# Juz 23: Facing Your Trials With Honor | Dr. Farah Islam

**Author:** Dr. Omar Suleiman
**Series:** Qur’an 30 for 30 | Season 7
**Published:** 2026-03-12
**YouTube:** https://youtu.be/wDgTNn_DzjU
**URL:** https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-23
**Topics:** Faith, Quran

## Summary
This episode of Qur'an 30 for 30 covers Juz 19, featuring Ustadh Roohi Tahir alongside Shaykh Omar and Shaykh Abdullah. The discussion centers on the profound question of what gives a person value in the sight of Allah, anchored by the verse from Surah Al-Furqan: 'Say, what would my Lord care for you if not for your du'a?' [Al-Furqan 25:77]. The speakers explain that du'a is the outward manifestation of iman, and Ibn Abbas interpreted this verse to mean that it is one's faith that gives them worth before Allah. A key distinction is drawn between Allah's general love for all of creation and His specific love reserved for the believers — with iman being a gift Allah grants only to those He loves. The episode also explores Surah Al-Furqan's description of 'ibadur-Rahman (servants of the Most Merciful) and the verse 'Sufficient is your Lord as a guide and a helper' [Al-Furqan 25:31], emphasizing that hidayah (guidance) and nusrah (divine support) together empower believers to withstand any opposition. The discussion transitions to Surah An-Naml and the example of Prophet Sulayman (عليه السلام), who recognized his extraordinary blessings as a test and responded with gratitude, acknowledging 'whoever is grateful, is grateful for their own good, and whoever is ungrateful, my Lord is Self-Sufficient and Most Generous' [An-Naml 27:40]. The speakers connect these themes to contemporary suffering, particularly in Gaza and Palestine, affirming that Allah is with the believers in their hardship, and encouraging those in positions of privilege to reflect on how they use their blessings in service of others.

## Key Points
- Du'a is the manifestation of iman — you would not call upon Allah if you did not believe in Him, and it is what gives a person value in Allah's sight.
- Ibn Abbas interpreted 'if not for your du'a' [Al-Furqan 25:77] as meaning 'if not for your iman,' equating supplication with faith.
- Allah gives worldly blessings to both those He loves and those He does not love, but He grants iman only to those He loves — making faith the true marker of divine love.
- There is a general love of Allah for all creation and a specific, elevated love earned through faith and righteous action.
- The combination of Allah's hidayah (guidance) and nusrah (support) together is what empowers and protects believers against all forms of resistance and oppression.
- Every prophet faced enemies and tyrants — this is a universal principle — but Allah's guidance and help are always sufficient to overcome that resistance.
- Prophet Sulayman (عليه السلام) exemplifies the correct response to immense blessing: recognizing it as a test and responding with gratitude rather than arrogance or tyranny.
- Those in positions of privilege should reflect on how they use their blessings, knowing that even small sincere efforts are not wasted by Allah (Al-Karim).
- The steadfastness and resilience of those suffering the most intense oppression, such as in Gaza, is itself a sign of their connection to Allah through du'a and iman.
- Gratitude to Allah is ultimately for one's own benefit — 'whoever is grateful, is grateful for their own good' [An-Naml 27:40].

## Chapters
- 0:00 Introduction
- 3:08 Emphasis on Allah’s majesty and mercy
- 7:35 The imperfect mercy shown by humans
- 11:55 The Qur’an and the Prophet ﷺ as gifts from Allah
- 14:53 Is your pain a gift from Allah?
- 18:15 “When you are silent, your heart starts to speak”
- 21:53 Al-Wahhab taught you how to make du’a
- 23:27 When you think others are undeserving
- 27:17 The midlife crises of Muslim women

## Transcript
**[0:00]** And I also love, you know, maybe they're not just, they're not really names necessarily, but epithets, I guess, of Allah, like, Ya Mujriya al-Sahab, O Mover of the clouds, or the One who splits the grain and the date stone, right?

**[0:18]** There's such poetry in calling upon Allah that way. Allah says, Salamun ala al-mursaleen. You think of the mursaleen, the ones that have been sent by Allah and the sacrifices they made. Ask yourself, what sacrifices, really, really, really, for Allah have I made?

