I Have a Seat in The Cabinet – I Have Free Will

22 June, 2020
Q I’m having trouble understanding why Allah would create us with the knowledge that the vast majority of his creation would end up in Hell? Doesn’t that kind of prove Shaytaan's whole point that we are a dysfunctional creation?

Answer

Short Answer:

  • Some people will argue that God should not have created those misguided people.
  • The logic to that is that granting people free will to worship God, requires that some people will commit sins.
  • If the people who fall into sins repent to God sincerely, God, the Oft-Forgiving and Oft-Merciful, will accept their repentance and forgive their sins.

………….

Salam dear questioner,

Thank you for your question. 

Lack of Understanding 

First, we have to point out that some people do not believe in many things because they do not know the wisdom behind these things. The case we have with us is that we do not know why Allah the Almighty created people though He knows that most of them will go to Hell, then there is no wisdom behind creating people. 

Therefore, it is not right to say that what we do not know, does not exist. 

Humans’ Limited Knowledge

Second, Muslims believe that God is All-Perfect. Therefore, He has the Absolute Wisdom and Absolute Knowledge. Based on this understanding, it is not necessary to know the detailed wisdom of everything that God does. This is because if we know the wisdom of everything, then we will have the same Absolute Knowledge as God. We are humans, so we have limited knowledge. 

This is not an invitation not to use our reasoning or not to think. We should think of what we can reach. If we reach the wisdom behind things, that is great. If we fail to reach the wisdom of something, this does not mean there is no wisdom at all. 

Does God Need the Creation?

Another misunderstanding related to the question is that: God created people, so He needs people. 

The proper understanding of this issue is that one of the Attributes of God is that He is the Creator. This attribute requires that God can create everything. So, creating people does not mean that God is in need of people. 

The relationship between the cause and the result, in this case, is that the cause (God the Creator) is not in need of the result (the Creation). 

Many People Will Go to Hell: Why Were They Created?

God, out of His Infinite Justice, granted His creation free will. This free will is what makes people obey or disobey Him. 

God left people to their free will to worship Him or not to worship Him. On the Day of Resurrection, God will call people saying that: I sent down revelation and messengers to guide you to My way.  Those who followed My Way will be rewarded abundantly. And Those who went astray will be punished harshly.

Those who endure hardship on their way to God, it is natural that God will compensate them with Paradise

On the other hand, there are some people who prefer quick gain in this life by following their whims and personal desire. So, it is normal that there will be no reward for them in the Hereafter.

Some people will argue that God should not have created those misguided people. The logic to that is that granting people free will to worship God, requires that some people will commit sins. If the people who fall into sins repent to God sincerely, God, the Oft-Forgiving and Oft-Merciful, will accept their repentance and forgive their sins. 

If they continue sinning, God, who is severe in punishment, will punish them for their wrongdoings. 

God’s Attribute 

So, we have to differentiate between the Attributes of God, the consequences of His Attributes and those on whom His Attributes are applied. 

If there are not people who commit sins and then repent to God, we will not recognize the divine attribute of the Forgiving and the Merciful.

We will not understand the concept of punishment if all people are believers.  

God’s Absolute Knowledge and Our Free Will

Finally, it should be stressed that God’s absolute knowledge of people’s destiny does not mean that He forces people to worship Him or not to worship Him.  

Take this example, the teacher in the class knows who is clever and who is not. After taking the exams, the clever students cannot claim that they passed because the teacher forced them to pass because he knew their level. The same holds true for the unclever students. 

Likewise, if the teacher predicts the results of his students and his predictions come true, the students cannot claim that the teacher forced them to pass or fail because the results are the same as the predictions. 

Allah has determined the fate of everything and wrote this down on the Preserved Tablet. But His knowledge and writing the destiny of people has nothing to do with forcing people to do things. 

I Have a Seat in The Cabinet – I Have Free Will

Now we come to the issue of testing people. Being tested does not mean God loves or hates us. God tests us to prove who is going to pass the test because they endured it with patience or who is going to fail the test because they did not maintain patience.

Also, when we do things, we do them out of our free will but with the permission of God. This displays God’s Absolute Knowledge.

We hope this answers your query.

And Allah knows best.

I hope this helps.

Salam and please keep in touch.

Please continue feeding your curiosity, and find more info in the following links:

Are We Entitled to Our Own Free Will?

Why Would God Create Us to Go To Hell?

God Is Merciful- Why Hell?