Adam, Eve and Satan have sinned but Satan wasn’t forgiven while Adam and Eve were. Understanding the reasons can help us.

In the following the story of Satan and the sin he committed that expelled him from Paradise:

لقد أخطأ آدم وحواء والشيطان، لكن الشيطان لم يغفر له بينما آدم وحواء غفرا لهم. فهم الأسباب يمكن أن يساعدنا.

وفيما يلي قصة الشيطان والذنب الذي ارتكبه وأخرجه من الجنة:

Surah Saad:

Verse 71:

إِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ إِنِّي خَالِقٌ بَشَرًا مِنْ طِينٍ

(Remember) when your Lord said to the angels: "Truly, I am going to create man from clay".

Verse 72:

فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِنْ رُوحِي فَقَعُوا لَهُ سَاجِدِينَ

So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by Me, then you fall down prostrate to him."

Verse 73:

فَسَجَدَ الْمَلَائِكَةُ كُلُّهُمْ أَجْمَعُونَ

So the angels prostrated themselves, all of them

Verse 74:

إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ اسْتَكْبَرَ وَكَانَ مِنَ الْكَافِرِينَ

Except Iblis (Satan) he was proud and was one of the disbelievers.

Verse 75:

قَالَ يَا إِبْلِيسُ مَا مَنَعَكَ أَنْ تَسْجُدَ لِمَا خَلَقْتُ بِيَدَيَّ ۖ أَسْتَكْبَرْتَ أَمْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الْعَالِينَ

(Allah) said: "O Iblis (Satan)! What prevents you from prostrating yourself to one whom I have created with Both My Hands. Are you too proud or are you one of the high exalted?"

Verse 76:

قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِنْهُ ۖ خَلَقْتَنِي مِنْ نَارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِنْ طِينٍ

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "I am better than him, You created me from fire, and You created him from clay."

Verse 77:

قَالَ فَاخْرُجْ مِنْهَا فَإِنَّكَ رَجِيمٌ

(Allah) said: "Then get out from here, for verily, you are outcast.

Verse 78:

وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكَ لَعْنَتِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ

"And verily!, My Curse is on you till the Day of Recompense."

Verse 79:

قَالَ رَبِّ فَأَنْظِرْنِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "My Lord! Give me then respite till the Day the (dead) are resurrected."

Verse 80:

قَالَ فَإِنَّكَ مِنَ الْمُنْظَرِينَ

(Allah) said: "Verily! You are of those allowed respite

Verse 81:

إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الْوَقْتِ الْمَعْلُومِ

"Till the Day of the time appointed."

Verse 82:

قَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "By Your Might, then I will surely mislead them all,

Verse 83:

إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ

"Except Your faithful slaves (servants, mankind created by God) amongst them (obedient, true believers)."

Verse 84:

قَالَ فَالْحَقُّ وَالْحَقَّ أَقُولُ

(Allah) said: "The Truth is, and the Truth I say,

Verse 85:

لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنْكَ وَمِمَّنْ تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

That I will fill Hell with you [Iblis (Satan)] and those of them (mankind) that follow you, together."

As you can read in the story of Satan’s sin that condemned him to hell, not only disobeyed but he didn’t admit being wrong because of his proud he felt superior to Adam. Also he is keen on provoking, deceiving and misleading mankind so that he is not the only one that would be sent to hell. This is one of the common behaviours of wrong-doers they do wrong and they drag other people into committing their same sins.

وكما يمكنك أن تقرأ في قصة خطيئة الشيطان التي حكمت عليه بالجحيم، فهو لم يعصِ فحسب، بل لم يعترف بخطئه بسبب كبرياءه وشعره بأنه افضل من آدم. كما أنه يحرص على استفزاز البشرية وخداعها وتضليلها حتى لا يكون وحده من يدخل الجحيم. وهذا من السلوكيات الشائعة للمخطئين الذين يجرون الآخرين إلى ارتكاب نفس خطاياهم.

Surah Al-A’raaf

Verse 11:

وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ صَوَّرْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ لَمْ يَكُنْ مِنَ السَّاجِدِينَ

And surely, We created you (your father Adam) and then gave you shape (the shape of a human being), then We told the angels, "Prostrate to Adam", and they prostrated, except Iblis (Satan), he refused to be of those who prostrate.

Verse 12:

قَالَ مَا مَنَعَكَ أَلَّا تَسْجُدَ إِذْ أَمَرْتُكَ ۖ قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِنْ نَارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِنْ طِينٍ

(Allah) said: "What prevented you (Iblis) that you did not prostrate, when I commanded you?" Iblis said: "I am better than him (Adam), You created me from fire, and (You) created him from clay."

Verse 13:

قَالَ فَاهْبِطْ مِنْهَا فَمَا يَكُونُ لَكَ أَنْ تَتَكَبَّرَ فِيهَا فَاخْرُجْ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الصَّاغِرِينَ

(Allah) said: "(Iblis) get down from this (Paradise), it is not for you to be arrogant here. Get out, for you are of those humiliated and disgraced."

Verse 14:

قَالَ أَنْظِرْنِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ

(Iblis) said: "Allow me respite till the Day they are resurrected."

Verse 15:

قَالَ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الْمُنْظَرِينَ

(Allah) said: "You are of those allowed respite."

