The story of the Queen of Sheba.
Verifying facts before imposing punishment.
When the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him), became angry with the hoopoe
due to his absence from the army,
he threatened to punish or execute him,
unless he brought a valid excuse.
This reflects the noble character of prophethood:
there is no punishment without a sin,
and no punishment without verification.
Allah Almighty says:
“And he sought among the birds and said: How is it that I see not the hoopoe, or is he among the absent?” (27:20)
“I verily will punish him with hard punishment or I verily will slay him, or he verily shall bring me a plain excuse.” (27:21)
“I verily will punish him with hard punishment or I verily will slay him, or he verily shall bring me a plain excuse.” (27:21)
Al-Sa'di (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"His noticing the hoopoe's absence demonstrates his perfect attentiveness, his personal governance of his kingdom,
and his exceptional acuteness, such that he missed even this small bird."
“And he sought among the birds and said: How is it that I see not the hoopoe, or is he among the absent?” (27:20)
Meaning: Was his failure to see him due to a lack of attentiveness on his part—
because the bird was hidden among these vast multitudes—
or was it truly absent, having left without his permission or order?
Thereupon, he grew angry with him and threatened him,
saying: "I will surely punish him severely short of killing him,"
“I verily will punish him with hard punishment or I verily will slay him, or he verily shall bring me a plain excuse.” (27:21)
meaning a clear proof for his absence.
This stems from his complete piety and fairness,
as he did not swear to punish or kill him unconditionally,
since punishment is only for a sin,
and his absence might have been due to a valid excuse.
Therefore, he made an exception out of his piety and wisdom.
This represents perfect justice:
that we do not punish the wrongdoer immediately in a moment of anger,
but rather give him an opportunity to present his excuse.
If it is acceptable, he is spared;
otherwise, he is punished as he deserves for his sin.
Al-Tahir ibn 'Ashur (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"His statement, 'or he must bring me a clear authority,'
makes this the third outcome he decreed for his absence:
that he brings that which wards off punishment from himself,
in the form of an acceptable excuse for remaining behind."
My dear sister,
verify matters before inflicting punishment on your children,
and give them the opportunity to defend themselves
and explain their point of view.
This verification is what Allah commanded His servants to practice,
so that they avoid haste in judging and accusing people.
For Allah Almighty says:
"O you who have believed,
“O ye who believe! When ye go forth (to fight) in the way of Allah, be careful to discriminate, and say not unto one who offereth you peace: "Thou art not a believer," seeking the chance profits of this life (so that ye may despoil him). With Allah are plenteous spoils. Even thus (as he now is) were ye before; but Allah hath since then been gracious unto you. Therefore take care to discriminate. Allah is ever Informed of what ye do.” (4:94)
“O ye who believe! When ye go forth (to fight) in the way of Allah, be careful to discriminate, and say not unto one who offereth you peace: "Thou art not a believer," seeking the chance profits of this life (so that ye may despoil him). With Allah are plenteous spoils. Even thus (as he now is) were ye before; but Allah hath since then been gracious unto you. Therefore take care to discriminate. Allah is ever Informed of what ye do.” (4:94)
“O ye who believe! When ye go forth (to fight) in the way of Allah, be careful to discriminate, and say not unto one who offereth you peace: "Thou art not a believer," seeking the chance profits of this life (so that ye may despoil him). With Allah are plenteous spoils. Even thus (as he now is) were ye before; but Allah hath since then been gracious unto you. Therefore take care to discriminate. Allah is ever Informed of what ye do.” (4:94)
for with Allah are abundant spoils.
