Freewill in Islam Intention and Action

📖Sahih Muslim 131 a
It is narrated on the authority of Ibn Abbas that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ transmitted it from the Blessed and Great Lord: Verily Allah recorded the good and the evil and then made it clear: He who intended good but did not do it, Allah recorded one complete good in his favour. But if he intended it and also did it, Allah recorded ten to seven hundred virtues and even more to his credit. But if he intended evil but did not commit it, Allah wrote down one complete good in his favour, If he intended it and also committed it, Allah recorded one evil against him.

What We Learn From It Today:

1. Intentions Matter
   This hadith shows that your heart and your intentions are not hidden from Allah. Even thinking about good earns reward – even if you fail to do it. That means every sincere desire counts in Islam.

2. Mercy Over Punishment
   Good deeds are multiplied many times, but bad deeds are counted only once. That shows the system of Allah is heavily tilted in favor of mercy. He wants us to succeed, not fail.

3. Free Will is Real
   This clearly proves we have free will. You get rewarded only if you intend, and punished only if you actually commit the act. No one is forced. You choose, and you’re judged based on what you choose.

4. Don’t Misuse It for Major Sins
   This does not mean you can plan major sins like murder, rape, or adultery and expect easy forgiveness. Such crimes require punishment, as stated in other hadiths and Qur’anic laws. Yes, even these sins can be forgiven — but after justice is served, true repentance is made, and Allah wills to forgive.

Quranic Context:

📖Quran 6:160
Whoever comes with a good deed will have ten times the like of it, and whoever comes with an evil deed will not be recompensed except the like thereof; and they will not be wronged.

Allah is fair – good is multiplied, evil is counted as it is.

📖Quran 39:53
Say, “O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.”

Even big sins like murder, adultery, rape, or theft can be forgiven – but not without consequences if caught in this life, In Islam, forgiveness only applies when:

• ✅ The legal punishment (ḥadd or qisās) is carried out
• ✅ The victim or their family forgives the sinner
• ✅ Sincere repentance is made before Allah

Major Sins & Their Punishments in the Qur’an:

• 📖Quran 5:33 – Murder, rape, terrorism, and spreading corruption on earth

  • “The penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger… is that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off on opposite sides, or they be exiled…”

• 📖Quran 5:38 – Theft

  “As to the thief, male or female, cut off their hands in recompense for what they committed…”

• 📖Quran 24:2 – Adultery or fornication

  “The woman or man found guilty of fornication — lash each one of them with a hundred lashes…”

• 📖Quran 2:178 – Murder

  “Prescribed for you is legal retribution for those murdered… But if the killer is forgiven by the victim’s brother, then grant him suitable compensation and conduct…”

• Major sins have clear legal punishments in this life.
• Forgiveness is not automatic — it must come after punishment, or if the victim forgives.
• True repentance is always required for Allah’s forgiveness.
• Using “Allah will forgive me” as an excuse while denying justice is not Islamic

• But keep in mind that if someone, by mistake or chance, was not punished in this world, Allah can still forgive – if the person sincerely repents, feels deep fear, and never returns to the sin.
• But we cannot declare with certainty that “Allah will forgive” – because only Allah knows who is truly sincere.
• Forgiveness in private is possible, but forgiveness in law depends on justice.

Just because someone escapes worldly punishment does not mean they escape Allah’s judgment – But sincere repentance can still save them in the Hereafter if Allah wills.

This is why no one can use Islam to justify their sins, yet no one should lose hope in Allah’s mercy if they truly turn back.

📖Quran 91:8
And [by] the soul and He who proportioned it. And inspired it with [discernment of] its wickedness and its righteousness.

This shows Allah gave us free will – we are shown right and wrong, but we choose which path to take.