Reminding us of this great pillar of faith, explaining the descriptions and tasks of the honorable angels, and the times and conditions in which the angels pray for us.
1- The characteristics and status of angels.
2- Tasks and functions of angels.
3- The fruits of belief in angels.
4- Conditions and times when angels pray for you.
(The purpose of the sermon)
Reminding us of this great pillar of faith, explaining the descriptions and tasks of the honorable angels, and the times and conditions in which the angels pray for us.
Introduction and introduction to the topic:
Belief in angels is one of the pillars of faith:
As God Almighty said: { The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and [so have] the believers. All of them have believed in God and His angels and His books and His messengers. } [Al-Baqarah: 285], and God Almighty said: { But righteousness is [in] one who believes in God and the Last Day and the angels. } [Al-Baqarah: 177].
In the famous hadith of Gabriel, the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said when he was asked about faith: “ Faith is to believe in God, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and destiny, both good and bad .”
• The servant’s faith is not sound, and God does not accept any charity or justice from him, unless he believes in the angels.
♦ As God Almighty said: { And whoever disbelieves in God and His angels and His books and His messengers and the Last Day has certainly strayed far astray. } [An-Nisa: 136].
• The required level of belief in angels includes four essential matters:
1- The firm acknowledgement of their existence, and that they are a creation of God Almighty, nurtured and subjected to His worship.
2- Belief in the names of those whose names we know, such as Gabriel, Michael, Israfil, Malik, Ridwan, and others, peace be upon them.
3- Belief in the descriptions of those we know, just as we know from the Sunnah the description of Gabriel, peace be upon him, and that he has six hundred wings that fill the horizon, meaning he fills the sky.
4- Belief in the deeds of those whose deeds we know of. Gabriel, peace be upon him, is entrusted with revelation, Israfil is entrusted with blowing the trumpet, Michael is entrusted with rain, and Malik is entrusted with fire.
The first stop: The attributes and status of angels:
• Angels are one of God Almighty’s creations. He created them from light, they have bodies, they live in the sky, and their number is great, and only God Almighty knows it.
• In Sahih Muslim, the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ The angels were created from light, the jinn were created from a smokeless flame of fire, and Adam was created from what has been described to you .”
One of their descriptions is that they are a great creation:
• As God Almighty said about them: {Praise be to God, Creator of the heavens and the earth, Who has made the angels messengers with wings, two or three or four. } [Fatir: 1].
Meaning: Some of them have two wings, some have three, some have four, and some have more than that.
In the two Sahihs, on the authority of Ibn Masoud, may God be pleased with him, “ The Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, saw Gabriel with six hundred wings, between each two wings as far as the distance between the east and the west .”
• Abu Dawood narrated on the authority of Jabir, may God be pleased with him, on the authority of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, who said: “ I was given permission to speak about an angel of God’s angels who bears the Throne. The distance between his earlobe and his shoulder is a journey of seven hundred years .”
• When God Almighty destroyed a village that disbelieved in God, He sent Gabriel, peace be upon him, to them: { And We did not send down upon his people after him any soldiers from the heaven, nor were We to send them down. It was only a single blast, and at once they were extinguished. } [Yasin: 28, 29].
• One of their characteristics is that they are commanded and obedient to God Almighty.
• As God Almighty said: { They do not disobey God in what He commands them but do what they are commanded. } [At-Tahrim: 6].
• God Almighty said: { They do not precede Him in speech, and they act by His command. } [Al-Anbiya: 27].
• Because they do not disobey God Almighty, they seek forgiveness and ask God Almighty for forgiveness for the people of faith.
• As God Almighty said: { Those who bear the Throne and those around it exalt [Allah] with praise of their Lord and believe in Him and ask forgiveness for those who have believed, [saying], “Our Lord, You have encompassed all things in mercy and knowledge, so forgive those who have repented and followed Your way and protect them from the punishment of Hellfire.” } [Ghafir: 7].
Ibn Atiyah, may God have mercy on him, said: “It has reached me that a man said to some righteous people: Pray for me and ask forgiveness for me. He said to him: Repent and follow the path of God, and someone better than me will ask forgiveness for you. And he recited this verse.”
