The People of Hell and Their Evil Deeds (2/2)
Dr. Umar Sulaiman al-Ashqar
The Worst Evil Deeds of Those Who Will Remain Forever in Hell
The Qur’an speaks at length of the evil deeds for which those who will abide in the Hell forever deserve their never-ending fate. Here we will mention the most serious of them.
(1) Kufr and Shirk:
Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) tells us that it will be said to those who disbelieved, when they are in the Fire, that Allah's hatred of them will be greater than their own hatred towards themselves because of their disbelief. Then He explains that their eternal fate in Hell is because of their kufr and shirk: "The unbelievers will be addressed: "Greater was the aversion of Allah to you than [is] your aversion to yourselves, seeing that you were called to the Faith but you used to refuse. They will say, "Our Rabb! Twice have You made us without life, and twice have You given us life! Now have we recognised our sins: is there any way out [of this]?" [The answer will be]: "This is because, when Allah was invoked as the Only [****** of worship] you did reject Faith, but when partners were joined to Him, you believed! The Command is only with Allah, All-High, All-Great!" (Surah Ghafir, 40:10-12)
Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) tells us that the keeper of Hell will ask the kuffaar as they are approaching Hell: "Did there not come to you your Messengers with clear signs?" (Surah Ghafir, 40:50) The response will be that they deserved Hell because they disbelieved in the Messengers and their Message: "They will say, "Yes indeed; a Warner did come to us, but we rejected him" and said: "Allah never sent down any [Message] you are in nothing but a great error!" (Surah Al-Mulk, 67:9)
Concerning those who disbelieved in the Qur’an, Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: "For We have sent you a Message from Our own presence. If any do turn away therefrom, verily they will bear a burden on the Day of Judgement. They will abide in this [state] and grievous will that burden be to them on that Day". (Surah Ta-Ha, 20:99-101)
Concerning those who disbelieve the Qur’an and associate partners with Allah, Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: "Those who reject the Book and the [Revelations] with which We sent Our Messengers: but soon shall they know, when the yokes [shall be] round their necks, and the chains, they shall be dragged along. In the boiling fetid fluid, then in the Fire shall they be burned. Then shall it be said to them, "Where are the deities to which you gave part-worship in derogation to Allah? They will reply: "They have left us in the lurch. Nay, we invoked not, of old, anything [that had real existence]." Thus does Allah leave the unbelievers to stray. That was because you were want to rejoice on the earth in things other than the Truth, and that you were want to be ignorant. Enter the gates of Hell, to dwell therein and evil is [this] abode of the arrogant". (Surah Ghafir, 40:70-76)
Concerning those kuffaar and mushrikeen who regarded their gods as equal to the Rabb of the Worlds, Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: "Then they will be thrown headlong into the [Fire] - they and those straying in Evil and the whole hosts of Iblees together. They will say there in their mutual bickerings: "…By Allah, we were truly in an error manifest, when we held you [false gods] as equals with the Rabb of the Worlds" (Surah Ash-Shu'ara', 26:94-98)
Concerning the fate on the Day of Judgement of those who disbelieved, Allah said: "If you do marvel [at their want of faith] strange is their saying: "When we are [actually] dust, shall we indeed then be a creation renewed?" They are those who disbelieve in their Rabb! They are those around whose necks will be yokes [of servitude]. They will be Companions of the Fire to dwell therein [for aye]!" (Surah Ar-Ra'd, 13:5) "...their abode will be Hell; every time it shows abatement, We shall increase for them the fierceness of the Fire. That is their recompense, because they rejected Our Signs and said, "When we are reduced to bones and broken fragments, should we really be raised up [to be] a new creation?" (Surah Al-Isra', 17: 97-98)
(2) Failing to fulfill the legislated duties:
as well as denying the Day of Judgement. Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) tells us that the people of Paradise will ask the people of Hell: "What led you into Hellfire?" (Surah Al-Muddathir, 74:42) They will reply: "...We were not of those who prayed, Nor were we of those who fed the indigent, But we used to talk vanities with vain talkers, And we used to deny the Day of Judgement, Until there came to us [the Hour] that is certain." (Surah Al-Muddathir, 74:43-47)