**[0:34]** You know, Surah Yaseen goes from this man that is warning his people and calling them to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And they are rejecting and saying, ma anzala ar-Rahmanu min shay', no, the Most Merciful didn't send anything. Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, welcome back to Quran 30 for 30, alhamdulillah

**[0:58]** As we are now in Juz 23, as we're in the last 10 nights, we want to remind you all to please keep us in your du'a, bi idhnillahi ta'ala, and of course, to support the work of Yaqeen, this may be an odd, it is an odd night, it may be Laylatul Qadr, of course, and as you're pursuing inshallah ta'ala, the reward from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, we hope that this

**[1:16]** content has been rewarding to you. And so, whatever is left of these nights, bi idhnillahi ta'ala, or if you like to give on the odd nights alone, please do inshallah ta'ala, click the link below, and donate generously bi idhnillahi ta'ala, and we are blessed, walhamdulillah, to have Dr. Farah Islam with

**[1:32]** us. SubhanAllah, the benefit that we get every time you join us is tremendous, walhamdulillah, so we're really looking forward to hearing your remarks, I know Sheikh Abdullah, masha'Allah, was really happy that you were going to be coming back and giving us some wisdom, some

**[1:48]** nasiha, walhamdulillah, and some reflections, so, welcome back, I was asking about your son who you referenced on the first Quran 30 for 30, who I guess was 5 years old at the time, you know, and now he's 10, right? Yes, subhanAllah, right, alhamdulillah, no, no.

**[2:03]** We should start telling like our kids' ages by Quran 30 for 30. How old is he, you know, in 2020, he was, walhamdulillah, may Allah bless your family, may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, always surround them with mercy and tranquility and righteousness,

**[2:18]** Allahumma ameen. Dr. Farah, if you don't mind me asking you, putting you on the spot, we're asking every guest, what's your favorite name of Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, at the moment, is there one that immediately comes to mind? Oh, I love that question, so, alhamdulillah, this year, we got to go for Umrah, this is

**[2:34]** the first year that we got to take our son, alhamdulillah, so, you know, we hoisted him up on our shoulders, let him see the Maqam Ibrahim, like there are these special moments, alhamdulillah, right? So, the name, I think that kept coming back to me, because I think when you're in the

**[2:51]** sacred lands, I think you can't help but be overwhelmed by the splendor of your Lord, it's like you're in the palace of the Majestic King, and so, Ya Malik, so, Ya Malik, I am in your court, awaiting your command at your service, right, these are the kinds of du'as

**[3:09]** that felt really powerful at that time, and yeah, so, I hold on to those, absolutely, and I also love, you know, maybe they're not just, they're not really names, necessarily, but epithets, I guess, of Allah, like, Ya Mujriya as-Sahab, O Mover of the clouds, or the One who splits the grain and the date stone, right, there's such poetry in calling upon

**[3:29]** Allah that way. Allahu akbar, subhanAllah, you know, that's, and that's, we find that precedent in the sunnah of the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, to relate to not just the asma' and sifat, but also the af'al, and the doings of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and that's a way to bring something really specific into your life as well, may Allah bless you, jazakAllah khayran

**[3:49]** for that powerful reflection, unique, I don't think anyone else has said it, walhamdulillah, may Allah bless you, so this is a juz', subhanAllah, Juz' 23 is a juz' truly of majesty, like Allah azza wa jal's majesty, and it starts in the middle of Surah Yaseen, goes into az-Zumar,

**[4:09]** which, you know, these are two surahs that have so much love in the hearts of the believers, Surah Yaseen, you know, truly, subhanAllah, is reflected upon and recited probably of the longer surahs more than any other surah, it's like Surah Yaseen, Surah Rahman, Surah

**[4:29]** Yaseen itself, right, and Surah az-Zumar, the later part of it has the famous verse of forgiveness, but between these two surahs, there were just a few that I wanted to look at, you know, Surah Yaseen goes from this man that is warning his people, and calling them to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala,

**[4:49]** and they are rejecting, and saying ma anzala ar-Rahmanu min shay', no, the Most Merciful didn't send anything, right, and the scholars have multiple reflections on that idea of them even mocking the caller, right, mocking the messengers, with the names that they are introducing

**[5:06]** the people to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala with, like, oh, this Rahman you're telling us about did not reveal anything, right, this forgiving God of yours doesn't really exist, so the way that they were mocking the messengers to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, of Allah subhanahu

