AL-JABBAR - The Irresistible; The Compeller

He is Allah—there is no deity but Him. He is the King, the Most Pure, the Perfect Peace, the Trustworthy, the Safeguarder, the Almighty, the Compeller , the Supremely Great. Glory be to Allah above all they associate with Him. ( Surat al-Hashr, 59:23)

Unbelievers show their arrogance and rejection of Allah by claiming that they exist apart from and are independent of Allah, and by attributing some of His characteristics to themselves. However, if they would stop and think seriously about this claim for just a second, they would easily comprehend that they did not will themselves into existence, cannot know when they will die, and had no say in the formation of their physical traits. They would realize that whatever they possess, including their own bodies, are temporary and will ultimately disappear. All of this makes it obvious that humanity is weak and can neither possess nor control anything. Further contemplation will surely provide more evidence of this truth.

In the face of all these facts, one can readily see that being arrogant toward our Lord, the Creator, is both foolish and dangerous. In fact, a person needs to comprehend that Allah is All-Mighty and that He created everything from nothing, grants every person's characteristics and meets their needs, can take them all when He wills, and that all living beings will die while He alone will exist for all eternity. Once all of this is understood, people need to submit to their Owner, for Allah has the power to make all who rebel and turn against Him bow to Him whenever He wills.

Allah relates the example of the Companions of the Garden as a lesson to believers. One of these men, who had been spoiled by his prosperity and achievements, later recognized his weakness, thanks to the name of al-Jabbar , and confessed his wrongdoing. What happened to this man, who swore to himself that he would harvest in the morning, is related in the Qur'an, as follows:

So a visitation from your Lord came upon it while they slept, and in the morning it was like burnt land stripped bare. ( Surat al-Qalam, 68:19-20)

But when they saw it, they said: “We must have lost our way. No, the truth is we are destitute!” The best of them said: “Did I not say to you: ‘Why do you not glorify Allah?'” They said: “Glory be to our Lord! Truly we have been wrongdoers.” They turned to face each other in mutual accusation. They said: “Woe to us! We were indeed inordinate. Maybe our Lord will give us something better than it in exchange. We entreat our Lord.” Such is the punishment. And the punishment of the Hereafter is much greater, if they only knew. ( Surat al-Qalam, 68:26-33)