The First: One having deeds from which
he hopes good but they end up scattered dust and are altered to evil deeds.
Allaah سُبحانه وتعالى
says,
وَالَّذِينَ
كَفَرُوا أَعْمَالُهُمْ كَسَرَابٍ بِقِيعَةٍ يَحْسَبُهُ الظَّمْآنُ مَاء حَتَّى إِذَا
جَاءهُ لَمْ يَجِدْهُ شَيْئًا وَوَجَدَ اللَّهَ عِندَهُ فَوَفَّاهُ حِسَابَهُ
وَاللَّهُ سَرِيعُ الْحِسَابِ
“As for those
who disbelieve, their deeds are as a mirage in a desert. The thirsty one thinks
it to be water till he comes to it and finds it naught, and finds, in the place
thereof, Allaah Who will pay him his due; and Allaah is swift at reckoning.¹
(An-Nur
24:39)
وَقَدِمْنَا
إِلَى مَا عَمِلُوا مِنْ عَمَلٍ فَجَعَلْنَاهُ هَبَاء مَّنثُورً
“And We shall
turn unto the work they did and make it scattered motes.²
Fudayl
said concerning this verse, ”And there will appear unto them from their
Lord, that wherewith they never reckoned,” ‘They worked deeds thinking them
to be good when in reality they were evil.’
The
Second: Close to the above: a servant commits an evil deed to which he pays no
regard, thinking it insignificant, and that sin will be the cause of his
perdition as Allaah says,
"…you counted it a trifle but in
the sight of Allaah it is very great." ³
One of the Companions said, ‘You are doing
deeds that are, in your eyes, more insignificant than a hair, whereas at the
time of the Messenger of Allaah صلّى اللَّهُ
عليه وسلّم we would consider
them to be destructive sins!.’4