**[5:23]** wa ta'ala, and this man is killed, and of course he says the famous words, ya layta qawmi ya'lamun, right, bima ghafara li rabbi, right, if they knew, if only my people knew how forgiving my Lord was to me, and how much He honored me, right, if they could see where I'm at

**[5:40]** right now, this is after they beat a man to death, right, the man is killed by these people, and he immediately, qeela adkhuli al-jannah, enter into Jannah, right, and he says, ya layta qawmi ya'lamun, if only my people knew better, and there's something subhanAllah beautiful about that, because it shows the heart of da'wah, that he wishes that his people would

**[5:57]** still gain salvation, and there's also a part of, like, he wishes his people who mocked him and who disposed of him could see how Allah azza wa jal honored him, but fast forward a little bit, since we're focusing on how Allah talks about Himself, verse 58, salamun

**[6:15]** qawlan min rabbin rahim, I love this ayah, salamun qawlan min rabbin rahim, right, peace, a word from the Merciful Lord, right, that this is the greeting of every single person into Jannah, that this is not unique to the entrance of this man into Jannah, and of course

**[6:33]** ar-Rahim, as Ibn Abbas mentioned, Rahmanun fi al-dunya, Rahimun fi al-akhira, the Rahman in this world, wa kana bil-mu'mineena rahima, Rahim is specific to the believers, the customized mercy of the Lord to the believers, you also go into as-Saffat, subhana rabbika rabbi al-'izzati

**[6:54]** 'amma yasifoon, to your point about mentioning very particular actions of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, glory be to your Lord, the Lord of Might, far above what they attribute to Him, wa salamun 'ala al-mursaleen, walhamdulillahi rabbi al-'alameen, right, and peace be upon the

**[7:09]** messengers of Allah, and all praises belong to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the Lord of all the worlds, His majesty again, He's praising it, and then one more thing that I noticed, subhanAllah, is actually a repetition, but with similar context, in Surah Sad, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala mentions, rabbu al-samawati wa al-ard, wa ma baynahuma al-'Azizu al-Ghaffar,

**[7:29]** the Lord of the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them, al-'Aziz al-Ghaffar, the Almighty, the All-Forgiving, Ghaffar is intense, and then, in Surah az-Zumar, in the beginning, yukawwiru al-layla 'ala al-nahar, wa yukawwiru al-nahara 'ala al-layl, wa sakhkhara al-shamsa wa al-qamar, kullun yajri li-ajalin musamma, ala huwa al-'Azizu al-Ghaffar, He wraps

**[7:49]** the night over the day and the day over the night, He subjected the sun and the moon, each runs for an appointed term, is He not al-'Aziz al-Ghaffar, the Almighty, the All-Forgiving, so it's subhanAllah, like His precision, He knows His creation, He knows you, He created you in a way that you're going to fall, but He also, you know, just the hadith, the Prophet

**[8:09]** sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, that if you were not to sin, Allah would replace you with a creation that would sin, so that He could forgive them, so they could call upon Him, so that He could forgive them, so it is truly a juz of majesty, right, but majesty and mercy at the same time, like paired together so beautifully, Sheikh Abdullah, I'd love to

**[8:24]** hear any thoughts, bi idhnillahi ta'ala, from you first and Dr. Farah inshallah, then we'll get to a very specific portion of the juz. I like how you mentioned majesty and mercy, actually even the majesty of His mercy, it's majestic, being that the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is far

**[8:41]** beyond our implementation of mercy, even if we have it at the right time, sometimes we're merciful for the wrong, the wrong person or our reasons at the wrong time, and sometimes we're not merciful to the person that needs mercy, it's always, you know, because it's within that element or within

**[8:58]** that foundation of us being human, that we will make mistakes, that we will be negligent, that we will not hit the mark, but ar-Rahman, the Merciful, is the One that will supply us and grant His mercy to us in all situations, but it's important, again, the common theme of the Qur'an, Allah is telling

**[9:16]** you about Himself to remind you, again, this goes back to dhikr, the remembrance, which that remembrance can bring forth the mentioning of Allah through your tongue, the remembrance in the mind, the remembrance of Allah in the heart, which brings life to the heart, which can bring, further bring life to the actions, but it's that connection of the heart with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, by

