This is a Hadith Qudsi, although the text does not show that clearly.
The Main Idea of the Hadith: The Great Mercy and Generosity of Allah upon His Slaves concerning the recording of their good and bad deeds.
In this Hadith, the Prophet ﷺ clearly shows the tremendous favour of Allah upon His creation, which encourages the slaves of Allah to perform good deeds. This Hadith also revives hope in the hearts of the disobedient who despair in the Mercy of Allah and encourages them to quit sinning.
Allah's reward is a grace and His punishment is justice, and His Mercy precedes His Anger. Allah commanded the believers to seek His mercy, as mentioned in Surah Al-Mu'mimoon [23:118]:
"And say (O Muhammad): "My Lord! Forgive and have mercy, for You are the Best of those who show mercy!"
This Hadith is an evidence of the Mercy of Allah.
Recording Deeds are divided into Four Categories:
1) The Intention to perform a Good Deed
2) Performing a Good Deed
3) The Intention to commit a Sin
4) Committing a Sin
إن الله كتب الحسنات والسيئات
Verily Allah has recorded the good deeds and evil deeds
Nothing escapes the Knowledge of Allah; every single deed is recorded. This should make us pause before we perform any deed.
There are two types of recording:
1) Allah has previously decreed with His Perfect Knowledge everything that is going to happen and He recorded it in the Preserved Tablet.
2) Allah ordered the scribes to record the deeds of the slave. In Surah Az-Zukhruf [43:80]:
"Or do they think that We hear not their secrets and their private counsel? (Yes We do) and Our Messengers (appointed angels in charge of mankind) are by them, to record."
ثم بين ذلك
Then He clarified that
Then Allah clarified the way of recording deeds, either by:
1) Informing the scribe Angels
2) Clarifyingin the Quran or the tongue of His Messenger ﷺ what deserves reward and what deserves punishment.
فمن هم بحسنة فلم يعملها كتبها الله عنده حسنة كاملة
Whoever intends to perform a good deed but did not do it, Allah will record it with Himself as a complete good deed
هم = Having a solid intention in ones heart
In Surah An-Nisa [4:100]:
"He who emigrates (from his home) in the Cause of Allah, will find on earth many dwelling places and plenty to live by. And whosoever leaves his home as an emigrant unto Allah and His Messenger, and death overtakes him, his reward is then surely incumbent upon Allah. And Allah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."
Having a solid intention is an act of the heart which deserves to be reward for, and is the first step that leads to an actual act.
E.g. One intends to perform the midnight prayer but ends up oversleeping. Allah will reward him for his intention.This indicates the honour and care of Allah for the act.
"حسنة كاملة"
Allah will reward him with one complete good deed without deficiency which shows us that Allah raises the level of an intention to an actual act. This should encourage us to always have good intentions.
وإن هم بها فعملها كتبها الله عنده عشر حسنات إلى سبعمائة ضعف إلى أضعاف كثيرة
And if he intends to perform it and did it, Allah will record it with Himself ten good deeds to seven hundred folds, up to many times multiplied
The minimal reward for a good deed is ten, as Allah says in Surah Al-An'am [6:160]:
"Whoever brings a good deed (Islamic Monotheism and deeds of obedience to Allah and His Messenger) shall have ten times the like thereof to his credit, and whoever brings an evil deed (polytheism, disbelief, hypocrisy, and deeds of disobedience to Allah and His Messenger) shall have only the recompense of the like thereof, and they will not be wronged."
And it can be multiplied to seven hundred. Allah said regarding giving charity in Surah Al-Baqarah [2:261]:
"The likeness of those who spend their wealth in the Way of Allah, is as the likeness of a grain (of corn); it grows seven ears, and each ear has a hundred grains. Allah gives manifold increase to whom He pleases. And Allah is All-Sufficient for His creatures' needs, All-Knower."
