The Quran narrates the story of the people of the Ayla village (a city of Jews located at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba), where Allah forbade them from fishing on the Sabbath (Saturdays). The fish would come to them on their Sabbath openly on the shore, but when the Sabbath was over, they could not catch them. This situation continued for as long as Allah willed. Then, a group among them began catching the fish on their Sabbath, despite being forbidden. Another group warned them, while a third group remained silent. ⁽¹⁾ What was the outcome?

Those who warned against wrongdoing were saved, while the wrongdoers and the silent ones were subjected to general punishment, as Allah said, “And ask them about the town that was by the sea—when they transgressed in [the matter of] the Sabbath—when their fish came to them openly on their Sabbath day, and the day they had no sabbath they did not come to them. Thus did We give them trial because they were defiantly disobedient. And when a community among them said, 'Why do you advise [or warn] a people whom Allah is [about] to destroy or to punish with a severe punishment?' they [the advisors] said, 'To be absolved before your Lord and perhaps they may fear Him.' And when they forgot that by which they had been reminded, We saved those who had forbidden evil and seized those who wronged with a wretched punishment because they were defiantly disobedient.” (Al-A'raf: 163-165)

This incident emphasizes the importance of enjoining good and forbidding evil and highlights the dangers of neglecting it. Some of the dangers of neglecting enjoining good and forbidding evil are as follows:

1. Losing the description of being the best of nations: Allah described the Muslim Ummah as the best nation brought forth for mankind as long as they enjoin good, forbid evil, and believe in Allah. Allah says, “You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah.” (Aal-Imran: 110) The nation does not deserve praise unless it fulfills its duty of enjoining good and forbidding evil.
2. Decreasing faith: Muslim reported in his Sahih from Abu Sa`eed that the Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Whosoever of you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; and if he is not able to do so, then [let him change it] with his tongue; and if he is not able to do so, then with his heart — and that is the weakest of faith.” Abdullah bin Mas'ud reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “There was no prophet whom God raised up among his people before me who did not have from among his people apostles and companions who held to his sunna and followed what he commanded; then they were succeeded by people who said what they did not practise and did things they were not commanded to do. So he who strives against them with his hand is a believer, he who strives against them with his tongue is a believer, and he who strives against them with his heart is a believer. Beyond that there is not so much faith as a grain of mustard seed.”
3. Becoming accustomed to sins and having a corrupted heart: Frequent exposure to sins can have the same effect as committing them in terms of removing the light of discernment and condemnation from the heart. Sins, when repeatedly seen and witnessed, gradually lose their gravity in the hearts until the person no longer considers them as sins or recognizes them as disobediences. Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Zayyat used to say: “By Allah, I do not mind the abundance of sins and innovations; what I fear is the heart becoming accustomed to them, because when things become frequent, the soul becomes familiar with them, and once the soul becomes familiar with something, it rarely reacts to it.” ⁽²⁾
4. Unanswered Du’a: At-Tirmidhi narrated from Hudhaifah bin Al-Yaman, who said that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “By the One in Whose Hand is my soul! Either you command good and forbid evil, or Allah will soon send upon you a punishment from Him, then you will call upon Him, but He will not respond to you.” Meaning, by Allah, one of the two matters will occur: either you will enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, or Allah will send upon you a punishment from Him. Then, your supplications will not be answered to avert it from you. If there is enjoining of what is right and forbidding of what is wrong, there will be no punishment. If these are not present, there will be a great punishment. ⁽³⁾

Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Omari said: “Whoever refrains from enjoining good and forbidding evil out of fear of people, Allah will strip him of His awe. Even if he orders one of his children or servants, they will mock him. How then can his supplication be answered by his Creator?!” ⁽⁴⁾

5. Destruction of society: Enjoining good and forbidding evil helps protect society from destruction. If believers abandon it, Allah will send His calamity upon the people. Allah said, “And your Lord would not have destroyed the cities unjustly while their people were reformers.” (Hud: 117) In Sahih Muslim, Zainab bint Jahsh, the wife of the Prophet (ﷺ), reported that one day Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) came out in a state of excitement with his face quite red. And he was saying: “There is no god but Allah; there is a destruction in store for Arabia because of the turmoil which is near at hand as the barrier of Gog and Magog has been opened like it,” and he (in order to explain it) made a ring with the help of his thumb and forefinger. I said: “Allah's Messenger, would we be destroyed despite the fact that there would be pious people amongst us?” He said: “Yes, when evil would be predominant.”
6. The occurrence of general punishments: Neglecting enjoining good and forbidding evil leads to Allah's anger upon His servants and punishing them all. This punishment includes everyone, as Allah said, “And fear a trial which will not strike those who have wronged among you exclusively, and know that Allah is severe in penalty.” (Al-Anfal: 25)

Imam Ahmad narrated in his Musnad from Umm Salama, the wife of the Prophet ﷺ, she said: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying, “When sins appear among my Ummah, Allah will afflict them with punishment from Himself.” So I said, “O Messenger of Allah, on that Day, will there not be any righteous people among them?” He said, “Indeed, there will be.” She asked, “So what will they do?” He replied, “They will be affected by what afflicts the people, then they will turn to the forgiveness and pleasure of Allah.”

In Sunan Ibn Majah, it was narrated from ‘Ubaidullah bin Jarir that his father said: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘There is no people among whom sins are committed when they are stronger and of a higher status (i.e. they have the power and ability to stop the sinners) and they do not change them, but Allah will send His punishment upon them all.’”

In Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Abu Bakr narrated that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “When the people see the wrongdoer and they do not take him by the hand, then soon Allah shall envelope you in a punishment from him.”

7. Deserving divine curse: Allah the Almighty cursed the Jews when they neglected enjoining good and forbidding evil, as He said, “Cursed were those who disbelieved among the Children of Israel by the tongue of David and of Jesus, the son of Mary. That was because they disobeyed and habitually transgressed. They used not to prevent one another from wrongdoing that they did. How wretched was that which they were doing.” (Al-Ma'idah: 78-79)

In Sahih al-Jami' al-Saghir, Abdullah ibn Mas'ud narrated that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “The first defect that permeated Banu Isra'il was that a man (of them) met another man and said: O so-and-so, fear Allah, and abandon what you are doing, for it is not lawful for you. He then met him the next day and that did not prevent him from eating with him, drinking with him and sitting with him. When they did so. Allah mingled their hearts with each other. By no means, I swear by Allah, you must enjoin what is good and prohibit what is evil, prevent the wrongdoer, bend him into conformity with what is right, or, Allah will involve the hearts of some of you with the hearts of others then will curse you as He had cursed them.”

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1. Tafsir al-Tabari (13/186).
2. Tanbih al-Ghafilin: Ibn al-Nahhas al-Dimashqi, p. 106.
3. Tuhfat Al Ahwadhi (6/326).
4. SifatuSafwa (1/398).

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