Page 158 - The Silent Language Of Evil

THE SILENT LANGUAGE OF EVIL

They [the inhabitants of the city] said [to Our messengers],
"We see an evil omen in you. If you do not stop we will
stone you and you will suffer a painful punishment at our
hands." They said, "Your evil omen is in yourselves. Is it
not just that you have been reminded? No, you are an un-
bridled people!" (Surah Ya Sin: 18-19)
In the continuation of the verse, Allah says that the condition of
these people claiming they suffered injustice because of the advice

given them arose from their having exceeded their bounds. If they
behaved according to the Qur'an, they would see that their misery
may be a warning from Allah and would fear him and correct their
morality.
The idea that Allah may inflict suffering in the Afterlife would
cause a person of normal intelligence to fear and regret. Considering
what he had done, he would repent, abandon satan, take refuge in
Allah and completely change his intentions. But in such a situation,
some people are determined to maintain their friendship with satan;
the idea of being treated unjustly grows in their minds and they con-
tinue to make accusations against others. In the Qur'an, Allah gives
further examples of the way these people operate:
Whenever a good thing came to them, they said, "This is
our due." But if anything bad happened to them, they
would blame their ill fortune on Musa and those with him.
No indeed! The ill fortune is theirs in Allah's sight. But
most of them did not know. (Surat al-A'raf: 131)

They said, "We see you, and those with you, as an evil
omen." He [Salih] said, "No, your evil omen is with Allah;
you are merely a people undergoing a trial." (Surat an-
Naml: 47)

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