Do not belittle the amount you give in charity. The Prophet ﷺ said,
مَا مِنْكُمْ مِنْ أَحَدٍ إِلاَّ وَسَيُكَلِّمُهُ اللَّهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، لَيْسَ بَيْنَ اللَّهِ وَبَيْنَهُ تُرْجُمَانٌ، ثُمَّ يَنْظُرُ فَلاَ يَرَى شَيْئًا قُدَّامَهُ، ثُمَّ يَنْظُرُ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ فَتَسْتَقْبِلُهُ النَّارُ، فَمَنِ اسْتَطَاعَ مِنْكُمْ أَنْ يَتَّقِيَ النَّارَ وَلَوْ بِشِقِّ تَمْرَةٍ
There will be none among you but will be talked to by Allah on the Day of Resurrection, without there being an interpreter between him and Him (Allah) . He will look and see nothing ahead of him, and then he will look (again for the second time) in front of him, and the (Hell) Fire will confront him. So, whoever among you can save himself from the Fire, should do so even with one half of a date (to give in charity). [Bukhari #6539]
There are actions where the reward is unknown. The Prophet ﷺ said (that Allah said):
كُلُّ عَمَلِ ابْنِ آدَمَ لَهُ، إِلاَّ الصَّوْمَ فَإِنَّهُ لِي، وَأَنَا أَجْزِي بِهِ، وَلَخَلُوفُ فَمِ الصَّائِمِ أَطْيَبُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ مِنْ رِيحِ الْمِسْكِ
Every good deed of Adam's son is for him except fasting; it is for Me. and I shall reward (the fasting person) for it.' Verily, the smell of the mouth of a fasting person is better to Allah than the smell of musk." [Bukhari]
And Allah said in Surah Az-Zumar [39:10]:
"Say (O Muhammad): "O My slaves who believe (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism), be afraid of your Lord (Allah) and keep your duty to Him. Good is (the reward) for those who do good in this world, and Allah's earth is spacious (so if you cannot worship Allah at a place, then go to another)! Only those who are patient shall receive their rewards in full, without reckoning."
Regarding the Hadith where the Prophet ﷺ said:
مَنْ دَخَلَ السُّوقَ فَقَالَ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لاَ شَرِيكُ لَهُ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ وَهُوَ حَىٌّ لاَ يَمُوتُ بِيَدِهِ الْخَيْرُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ كَتَبَ اللَّهُ لَهُ أَلْفَ أَلْفِ حَسَنَةٍ وَمَحَا عَنْهُ أَلْفَ أَلْفِ سَيِّئَةٍ وَرَفَعَ لَهُ أَلْفَ أَلْفِ دَرَجَةٍ
"Whoever enters the marketplace and says: ‘There is none worthy of worship except Allah, Alone, without partner, to Him belongs the dominion, and to Him is all the praise, He gives life and causes death, He is Living and does not die, in His Hand is the good, and He has power over all things, (Lā ilāha illallāh, waḥdahu lā sharīka lahu, lahul-mulku wa lahul-ḥamdu, yuḥyī wa yumītu, wa huwa ḥayyun lā yamūtu, biyadihil-khairu, wa huwa `alā kulli shay’in qadīr)’ Allah shall record a million good deeds for him, wipe a million evil deeds away from him, and raise a million ranks for him.”
Many Scholars, including Ibn Al-Qayyim and Ibn Baz, graded this Hadith as Weak due to the chain of narration. Other Scholars, such as Al-Albani, graded it one degree above weak which is حسن لغيره.
