Quran Garden

Every decision you've ever made, was it really yours?  Or was it destined long before you were born?  Is it divine decree or your free will?  Questions almost everyone has wondered about.  If God controls everything, how can we be responsible for our actions?  And if we have free will, how does that fit with destiny?  In today's tafsir, we will answer these heavy questions in a simple, clear way, examining what the Qur'an says about choice, fate, and our role in life.  Let's begin.

Session 612

Chapter 4

Verse 39

And what harm would it do them to believe in God and the Last Day, and give charitably from the sustenance God has given them?  God knows everything about them.

(Chapter 4:Verse 39)

Allah asks those who only give to charity to be recognized and admired: "What harm would it do them," meaning: what burden, what hardship or harm would befall them if they believed in God and genuinely spent to help the poor?  They are spending the money anyway!  This, of course, is not a genuine inquiry; instead, the Almighty is scolding and branding them with ignorance and negligence of what truly benefits them.

Take the example of a student who skips school, plays around all year, and then, naturally, fails the final exam.  You say to him: "And what harm would it do you if you had studied?!" "Was it that difficult to spend an hour or two a day to ensure your future?" Take note that this type of scolding is only said to someone who has the ability to act.  The student is capable of studying.  He has the time and smarts to excel, yet he chooses to be lazy.  You would not say to a short person, "What harm would it do you if you were taller?!" That is an insult that makes no sense.

Thus, when God asks, "What harm would it do them to believe in God and the Last Day, and give charitably from the sustenance God has given them?" He is well aware that each of them is capable of doing what is right.  As for one who has no power or choice, you would not blame them for anything.

Certain groups, such as theological determinists or predestinationists, argue that everything about you, including your moral dispositions and choices, is determined by prior factors, such as genetics, upbringing, or God's decree, leaving no room for meaningful choice or free will.  In other words, our lives are like floating feathers tossed around by the wind. A poet said:

They threw him into the sea, bound hand and foot, then said: 

Beware, beware lest you get wet!

We answer that you failed to pay attention to the words of our Lord: "What harm would it do them to believe in God and the Last Day?" Allah affirms that you have free will, and the doors of choice are wide open before you.  Otherwise, if you were compelled to sin or disbelief, God would not have judged.  This Aya, in and of itself, does not merely refute the doctrine of the Theological determinists, but demolishes the entire principle of compulsion.  You are not forced into an action by God, and that is the end of the matter.

More importantly, you are accusing Allah of being unfair, and He is exalted far above that.  God would never command people to believe in Him without first granting them free will to choose between alternatives. 

Most people misunderstand the true nature of the pre-eternal decree, mistakenly believing that people are forced to fulfill what God has written.  We answer that there is a crucial distinction between what is decreed by compulsion and what is decreed due to Allah's eternal knowledge.  Knowledge is a quality that reveals, not a force that shapes or controls. 

Let me clarify with an example.  The dean of a college approaches a Math professor and says, "A generous donor has set a reward for the most outstanding student in calculus.  Please prepare and administer a calculus exam so we can determine who deserves the prize." The professor responds, "There's no need for an exam.  I taught these students all year, and I know their levels of competency, effort, and understanding.  So-and-so is the top student.  Give her the prize." The dean is not convinced.  He insists on putting the exam together and administering it himself, bypassing the professor.  After the dean grades the papers, sure enough, the student the professor had identified receives the highest grade, and she is recognized as the winner of the prize.

Did the winning student answer the exam questions under compulsion or duress?  Was there anyone forcing her hand to write the correct answers?  No.  So how did the professor predict this outcome and pick this student out of the entire class?  Because he knew each student's abilities based on his observations and interactions with them all year.  The professor had a deep knowledge of each student's skills.  Knowledge is a quality that reveals, not a force that shapes or controls.  God says,

How could He who created not know His own creation, when He is the Most Subtle, the All Aware?  (Chapter 67: Verse 14)

To Allah belongs the best examples.  He has foreknowledge, not coercive power.  Power influences and compels; knowledge has neither influence nor compulsion.  Thus, the burden of the sinner falls squarely on him or herself, not others or God. 

This brings us back to the verse.  God says, "What harm would it do them to believe in God and the Last Day?" In fact, you do not even need to have certainty in the Last Day to act rightly!  Listen to the following Aya,

Those who think that they will meet their Lord, and that to Him will they return.  (Chapter 2: Verse 46)

Allah did not say, 'those who are certain,' Why?  Because if a person merely assumes that he or she will meet their Creator and be taken to account is more than enough to act righteously.  If this is how a person would behave under uncertainty, then how much more conscientious should you, the believer, behave?  Those with certainty in their heart are always mindful of God. 

Let's address uncertainty with logic.  A poet said,

The astrologer speaks, the physician agrees: "These scattered bones shall never rise."

I answer them both: If what you say is true, then no loss comes to me.

But if my word proves true, the losses will fall on you.

for I have wagered hope on eternity, and you have wagered certainty on dust.

For those who question the Resurrection and want to sow doubt in young hearts, consider this simple reality.  If there really is no life after death, the believer hasn't lost anything by living responsibly.  But if there is resurrection, then the one who denied it has everything to answer for.  One side has nothing to lose, regardless of the outcome.  The other side could lose everything for eternity!  So which choice makes more sense?

God says, "And what harm would it do them to believe in God and the Last Day, and give charitably from the sustenance God has given them?" When you give charity sincerely for Allah, you are placing it in the care of the Most Generous, the One whose treasures never diminish.  You are investing with the Giver Himself.  But when you donate for recognition, applause, or admiration, the return shrinks to the limits of people; people who own little, give less, and may even resent you.

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