The Qur’an says that Allah is merciful and that He gives severe punishment. So is He forgiving or is He vengeful?
This is an erroneous interpretation of the Prophet’s message that is profoundly embedded in Western attitudes about Islam. The Prophet, who was sent to all of creation as a compassion, taught his followers that God has various names that He has revealed to His creation. Merciful and Beneficent are the most frequently mentioned and important traits in the Quran.
The Quran begins every chapter (save one) with the invocation: “In the name of God the Merciful, the Beneficent.” In fact, when the Quran was initially revealed, the Arabs had never heard of the name “Merciful” (al-Rahman) as a name for God. It was introduced to them by revelation and when they asked what it referred to, it was revealed:
{Call upon Allah or Call upon al-Rahman. Whatever name you call upon, to Him belongs the most beautiful names} (Quran 17:110).
Furthermore, the term “Merciful” is not only one of His many lovely names, but it also has a significant Islamic meaning. The principle that God’s mercy triumphs over His wrath is a well-established one in Islam. Indeed, the Prophet has reported that God says:
“My Mercy overcomes my Wrath.” (Muslim)
There are numerous verses and reports from the Prophet of Islam that establish the centrality of God’s mercy and compassion. For example, the Prophet states that “Allah is compassionate and loves compassion. He provides for compassion in a way He does not for harshness.”
The Prophet says in another report:
“Allah has one hundred portions of mercy and He has sent one to the world and divided it amongst His creation. So by it, they treat each other with compassion and mercy. He has held back ninety nine portions with Himself so that He may have mercy on His servants on the Day of Judgment.” (Bukhari & Muslim)
According to the Quran, putting the Prophet Muhammad into the world was a compassion for all of creation. God’s kindness is not only present throughout the universe, but it is also a basic legal and ethical value in Islam. Scholars have demonstrated that God’s kindness can be seen in the laws that have been revealed to humanity.
According to the Quran, putting the Prophet Muhammad into the world was a compassion for all of creation. God’s kindness is not only present throughout the universe, but it is also a basic legal and ethical value in Islam. Scholars have demonstrated that God’s kindness can be seen in the laws that have been revealed to humanity.
Mercy can also be seen in the Prophet’s teachings on the afterlife, which includes heaven and hell. The sheer essence of hell as a location of human misery and punishment is frequently used as evidence for God’s vengeance. However, a closer analysis of the way heaven and hell are described in the Quran, as well as their purpose, will offer a glimpse of God’s mercy even in the world to come.
In the Quran, when God depicts heaven and hell, the descriptions of hell are frequently brief in compared to the descriptions of heaven. For example, in Chapter 55 of the holy Quran, there are 22 lovely and poetically described verses on heaven, but only 7 words about hell.
Furthermore, according to the Quran, hell was not created for no reason. Rather, when describing hellfire, the Quran frequently adds explanations as to why its inhabitants wound up there in the first place.
Many of the reasons are related to one’s social behaviour, such as being uncharitable to the poor or exploiting people unfairly. It is interesting to note that many of these sins involve the wrongdoer and other people, and are not just “sins against God.”
As a result, punishment and hellfire are linked to justice, and so to God’s kindness. Should a compassionate God allow criminals to go free? Should He allow wrongs committed against victims to go unpunished? Certainly not! As a result, damnation and punishment are both a mercy and an essential component of justice for the victims of sin.
Within the bounds of justice, the Prophet made it clear that punishment will not be carried out until all of the procedures of a fair trial have been completed: records will be produced, witnesses will be called, and even our eyes, ears, and joints will testify. There will be no wrongdoing. Moreover, while God through His mercy will reward in great abundance those that are righteous to exponential degrees, He will not punish the wrongdoers except for their crimes and bad deeds – no more. The Quran states:
{Whosoever shall come [before God] with a good deed will gain [further] good therefrom; but as for any who shall come with an evil deed – [know that] they who do evil deeds will not be requited with more than [the like of] what they have done} (Quran 28:84).
Even while the Quran discusses retribution and hellfire, it frequently ends its pronouncements with statements about God’s love and forgiveness, usually stating that “He is the Most Merciful, the Most Forgiving.” God encourages wrongdoers and criminals not to despair in the face of His limitless Mercy and forgiveness. As God says:
In this light, the Prophet’s teachings demonstrate that God’s punishment can be viewed as a merciful gesture. According to Prophetic traditions, many people entering hell will find it to be a way of purification, where sinners will finally join heaven after paying for their wrongdoings. It would be unjust for these people to enter heaven without hell, but without hell, they would not have been able to taste and enjoy heaven — demonstrating the gracious reasons for God’s creation of hell once more.
As a result of the foregoing, it is clear that Prophet Muhammad’s teachings portray God as kind and compassionate in this world and the next.
