Salafi Research Institute SRI
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
سئل ابن عباس عن قوله {ومن لم يحكم بما أنزل الله فأولئك هم الكافرون} قال “هي به كفر” قال ابن طاوس: وليس كمن كفر بالله وملائكته وكتبه ورسله [تعظيم قدر الصلاة (٥٧٠) والسنة للخلال (١٤٢٠) والإيمان لأحمد بن حنبل (٢٥٨) وسندهم صحيحة]
Ibn ʿAbbās was asked about His statement {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed then it is those who are the disbelievers} [5:44]. He said: “It is leading to Kufr.” Ibn Ṭāwūs said: “And it is not like the one who disbelieves in Allāh, His angels, His books, and His messengers.” [Taʿẓīm Qadr al-Ṣalāh (570), al-Sunnah by al-Khallāl (1420), and al-Īmān by Aḥmad bin Ḥanbal (258) with Ṣaḥīḥ Asānīd]
سئل ابن عباس في قوله {ومن لم يحكم بما أنزل الله فأولئك هم الكافرون} قال “هي كبيرة” [تفسير ابن أبي حاتم (٦٤٣٥) وسنده حسن]
In another narration, Ibn ʿAbbās was asked about His statement {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed – then it is those who are the disbelievers}. He said: “It’s a major sin.” [Tafsīr Ibn Abī Ḥātim (6435); Isnād Ḥasan]
عن عطاءٍ قولَه: {وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ}، {وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ}، {وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ}. قال: كفرٌ دونَ كفرٍ، وفسقٌ دونَ فسقٍ، وظلمٌ دونَ ظلمٍ [تفسير الطبري (٨/ ٤٦٥) وسنده صحيح]
ʿAṭāʾ said regarding His statement: {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed then it is those who are the disbelievers}, {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed then it is those who are the wrongdoers}, {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed – then it is those who are the defiantly disobedient}. He said: “Kufr other than (major) Kufr, Fisq other than (major) Fisq, and Ẓulm other than (major) Ẓulm.” [Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī (8/465); Isnād Ṣaḥīḥ]
These texts show very clearly that ruling by other than Allah, whether as a father, a ruler, a teacher etc, due to the generality of the Ayah, in and of itself is a major sin and not major Kufr which makes a person outside the fold of Islam.
وأجمع العلماء على أن الجور في الحكم من الكبائر لمن تعمد ذلك عالما به [التمهيد (٣/ ٤٩٥-٤٩٦)]
Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr said: “The scholars agreed that injustice in judgment is among the major sins for the one who does so deliberately while knowing it.” [al-Tamhīd (3/495-496)]
Moreover, declaring an individual person as a disbeliever is done by the people of knowledge as it’s Ijtihaad and it’s an entire process.
قال محمد بن عبد الوهاب: ونحن لا نكفر إلا رجلا عرف الحق وأنكره بعدما قامت عليه الحجة ودعي إليه فلم يقبل وتمرد وعاند وما ذكر عنا من أنا نكفر غير من هذا حاله، فهو كذب علينا [الدرر السنية في الأجوبة النجدية (٣/ ٢٠-٢١)]
Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb said: “And we do not declare anyone a disbeliever except a man who knew the truth and rejected it after the proof had been established against him, and he was invited to it but did not accept, and he rebelled and was stubborn. And whatever is mentioned regarding us that we declare others to be disbelievers outside of this description, then it is a lie against us.“ [Al-Durar al-Saniyyah fī al-Ajwibah al-Najdiyyah (3/20-21)]
عن الشعبي:”ومن لم يحكم بما أنزل الله فأولئك هم الكافرون”، قال: هذا في المسلمين”ومن لم يحكم بما أنزل الله فأولئك هم الفاسقون”، قال: النصارى [تفسير الطبري (٨/ ٤٦٣) وسنده جيد]
Al-Shaʿbī said: {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed then it is those who are the disbelievers}. He said: This is regarding the Muslims. {And whoever does not judge by what Allāh has revealed then it is those who are the defiantly disobedient}. He said: the Christians. [Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī (8/463); Isnād Jayyid]
SubhanAllah! How true is the statement of Ibn ‘Umar
بكير سأل نافعا كيف كان رأي ابن عمر في الحرورية قال يراهم شرار خلق الله انطلقوا إلى آيات في الكفار فجعلوها في المؤمنين [تهذيب الآثار كمام في تغليق التعليق (٥/ ٢٥٩) وسنده صحيح]
Bukayr asked Nāfiʿ: What was the opinion of Ibn ʿUmar regarding the Ḥarūriyyah (Khawārij)? He said: “He sees them as the worst of Allāh’s creation. They took verses regarding the disbelievers and applied them to the believers.” [Tahdhīb al-Āthār as in Taghlīq al-Taʿlīq (5/259); Isnād Ṣaḥīḥ]
For closing doubts regarding this topic, I recommend the book الإمامة العظمى by shaykh ‘Abdul ‘Aziz al-Rayyis