• One of their descriptions is that they are a creation that neither eats nor drinks. Their only food is glorifying and praising God. They do not become weak or slack in worshipping God Almighty.
• As God Almighty said: { They are not too proud to worship Him, nor do they grow weary. They glorify Him night and day, never slackening. } [Al-Anbiya: 19-20].
Second stop: The tasks and functions of angels:
• Among them is the one entrusted with revelation from God Almighty to the messengers and prophets; he is the faithful spirit; Gabriel, peace be upon him.
• As in the Almighty’s saying: { The Trustworthy Spirit has brought it down upon your heart that you may be among the warners, in a clear Arabic tongue } [Ash-Shu’ara’: 193-195], and the Almighty said: { Say: The Holy Spirit has brought it down from your Lord } [An-Nahl: 102].
• Among them is the one entrusted with rain and directing it to where God Almighty commanded; he is Michael, peace be upon him.
• It was reported that Michael, peace be upon him, measures the rain, as stated in the Almighty’s saying: “And We do not send it down except according to a known measure” [Al-Hijr: 21].
• It was also mentioned in some hadiths: “There is no drop that falls from the sky except that there is an angel with it who places it in its place on the earth.”
• In the authentic hadith, a man heard a voice in a cloud: “ Water so-and-so’s garden .”
• Among them is the one who is entrusted with the wombs.
• Al-Bukhari narrated on the authority of Anas bin Malik, may God be pleased with him, on the authority of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, that he said: “God Almighty has assigned an angel to the womb who says: ‘O Lord, a drop of semen, O Lord, a clot, O Lord, a lump of flesh.’ Then when He wants to complete its creation, He says: ‘Male or female? Wretched or happy? What is the provision and the life span?’ So it is written in its mother’s womb .”
• On the authority of Abdullah bin Masoud, may God be pleased with him, he said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, who is the truthful and believed one, told us: (( The creation of one of you is gathered in his mother’s womb for forty days, then he is a clot for a similar period, then he is a lump of flesh for a similar period, then God sends an angel, and he is commanded with four words, and he is told: Write down his deeds, his provision, his life span, and whether he will be wretched or happy, then the soul is breathed into him .)) H)
• Among them are those entrusted with protecting the servants; they are the guardians.
• God Almighty said: {He has guardian angels before him and behind him, who guard him by the command of God} [Al-Ra`d: 11], and God Almighty said: {And He is the Prevailing over His servants, and He sends over you guardians } [Al-An`am: 61].
• Among them is the one entrusted with preserving the deeds of the servants, both good and evil; they are the noble scribes.
• As Allah the Almighty said: { When the two receivers receive, seated on the right and on the left. Not a word does he utter except that by him is an observer prepared.} [Qaf: 17-18], and Allah the Almighty said: {Or do they think that We do not hear their secrets and their private conversations? Yes, and Our messengers are with them, writing down.} [Az-Zukhruf: 80], and Allah the Almighty said: {And indeed, over you are keepers, * Noble and recording, * They know what You do. (Al-Infitar: 10-12)
• Among them are wandering angels who follow the gatherings of remembrance.
• In the authentic hadith: “ A group of people do not gather in one of the houses of God, reciting the Book of God and studying it among themselves, except that tranquility descends upon them, mercy covers them, the angels surround them, and God mentions them among those who are with Him .”
• Among them are angels who witness the dawn and afternoon prayers.
• As God Almighty said: { And the Qur’an of dawn. Indeed, the Qur’an of dawn is ever witnessed. } [Al-Isra’: 78].
• That is, the angels witness it.
• In the two Sahihs, on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ Angels take turns among you at night and angels take turns among you during the day, and they gather at the dawn prayer and the afternoon prayer. Then those who spent the night among you ascend, and God asks them, although He knows best about them: How did you leave My servants? They will say: We left them while they were praying, and we came to them while they were praying .”
• Some of them stand at the doors of the mosques on Friday, writing down who came to Friday prayers, first and foremost, until the imam enters. When the imam enters, the pages are folded.
• In the hadith: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ The angels sit at the door of the mosque on Friday, writing down the arrival of the people until the imam comes out. When he comes out, the pages are folded and the pens are lifted .”
