anything of the matter had
happened unto us, we had not been slain here. Answer,
If ye had been in your houses, verily they would have
gone forth to fight , whose slaughter was decreed , to the
places where they died, and this came to pass that GOD
might try what was in your breasts, and might discern
what was in your hearts ; for GOD knoweth the innermost
parts of the breasts of men.
Commentary
(145) No soul can die, etc . Muhammad. the more effectually to still the murmurs of his party on their defeat , represents to them that the time of every man's death is decreed and predetermined by God, and that those who fell in the battle could not have avoided their fate had they stayed at home ; whores- they had now obtained the glorious advantage of dying martyrs for the faith."--Sale.
The book- Rodwell tells us that the Rabbins teach a similar doctrine; https://www.sacred-texts.com/isl/qr/003.htm#fr_1039 . The Tafsir-i-Raufi says that this verse was revealed to incite the Muslims to acts of daring. Since the hour of death is fixed for every man, every one is immortal until that hour arrive
Preliminary Discourse, p164 (Sale)
The sixth great point of faith which the 'Muhammsdans are taught by the Quran to believe is GOD's absolute decree and predestination both of good and evil; for the
orthodox doctrine is,that whatever hath or shall come to pass in this world, whether it be good or whether it be bad, proceedeth entirely from Lhe divine will, and is irrevocably fixed and recorded from all eternity in the preserved table, GOD having secretly predetermined not only the adverse and prosperous fortune of every person in this world, in the most minute particulars, but also his faith or infidelity, his obedience or disobedience, and consequently his everlasting happiness or misery after death, which fate or predestination it is not possible by any foresight or wisdom to avoid.
Of this doctrine Mohammad makes great use in his Quran for the advancement of his designs, encouraging his followers to fight without fear, and even desperately for the propagation of their faith, by representing to them that all their caution could not avert their inevitable destiny or prolong their lives for a moment, and deterring them from disobeying or rejecting him as an impostor by setting before them the danger they might thereby incur of being, by the just judgment of GOD, abandoned to seduction, hardness of heart and a reprobate mind, as a punishment for their obstinacy .
As this doctrine of absolute election and reprobation has been thought by many of the Muhemmadan divines to be derogatory to the goodness mad justice of GOD, and to make GOD the author of evil, several subtle distinctions have been invented and disputes raised to explicate or soften it, and different sects have been formed, according to their several opinions or methods of explaining this point, some of them going so far as even to hold the direct contrary position of absolute free will in man, as we shall see hereafter .
A COMPREHENSIVE COMMENTARY of
THE QURAN: COMPRISING SALE'S TRANSLATION
AND Preliminary DISCOURSE,
BY THE REV. E. M. WHERRY, M.A.
1896
https://a.co/d/cTfzDKh
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