**[9:34]** knowing who He is and knowing who He says that He is not, and in worshiping Him based on that, and then also the sacrifice, as we see in Surah as-Saffat, the sacrifice of Ibrahim alayhi as-salam, you know, when Allah says, when they both submitted, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, I love, that's one of my, it's so

**[9:52]** refreshing at the very end of Surah as-Saffat, then he just, alhamdulillah, man, every time I hear that, I recite it, it's like, man, alhamdulillah for Islam, I'm so happy to be a Muslim, walhamdulillah, you know,

**[10:08]** you just see, Allah says, salamun 'ala al-mursaleen, you think of the mursaleen, the ones that have been sent by Allah, and the sacrifices they made, do you think about yourself, what sacrifices, really, really, really, for Allah have I made, you know, what sacrifices have I made, and then I

**[10:25]** attributed it to myself, if I'm a father, if I'm a mother, but I don't thank Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, I don't attribute the goodness that I've done for someone in front of that person, attributing it back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and then just seeing the graciousness of Allah, the mercy of

**[10:41]** Allah, the bounty of Allah, the greatness of Allah, the love of Allah, the protection of Allah, all these manifestations of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, you just say, alhamdulillah, when you recite Surat al-Fatiha, the next time we recite it, you say, alhamdulillah, and you just think of everything that Allah has

**[10:57]** given you, and everything that He's taken away from you, that you know, but imagine that which you don't know, which is much more, just knowing that there's much more that He's given you and taken away from you, the fact that there's much more of that, that you're not aware of, is

**[11:14]** another reason for you to say alhamdulillah, so when you just say alhamdulillah, just know that there are many people out there that are suffering, and I'm not really suffering right now, compared to those people, like frankly, I mean, you know, obviously goes without saying, our brothers and sisters in Gaza, brothers and sisters in Sudan, brothers and sisters in Yunnan, in different parts of the world that

**[11:34]** are suffering physically, but subhanAllah, the death of some of those hearts brings life to our hearts, inshallah, so we think about what they're going through, what they face, the strength that they've had, the wherewithal that they've had, and how that has brought them closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and we're able to see it real-time, we're able to see it days later, months

**[11:53]** later, and it's going to be in the history books, obviously, which always serves as a means to show us the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala manifested in different ways, but in the end of the day, in the end of the day, when you see this, do you say, alhamdulillah, you know, and that's really the

**[12:10]** responsibility for each and every single one of us individually, and collectively as communities. Dr. Farah, any thoughts about just the overview of the juz before we get to the specific question? SubhanAllah, no, that's, that's a beautiful reflection, both of you, mashallah, mashallah, oh,

**[12:27]** subhanAllah, no, there's so much to say about the majesty of our Lord, that His mercy is interlaced with everything that He does, and everything that we are given every day, subhanAllah, I can't comprehend that. So, Dr. Farah, on that note, there is something great, the greatest that was given to

**[12:50]** the greatest, that being the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, which is the Qur'an being revealed to the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and when the mushrikun asked, you know, how come the mercy of your Lord, the treasures of the mercy of your Lord, right? Why would they come to you? Why not us? Allah

**[13:08]** azza wa jal responds with, He is al-'Aziz al-Wahhab in this juz. Can you tell us a little bit about the context of this ayah, and what are some of the wisdoms of Allah azza wa jal emphasizing His might and His generosity in this ayah? It's a phenomenal verse, it's a powerful verse, it's a question

**[13:25]** posed back, it's a counter to the Quraysh, you know, how delusional can you be to think that the gifts of God would be dictated by you, right? And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, He refers to His khaza'in ar-rahma, which I love, this idea that Allah has a depository, a treasure house of His

**[13:44]** mercy. And what is that gift that He's telling us, He's giving to us every day from that treasure house? He's speaking of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, that He chose the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam out of this depository or treasure house of mercy, to be the mercy to all the worlds.