• Among them is the one who is entrusted with the mountains.
• As mentioned in the authentic hadith in the biography and other books, that when the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, returned from Taif, after they had lied to him, his chest tightened because of that. In it, may God bless him and grant him peace, he said: “I did not wake up until I was at Qarn al-Tha’alib, so I raised my head and saw a cloud that had shaded me. I looked and saw Gabriel in it, so he called me and said: God has heard what your people said to you and how they responded to you, and God has sent to you the Angel of the Mountains so that you may command him to do whatever you wish with them. So the Angel of the Mountains called me and greeted me, then he said: O Muhammad, he said: That is what you wish, if you wish I will close the two mountains on them. So the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: Rather I hope that God will bring forth from their loins someone who will worship God alone and not associate anything with Him .”
• Among them are visitors to the Ma’mur House, by which God Almighty swore. It is a house in the seventh heaven, opposite the Kaaba.
•It was mentioned in the description of the Ma’mur House that: “ Seventy thousand angels enter it every day, and they do not return to it until the end of their duties .”
• Among them are the bearers of the throne.
• God Almighty said: {Those who bear the Throne and those around it exalt [Allah] with praise of their Lord and believe in Him and ask forgiveness for those who have believed. Our Lord. } [Ghafir: 7].
• And there are those whom only God Almighty knows.
• As God Almighty said: { And none knows the soldiers of your Lord except Him. } [Al-Muddaththir: 31].
• In the authentic hadith on the authority of Abu Dharr, may God be pleased with him, he said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ I see what you do not see, and I hear what you do not hear. The heavens groaned, and it has every right to groan. There is not a space in it the size of four fingers but that there is an angel prostrating or standing on it. If you knew what I know, you would laugh little and cry much, and you would not take pleasure in women on your beds, and you would go out to the open spaces, beseeching God. ” [Narrated by Ahmad, Al-Tirmidhi, and Ibn Majah].
• Among them is the one who is entrusted with taking souls; he is the Angel of Death and his assistants.
• As Allah the Almighty said: { Say, “The Angel of Death who is set over you will take you, then to your Lord you will be returned.”} [As-Sajdah: 11], and Allah the Almighty said: {Until, when death comes to one of you, Our messengers take him, and they do not fail [in their duties]} [Al-An`am: 61], and Allah the Almighty said: {And if you could but see when the angels take the souls of those who disbelieve, they strike their faces and their backs } [Al-Anfal: 50].
• Among them is the one who is entrusted with blowing the trumpet; he is Israfil, peace be upon him.
• It will be blown three times, as God Almighty said: { And the Day the Trumpet will be blown, then everyone in the heavens and the earth will be terrified } [An-Naml: 87], and God Almighty said: { Then everyone in the heavens and the earth will fall unconscious, except whom God wills. Then it will be blown again, and at once they will be standing, looking on } [Az-Zumar: 68].
• In the Sunnah, on the authority of Abu Saeed Al-Khudri, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “How can I enjoy myself when the owner of the horn has taken hold of the horn, bent his forehead, and listened intently, when will he be commanded? He said: The companions of the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, heard that and it was difficult for them, so the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: Say: God is sufficient for us, and He is the best Disposer of affairs .”
• Among them are those entrusted with the trial of the grave; they are Munkar and Nakir.
• Al-Tirmidhi narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, who said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ When a dead person is buried, or one of you says, two black and blue angels come to him, one of them is called Al-Munkar and the other Al-Nakeer .”
• Among them are the guardians of Paradise, and at their forefront is Ridwan, peace be upon him.
• God Almighty said: { Gardens of perpetual bliss which they will enter, as will those who were righteous among their fathers, their spouses, and their descendants. And the angels will enter upon them from every gate. } [Al-Ra`d: 23].
• God Almighty said: {The greatest terror will not grieve them, and the angels will meet them, [saying], “This is your Day which you were promised.” } [Al-Anbiya: 103].
• Among them are the guardians of Hell, God forbid. They are the Zabaniyah, and their leaders are nineteen, and their leader is Malik.
• As God Almighty said about the people of Hell: { And they will cry out, “O Malik, let your Lord put an end to us.” He will say, “Indeed, you will remain.” } [Az-Zukhruf: 77].
