Is the perfection of the religion connected to the perfection of Allah, may He be Exalted?

Question

IslamQA · Accepted Answer

The religion of Islam is perfect, with no shortcomings whatsoever.

Allah, may He be Exalted, says:

{This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favour upon you and have approved for you Islam as religion} [Al-Ma’idah 5:3]

{The word of your Lord is perfect in truth and justice. None can change His words, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing} [Al-An`am 6:115].

Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Regarding the phrase {The word of your Lord is perfect in truth and justice}, Qatadah said: He is truthful in what He said and just in what He ruled.

He is truthful in what He has told us and just in what He has enjoined, so everything He has told us is undoubtedly true; everything He has enjoined is just and there is nothing just except that; and everything He has forbidden is wrong, and He only forbids what is bad, as He says:

{[The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)] enjoins them to do that which is right and forbids them to do that which is wrong; he makes good things lawful to them and bad things unlawful} [Al-A`raf 7:157].

{ None can change His words} means: No one can alter His decree, either in this world or in the hereafter.

End quote from Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 3/322.

II.

The view that this religion is perfect because it is from Allah, Who possesses the attribute of perfection, is a correct view.

Allah, may He be Exalted, possesses the attribute of perfection. See the answer to question no. 247961.

Islam tells us about valid beliefs, what was and what will be, rules and regulations, the glad tidings that the one who responds to its call will find joy and a good life, and a warning that the sinner will suffer severe punishment.

What Islam tells us about of beliefs, and what was and what will be, can only be perfect if it is true and learning about it will help one to be guided and become righteous.

Allah, may He be Glorified, has perfect knowledge, His words are perfectly true and just, and His wisdom is perfect. Therefore He does not tell us anything except that which is wise and beneficial.

Allah, may He be Exalted, says:

{The disbelievers say: This [the Quran] is nothing but a lie that he has fabricated, with the help of other people. What they say is unjust and false.

And they say: Tales of the ancients that he has written down; they are dictated to him morning and afternoon.

Say: It [the Quran] has been sent down by Him Who knows all that is hidden in the heavens and the earth. Verily, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful} [Al-Furqan 25:4-6].

Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Allah, may He be Exalted, said in response to their stubbornness and what they fabricated: {Say: It [the Quran] has been sent down by Him Who knows all that is hidden in the heavens and the earth}. That is, He sent down the Quran, which contains stories of the earlier and later generations; these stories are true and sound, and describe exactly what happened and will happen, in the past and in the future. {It [the Quran] has been sent down by Him Who knows all that is hidden in the heavens and the earth} means: Allah, Who knows what is unseen in the heavens and the earth, and He knows what is hidden and what is visible.

End quote from Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 6/94.

And Allah, may He be Exalted, says: {Verily, you [O Muhammad] are receiving the Quran from One Who is Most Wise, All-Knowing } [An-Naml 27:6].

Rules and regulations can only be perfect if the One Who ordained them has perfect knowledge and perfect wisdom, so He only ordains what is in people’s best interests and will help to remove mischief and corruption; what He ordains is not self-contradictory, and at the same time, those rules and regulations are valid for all people, regardless of their differences in race, land and era.

This cannot be achieved unless the One Who ordains those rules and regulations has the highest level of knowledge, wisdom and mercy. He is Allah, may He be Glorified and Exalted.

Allah, may He be Exalted, says:

{ Ha’. Mim.

[This is] a revelation from the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,

a Book, the verses of which are explained in detail, an Arabic Quran, for people who have knowledge } [Fussilat 41:1-3]

{Those who reject the Reminder when it comes to them [will be requited for their rejection]. Verily, it is an unassailable Book.

No falsehood can approach it from before it or from behind it; [it is] a revelation from One Who is Most Wise, Praiseworthy} [Fussilat 41:41-42]

{Then do they not reflect upon the Quran? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction} [An-Nisa’ 4:82].

As for telling us about the requital for deeds through glad tidings and warnings, that can only be perfect if the requital matches the deed of the doer and his effort, it is perfect in its mercy if it is by way of giving glad tidings, and it is perfect in its justice if it is by way of warning, and the Lawgiver is perfect in His might and ability to carry out those requitals, and is perfect in what He says and never breaks His promise. This level of perfection in the Lawgiver can only be for Allah alone, for He is perfect in might, power, strength and sovereignty, and no one can escape His might, because He is the Lord of the Worlds.

And He is perfect in His mercy, perfect in His justice and perfect in His truthfulness.

Allah, may He be Exalted, says:

{And indeed, your Lord - He is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful

And indeed, it [i.e., the Quran] is the revelation of the Lord of the worlds} [Ash-Shu`ara’ 26:191-192]

{Ha’. Mim.

The revelation of the Book [i.e., the Quran] is from Allah, the Exalted in Might, the All-Knowing,

The forgiver of sin, acceptor of repentance, severe in punishment, owner of abundance. There is no god worthy of worship except Him; unto Him is the return [of all]} [Ghafir 40:1-3]

{But for those who fear their Lord there will be lofty dwellings, one above another, built high, beneath which rivers flow. [This is] the promise of Allah; Allah does not break His promise} [Az-Zumar 39:20]

{These are the revelations of Allah; We recite them to you with the truth: And Allah does not intend any injustice to [any of] His creation} [Al `Imran 3:108].

To sum up, this religion is perfect because Allah, may He be Exalted, is perfect in His sublime attributes.

And Allah knows best.

Is the perfection of the religion connected to the perfection of Allah, may He be Exalted?

Question 335072

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Answer

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Does it say anywhere in the Quran that Allah is perfect, with no shortcomings?