(3) Obeying the misguided leaders of kufr and accepting the principles by means of which they mislead people and turn them away from the religion of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) as taught by the Prophets: "And We have destined for them intimate companions [of like nature] who made alluring to them what was before them and what was behind them. And the Sentence among the previous generations of jinns and men who have passed away, is proved against them; for they are utterly lost. The unbelievers say: "Listen not to this Qur’an but talk at random in the midst of its [reading] that you may gain the upper hand!" But We shall certainly give the unbelievers a taste of a severe penalty, and We shall requite them the worst of their deeds. Such is the requital of the enemies of Allah - the Fire, therein will be for them the eternal home, a [fit] requital for that they used to reject Our Signs" (Surah Fussilat, 41:25-28) When the kuffaar are thrown into Hell they will be filled with regret for having disobeyed Allah and His Messenger and having followed their masters and leaders: "Verily Allah has cursed the unbelievers and has prepared for them a blazing Fire, to dwell therein; no protector will they find, nor helper. The Day that their faces will be turned upside down in the Fire, they will say, "Woe to us! Would that we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger". And they would say, "Our Rabb! We obeyed our chiefs and our great ones and they misled us as from the [Right] Path". (Surah Al-Ahzab, 33:64-67)
(4) Hypocrisy:
Allah promised Hell to the hypocrites, a promise that He has taken upon Himself to never break: "Allah has promised the hypocrites, men and women, and the rejecters of Faith, the fire of Hell, therein shall they dwell. Sufficient is it for them. For them is the curse of Allah and an enduring punishment." (Surah At-Taubah, 9:68) He has told us that the position of the hypocrites is the lowest level of Hell, which si where the heat and agony are most intense: "The hypocrites will be in the lowest depths of the Fire; no helper will you find for them". (Surah An-Nisa', 4:145)
(5) Arrogance:
This is a quality shared by most of the people of Hell. Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: "But those who reject Our Signs and treat them with arrogance - they are the Companions (dwellers) of the Fire, to dwell therein [forever]" (Surah Al-A'raf, 7:36)
Muslim devoted a chapter of his Saheeh to this issue, entitled Baab an-Naar Yadhkhulha al-Jabbaaroon wal-Jannah yadkhuluha ad-du'afaa (Hell will be entered by the arrogant and Paradise will be entered by the weak). In this chapter he refers to the debate between Paradise and Hell, what they said and what Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) sad to them. Muslim quotes the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) which goes back to the Prophet (Peace be upon him), in which it is stated that Hell said, "The arrogant and proud will enter me." According to another report, Hell said, "I will become rich (have too many) from the proud and arrogant". Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) said, "You are My Punishment with which I will punish whomsoever I will". (Reported by Sahih Muslim, 4/2186, no. 2846) al-Bukhaari, Muslim and at-Tirmidhi report from Harithah ibn Wahb that the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said: "Shall I not tell you about the people of Paradise? Every meek person who is considered to be so humble that if he were to adjure something by Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He), He would fulfill it for him. Shall I not tell you about the people of Hell? Every haughty, greedy and proud person." (Reported by Jaami' al-Usool, 10/547, no. 8111) According to a report given by Muslim, he (Peace be upon him) said, "Every proud mean and arrogant person".
This is confirmed by the Qur’an "Is there not in Hell an abode for the Haughty [i.e. arrogant]?" (Surah Az-Zumar, 39:60) "But today shall you be recompensed with a penalty of humiliation for that you were arrogant on earth without just cause, and that you [ever] transgressed" (Surah Al-Fath, 48:20) "Then, for such as had transgressed all bounds, and had preferred the life of this world, the Abode will be Hellfire." (Surah An-Nazi'aat, 79:37-39)