God Almighty said: { O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones, over which are angels stern and severe. They do not disobey God in what He commands them but do what they are commanded. } [At-Tahrim: 6].
• In the hadith: “ Hell will be brought on the Day of Resurrection with seventy thousand reins, and with each rein are seventy thousand angels pulling it .”
We ask God Almighty to strengthen our faith.
The second sermon:
With the third stop: The fruits of belief in angels:
• Belief in angels has many benefits and fruits, including:
1- Belief in the angels, peace be upon them, necessitates loving and revering them. They are honored servants who do not disobey God in what He commands them, and they do what they are commanded to do, and they glorify Him night and day without tiring.
• Belief in the angels and love for them results in staying away from things that harm them, and the angels are harmed by the same things that harm the children of Adam.
• In Sahih Muslim, on the authority of Jabir, may God be pleased with him, he said: “ The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, forbade eating onions and leeks. We were overcome by need and ate some of them, and he said: Whoever eats from this stinking tree, let him not come near our mosque, for the angels are offended by what offends humans .” [Narrated by Muslim]
• In Sahih Al-Bukhari, the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ Angels do not enter a house in which there is a dog or a picture .”
2- Among the fruits of belief in the angels: belief in the greatness of God Almighty, and the perfection of His power and wisdom in creating the angels. This fruit is one of the greatest fruits, because the greatness of the creation indicates the greatness of the Creator, glory be to Him.
• God Almighty said: {Praise be to God, Creator of the heavens and the earth, Who has made the angels messengers with wings, two or three or four. He increases in creation what He wills. Indeed, God is over all things competent. } [Fatir: 1].
• It was mentioned in the hadith: “ The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, saw Gabriel on the night of the Isra’ and he had six hundred wings, between each two wings was like the distance between the east and the west .”
3- Among the fruits of belief in the angels: imitating them in their obedience to God Almighty, their good worship, and their constant remembrance of Him, Glory be to Him.
• God Almighty said: { And there is none of us but has a known position. And indeed, it is We who arrange [our ranks] and indeed, it is We who glorify [Allah] } [As-Saffat: 164-166].
• Al-Tabari, may God have mercy on him, said: “God Almighty says, informing us about His angels: { And indeed, it is We who arrange [the angels] in rows } [As-Saffat: 165] for God to worship Him, { And indeed, it is We who glorify Him } [As-Saffat: 166]; meaning by that those who pray to Him.”
•And God Almighty said about them: { Indeed, those who are with your Lord are not too proud to worship Him, and they exalt Him and to Him they prostrate. } [Al-A’raf: 206].
•In the hadith: “ There is no place in the sky where a foot stands except that there is an angel prostrating or standing on it .”
• On the authority of Abu Dharr, he said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ I see what you do not see, and I hear what you do not hear. The heavens groaned, and it has every right to groan. There is not a space in it the size of four fingers, except that there is an angel prostrating his forehead to God .”
• That is why it has been prescribed for us to imitate them in their frequent obedience and good worship, as stated in the hadith: “ Do you not line up as the angels line up before their Lord, completing the rows, one after the other, and standing close together in the row ?”
4- Among the fruits of belief in angels: hoping that God Almighty will answer their prayers and seek forgiveness for the believer who obeys his Lord, and taking the necessary measures to do so.
Fourth stop: Conditions and times when angels pray for you:
• There is no doubt that the supplication of the angels is more likely to be accepted. A person among us rejoices when the righteous supplicate for him in his absence, and he may ask them to supplicate for him. So how about if the honorable angels are the ones who supplicate for him for mercy and forgiveness, or say “Amen” to his supplication? They are more likely to be accepted.
The pure Sunnah is full of explanations of the actions that cause the angels to pray for the servant, including:
1- When standing in the first row during prayer.
• On the authority of Al-Bara’ bin Azib, may God be pleased with him, who said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “God and His angels send blessings upon the first row,” and in another narration: “God and His angels send blessings upon the first rows ”; [authenticated by Al-Albani in Sahih Al-Targheeb].
2- When the rows are connected in prayer.