The multiplication of good deeds are subjected to certain matters:
-> Time
E.g. The 10 Days of Dhul-Hijjah
The Prophet ﷺ said,
ما من أيام العمل الصالح فيها أحب إلى الله من هذه الأيام, يعني أيام العشر، قالوا: يا رسول الله ولا الجهاد في سبيل الله؟ قال: ولا الجهاد في سبيل الله، إلا رجل خرج بنفسه، وماله فلم يرجع من ذلك بشيء
"There are no days during which the righteous action is so pleasing to Allah than these days (i.e., the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah)." He was asked: "O Messenger of Allah, not even Jihad in the Cause of Allah?" He (ﷺ) replied, "Not even Jihad in the Cause of Allah, except in case one goes forth with his life and his property and does not return with either of it." [Bukhari]
-> Place
E.g. The Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ
The Prophet ﷺ said,
صَلاَةٌ فِي مَسْجِدِي أَفْضَلُ مِنْ أَلْفِ صَلاَةٍ فِيمَا سِوَاهُ إِلاَّ الْمَسْجِدَ الْحَرَامَ وَصَلاَةٌ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ أَفْضَلُ مِنْ مِائَةِ أَلْفِ صَلاَةٍ فِيمَا سِوَاهُ
"One prayer in my mosque is better than one thousand prayers elsewhere, except the Sacred Mosque, and one prayer in the Sacred Mosque is better than one hundred thousand prayers elsewhere" [Ibn Majah]
-> The Status of the Person
The Prophet ﷺ said:
لاَ تَسُبُّوا أَصْحَابِي لاَ تَسُبُّوا أَصْحَابِي فَوَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَوْ أَنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ أَنْفَقَ مِثْلَ أُحُدٍ ذَهَبًا مَا أَدْرَكَ مُدَّ أَحَدِهِمْ وَلاَ نَصِيفَهُ
"Do not revile my Companions, do not revile my Companions. By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if one amongst you would have spent as much gold as Uhud it would not amount to as much as one much on behalf of one of them or half of it." [Muslim]
Why has Allah multiplied the rewards of Good Deeds for this Nation? According to the sayings of the Scholars, the lifespan of this nation ranges from 60 to 70 years old. The previous nations lived for hundreds of years, so they had a lot of time to do good deeds. Allah compensated us with multiplication of our good deeds, which shows us the justice of Allah.
وإن هم بسيئة فلم يعملها كتبها الله عنده حسنة كاملة
And if he intends to perform an evil deed but did not do it, Allah will record it with Himself as a complete good deed.
Rule: الجزاء من جنس العمل (The Recompense is of the same Nature as the Deed)
If you intended to do a good deed and did not do it you will received a good deed. So if you intended a sin and did not do it, should you not receive a sin? If one restrains himself from committing sin, he is disobeying his evil desires, by an action of his heart. Therefore, he must be reward for it, because he is performing an action with his heart. In addition, if you receive a bad deed for your intention, there would be no motivating factor to prevent you from actually committing it.
Both cases of intentions indicate that the Angels do not only record your acts, but your intentions as well, which means that Allah has given them knowledge of your intention. Allah says in Surah Al-Jinn [72:26-27]:
"(He Alone) the All-Knower of the Gha'ib (unseen), and He reveals to none His Gha'ib (unseen)."
"Except to a Messenger (from mankind) whom He has chosen (He informs him of unseen as much as He likes), and then He makes a band of watching guards (angels) to march before him and behind him."
This is a refutation of the opinion that the Angels only know and write down what is apparent of actions.
Scholars divided an intention to commit sin into two types:
1) A Passing Thought
If it is a passing thought which you hate and repel, you will not be punished for it, because it is just a whisper of the Shaytan. In Surah Al-Baqarah [2:286]:
"Allah burdens not a person beyond his scope. He gets reward for that (good) which he has earned, and he is punished for that (evil) which he has earned. "Our Lord! Punish us not if we forget or fall into error, our Lord! Lay not on us a burden like that which You did lay on those before us (Jews and Christians); our Lord! Put not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Pardon us and grant us Forgiveness. Have mercy on us. You are our Maula (Patron, Suppor-ter and Protector, etc.) and give us victory over the disbelieving people."
2) A Solid Intention
This is where you have a determination to commit the sin and keep thinking of it. If you abandoned it, you will receive a complete good deed.
But will a person be rewarded any time he abandons a bad deed? No, only if he abandons it for the sake of Allah, and desiring His reward.
If he abandoned it out of fear of people, his intention will not be replaced by a good deed, but it will instead be recorded as sin. This is because fearing the creation over Allah is a sin. If he abandoned it for the sake of hypocrisy or showing off, it will also be recorded for him as a bad deed.
If he tried his best to do it, but was unable to do it because of the Qadar of Allah, some Scholars said he will be accountable for that evil, their evidence being the following Hadith where the Prophet ﷺ said,
إِذَا الْتَقَى الْمُسْلِمَانِ بِسَيْفَيْهِمَا فَالْقَاتِلُ وَالْمَقْتُولُ فِي النَّارِ ". فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ هَذَا الْقَاتِلُ فَمَا بَالُ الْمَقْتُولِ قَالَ " إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَرِيصًا عَلَى قَتْلِ صَاحِبِهِ ".