Verse 16:

قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ

(Iblis) said: "Because You have sent me astray, surely I will sit in wait against them (human beings) on Your Straight Path.

Verse 17:

ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُمْ مِنْ بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَنْ شَمَائِلِهِمْ ۖ وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ

Then I will come to them from before them and behind them, from their right and from their left, and You will not find most of them as thankful ones (i.e. they will not be obedient to You)."

Verse 18:

قَالَ اخْرُجْ مِنْهَا مَذْءُومًا مَدْحُورًا ۖ لَمَنْ تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنْكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

(Allah) said (to Iblis) "Get out from this (Paradise) disgraced and expelled. Whoever of them (mankind) will follow you, then surely I will fill Hell with you all."

lblis, Satan, thought that he is better because he is made of fire. He was proud of how he was “made”.

لقد ظن إبليس أنه أفضل لأنه مخلوق من نار. لقد كان فخوراً بالطريقة التي "صنع بها".

{Iblis said: "I am better than him (Adam), You created me from fire, and (You) created him from clay."

"قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِنْ نَارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِنْ طِينٍ"}

57:23 Al-Hadid

لِكَيْلَا تَأْسَوْا عَلَىٰ مَا فَاتَكُمْ وَلَا تَفْرَحُوا بِمَا آتَاكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ كُلَّ مُخْتَالٍ فَخُورٍ

In order that you may not be sad over matters that you fail to get, nor rejoice because of that which has been given to you. And Allah likes not prideful boasters.

In Arabic, every word got a verb in the past as its original word. So: كبرياء Pride, استكبار prideful arrogance and also akbar اكبر; have the same origin verb (i.e. Allah Akbar mean Allah is great or the biggest of all). I am explaining this because to show the connection between the words used in Arabic, original language of the Quran, that can’t be understood if in the translation words with different origins are used.

Therefore, “pride” can be explained, from the Arabic language logic, as trying to make own self bigger than what the person really is, an instinctive response when under attack. And prideful arrogance is pretending to be big while despising others.

In fact Satan was despising Adam because of what he was made of, clay.

This is the same underlying concept of racism, despising others because of how they are or because of feeling superior. Anyways, we are all made of the same raw material as we belong to the same race, human race.

Being “prideful” makes people think they are better than others but there is no place for pride in the hearts of believers and those having “pride” in their hearts won’t get to paradise.

في اللغة العربية، اصل كل كلمة هو فعل في الماضي. كبرياء ، استكبار وأيضًا أكبر لهم نفس الفعل الأصلي (علي سبيل المثال: الله أكبر يعني الله أكبر من كل شيء). أشرح ذلك لإظهار العلاقة بين الكلمات المستخدمة في اللغة العربية، اللغة الأصلية للقرآن، والتي لا يمكن فهمه إذا تم استخدام كلمات ذات أصول مختلفة في الترجمة.

ولذلك يمكن تفسير "الكبرياء"، من المنطق العربي، على أنه محاولة جعل الذات أكبر مما هو عليه الشخص في الحقيقة، وهي استجابة غريزية عند التعرض للهجوم. والكبرياء هو التظاهر بالكبر بينما يحتقر الآخرين.

في الحقيقة كان الشيطان يحتقر آدم بسبب ما هو مصنوع من الطين.

هذا هو نفس المفهوم الأساسي للعنصرية، وهو احتقار الآخرين بسبب ما هم عليه أو بسبب الشعور بكون الشخص افضل. على أية حال، نحن جميعًا مصنوعون من نفس المادة الخام لأننا ننتمي إلى نفس العرق، الجنس البشري.

إن "الكبرياء" يجعل الناس يعتقدون أنهم أفضل من غيرهم، ولكن لا مكان للكبرياء في قلوب المؤمنين، وهؤلاء الذين في قلوبهم "الكبرياء" لن يدخلوا الجنة.

Surah Al-Jaathiya

Verse 37

وَلَهُ الْكِبْرِيَاءُ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ

And His (God alone) is the pride in the heavens and the earth, and He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.

There is a difference between feeling happy for someone or achievements and feeling ego and pride as if how a person behaves or what was achieved is primarily because of the will of a human. God had decreed everything and although we make choices continuously the outcomes don’t depend on us.

هناك فرق بين الشعور بالسعادة لشخص ما أو إنجازاته وبين الشعور بالغرور والفخر وكأن سلوك الإنسان أو ما حققه هو في المقام الأول بسبب إرادة الإنسان. لقد كتب الله كل شيء، وعلى الرغم من أننا نختار بشكل مستمر فإن النتائج لا تعتمد علينا.

Surah Yunus:

Verse 107:

وَإِنْ يَمْسَسْكَ اللَّهُ بِضُرٍّ فَلَا كَاشِفَ لَهُ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ وَإِنْ يُرِدْكَ بِخَيْرٍ فَلَا رَادَّ لِفَضْلِهِ ۚ يُصِيبُ بِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ ۚ وَهُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ

And if Allah touches you with hurt, there is none who can remove it but Him; and if He intends any good for you, there is none who can repel His Favour that He wills to reach whomsoever of His slaves (whom He created). And He is the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

In the next post, I will share the story of Adam and Eve from the Quran to help understand why they were not condemned in the same way like Satan.

في المنشور التالي، سأشارك بقصة آدم وحواء من القرآن للمساعدة في فهم سبب عدم إدانتهما بنفس الطريقة مثل إبليس.