Sergeant

Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Zina encompasses all the characteristics of evil:
Lack of religious commitment,
Loss of piety,
Loss of chivalry,
Lack of protective jealousy (gheerah)
You will not find any adulterer who is pious, or keeps his promises, or speaks truthfully, or is a good friend, or has complete protective jealousy towards his family.
Treachery
Lying
Betrayal
Lack of modesty
Lack of awareness that Allaah is always watching
Lack of chivalry
Loss of protective jealousy from the heart – these are the effects and implications of zina.
One of the effects of zina is that it earns the wrath of Allaah because His sacred limits are transgressed.
Darkening of the face
Grimness and misery of face that are apparent to other people.
Darkness of the heart and the extinguishing of its light (which is what causes the extinguishing of light in the face and the darkening thereof.)
It leads to poverty
Loss of respect & the lowering of his status in the eyes of his Lord and in the eyes of His slaves.
You lose the best of attributes, namely chastity, goodness and righteousness, and it earns him their opposites, namely immorality, evildoing, adultery and betrayal.
He will feel uneasy and distressed, for adulterers are doing the opposite of what they are seeking.
You lose the title of believer, as it was narrated in al-Saheehayn that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “No adulterer is a believer at the moment when he is committing adultery.”
Alienation which Allaah instills in the heart of the adulterer, and this is like the alienation that shows on his face.
Lack of respect, as his family, friends and others lose respect for him, and he becomes the most despicable thing in their sight; this is in contrast to the chaste person, who is blessed with dignity and sweetness.
People will regard him as a traitor and no one will trust him with regard to his wife or child.
The foul odour that will emanate from him and be detected by everyone who has a sound heart; it will emanate from his mouth and body, and were it not for the fact that there are all the people have a similar odor, that smell would spread far and wide.
He has exposed himself to missing out on the delights of al-hoor al-‘iyn in the beautiful abodes of the Garden of Eden (Jannaat ‘Adan).
Allaah has forbidden Paradise to every evil person, and He has made Paradise the abode of the good, and no one will enter it but those who are good. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Those whose lives the angels take while they are in a pious state (i.e. pure from all evil, and worshipping none but Allaah Alone) saying (to them): Salaamun ‘Alaykum (peace be on you) enter you Paradise, because of that (the good) which you used to do (in the world)”
[al-Nahl 16:32]
“and its keepers will say: Salaamun ‘Alaykum (peace be upon you)! You have done well, so enter here to abide therein”
[al-Zumar 39:73]
So they will deserve the greeting of the angels and admission to Paradise because of their goodness. But the adulterers are among the most evil of creation, and Allaah has made Hell the abode of evil and its people. When the Day of Resurrection comes, the evil will be distinct from the good, and the evil will be piled up together, then it and its people will be thrown into Hell. No one who is good will enter Hell and no one who is evil will enter Paradise.

For the one who is chaste has sweetness in his face and contentment in his heart, and whoever sits with him feels at ease with him. But the adulterer has signs of alienation in his face and whoever sits with him will feel uneasy.

Similarly, those who enjoy forbidden images in this world will also be deprived of such in the Hereafter. Indeed, everything that a person gets in this world, if he indulges in it by permissible means, his share of it on the Day of Resurrection will be reduced to the extent that he indulged in it. And if he got it from haraam sources, he will lose out on it altogether on the Day of Resurrection.

He may seek help to commit zina by means of sihr (witchcraft) and shirk, and he may or not know that this sin inevitably includes other sins committed beforehand or alongside it, and that it leads to other kinds of sins that come after it. It is surrounded by a host of other sins that come before and after. It is the thing that is most likely to bring about evil in this world and the Hereafter, and the most likely to prevent good in this world and in the Hereafter.

“That is so because Allaah will never change a grace which He has bestowed on a people until they change what is in their ownselves. And verily, Allaah is All-Hearer, All‑Knower”
[al-Anfaal 8:53]
“But when Allaah wills a people’s punishment, there can be no turning back of it, and they will find besides Him no protector”
[al-Ra’d 13:10]

These are some of the harmful effects of this action.
Book by Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawaab al-Kaafi li man sa’ala ‘ala al-Dawaa’ al-Shaafi.

"The sun has never stopped for any man besides Yusha when he wanted to conquer Bayt al-Muqaddis."

When Musa passed away, the leadership of Bani Isra'il passed to Yusha ibn Nun. Yusha ibn Nun is not mentioned directly in the Qur'an but he is the servant of Musa who is referred to in the following verse of the Qur'an.

"AND LO! [In the course of his wanderings,] Moses said to his servant (fata), 'I shall not give up until I reach the junction of the two seas, even if I [have to] spend untold years [in my quest]!'"
Al-Qur'an 18:60
The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, mentions the name of Yusha ibn Nun as this servant of Musa in a number of authentic narrations – see for example 3/124 and 55/613 of Sahih Al-Bukhari.