• In Sunan Ibn Majah, on the authority of the Mother of the Believers Aisha, may God be pleased with her, she said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “God and His angels send blessings upon those who straighten the rows, and whoever fills a gap, God will raise him a degree because of it .”
3- When saying “Amen” behind the Imam after Al-Fatihah.
• In the authentic hadith: “ If the imam says ‘Amen’, then say ‘Amen’; for whoever says ‘Amen’ at the same time as the angels say ‘Amen’, his previous sins will be forgiven .”
4- When sitting in the mosque after prayer.
• In Sahih Al-Bukhari, on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ The angels pray for one of you as long as he is in his place of prayer, as long as he does not break his ablution: O God, forgive him, O God, have mercy on him .”
Ibn Battel, may God have mercy on him, said: “Whoever has many sins and wants God Almighty to remove them from him without effort, let him seize the opportunity to stay in his place of prayer after the prayer, to increase the supplications of the honorable angels, peace and blessings be upon them, and their seeking forgiveness for him, for it is hoped that his supplication will be answered.”
The angels’ assurance of peace and blessings be upon them for those who say “Amen” behind the imam after reciting Al-Fatihah is only once. As for their supplication for those who sit in their prayer place forever and ever, as long as they are sitting in it, it is more likely to be answered.
5- When hearing the roosters crowing.
• In the two Sahihs, on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “If you hear the crowing of a rooster, ask God for His bounty, for it has seen an angel. And if you hear the braying of a donkey, seek refuge in God from Satan, for it has seen a devil .”
6- When visiting the patient.
• Ahmad and the Sunnah scholars narrated on the authority of Ali ibn Abi Talib, may God be pleased with him, who said: I heard the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, say: “ When a man visits his Muslim brother, he walks in the shade of Paradise until he sits down. When he sits down, mercy overwhelms him. If it is in the morning, seventy thousand angels pray for him until the evening. If it is in the evening, seventy thousand angels pray for him until morning .”
7- When visiting for the sake of Allah Almighty.
• On the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, who said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ Whoever visits a sick person, or visits a brother of his for the sake of God, a caller will call out to him: ‘May you be well and may your path be good, and may you have a home in Paradise .’”
8- When you pray for your brother in his absence.
• In Sahih Muslim, on the authority of Abu al-Darda’, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, used to say: “ The supplication of a Muslim for his brother in his absence is answered. There is an angel assigned to him at his head. Whenever he supplicates for his brother for good, the angel assigned to him says: Amen, and the same for you .”
9- When teaching people good.
• In Sunan Al-Tirmidhi, on the authority of Abu Umamah Al-Bahili, may God be pleased with him, he said: “ Two men were mentioned to the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace: one of them was a worshipper and the other was a scholar. The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: The superiority of the scholar over the worshipper is like my superiority over the lowest of you. Then the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: God, His angels, the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth, even the ant in its hole, and even the fish – send blessings upon the one who teaches people good .”
10- When sleeping in a state of purity.
• In the hadith that some scholars have deemed good: “ Whoever sleeps in a state of purity, an angel will sleep in his clothes, and when he wakes up, the angel will say: O God, forgive your servant so-and-so, for he slept in a state of purity .”
11- When eating Suhoor.
• On the authority of Abu Saeed Al-Khudri, may God be pleased with him, who said: The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “ The pre-dawn meal is a blessed meal, so do not abandon it, even if one of you takes a sip of water, for God and His angels send blessings upon those who eat the pre-dawn meal .” [Authenticated by Al-Albani in Sahih Al-Targheeb]
The virtue of the noble hadith includes the one who contributes to preparing the pre-dawn meal and waking up those who eat it. The one who guides to goodness is like the one who does it, as the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, gave us good tidings.
12- When giving alms.
• In Sahih Al-Bukhari, on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may God be pleased with him, on the authority of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, that he said: “ There is no day in which the servants arise, except that two angels descend, and one of them says: O God, give to the one who spends in charity a replacement, and the other says: O God, give to the one who withholds destruction .”
• The believer should take advantage of these times and conditions in order to receive the prayers and supplications of the honorable angels.
We ask God Almighty to make us among those who are blessed with the prayers and supplications of the honorable angels.