This Ramadan, MuslimMatters is pleased to host the Institute Of Knowledge‘s daily Ramadan series: Keys to the Divine Compass. Through this series, each day we will spend time connecting with the Qur’an on a deeper, more spiritual, uplifting level.

Previous in the series: Juz 1 Juz 2 Juz 3 Juz 4 Juz 5 Juz 6 Juz 7 Juz 8 Juz 9 Juz 10 Juz 11 Juz 12 Juz 13

Juzʾ 14: Do You Value Your Promise to Allah?

Bismillah-ir Raḥmān-ir Raḥīm. All praise to Allah and peace and salutations upon his servant and final messenger Muḥammad (pbuh), Assalāmu ‘Alaykum wa Raḥmatullāhi wa Barakātuh! Welcome to another episode of our Ramaḍān Reflection series, Keys to the Divine Compass, where we go over verses of the Qur’an from every Juz throughout the month of Ramaḍān so that we can derive lessons and apply them to our lives.

InshaAllah today I will be going over verses 95 and 96 from Sūrah al-Naḥl (Sūrah 16) in which Allah (swt) says, “Do not sell the promise of Allah to gain a paltry sum, whatever is by Allah (swt) is better for you, if only you knew. Whatever is by you is fleeting and whatever is by Allah (swt) is everlasting, and we will absolutely reward those who are patient according to the best of what they had done.” In these two verses, Allah (swt) gives us the mindset of a believer in how we are supposed to treat and value our Dīn. When Allah (swt) guided us, this blessing absolutely topped any blessing that He could give us, after the fact that He gave us the ability to know, acknowledge, and submit to Him.

It is the greatest blessing that we have and if a person finds themselves in a position of compromising their Dīn to achieve something of this world, where the Dīn becomes a non-priority, where we compromise our values to get ahead in this world, to achieve the approval of people who do not have the same priorities and beliefs as us, Allah (swt) gives us a warning. No price that you pay in exchange for getting something in this world, if it means giving up the religion, if it means reneging on the promise that you have made to Allah it is not worth it. Even though Allah (swt) of course says ‘a paltry sum’ it does not mean that hypothetically if it was a higher price, it would be okay. Allah (swt) does not mean that if it was a high enough reward then you can deprioritize your religion and go back on the promise you made to Allah.

Absolutely not! Nothing is worth compromising the Dīn over, and Allah (swt) reminds us that what you are trying to ultimately gain in this world is not valuable in the long run, and even intrinsically it is not valuable when compared to what Allah (swt) has stored for you in the hereafter. But you must know what you are giving up to gain whatever you want in this world. Allah (swt) says in verse 96 that whatever is by you is temporary, that hypothetically you go through with this, you sell the Dīn of Allah (swt), you sell out the community, you sell your principles to gain some approval and value, to gain some objective in this world and do know people like this. Hypothetically you go through with it, what you ultimately gained will end because it is temporary, it is fleeting. You might feel that you have achieved a great thing, you might feel that what you had given up from your principles and from your beliefs was worth what you gained, but that will only last for as long as you are alive in this world because you can lose it earlier as well. Even if you are enjoying that benefit and achievement throughout the rest of your life, when you are gone you cannot take it with you. Contrast to what Allah (swt) has kept in store for you, that is everlasting. It is always there and worth being patient over any gain that you might achieve in this world.

Often, especially for people who are in very high positions, when they think that they might be able to affect some type of change, but to affect change they must give up something, usually the first thing to be compromised is religion. Nobody thinks of taking a pay cut, nobody thinks of getting a demotion, nobody thinks of leaving whatever they are doing, but when it comes to compromise the first thing that is typically compromised are the religious values, the principles that Allah (swt) and the Prophet (pbuh) taught us. Allah (swt) reminds us to be principled in these verses, that whatever you think you can gain by giving up on your values and principles in this world is not going to be worth it, because you are giving up something that is permanent, everlasting in exchange for something that is temporary. Even if it was worth it in the moment, on the day of judgment when the believers are being rewarded for their patience and for the best of their actions you will have wished you did the same.

May Allah (swt) protect all of us from compromising our principles and values to gain the approval of those who do not have the same objectives and priorities as us. May Allah (swt) guide, bless, and protect us all. Assalāmu ‘Alaykum wa Raḥmatullāhi wa Barakātuh.