The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) said: Ibraaheem may Allaah exalt his mention never `lied except in three cases, two for Allaah, when he said [as an excuse when asked by his people to join them in celebration of their idols] `I am sick; and [when they came back and asked who broke their idols, he said] `Rather, it was the biggest among them who did that. And the third was about Saarah, and that was his saying: `When he asks you, say you are my sister, because you are my sister in Islam. [Muslim] Imaam an-Nawawi explains that these lies were lies only with regard to the understanding of their immediate audience, but not in and of themselves. Ibraaheem may Allaah exalt his mention indeed was sick of their idol-worship, and his response that it was the biggest idol who broke the rest was simply a rhetorical ploy, which is not ordinarily considered a lie in our speech. For instance, when a friend sees you sipping on a cup of tea and asks, What are you doing? and you say: What do you think? I am flying in the air—that is not a lie, but a rhetorical expression to convey your annoyance. The Prophet Ibraaheem may Allaah exalt his mention made this clear in the third example by adding that Saarah was his sister in Islam, for she, indeed, was. But the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) still called it a lie because it was less than the whole truth. The scholars of Islam agree, reports Imaam an-Nawawi, that a Muslim is permitted, indeed, required, to hide an innocent or wrongly persecuted person from oppressors, and if he must lie in this pursuit, he can. But even in such cases, lying should be avoided if possible. Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq the most truthful man of the ‘Ummah who accompanied the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) on his flight to Madeenah, was accosted by an acquaintance of his who did not know the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) by face but had probably heard of the Makkan search for him. He asked Abu Bakr may Allaah be pleased with him about his companion, to which Abu Bakr may Allaah be pleased with him said: He is my guide. He shows me the way. Abu Bakr did not lie even in such dire circumstances, but simply equivocated.
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 13:22:13 +0000
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