Being a servant of Musa he was close to the Revelation, close to the teacher (Musa) and he was a righteous student of this teacher. And so, when Musa, 'alayhis-salam, passed away, the leadership of Bani Isra'il was passed down to Yusha ibn Nun, and he became their nabi.

Under the leadership of Yusha ibn Nun, Bani Isra'il is made victorious and returns to the Holy Land, an event which did not occur under Musa or Harun (who both passed away whilst Bani Isra'il was still in the wilderness). The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, gives us a clue as to why this victory was delayed when he said:

"None of the ones who worshipped the calf entered into Jerusalem."
The Children of Isra'il who came out of Egypt were raised up in slavery and servitude so they were weak and were not fit for victory. Allah made them stay in the wilderness for 40 years until all of that generation had passed away. And they were replaced by a new generation raised in freedom and taught the guidance of the Taurah by Musa and Harun, and it was this generation that was given the victory.

Musa is undoubtedly the greatest Prophet that was sent to Bani Isra'il and he strived eagerly to have this victory, yet we see that victory was not at his hands but rather at Yusha's. What do we learn from this? That it is not enough to have an excellent leader alone – applying this to our times, it is not enough for us simply to wait for Al-Mahdi but rather we need to ensure we are a generation capable of victory and to be led to that victory by an excellent leader (be that Al-Mahdi or someone else).

And through the example of Yusha we see how Allah grants victory to those who have prepared for it. Yusha ibn Nun led the Children of Isra'il against the Jababirah (the inhabitants of Jerusalem), who were a large giant-like people. The fighting was furious and the sun was about to set. Yusha ibn Nun knew that he could not defeat these people except if the day was longer as, if night came, the Jababirah would be able to regroup. So Yusha pointed to the sun and said, "You are receiving orders and I am receiving orders from Allah, O Allah stop the sun!" Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, caused the sun to stop for Yusha ibn Nun until he defeated the people of Jerusalem. If you have Allah on your side, don't worry! It's not a matter of numbers, or weapons, or artillery when Allah is on your side.

The full story of Yusha ibn Nun is told to us in a sahih hadith of the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, recorded in Sahih Muslim 19/4327. The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said:

"One of the Prophets made a holy war. He said to his followers: One who has married a woman and wants to consummate to his marriage but has not yet done so; another who has built a house but has not yet erected its roof; and another who has bought goats and pregnant she-camels and is waiting for their offspring-will not accompany me … "
This Prophet did not want any person to come with him whose heart may be attached to anything else. This is a Prophet who is not looking for numbers but rather for ikhlas (sincerity).

The Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, continued:

" ... So he marched on and approached a village at or about the time of the Asr prayers. He said to the sun: You are receiving orders and I am receiving orders from Allah, O Allah stop the sun! It was stopped for him until Allah granted him victory."
We know this Prophet was Yusha ibn Nun because of a separate narration recorded by Imam Ahmad in which the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said:

"The sun has never stopped for any man besides Yusha when he wanted to conquer Bayt al-Muqaddis."

Protection against the fitnah of the Dajjaal

The Prophet (ﷺ) has taught his ummah about that which will protect them against the fitnah of the false messiah (al-maseeh al-dajjaal). He left his ummah on a path that is clear, and no one deviates from it except the one who is doomed. He did not leave any good thing without pointing it out to his ummah, or any evil thing without warning them against it. Among the things which he warned us against was the fitnah of the Dajjaal, because it is the greatest fitnah which the ummah will face until the Hour comes. Every Prophet warned his ummah against the one-eyed Dajjaal, but Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was the only Prophet who warned his ummah more about him. Allaah told him many of the attributes of the Dajjaal so that he could warn his ummah. The Dajjaal will undoubtedly emerge among this ummah, because it is the last ummah, and Muhammad (ﷺ) is the Seal of the Prophets. There follow some of the Prophetic guidelines which the Chosen Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) set out for his ummah so that it may be protected against this mighty fitnah, from which we ask Allaah to save us and grant us refuge:

Adhering to Islam, having the right faith and learning the Names and Most Beautiful Attributes of Allaah which are not shared by anyone else. One should know that the Dajjaal will be a human being who will eat and drink, and that Allaah is far above that; the Dajjaal will be one-eyed but Allaah is not one-eyed; no one can see his Lord until he dies, but the Dajjaal will be seen by all people, believers and kaafirs alike, when he emerges.

