Will the Qur’an testify, on the Day of Resurrection, against those who went against it as it will testify for its companions (those who read it and acted upon it) and intercede for them?

Q. There are several hadeeths which says that the Qur’an will intercede for the one who reads it; are there any hadeeths which say that the Qur’an will be a witness against some people?

Praise be to Allah.

Firstly:

It is proven in the saheeh Sunnah that the Qur’an will intercede for its companions on the Day of Resurrection. Muslim (804) narrated that Abu Umaamah al-Baahili said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) say: “Read the Qur’aan, for it will come on the Day of Resurrection interceding for its companions.”

Imam Ahmad (6589) narrated from ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Fasting and the Qur’an will intercede for a person on the Day of Resurrection. Fasting will say: O Lord, I kept him from his food and desires during the day; let me intercede for him. And the Qur’an will say: I kept him from sleeping during the night; let me intercede for him. And they will be allowed to intercede.”

Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami‘, 7329

See also the answer to question no. 14035

Secondly:

Just as the Qur’an will intercede for its companions on the Day of Resurrection, it will also testify against those who went against it by neglecting it, ignoring its obligations and transgressing against the limits it set.

Muslim (223) narrated that Abu Maalik al-Ash‘ari said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The Qur’aan is evidence for you or against you.”

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Either it will be for you, if you sought to draw close to Allah means of it, and you fulfilled the obligations towards the Holy Qur’an, namely believing its stories, obeying its commands, heeding its prohibitions and venerating and respecting the Holy Qur’an, in which case it will be proof for you,

Or it will be the opposite, if you disrespected the Qur’an and neglected its words and meanings and failed to act upon it, and you did not fulfil the obligations towards it. In that case it will be a witness against you on the Day of Resurrection.

End quote from Sharh Riyadh as-Saaliheen, p. 30

Ibn Hibbaan narrated in his Saheeh (124) from Jaabir that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The Qur’an is an intercessor whose intercession will be accepted and an opponent whose testimony will be accepted. Whoever puts it in front of him, it will lead him to Paradise, and whoever puts it behind his back, it will drive him to Hell.”

Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in as-Saheehah, 2019; ad-Daaraqutni mentioned it in al-‘Ilal, 5/102, where he said that it was mawqoof and its isnaad stopped at Ibn Mas‘ood.

Ibn Hibbaan said, commenting on this hadeeth:

This is a report from the wording of which one who does not have deep knowledge may think that the Qur’an is something created, but that is not the case. The Arabs may give the name of a thing to its cause and they may give the name of the cause to the thing. Because acting in accordance with the Qur’an will lead a person to Paradise, the name of that thing, which is acting in accordance with the Qur’an, is given to its cause, which is the Qur’an. It does not mean that the Qur’an is created.

an-Nihaayah, 4/636

an-Mannaawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

It says in az-Zaahir: What is meant is that the one against whom the Qur’an testifies and says that he fell short and neglected it will be in Hell. And it is said: Do not make the Qur’an an opponent, i.e., to testify against you.

End quote from Fayd al-Qadeer, 4/699

It was narrated by Ibn Abi Shaybah in al-Musannaf (30667), Ibn Qutaybah in Ta’weel Mukhtalif al-Hadeeth (p. 258), Ibn ad-Durays in Fadaa’il al-Qur’an (89), via Muhammad ibn Ishaaq, from ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb, from his father, that his grandfather said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) say:

“The Qur’an will appear on the Day of Resurrection in the form of a man who will bring the man who learned it but went against its commands. It will appear as a disputant against him and will say: O Lord, You made him learn about me but what a bad learner he was; he transgressed my limits, neglected my obligations, disobeyed me and did not obey me. It will keep throwing accusations at him until it is said: Do what you like with him. Then it will take him by the hand and will not let him go until it throws him onto a rock in Hell. And it will bring a righteous man who learned it and adhered to its teachings. It will appear as a defendant and will say: O Lord, You made him learn about me and what a good learner he was; he respected my limits, did the obligatory duties, avoided the sins mentioned in me and obeyed my instructions. And it will keep presenting arguments in his favour until it is said: Do what you like with him. Then it will take him by the hand and will not let him go until it dresses him in brocade and puts on him the crown of a king.”

This is a da‘eef (weak) isnaad, because Ibn Ishaaq is mudallis and used the word ‘an (narrating from, i.e., he did not state clearly that he heard it directly). But al-Bukhaari (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his book Khalq Af‘aal al-‘Ibaad (474):

‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): “The Qur’an will appear in the form of a man on the Day of Resurrection and will intercede for its companions.”

Zuhayr ibn Harb told me: Ya‘qoob ibn Ibraaheem told us: my father told me from Ibn Ishaaq, and ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr told me, from his father, from his grandfather: I heard this from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Abu ‘Abdullah (i.e., al-Bukhaari) said: “This is his earnings and his deeds.” End quote.

So it is proven that Ibn Ishaaq heard the hadeeth from ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb, thus the hadeeth is proven.

The words “The Qur’an will appear on the Day of Resurrection…” mean that his recitation of the Qur’an will appear to him.

See the answer to question no. 91306

It was narrated by Ibn Abi Shaybah (30676) and ad-Daarimi (3325) from ash-Sha‘bi, from Ibn Mas‘ood who said: “The Qur’an will come on the Day of Resurrection and will intercede for its companion, and it will lead him to Paradise, or it will testify against (a person) and will drive him to Hell. Ash-Sha‘bi did not hear from Ibn Mas‘ood, as it says in al-Maraaseel by Ibn Abi Haatim (p. 25).

But there is a corroborating report that says: “The Qur’an is an intercessor whose intercession will be accepted and an opponent whose testimony will be accepted. Whoever puts it in front of him, it will lead him to Paradise, and whoever puts it behind his back, it will drive him to Hell.”

This was narrated via a number of isnaads from Ibn Mas‘ood (may Allah be pleased with him).See: Fadaa’il al-Qur’an by al-Firyaabi (20); Fadaa’il al-Qur’an by Abu ‘Ubayd (44); Fadaa’il al-Qur’an by Ibn Durays (94); az-Zuhd by Imam Ahmad (p. 155); Shu‘ab al-Eemaan by al-Bayhaqi (2010); al-Mu‘jam al-Kabeer by at-Tabaraani (8655).

From the above it is clear that just as the Qur’an will testify for its companions on the Date of Resurrection, it will also testify against those who went against it.

And Allah knows best.

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