**[14:05]** That's the gift that the Infinitely Giving chose to give us every day. Number one, the very Word of God. And number two, His example as He was the walking Qur'an sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. And so in

**[14:20]** this way, our Wahhab, the Infinitely Giving, gives to us every day. And we can't comprehend the boundlessness of His gifts. You know, there's that beautiful quote from Ibn 'Ata'illah rahimahullah

**[14:35]** who reminds us, he tells us, you know, that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala chose the Hereafter to be the abode where He rewarded His believing servants, because this dunya is too limited, right? Only in eternity, can He give us all that He wants to give. And oftentimes, we live in the if only, right? We

**[14:58]** think, you know, if only I married that person, if only I was born into a different family, if only I, you know, had gotten Bitcoin. That's my favorite one right now. Then my life would be better, right? But that isn't where, al-Wahhab, that isn't where the Infinitely Giving placed you. Don't

**[15:20]** waste your years longing for a life you didn't have. What looks like defeat can actually be victory from the Divine. All those years when you thought that you only saw poverty and missed opportunities, He has only

**[15:38]** been giving to you. You know, my sisters and my brothers, you know, maybe there will come a day when the veil of the unseen will be lifted for us. Maybe one day, we'll see that that illness that afflicted you in this life was really the angels coming as heralds of good news to you, telling you that if you took this

**[16:00]** tribulation with, with the, with the, you know, with honor, with, you know, with steadfastness, with perseverance, and you held on to Allah through it, this could be your ticket to Jannah. And so maybe, maybe when that illness afflicted you, that moment when it did, maybe it was actually the angels bathing you in

**[16:20]** gold from the heavens. And subhanAllah, we can't comprehend what Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has been giving to us all this time, that if that veil were lifted, you would be overwhelmed by the gifts of your Lord. And, you know, this

**[16:38]** reflection, this meaning making, this turning back, this reframing, I understand that oftentimes it comes after the fact, right? And it doesn't take away the pain or the loss or the grief, but it can help give you a capital R reason for

**[16:55]** why you went through what you did. And we need that, that solace makes all the difference. You know, Allah is teaching us through this, to strip ourselves of the illusion of this dunya, right, that this clinging to this worldly

**[17:12]** life is exactly what brings us pain. And it's weirdly counterintuitive, I know, but I'm telling you that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is training us not to feel as much pain by putting us through pain. But that's the exact logic that we use when we, in strength

**[17:29]** conditioning, right, when we work out, we create micro tears in our muscle fibers. And when our muscle fibers repair and grow back, they don't grow back to baseline, they grow back stronger. And the same is true of the believer. You know, Allah will keep

**[17:47]** sending you His gifts until you wake up. They're not going to feel like gifts to you. But He will keep sending you His gifts of tribulation until you get the message, right? Because if you don't learn the inherent lessons wrapped in

**[18:04]** those gifts of tribulation, they will be wasted upon you. They will wash off you like runoff washes off the land. But Allah will keep sending you those gifts because Allah loves you that much. He is telling you, I need you to wake up. And so this is not a

**[18:24]** removed God. This is not a wrathful God. This is a Giving God who loves you. Satan gifts you with poverty. Allah gifts you with His forgiveness and an unending eternal garden. So return, dear soul to your Lord. Return to al-'Aziz al-Wahhab.

**[18:45]** MashaAllah. MashaAllah. MashaAllah. It's hard to follow that. May Allah bless you. It's always hard. It's always hard. Truly always hard. SubhanAllah. I'd love to hear. What do you? No, mashaAllah. I mean, you know, al-'Aziz al-Wahhab, you know, these beautiful names that Allah is the Mighty and He bestows with might, you know,

**[19:12]** His bestowment of His blessings and His granting of His mercy is always with might and with authority, which shows the authoritative nature, if you will, of the Creator of the heavens and the earth. And I love how you just mentioned turning back to Allah. I mean, we're in the month of Ramadan.

**[19:28]** This is the time to really ponder, to think, to hold yourself accountable, to ask those crucial questions that you haven't asked. And let's be honest, you've probably denied asking those questions alone because you haven't had the time to be alone because you never wanted to be alone in order to face that.

**[19:49]** But when you are, it serves as a huge opportunity. I forgot who mentioned it, but it was basically when you are silent, the mind starts to speak. You start to talk. Your heart starts to cry out. And that's what Allah wants from you. He wants your heart to cry out to Him.

**[20:05]** He wants you to be vulnerable to Him. He wants you to think about those sins that you've covered up and don't want to think about. But that time that you're alone with Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, serves as a huge opportunity to recall and have that history of what you've done and what you didn't do.

**[20:22]** And then to face it, to face it. And when you face it, you realize, subhanAllah, OK, I'm here now. I feel horrible. Nobody's watching. Nobody's listening to me. You know, years ago, Sheikh, you mentioned some of those. I think we were in the old Yaqeen.

