In the name of Allah, all praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. Brothers and sisters, peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. Welcome to the twelfth session of the "Tabyan for Everything" competition. The parts we have for today's competition are parts 13 and 14, with a few questions from the previous parts that I will point out at the time.
One of the good manners of Yusuf (peace be upon him) is that he did not attribute the injustice of his brothers towards him to them in any place. Mention five words from a verse that indicates this great character.
Answer: The words are: "After Satan had cast enmity between me and my brothers."
Notice that Yusuf (peace be upon him) said: "There will be no reproach upon you today; Allah will forgive you, and He is the Most Merciful of the merciful." In simplicity, he forgave them after all they had done, and after they had accused him of theft in the past.
Imam As-Sa'di, may God have mercy on him, mentions the completeness of his forgiveness:
Stubbornness can lead the disbeliever to be ready to deny necessary sensory evidence, so much evidence is not useful with such a person. Mention two consecutive verses that carry this meaning.
Answer: Allah says: "And if We opened to them a gate from the heaven and they continued ascending therein, they would say, 'Our eyes have been dazzled. Rather, we are a people affected by magic.'" (Surah Al-Hijr).
Imagine if Allah opened for them gates of the heaven and they ascended and saw the kingdom with their own eyes, they would say, "This is magic" or "There is a problem with our eyesight." This is similar to the condition of some atheists in our time who deny the obvious and the sensory and claim that we live in a virtual world (Simulation) as an escape from the certain truth.
There is a verse with the meaning of Allah's saying: "Then do you believe in part of the Scripture and disbelieve in part?" It is from today's parts (13 and 14). What is it?
Answer: Allah says: "Those who have made the Quran into parts." (Surah Al-Hijr).
Ibn Kathir said: meaning they divided their revealed books, so they believed in part and disbelieved in part. This is the condition of those who accept from the religion what agrees with their desires and ignore what contradicts them, like those who deny the sovereignty of Allah's rule over people's lives and call it secularism; this is in reality belief in part of the Scripture and disbelief in part of it.
What you do not accept for yourself, you should not accept for others, so how about the Creator, glorified and exalted be He? Mention a verse from today's part that carries this meaning.
Answer: Allah says: "And they attribute to Allah that which they dislike." (Surah An-Nahl). And also Allah's saying in the parable: "He has given you a parable from yourselves. Do you have among those whom your right hands possess partners in what We have provided you, while you are equal in it..." If you do not accept that your slaves be equal to you in your wealth, then how do you make partners for Allah from His creation?
Good character is the best call, as it makes people seek knowledge from you. Mention the end of a verse of four words that indicates this meaning.
Answer: Allah says: "Indeed, we see you among the good-doers." This was said to Yusuf (peace be upon him) in prison by the two men who asked him to interpret the dream. Because of what they saw of his goodness and noble character, they trusted him and sought his knowledge. This teaches us that the caller must be a role model in his behavior before his speech.
Mention a verse that warns against a bad character that leads people astray from their religion.
Answer: Allah says: "And do not make your oaths a means of deception among you, lest a foot should slip after it was firm, and you taste evil for what you hindered from the way of Allah. And you will have a great punishment." (Surah An-Nahl). The warning here is against using false oaths and deception, as that drives people away from Islam and causes new Muslims to be led astray in their religion, making the one with bad character a cause for turning them away from the way of Allah.
In a verse, a preposition was used contrary to the usual with its verb, carrying the meaning of commanding contemplation in the creations of Allah, seeking more from that and not being content with their appearances. What is the preposition? And what is the usual in its place?
Answer: The preposition is "in", and the usual in its place is "to". The verse is Allah's saying: "Have they not looked in the dominion of the heavens and the earth and what Allah has created of things?" (Surah Al-A'raf).
Linguistically, it is usual to say "look to," but the use of "in" here - as Ibn Ashur, may God have mercy on him, mentioned - carries an additional meaning; which is that what is required is not just a passing glance with the eye, but a thorough look, examination, and contemplation of the essence of things and their components. This is a call for Muslims to take the reins of natural and observational sciences, for we are commanded to look into the atom, the cell, the planets, and everything Allah has created.
Allah, glorified and exalted be He, blamed those who do not stand by the evidence of His greatness in His creation and contemplate it thoroughly. Mention the verse in which Allah blamed people for that.
Answer: Allah says: "And how many a sign is there in the heavens and the earth that they pass by them while they are of them turning away." (Surah Yusuf).
The speech here is not about the written signs of the Book (the Quran), but about the visible signs in the universe and life. It is blameworthy for a person to pass by Allah's many signs without contemplation. Unfortunately, in our time, many are preoccupied with electronic games and fantasies, and few look into the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and the natural world that teems with evidence of the greatness of the Creator, glorified and exalted be He.
Allah, glorified and exalted be He, commanded seeking refuge when beginning the recitation of the Quran. Mention the verse in which this command is mentioned.
Answer: Allah says: "So when you recite the Quran, seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan." (Surah An-Nahl).
This is a reminder for the believer to invoke the greatness of Allah's speech and to seek protection from the whisperings of Satan, who tries to divert the heart from contemplation and humility during recitation.
Allah, the Almighty, has promised the patient that He will reward them not only according to their deeds, but with the best of what they used to do. Mention the verse that contained this noble promise.
Answer: Allah says: {What is with you will come to an end, but what is with Allah is everlasting. And We will surely give the patient their reward for the best of what they used to do} (Surah An-Nahl).
This is from the generosity and immense favor of Allah, that He raises the degree of the believer and rewards him for the best moments of his obedience and patience, for what is with Allah is everlasting and does not perish.
Allah, the Almighty, has linked righteous deeds and faith to attaining a good life in this world and the Hereafter. Mention the verse that encompasses this meaning.
Answer: Allah says: {Whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely reward them for the best of what they used to do} (Surah An-Nahl).
The good life here includes tranquility, contentment, and serenity in this world, before the everlasting bliss in the Hereafter, and it is conditioned upon faith and righteous deeds together.
With this, we have reached the end of the questions for the twelfth episode. We congratulate the winners from YouTube and Facebook, and we thank you for your good follow-up and interaction. We will meet you in the next episode, God willing.
Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.