“O ye who believe! When ye go forth (to fight) in the way of Allah, be careful to discriminate, and say not unto one who offereth you peace: "Thou art not a believer," seeking the chance profits of this life (so that ye may despoil him). With Allah are plenteous spoils. Even thus (as he now is) were ye before; but Allah hath since then been gracious unto you. Therefore take care to discriminate. Allah is ever Informed of what ye do.” (4:94)
“O ye who believe! When ye go forth (to fight) in the way of Allah, be careful to discriminate, and say not unto one who offereth you peace: "Thou art not a believer," seeking the chance profits of this life (so that ye may despoil him). With Allah are plenteous spoils. Even thus (as he now is) were ye before; but Allah hath since then been gracious unto you. Therefore take care to discriminate. Allah is ever Informed of what ye do.” (4:94)
Indeed, Allah is ever Aware of what you do."
Al-Sa'di (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"The Almighty commands His believing servants,
when they go forth to strive in His cause
seeking His pleasure,
to investigate and verify all ambiguous matters.
For matters are of two types:
clear and unclear.
As for clear and evident matters, they do not require investigation or verification,
because doing so would be redundant.
But as for complex and unclear matters,
a person needs to verify and clarify them
to know whether to proceed or not.
Verifying such matters
yields immense benefits
and wards off great evils,
through which a servant's faith, intellect, and sound judgment are made known.
This is unlike one who acts hastily in the initial stages of affairs
before the ruling regarding them becomes clear to him,
as that leads to improper consequences—
just as happened to those whom Allah admonished in the verse,
when they failed to verify and killed someone who offered them greetings of peace."
The main thing that keeps you from verifying
and causes you to wrong your children and those around you
is anger.
So seek refuge in Allah from anger and haste.
Al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"Allah commanded anyone executing an authority over His servants
to be fully informed before carrying it out.
Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commanded,
specifically regarding judicial judgment,
that a judge must not pass judgment while angry.
For an angry person poses a risk in two respects:
the first is a lack of verification,
and the second
is that anger may cloud one's judgment,
causing a person to do what he would not have done
had he not been angry."
The standard for anger among many fathers and mothers is skewed,
because they do not become angry for the sake of Allah,
but rather for their own selves.
If you were to ask yourself
what drives you to be angry for your own sake rather than for Allah,
you would find that social pretense is the reason.
Social pretense
means that a person presents an idealized image of themselves to others that does not reflect reality.
That is why if your child commits a mistake or misbehaves in front of people,
your temper flares up against him,
your blood boils, your face turns red,
your blood pressure rises,
and your tone of voice becomes harsh with him—
even though the very same mistake might be committed by him at home,
yet you would not react as you did in front of people.
Among the things that lead fathers and mothers
to fail to verify claims made against their children
is listening to people's criticism of their children
and immediately believing this criticism without verification.
Yet the critic might be resentful or envious,
or even a sincere adviser,
but one who exaggerates issues
or lacks an understanding of human nature during childhood and youth.
Thus, one should not act hastily toward children
based on reports heard from people without verification.
One of the worst causes that provoke anger in fathers
and drive them to judge their children hastily without patience
is the practice of some mothers greeting the husband with the children's misdeeds
as soon as he returns from work,
which inadvertently fills his heart with resentment toward his children,
leading him to rush into judging and punishing them without thought or deliberation.
My dear sister,
just as you need to be deliberate in judging the behavior of your children,
you also need to be deliberate in judging the actions of everyone around you—
your brothers, sisters, husband, and neighbors—
to avoid strained relationships built on haste and anger.
As for men, their default state should be rational composure,
given the maturity of intellect and emotional control Allah has granted them.
Therefore, acting hastily, failing to verify what is heard,
and unfairly inflicting punishment on those under his care
are disgraceful qualities that do not befit noble men.
Thus, all the guidance directed to women in this discourse
applies to men to an even greater degree.
So, my dear brother,
be among the best and most prudent of men,
and be a good role model for others and for your household
in practicing verification and deliberation upon hearing news.
But did the hoopoe escape punishment,
and how did he handle this formidable threat
from a great prophet
who possessed a kingdom unlike any granted to any human on earth?
We will continue in our next session, Allah willing.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
The story of the Queen of Sheba
with the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him).