Seeking refuge with Allaah from the fitnah of the Dajjaal, especially in salaah (prayer). This has been narrated in the saheeh ahaadeeth, such as that narrated from Umm al-Mu’mineen ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her), the wife of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), who said that the Messenger of Allaah (ﷺ) used to pray in his salaah: “Allaahumma inni a’oodhu bika min ‘adhaab al-qabri, wa a’oodhu bika min fitnat il-maseeh il-dajjaal, wa a’oodhu bika min fitnat il-mahyaa wa fitnat il-mamaat. Allaahumma inni a’oodhu bika min al-ma’tham wa’l-maghram (O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from the torment of the grave, I seek refuge with You from the fitnah of the Dajjaal, and I seek refuge with You from the trials of life and death. O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from sin and debt).” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 789)

Muslim narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The Messenger of Allaah (ﷺ) said: ‘When any one of you says Tashahhud, let him seek refuge with Allaah from four things, and say: “Allaahumma inni a’oodhi bika min ‘adhaab jahannam wa min ‘adhaab al-qabri wa min fitnat il-mahyaa wa’l-mamaat wa min sharri fitnat al-maseeh al-dajjaal (O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from the torment of Hell, from the torment of the grave, from the trials of life and death, and from the evil of the fitnah of the Dajjaal).”’” (Narrated by Muslim, no. 924)

Memorizing aayaat from Soorat al-Kahf. The Prophet (ﷺ) commanded us to recite the opening verses of Soorat al-Kahf against the Dajjaal. According to some reports, the final verses of this soorah was mentioned. This means reciting the first ten verses or the last ten. Among the ahaadeeth narrated concerning this was the lengthy hadeeth narrated by Muslim from al-Nawwaas ibn Sam’aan, in which it says: “Whoever among you sees him (the Dajjaal), let him recite against him the opening verses of Soorat al-Kahf.” (Hadeeth 5228).

Muslim (no. 1342) narrated from Abu’l-Dardaa’ that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever memorizes ten aayaat from the beginning of Soorat al-Kahf will be protected from the Dajjaal” – i.e., from his fitnah. Muslim said: “Shu’bah said, ‘from the end of al-Kahf.’ Hammaam said, ‘from the beginning of al-Kahf.’”

Every Muslim should strive to read this soorah, and to memorize it and read it repeatedly, especially on the best day on which the sun rises, namely Friday.

Fleeing from the Dajjaal and keeping far away from him. The best way is to live in Makkah or Madeenah, and the places which the Dajjaal will not enter. When the Dajjaal emerges, Muslims should keep far away from him, because of the confusion he will cause and the mighty wonders that he will have with him, which Allaah will cause to happen at his hands in order to test mankind. A man will come to him, thinking that he is a strong believer, then he will follow the Dajjaal. We ask Allaah to grant us and all the Muslims refuge from his fitnah.

The belief in Allah, or 'Iman' as it is called by the Qur'an, is a great power. When it finds its way into one's heart, one finds himself so powerful as to face the whole world and all the forces gathered together against him. This was a great change. Only a few hours ago, the sorcerers were the worshippers of Pharoah, but having faith in Allah they demonstrated such a great power and courage that in response to all the threats to their lives by the Pharoah, they only said with perfect satisfaction that, in that case, "To our Lord we are sure to return."
Subhan Allah, this instantaneous transformation of the magicians is something for us Muslims to learn from. They were ready to sacrifice everything for their Iman, it meant everything to them. It was what filled them with bravery and strength in the face of such a hostile enemy. This Iman is something we need to worry about and to work on. In the end, we all return to Allah, and the state we return in should be the state of Iman. There are so many things we strive for in life. We spend years gaining some sort of skill or decades studying so that we can reap the fruit of these efforts, in the form of a promising career or a comfortable living during this life. Iman is the essential requirement for the after-life. Let's decide today to try to learn ways to build our Iman. Let's keep supplicating to Allah for strengthening it and enabling us to die with Iman shining in our hearts. Death is not the end. It's only the beginning of the real life of the Aakhirah, where Allah will lavishly reward those who had Iman and performed good deeds. The magicians' good deed was their standing up to the oppressive Firoun. By Allah's Mercy, they were able to do so by the sheer strength of their Iman. The sins and disbelief of their previous lives or state were completely washed away by this. They had preferred Allah and Allah Ta'ala will surely reward them for all this. Allah سبحانہ وتعالی says:
And whoever will come to Him as a believer, having done righteous deeds, for such people there are the highest ranks, the eternal gardens beneath which rivers flow, in which they shall live forever. That is the reward of the one who has purified himself.
(Surah Ta Ha: verses 75, 76)
A powerful Iman is something we need to beseech Allah for.

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ

O you who believe! Fear Allah (by doing all that He has ordered and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden) as He should be feared. [Obey Him, be thankful to Him, and remember Him always], and die not except in a state of Islam (as Muslims) with complete submission to Allah.