"When two Muslims fight (meet) each other with their swords, both the murderer as well as the murdered will go to the Hell-fire.' I said, 'O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! It is all right for the murderer but what about the murdered one?' Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) replied, "He surely had the intention to kill his companion." [Bukhari]
Solid intentions are further divided into two types:
1) Related to an action of the heart
This involves doubts about the Religion. If these doubts reside in his heart, they will be recorded for him as a sin. However, for those who are searching for the truth, if they have doubts, this will not be applied on them.
2) Related to the actions of limbs
If the intention of a slave persists and he has eagerness and willingness to do a sin, but did not actually perform it, there are two opinions:
a) Some say he will be punished for his intention, because a solid intention is an act of the heart. In Surah Al-Baqarah [2:225]:
"Allah will not call you to account for that which is unintentional in your oaths, but He will call you to account for that which your hearts have earned. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most-Forbearing."
The Prophet ﷺ said,
إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ تَجَاوَزَ لأُمَّتِي مَا وَسْوَسَتْ بِهِ وَحَدَّثَتْ بِهِ أَنْفُسَهَا مَا لَمْ تَعْمَلْ أَوْ تَتَكَلَّمْ بِهِ
The Messenger of Allah said: 'Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, has forgiven my Ummah for what is whispered to them or what enters their minds, so long as they do not act upon it or speak of it. [An-Nasaa'i]
This is only applied to passing thoughts and not solid intentions.
b) Others say he will be excused because he did not actually perform the action.
وإن هم بها فعملها كتبها الله سيئة واحدة
And if he intended to perform it and did it, Allah will record it as one evil deed.
Allah says in Surah Al-An'am [6:160]:
"Whoever brings a good deed (Islamic Monotheism and deeds of obedience to Allah and His Messenger) shall have ten times the like thereof to his credit, and whoever brings an evil deed (polytheism, disbelief, hypocrisy, and deeds of disobedience to Allah and His Messenger) shall have only the recompense of the like thereof, and they will not be wronged."
This shows the perfection of Allah's fairness and justice.
The Prophet ﷺ did not say, "One complete evil deed" as he said regarding good deeds. This shows us that a sin is something small, it is not put into consideration.
Allah will not multiply the evil deed, while He multiplies good deeds. And this again shows us the Generosity of Allah, and that on the Day of Resurrection no one will lose, except the real losers.
There are some evil deeds which differ in their gravity according to the situation.
E.g. A father said to his children, "Whoever does such and such I will beat him once". This beating is one, but may differ in quality and gravity.
There are some sins considered more grievous than others, like:
-> الموبقات
E.g. Murder, Shirk, Magic
-> The Sanctity of the Time
E.g. The Sacred Months
In Surah At-Tawbah [9:36]:
"Verily, the number of months with Allah is twelve months (in a year), so was it ordained by Allah on the Day when He created the heavens and the earth; of them four are Sacred, (i.e. the 1st, the 7th, the 11th and the 12th months of the Islamic calendar). That is the right religion, so wrong not yourselves therein, and fight against the Mushrikun (polytheists, pagans, idolaters, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah) collectively, as they fight against you collectively. But know that Allah is with those who are Al-Muttaqun "
-> The Sanctity of Place
E.g. Makkah
In Surah Al-Hajj [22:25]:
"Verily! Those who disbelieve and hinder (men) from the Path of Allah, and from Al-Masjid-al-Haram (at Makkah) which We have made (open) to (all) men, the dweller in it and the visitor from the country are equal there [as regards its sanctity and pilgrimage (Hajj and 'Umrah)]. And whoever inclines to evil actions therein or to do wrong (i.e. practise polytheism and leave Islamic Monotheism), him We shall cause to taste a painful torment."
Ibn Umar رضي الله عنه said, "It is less burdensome in my opinion to commit seventy sins in other than Makkah, than to commit one sin in Makkah"
-> The Nobility of a Person
E.g. If a person is known as pious and is taken as an example for people, his sins have more gravity than the sins of others.
In Surah Al-Ahzab [33:30]:
"O wives of the Prophet! Whoever of you commits an open illegal sexual intercourse, the torment for her will be doubled, and that is ever easy for Allah."
This should encourage us to perform many good deeds and abstain from sins, and show gratitude to Allah for multiplying our good deeds.
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