Surah Ar-Ra'd (13) — Ayah 39

(Ayah39){يَمْحُوا اللّٰهُ مَا يَشَآءُ وَ يُثْبِتُ …:} Apparently, this verse is contrary to this hadith: [ جَفَّ الْقَلَمُ بِمَا أَنْتَ لَاقٍ ] [بخاری، النکاح، باب ما یکرہ من التبتل والخصاء : ۵۰۷۶ ] "The pen has dried with what you are going to receive or encounter." From this hadith, it is understood that what has been decided will not be erased now. For the solution to this question, the scholars have interpreted this verse in two ways: one is that just as miracle and karamah are in the power of Allah alone, and no one else has any share in them, similarly, keeping any command in effect or abrogating it is also in His power alone, and with Him is the original Book in which it is also written how long a command is to remain in effect and which command is to be abrogated and when. In other words, this is a refutation of the Jews who did not believe in abrogation. Allah Almighty has also refuted them in Surah Al-Baqarah: «{ مَا نَنْسَخْ مِنْ اٰيَةٍ اَوْ نُنْسِهَا نَاْتِ بِخَيْرٍ مِّنْهَاۤ اَوْ مِثْلِهَا }» [ البقرۃ : ۱۰۶ ] That is, whatever verse We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, We bring a better one or one like it, and all this keeping or abrogating (erasing and affirming) is recorded in Umm al-Kitab, which is with Allah alone. Please also see the commentary of Surah Al-Baqarah, verse (106).

Similarly, Allah keeps the commands of a Messenger in effect as long as He wills, then whenever He wills, He makes the commands of the later Messenger obligatory and ends the practice on the previous one. {’’ يَمْحُوا اللّٰهُ مَا يَشَآءُ وَ يُثْبِتُ ‘‘} also includes that in the record of deeds of any servant, Allah keeps any good or bad deed as He wills, and erases as He wills, and it is not that He did not know beforehand what He would keep or erase, rather the original Book is with Him.

The second interpretation is that there are two types of decree (qadar): one in which there is no change, called "qada' mubram," and this is the one about which the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said to Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him): [ جَفَّ الْقَلَمُ بِمَا أَنْتَ لَاقٍ ] [ بخاری، النکاح، باب ما یکرہ من التبتل والخصاء : ۵۰۷۶ ] "The pen has dried with what you are going to receive or encounter." And there is a decree in which there is change, called "taqdeer mu'allaq," and that too is in Allah's knowledge. Thus, Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "In the world, everything is by means; some means are apparent and some are hidden. The effect of the means has a set measure; when Allah wills, He makes their effect less or more than the measure, and when He wills, He keeps it as it is. Sometimes a man dies from a pebble and survives a bullet, and there is a measure of everything in Allah's knowledge, which never changes. The measure is called taqdeer; thus, there are two taqdeers: one that changes (taqdeer of the effect of means) and one that does not change (i.e., divine knowledge)." (Mawdhih)

Shaykh Nasir al-Din al-Albani said in Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Da'ifah (5448): "Qurtubi also indicated this in his tafsir 'al-Jami' (5/332),' he writes: 'And the belief is that there is no change in Allah's decisions (qada'), and this erasing and affirming is also included among those things whose decision has already been made, and it has already been mentioned that among the qada' are those things that must necessarily occur, these are the ones that are affirmed (mubram), and some are those in which change occurs due to some means, these are the erased (mahw). (And Allah knows best) Ghaznawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 'In my view, what is in the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawh al-Mahfuz) has come out of the unseen, because some angels are also aware of it, so it can be changed, because it is impossible for the creation to be fully aware of Allah's complete knowledge, and the decree and settled matter in His knowledge never changes.' (It is written in the footnote of Silsilah Da'ifah that apparently Ghaznawi refers to 'Ali bin Ibrahim bin Isma'il, whose title is 'Taj al-Shari'ah,' a Hanafi jurist and commentator, whose book 'Tafsir al-Tafsir' is very excellent, as many scholars have said, he died in 582 AH. Al-A'lam) In summary, this 'erasing and affirming' has no connection with the false belief of 'bada'' which some misguided people have adopted, meaning that you do something, then if you find it wrong, you change it. To hold such a belief about Allah is haram, because He already knows what is right and what is wrong.