Al-I-Imran: 102

Ibrahim advised, discouraged and forbade his father from worshipping idols, just as Allah stated,

﴿وَإِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَهِيمُ لاًّبِيهِ ءَازَرَ أَتَتَّخِذُ أَصْنَاماً ءَالِهَةً﴾

(And (remember) when Ibrahim said to his father Azar: "Do you take idols as gods'') meaning, do you worship an idol instead of Allah

﴿إِنِّى أَرَاكَ وَقَوْمَكَ﴾

(Verily, I see you and your people...) who follow your path,

﴿فِى ضَلَـلٍ مُّبِينٍ﴾

(in manifest error) wandering in confusion unaware of where to go. Therefore, you are in disarray and ignorance, and this fact is clear to all those who have sound reason. Allah also said,

﴿وَاذْكُرْ فِى الْكِتَـبِ إِبْرَهِيمَ إِنَّهُ كَانَ صِدِّيقاً نَّبِيّاً - إِذْ قَالَ لاًّبِيهِ يأَبَتِ لِمَ تَعْبُدُ مَا لاَ يَسْمَعُ وَلاَ يَبْصِرُ وَلاَ يُغْنِى عَنكَ شَيْئاً - يأَبَتِ إِنِّى قَدْ جَآءَنِى مِنَ الْعِلْمِ مَا لَمْ يَأْتِكَ فَاتَّبِعْنِى أَهْدِكَ صِرَاطاً سَوِيّاً - يأَبَتِ لاَ تَعْبُدِ الشَّيْطَـنَ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَـنَ كَانَ لِلرَّحْمَـنِ عَصِيّاً - يأَبَتِ إِنِّى أَخَافُ أَن يَمَسَّكَ عَذَابٌ مِّنَ الرَّحْمَـنِ فَتَكُونَ لِلشَّيْطَـنِ وَلِيّاً - قَالَ أَرَاغِبٌ أَنتَ عَنْ آلِهَتِى يإِبْرَهِيمُ لَئِن لَّمْ تَنتَهِ لأَرْجُمَنَّكَ وَاهْجُرْنِى مَلِيّاً - قَالَ سَلَـمٌ عَلَيْكَ سَأَسْتَغْفِرُ لَكَ رَبِّي إِنَّهُ كَانَ بِى حَفِيّاً - وَأَعْتَزِلُكُمْ وَمَا تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَأَدْعُو رَبِّى عَسَى أَلاَّ أَكُونَ بِدُعَآءِ رَبِّى شَقِيًّا ﴾

(And mention in the Book (the Qur'an, the story of) Ibrahim. Verily! He was a man of truth, a Prophet. When he said to his father: "O my father! Why do you worship that which hears not, sees not and cannot avail you in anything O my father! Verily! There has come to me of knowledge that which came not unto you. So follow me. I will guide you to a straight path. O my father! Worship not Shaytan. Verily! Shaytan has been a rebel against the Most Beneficent (Allah). O my father! Verily! I fear lest a torment from the Most Beneficent (Allah) overtakes you, so that you become a companion of Shaytan (in the Hell-fire).'' He (the father) said: "Do you reject my gods, O Ibrahim If you stop not (this), I will indeed stone you. So get away from me safely before I punish you.'' Ibrahim said: "Peace be on you! I will ask forgiveness of my Lord for you. Verily! He is unto me, Ever Most Gracious. And I shall turn away from you and from those whom you invoke besides Allah. And I shall call on my Lord; and I hope that I shall not be unanswered in my invocation to my Lord.'') ﴿ 19:41-48﴾ Ibrahim continued asking for forgiveness for his father for the rest of his father's life. When his father died an idolator and Ibrahim realized this fact, he stopped asking Allah for forgiveness for him and disassociated himself from him. Allah said,

﴿وَمَا كَانَ اسْتِغْفَارُ إِبْرَهِيمَ لاًّبِيهِ إِلاَّ عَن مَّوْعِدَةٍ وَعَدَهَآ إِيَّاهُ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ أَنَّهُ عَدُوٌّ لِلَّهِ تَبَرَّأَ مِنْهُ إِنَّ إِبْرَهِيمَ لأَوَّاهٌ حَلِيمٌ ﴾

(And invoking for his father's forgiveness was only because of a promise he had made to him. But when it became clear to him that he was an enemy to Allah, he dissociated himself from him. Verily Ibrahim was patient in supplication and forbearing.) ﴿9:114﴾. It was recorded in the Sahih that Ibrahim will meet his father Azar on the Day of Resurrection and Azar will say to him, "My son! This Day, I will not disobey you.'' Ibrahim will say, "O Lord! You promised me not to disgrace me on the Day they are resurrected; and what will be more disgraceful to me than cursing and dishonoring my father'' Then Allah will say, "O Ibrahim! Look behind you!'' He will look and there he will see (that his father was changed into) a male hyena covered in dung, which will be caught by the legs and thrown in the (Hell) Fire.''