سورة النساء

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) was asked about the verse: وَ لَیْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِینَ یَعمَلُونَ السَّیِّئَاتِ حَتَّی إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّی تُبْتُ الآنَ [And repentance is not for those who go on doing evil deeds, until when death comes to one of them, he says: Surely now I repent]. He said: "This is when he sees the affairs of the Hereafter with his own eyes."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Zurara narrates: Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said: "If the soul reaches here" — and he pointed with his hand to his throat — "the repentance of the one who knows [that his act is a sin] is not accepted, but the repentance of the ignorant [who did not know that this act was a sin] is accepted."

Imam Hasan (peace be upon him): The verse: وَ لَیْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِینَ یَعْمَلُونَ السَّیِّئاتِ [And repentance is not for those who go on doing evil deeds] has been abrogated by the verse: إِنَّ اللهَ لا یَغْفِرُ أَنْ یُشْرَکَ بِهِ وَ یَغْفِرُ ما دُونَ ذلِکَ [Indeed, Allah does not forgive that partners be associated with Him, but He forgives what is less than that]; the disbelievers are deprived of Allah's forgiveness and pardon, but the believer, so long as he has not fallen for Satan's deception, does not despair of His mercy and forgiveness.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah shows His mercy to a servant who repents before his death. Repentance is what cleanses the heart from the filth of sins.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Halabi said: Regarding the verse وَ لَیْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِینَ یَعمَلُونَ السَّیِّئَاتِ حَتَّی إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّی تُبْتُ الآنَ [And repentance is not for those who go on doing evil deeds, until when death comes to one of them, he says: Surely now I repent], he said: "What is meant by this verse is one who greatly flees from repentance, and repents only at a time when repentance does not benefit him and is not accepted from him."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): The narrator said: Concerning وَ لَیْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِینَ یَعْمَلُونَ السَّیِّئاتِ حَتَّی إِذا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قالَ إِنِّی تُبْتُ الْآنَ [And repentance is not for those who go on doing evil deeds, until when death comes to one of them, he says: Surely now I repent], my father recited to me a hadith which he narrated from Ibn Fadhdhal, from Ali ibn Uqba, from Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him), who said: "[Only] one enraged person is [spoken of] in the Qur'an who repents at a time when it does not benefit him and his repentance is not accepted."

Imam Hasan (peace be upon him): Imam Hasan (peace be upon him), in a lengthy narration in which he argues with Muawiya, says: "Kinship with the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) which is beneficial for a polytheist is, by Allah, even more beneficial for a believer. The noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said to his uncle Abu Talib at the time of his death: 'Say لا اله الا الله [there is no god but Allah] so that on the Day of Resurrection I may intercede for you on account of it.' The Prophet would never say such a thing to him and would never make such a promise unless he was certain that Abu Talib had this station (perhaps this was to bind those people who claimed Abu Talib was a polytheist, so that his faith would be openly seen). No one has such a station except our grandfather Abu Talib; for Allah says: وَ لَیْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِینَ یَعمَلُونَ السَّیِّئَاتِ حَتَّی إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّی تُبْتُ الآنَ وَلاَ الَّذِینَ یَمُوتُونَ وَهُمْ کُفَّارٌ أُوْلَئِکَ أَعتَدْنَا لَهُمْ عذَابا أَلِیمًا [And repentance is not for those who go on doing evil deeds, until when death comes to one of them, he says: Surely now I repent; nor (for) those who die while they are unbelievers. These are they for whom We have prepared a painful chastisement]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: "Allah refuses to accept the repentance of a person of bad character." It was asked: "O Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), why is that?" He said: "Because the love of that sin has become deeply ingrained in his heart."

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): One who repents, until the marks of repentance become apparent in him, is not a true repenter. [The marks of repentance are:] he satisfies those who are displeased with him, he becomes one who performs the prayer, he is humble among the people, he restrains his soul from desires, he makes his neck thin through fasting in the day [so that his soul does not rebel], the color of his face turns yellow from prolonged night vigil, his belly draws in from eating little, his back bends from the fear of the Fire, his bones melt from longing to reach Paradise, his heart becomes tender from the dread of the Angel of Death, and his skin clings to the [bones of his] body from constantly reflecting on the moment of death. These are the marks of repentance, and whenever you see a servant in this state, know that he is a true repenter who has no intention of returning to sin.