With this detail, the confusion regarding the belief that Allah's decisions cannot be changed, and all those hadiths and sayings of the Companions from which it is understood that sometimes destiny can change, especially through supplication, is resolved. For example, the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him): [ لاَ يَرُدُّ الْقَضَاءَ إِلاَّ الدُّعَاءُ وَلَا يَزِيْدُ فِي الْعُمُرِ إِلَّا الْبِرُّ ] [ ترمذی، القدر، باب ما جاء لا یرد القدر إلا الدعاء : ۲۱۳۹۔ سلسلۃ الأحادیث الصحیحۃ : 153/1، ح : ۱۵۴ ] "Nothing repels destiny except supplication, and nothing increases life except righteousness." Similarly, the supplications of some Companions: "O Allah! If You have written me as wretched, then change it and write me as blessed."

39. 1. One meaning of this is that He abrogates whatever command He wills and keeps whatever He wills. Another meaning is that He makes erasure and affirmation in the destiny He has written; with Him is the Preserved Tablet. This is supported by some hadiths and traditions. For example, in one hadith it is mentioned that "A person is deprived of sustenance due to sins, destiny is changed by supplication, and life is increased by maintaining family ties" (Musnad Ahmad, Vol. 5, p. 277). From some Companions, this supplication is narrated (اللَّھُمَّ اِنْ کُنْتَ کَتَبْتَّنَا اٰشْقِیَاءَ فَامْحُنَا وَاَکْتُبْنَا سُعَدَاءَ وَاِنَّ کُنْتَ کَتَبْتَنَا سُعَدَاءَ فَائُبِسْتُنَا فَاِنَّکَ تَمْحُوْ مَا تَشَآءُ وَ تُثْبْتُ وَ عِنْدَکَ اُ مُّ الْکِتَابِ) It is narrated from Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that during tawaf, weeping, he would recite this supplication: "اللھم ان کنت کتبت علی شقوۃ او ذنبا فامحہ فانک تمحو ما تشاء وتثبت وعندک ام الکتاب فاجعلہ سعادۃ ومغفرۃ" (Ibn Kathir). O Allah, if You have written wretchedness or sin for me, then erase it, for You erase whatever You will and affirm whatever You will; with You is the Preserved Tablet, so change wretchedness to happiness and forgiveness (Ibn Kathir). An objection can be raised to this understanding that in the hadith it is mentioned: "The pen has dried over what is to be" (Sahih Bukhari). Whatever is to happen, the pen has written it and dried. The answer given is that this erasure and affirmation is also included in decree and destiny itself (Fath al-Qadir).

39. Allah erases whatever He wills and confirms whatever He wills, and with Him is the Mother of the Book [51].

[51]
A Different Shariah for Every Era:

That is, every prophet has presented the same fundamental principles of religion. However, there have been differences in their laws according to the requirements of their respective eras. To understand this, consider that in the Mosaic law, the command of retribution (qisas) was present, but there was no concept of pardon and forgiveness. Then, in the Christian law, the command of retribution was set aside and all emphasis was placed on pardon and forgiveness. In the Muhammadan Shariah, the command of retribution was reinstated, but preference was still given to pardon and forgiveness. Such changes in rulings were made for the reformation of the temperaments of the people of that era. Allah maintained whichever command He wished from the previous laws and abrogated whichever He wished, giving new types of rulings, and all of this happens according to Allah’s all-encompassing eternal knowledge, which is called Umm al-Kitab or the Preserved Tablet (Lawh Mahfuz).