Why does Allah allow Satan to live until the Doomsday?

Fri, 11/09/2009 - 14:51 | Anonymous

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A Brief Description of the Question:
Why did Allah let satan live until the Last Day?
The Answer:
After rebelling against Allah, the devil asked for a respite and he was granted
respite till the Day of Resurrection. Actually, that wish of him is also a
punishment for himself. He made a wish which causes his torment in the Hereafter to
increase as he is the cause of all evils perpetrated until the Doomsday. That way,
he preferred a life full of shame and abasement to death.

His being granted respite:

The Satan, who despaired of Divine mercy and was left completely alone because of
his haughtiness as regards the command of prostrating before Adam, peace be upon
him, started to doubt about his life, too. He implored Allah, saying: -Grant me
respite till the Day when they are raised from the dead. (The Qur'an, Al-A'raf,
7:14). What is meant with the Day when they are raised from the dead is the time
when The Trumpet will be blown for the second time (The Qur'an, Az-Zumar, 39:68;
Al-Mutaffifin, 83:6). By asking for such a respite, he knew that after the
Resurrection, there would be no more death and he assumed that he would thus be
saved from death. That wish for immortality was answered as You shall be among the
ones granted respite. (The Qur'an, Al-A'raf, 7:15) with the condition Until the
Day of the appointed time known. (The Qur'an, Al-Hijr, 15:38). And what is meant
with the appointed time is the time when The Trumpet is blown for the first time
(The Qur'an, An-Naml, 27:87). Thereby, he preferred a life full of shame and
abasement to death. And that was his real downfall.
As is understood from above, not only did Satan not deny Allah and the Resurrection
after death, but he also knew that Adam would have generations, and after living on
the earth for some time, they would die and one day they would be resurrected. So,
his unbelief does not arise from his denial of Allah and the Hereafter, but is
about not carrying out what is necessitated by the command and is a kind of
rebellion. (Yazir, the work mentioned, III, 2135).
His duty: The Satan, who was granted respite until a certain time, did not try the
way of asking for forgiveness by accepting his fault and repenting. On the
contrary, he became even more ferocious. He chose for himself an aim with which he
could busy himself till the Day of Resurrection. And that aim was the human being
who was the reason why he was driven away from Divine mercy. He was conquered by
feelings of avenge. In a daring fashion, he explained those feelings of his to
Allah: My Lord! Because You have allowed me to rebel and go astray, I will indeed
deck out to be appealing to them on the earth (the worldly, material dimension of
human existence and the path of error), and I will surely cause them all to rebel
and go astray. (The Qur'an, Al-Hijr, 15:39)
As is seen, Allah Almighty did not immediately drive the Satan away from His
presence because of his rebellion, He firstly gave him the permission to talk and
granted him the opportunity to understand his mistake and to repent of it, but when
he insisted on his obstinacy and rebellion, Allah drove him off from the rank where
he was then and limited the plans he devised this way: My servants-you shall have
no authority over any of them, unless it be such as follow you being rebellious
(against Me, as you are). (The Qur'an, Al-Hijr, 15:42). Get out from there,
disgraced and disowned! Those of them that follow you, surely I will fill Hell with
you all! (The Qur'an, Al-A'raf, 7:18). So, whoever obeys the Satan will be his
follower and will face the same end he will face. As is understood from those
verses, the Satan was not given any power with which he can affect the sincere
servants of Allah. Therefore, one who is against the Satan in his thoughts,
lifestyle and disposition, will keep the quality of being Allah's servant. And
the person who has a quality of the Satan then bears a trait of the Satan. (Yazir,
the work mentioned, 111, 2138)
The wisdom in his creation: Our scholars have said that there are certain pearls of
wisdom and aims in the creation of the Satan.
a- Allah created things with their opposites so that they can be distinguished from
one another and that the differences between them can be perceived by humans.
Similarly, the Satan was created in opposition to the existence of the angels, who
are among the purest and noblest creatures and who advise what is good and just.
b- Another pearl of wisdom in the Satan's creation is the necessity for a being on
which the names of Allah which refer to His greatness are reflected, such as Al-
Qahhar (The All Compelling Subduer), Al-Muntaqim (The Avenger), Al-Adl (The
Utterly Just), The One with Severe Punishment, The Fast Reckoner, Al-Hafiz (The
Preserver), Ar-Rafie (The Exalter), Al-Muezz (The Giver of Honor), Al-Mudhell
(The Giver of Dishonor). For those names are the names of perfection which
necessitate a being on which they will reflect. If the human and the jinn were in
the nature of the angel, the work and result of those names could not realize.
c- If the Satan were not created, then it would not be possible for Allah's names
and attributes of perfection which include such points as protection, forgiveness,
mercy, covering and forgiving sins, to be reflected. Our Prophet articulates that
concisely: If you did not commit sins, Allah would certainly remove you, and would
bring a people whose individuals commit sins and pray for forgiveness and to whom
Allah would show forgiveness. (Muslim, Tawba, 2; Tirmidhi, Jannat, 2; Daavat, 98;
Ahmad b. Hanbal, I, 289, II, 309).
d- If the Satan were not created, it would not be possible to speak of worship and
obedience to Allah. For certain deeds can be defined as worship, good and righteous
only through the existence of their opposites. And it is the Satan who shows the
way to humans in evil deeds. (Seyyid Sbik, the work mentioned, p. 155-156; A. Saim
Kilavuz, Anahatlariyla Islm Akidi ve Kelm'a Giris, Istanbul 1987, p. 196)

11-09-2009 02:51:37