Kitaab At-Tawheed, Chapter: 61
What Has Been Said About Oaths Binding Upon Allah
It is reported on the authority of Jundub (ra ) that he said: "Allah's Messenger (saas ) said:
"A man said: "By Allah (swt )! Allah (swt ) will not forgive such-and-such a person, at which Allah (swt ), Almighty, All-powerful said: "Who is he who swears about Me that I would not forgive so-and-so? I have pardoned him and wiped out your (the swearer's) deeds." (Narrated by Muslim)
According to another narration on the authority of Abu Hurairah (ra ) it is reported that the man who said this was a believing slave; Abu Hurairah said: "He spoke one word which destroyed his life in this world and in the Hereafter."
The Prophet (saas ) informs us in this Hadith that there were two men, a righteous man and a sinful man; the former condemned the latter and swore that Allah (swt ) would never forgive him his sins. Allah (swt ) became angry at this statement which suggests that anyone may be barred from Allah's Mercy and Forgiveness and declared that, on the contrary, He had already forgiven the sinner and He (swt ), Most High, further added that He (swt ) had invalidated the deeds of the righteous man. Thus due to an injudicious word, the righteous man's deeds were made to count for nothing while the sinner was forgiven.
Benefits Derived From This Hadith
1. The forbiddance of swearing on Allah's behalf.
2. The prohibition of making assumptions about Allah (swt ).
3. Confirmation of Allah's Divine Attribute of Speech in a manner befitting His Majesty.
4. The obligation to be circumspect when speaking of Allah (swt ).
5. Evidence of the vastness of Allah's Bounty and Mercy.
6. That the most important deeds are the last ones in a person's life.
7. That a person might be forgiven his sins because of the words or actions of another.
8. That a person's deeds might be invalidated because of an injudicious word.
9. The forbiddance of barring anyone from Allah's Bounty and Mercy.
Relevance of This Hadith to the Subject of the Chapter
That it proves the forbiddance of swearing on Allah's behalf.
Relevance of This Hadith to the Subject of Tawheed
That it proves the prohibition of swearing on Allah's behalf because to do so is to claim for oneself rights in Rabbship which belong solely to Allah (swt ).
Important Note
There is no contradiction between this Hadith and the words of the Prophet (saas ): "Verily, among Allah's slaves are those who, when they swear upon Allah (swt ), He fulfills it," because what the first Hadith tells us is that swearing on Allah's behalf in what entails thinking ill of Him is forbidden and invalidates one's good deeds, while swearing to something good and beneficial which entails thinking well of Allah (swt ) is permissible.