**[20:38]** You were just talking about making du'a and you just stopped and you were like, just go, just go. When you're making that du'a, just go. Don't worry about the Arabic. Don't worry about it. Just go. And that's what Allah wants. He just wants you to just go. And remember that He is al-'Aziz. He is the Almighty. He has the might.

**[20:59]** He has the strength to overpower any obstacle that you're facing by granting you that tranquility that you never thought that you would get. That's sakinah, the closure even. I mean, how many of us have relatives that have passed away? And we think about, wow, I was not good to that person. I didn't make amends with that person.

**[21:18]** I didn't think this person would die of COVID, for example. I was so surprised. I didn't visit that person when I said I was going to, when they were in the hospital, when they were in the ICU. Now they're out of the ICU and they give me salams and they're happy. But when I see that person, it's like I didn't even visit him. I told him I was going to come and visit them.

**[21:36]** Those that have been locked up, for example, I never sent them a letter. And then they see you and it's like, yeah, he's smiling. But I know inside I didn't do what I wish would have been done for me if I was in that situation. Right. You know, so it's important for us to realize this month of Ramadan is a huge opportunity for you to wake up,

**[21:57]** for you to ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for forgiveness, for you to think about your life, the good, the bad, the ugly. And each one of these situations that you face in your life to think of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and His names and attributes and realize that Allah can overpower any obstacle that you're facing

**[22:14]** and He can transform it into something that is good. But it takes that small effort, that small effort, that step to run towards Him, to walk towards Him. You walk towards Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, Allah yuharwil.

**[22:30]** And yuharwil is like to make a brisk run, meaning basically He will give you more than you expect and more than, let's be honest, than we deserve. Right. I almost feel like not spoiling the last 10 minutes with any reflections. It's beautiful.

**[22:45]** Mashallah, extremely beneficial. Just two dimensions that come to mind, like Allah gifts, al-Wahhab gifts du'a. So even like the way to call upon Him, the way that our story starts as humanity is tawbah and du'a.

**[23:02]** Fatalaqqā Ādam min rabbihi kalimat Adam alayhi as-salam was given the words to call back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Like you made the mistake and the One that you made the mistake towards is going to give you the words,

**[23:17]** inspire you with the right words to say so that He can forgive you. That's the story of human beings. So sometimes, like I see in Arafah that just go. People come and they're like, they got their whole list. You know, I'm like, all right, I got to make this du'a.

**[23:33]** I'm like, listen, at some point you just put that list away and just go. Like subhanAllah, the du'a will come. And people are like, how am I going to make du'a for six hours? And then subhanAllah, the sunset comes in Arafah. And I can't tell you how many times people come up to me like that went by so quick.

**[23:48]** Yep. Where did it go? Where did the six hours go? Right? I can't believe that happened, you know, when you were in tawaf, right? That seventh round came so quick, like, wait, I still have more to give, right? And Allah is giving you to give and asking Him because at the end of the day, the bounty will be rewarded,

**[24:05]** provided for and with His blessing and with His might and with His mercy. So that's one dimension of this. But the other one, which is just from the ayahs, subhanAllah, I was thinking about, because we're talking about the pairing of might and mercy, right?

**[24:21]** There's an element of Quraysh looking at the Prophet ﷺ like, he doesn't deserve that. He has great character, sure. I mean, he's al-Sadiq al-Ameen, we love him, wonderful man. But he's not like us, like, he doesn't deserve all that. You know, we deserve the revelation.

**[24:36]** So why didn't the Qur'an come to us? Why didn't this happen to us, right? Like, why him? And so that is an abuse of the concept of majesty, right? You're trying to limit the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala

**[24:52]** and you're trying to extol yourself at the same time, right? So you're making yourself bigger than you actually are and you're belittling that person and you're trying to limit the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala as well, all at the same time. So you are violating every single principle that's coming within these verses.

**[25:08]** That's Quraysh with the Prophet ﷺ. But sometimes we have to also be honest with ourselves. Like, you know, one of the questions that comes up, and I think it's a particular theological problem is, why is Allah letting evil people get away with things? And, you know, there's a whole, you know, pathway to answer that

**[25:27]** and to reckon with that from the Qur'an and the Sunnah. And we've had to do so in the wake of the genocide, right? If not before that. But there's also another one, which is, you know, this person doesn't seem to be that great, but great things are happening to them, right?

