If You Did Not Sin
Translated & Compiled
By
Abbas Abu Yahya
From Abu Hurairah -RadhiAllaahu anhu- from the Prophet -sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam- who said:
لو لم تُذنِبوا لذهبَ اللهُ بكُمْ ولجاءَ بقومٍ يُذنبونَ ثمَّ يستغفرونَ فيغفرَ لهُم
‘If you did not sin indeed Allaah would take you away then bring a people who would sin then they would seek forgiveness and Allaah would forgive them.’
[Collected by Muslim]
From Abu Ayoob from the Prophet -sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam- who said:
لَوْلا أنَّكُمْ تُذْنِبُونَ لَخَلَقَ اللَّهُ خَلْقًا يُذْنِبُونَ يَغْفِرُ لهمْ.
‘If it were not that you sin indeed Allaah would create a creation who sin then He would forgive them.’
[Collected by Muslim]
In another narration:
لَوْ أَنَّكُمْ لَمْ تَكُنْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبٌ، يَغْفِرُهَا اللهُ لَكُمْ،
لَجَاءَ اللهُ بِقَوْمٍ لَهُمْ ذُنُوبٌ، يَغْفِرُهَا لَهُمْ
‘If you did not have sins which Allaah forgives, then Allaah would indeed bring a people who have sins and He would forgive them.’
[Collected by Muslim]
Al-Hafidh Ibn Rajab (d.795 A.H.) -Rahimahullaah- said:
‘Allaah has a Wisdom in throwing negligence sometimes over the hearts of His Slaves, from this is two great benefits:
One is the acknowledgement of the sinful of their sins and their deficiency towards the right of Allaah.
Al-Hasan said:
‘If every time a son of Adam said I was correct, and every time he did a good deed he said how excellent his deed was, then he would be on the verge of going crazy out of amazement (about his deeds).’
The second benefit: acquiring forgiveness and pardoning from Allaah for His worshipper.
Indeed Allaah loves to pardon and forgive. From His Names is الغفار al-Ghaffaar (The All-Forgiving), العفو al-Afuww (The Pardoner), and التواب at-Tawwaab (The Acceptor of Repentance).
Therefore, if the creation of Allaah was infallible, then for whom would there be pardon and forgiveness.
[Summarised from Lataif al-Ma’arif p.20-21]
Shaykh Salih Al-Fawzaan -May Allaah protect him- was asked:
I heard a hadeeth from the Prophet -sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam- I do not remember its wording exactly, however, the meaning is:
‘Indeed if the Muslims do not sin and seek forgiveness then Allaah would bring another people who would sin and seek forgiveness.’
So, if this hadeeth is authentically reported from the Prophet -sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam- then what is its meaning? What does it indicate to and instruct with?
The Answer:
Imam Muslim collected in the book of repentance from the Hadeeth of Abu Ayoob from the Prophet -sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam- who said:
لَوْلا أنَّكُمْ تُذْنِبُونَ لَخَلَقَ اللَّهُ خَلْقًا يُذْنِبُونَ يَغْفِرُ لهمْ.
‘If it were not that you sin indeed Allaah would create a creation who sin then He would forgive them.’
The meaning of the Hadeeth is that Allaah -Subhanahu wa Ta’ala- loves from His slaves that they seek forgiveness from Him and that He forgives them, by which Allaah can make apparent His Excellence Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and the effect of His Attributes of al-Ghaffaar [The All-Forgiving] and al-Ghafoor [The Forgiver].
)قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنفُسِهِمْ لا تَقْنَطُوا مِن رَّحْمَةِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ، وَأَنِيبُوا إِلَى رَبِّكُمْ وَأَسْلِمُوا لَهُ(
[سورة الزمر: الآيتين 53، 54]،
《Say: “O ‘Ibadi (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)!
Despair not of the Mercy of Allaah, verily Allaah forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. “
And turn in repentance and in obedience with true Faith (Islaamic Monotheism) to your Lord and submit to Him, (in Islaam)》
The hadeeth indicates to two great issues:
The first issue is: that Allaah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala pardons and loves pardoning, is forgiving and loves forgiveness.
The second issue: this is glad tidings for those who repent that their repentance is accepted and forgiveness for their sins and that they should not despair of the Mercy of Allaah and remain upon their sinful way and continue upon that, but rather it is upon them to repent and seek forgiveness from Allaah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala because Allaah has opened the door of seeking forgiveness and the door of repentance, this is the meaning of the hadeeth.
There is also in this hadeeth a shattering of a person being amazed of his deeds, so that a person should not be amazed by his own self and his actions.
Because he is subject to making mistakes, making slips and subject to deficiency. It is upon him to hasten with repentance and seeking forgiveness from his shortcomings and his mistakes and slips.
A person should not presume that he has completed worship or that he is not in need of seeking forgiveness, since this hadeeth is an encouragement to seek forgiveness, and that Allaah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala loves from His Slaves that they seek His forgiveness and repent to Him.
It is mentioned in the hadeeth:
كل بني آدم خطاء وخير الخطائين التوابون
‘Everyone from the Children of Adam make mistakes and the best of those who make mistakes are those who repent.’
Collected by Imam Ahmad in his Musnad from the hadeeth of Anas bin Malik -RadhiAllaahu anhu.
Its meaning is not that Allaah loves from His slaves that they should commit sins or that He loves sinfulness. Allaah does not love kufr (disbelief) and is not pleased with it nor does He love sinfulness.
However He loves from His slaves that if they commit sin and disobedience that they repent to Him -Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and that they seek forgiveness from Him, this is the meaning of the Hadeeth.’