**[25:45]** And they're not exerting themselves, but like the mercy of Allah just seems to be descending upon them. And there's so many wisdoms and the 'ulama will go down like trajectories. And so they could say, perhaps that person needs, just like the Prophet ﷺ was taught, mu'allafatu al-qulub, right?

**[26:00]** Like, yeah, he gave a bunch of camels to certain people that did not sacrifice that much for Islam, right? In fact, they were enemies to Islam for 20 years and the Ansar are looking at that like, wait a minute, why? But they were worried that perhaps that was a sign of the favoring of the Prophet ﷺ to those people.

**[26:16]** They weren't worried about the bounties themselves, they were worried about what the bounties represented. Allah could be giving someone more sometimes because they need that softening of the heart, like they can't handle a greater test. And that's one possibility, but there are a hundred other possibilities you don't know.

**[26:33]** Focus on yourself with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and the mercy that He gives you that you're taking for granted and the blessings that you are not paying attention to. And don't try to limit and don't try to interfere with the domain of the Divine and allotting or judging who deserves what.

**[26:51]** That's all with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala at the end of the day. And I think that's an element of this. Of course, on the basis of character, what do they call it when they do the scholarships, when they do financial aid, stuff like that, they have merit-based. If it was merit-based, the Prophet ﷺ is deserving.

**[27:09]** Like on pure merit, I mean 40 years, spotless, if there was a way to apply for prophethood, like the Prophet ﷺ is the most worthy person. But prophethood is not applied for, prophethood is chosen by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

**[27:25]** That's why Allah azza wa jal mentions Musa ﷺ. Ikhlas is to choose a path of sincerity and to earn. Mukhlasan is to be chosen by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Al-Mustafa ﷺ, he's chosen. But even if it was merit-based,

**[27:41]** he still would be the most deserving of the people. But Allah azza wa jal chooses and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has wisdom and do not interfere with His might and with His mercy. Dr. Farah, if you have any thoughts on that, if not I want to ask you another question if I can squeeze one in.

**[27:56]** But I'd like to give you the floor first, if you have any thoughts on anything else that was said. No, no, you put the question in so it's beautiful. My question actually builds on what you said and what we were talking about here. You actually have one of the rare spots of dealing with the community

**[28:13]** at a grassroots level, counseling but also teaching. So it's theory, it's practice. It's sort of like the imam versus the academic, right? Versus the pastoral versus the 30,000 foot view which sometimes doesn't give you some of those intricacies.

**[28:30]** If someone were to ask you like, hey, I'm sure you get asked this question all the time by the way because we get asked those as imams, right? We both serve as imams in communities too. Hey, what are you seeing right now amongst Muslims and what should we be thinking about? What should we be considering right now? What are you seeing in terms of a rise amongst Muslims

**[28:46]** that people really need to pay attention to? What would that be? Subhanallah, it's huge. I think I'm being fascinated over and over again by the fact that it's women obviously mostly who come.

**[29:01]** That they oftentimes at this kind of midpoint of life come to a crossroads. That maybe the life that I've built for myself isn't serving me. All the people pleasing, the precedences basically that I've set up

**[29:17]** has set me up for failure and I want to change. A lot come in thinking that that means I need to change my husband or I need to change. You know what I mean? That's oftentimes. But then through reflection and talking together, it is about, well, wait a minute.

**[29:32]** What are the patterns that I set up for myself in my life? What were the destructive things that I did and that I kind of built this life for me? I built this road. But you know what? I can build a different road now.

**[29:47]** I can take a different path and that's going to be painful. It's going to have to be going back and unlearning all these terrible kind of habits that I've learned that I thought would help me get through life and relearning, but then reforging that path.

**[30:03]** It is a rebirth. And so I'm seeing that over and over again in various confirmations. Subhanallah. Yeah, it's painful. And it's painful to hear all those stories as well. Is there something on the tip of your tongue you're thinking of

**[30:19]** as he's saying that? Do they feel that you said painful? Yeah. What's the percentage of them that just say, you know what? Bismillah, I'm going to do it. And some of them just kind of stay back and dwell in their, I guess in their current stressful situation.

**[30:36]** They will continue to dwell for a long time. It's true. It's true. Subhanallah. It's changing yourself. Defeating your nafs. I mean what you're seeing, for example, which you mentioned, Shaykh, not putting those sins under the rug.

**[30:53]** Lifting that rug. Seeing all the closets or all the skeletons I've been carrying in that closet all my life. That requires courage. And I think the vast majority prefer not to do that in our lives.

**[31:09]** That's right. We will continue just on the path that we've built. It is easier. It's comfort. That's what we seek. But we can, insha'Allah, push each other to more. Insha'Allah. May Allah bless you. Jazakumullah khayr. Powerful reflections. May Allah reward you.

**[31:24]** And may Allah allow us to heed this advice. Dear brothers and sisters, please, insha'Allah, keep us in your du'a in these last 10. Push yourselves to change. May Allah guide our hearts to Him. And we'll see you tomorrow, insha'Allah. Insha'Allah. Over to you, Shaykh.

## Other Episodes in "Qur’an 30 for 30 | Season 7"
- [Juz 30: Love Al-Razzaq More Than Rizq | Sh. Navaid Aziz](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-30.md)
- [Juz 29: Your Spiritual Report Card  | Dr. Nazir Khan](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-29.md)
- [Juz 28: How To Truly Be Conscious of Allah | Dr. Jinan Yousef](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-28.md)
- [Juz 27: The Night You Give Everything | Sh. Abu Bakr Zoud](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-27.md)
- [Juz 26: Don’t Run From Struggle | Sh. Mikaeel Smith](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-26.md)
- [Juz 25: God Is Not A Mystery | Sh. Ibrahim Hindy](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-25.md)
- [Juz 24: Candid Conversations with Allah | Mufti Abdul Rahman Waheed](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-24.md)
- [Juz 22: Appreciating Muhammad ﷺ | Sh. Omar Hajjaj](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-22.md)
- [Juz 21: Allah Is The Author of History | Sr. Sarah Sultan](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-21.md)
- [Juz 20: Allah’s Loud and Silent Revelations | Sh. Hisham Abu Yusuf](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-20.md)
- [Juz 19: What Makes You Valuable to Allah? | Ust. Roohi Tahir](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-19.md)
- [Juz 18: The Qur’an Is A Cure | Dr. Tesneem Alkiek](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-18.md)
- [Juz 17: When Allah Chooses You, How Will You Respond? | Sh. Yousef Wahb](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-17.md)
- [Juz 16: Can You Be Patient With Allah? | Ust. Lobna Mulla](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-16.md)
- [Juz 15: Join the Heavens in Glorifying Allah | Sh. Mohamud Mohamed](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-15.md)
- [Juz 14: The Surah of Blessings | Ust. Taimiyyah Zubair](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-14.md)
- [Juz 13: What Is 1% of Allah’s Mercy? | Dr. Mohamed AbuTaleb](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-13.md)
- [Juz 12: Allah Is Not Far | Sh. Omar Hedroug](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-12.md)
- [Juz 11: Stop Playing Games | Dr. Ovamir Anjum](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-11.md)
- [Juz 10: When Allah Goes To War For You | Dr. Suleiman Hani](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-10.md)
- [Juz 9: How To Memorize Allah’s Names | Dr. Haifaa Younis](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-9.md)
- [Juz 8: Whose Validation Do You Need? | Sh. Shabbir Hassan](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-8.md)
- [Juz 7: They Know Al-Lateef in Gaza | Dr. Farhan Abdul Azeez](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-7.md)
- [Juz 6: Signs of A Hypocrite | Sh. Asim Khan](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-6.md)
- [Juz 5: You Can’t Fight Fire with Fire | Ust. Fatima Lette](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-5.md)
- [Juz 4: The Final Moments of This Life | Ahmad Hraichie ( The Muslim Undertaker)](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-4.md)
- [Juz 3: How The Qur’an Makes You Rich | Dr. Tahir Wyatt](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-3.md)
- [Juz 2: The Lord of Rituals | Mufti Menk](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-2.md)
- [Juz 1: Allah’s Names in the Qur’an | Sh. Mohammad Elshinawy](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-juz-1-mohammad-elshinawy.md)
- [TRAILER | Qur’an 30 for 30 Season 7 | Dr. Omar Suleiman and Sh. Abdullah Oduro](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/quran-30-for-30-season-7/quran-30-for-30-season-7-trailer.md)