Al-A'raf: (8-9) And the weighing on that Day will be the Truth...

Know that when the Almighty established in the first verse that questioning and reckoning are among the states of the Resurrection, He clarified in this verse that the weighing of deeds is also among the states of the Resurrection.

This verse contains several issues:

Issue 1: Grammatical Analysis

The phrase {الوزن} (the weighing) is the subject (mubtada'), and {يومئذ} (on that Day) is an adverbial phrase (ẓarf) related to it. {الحق} (the Truth/Just) is the predicate (khabar).

Alternatively, {يومئذ} could be the predicate, and {الحق} could be an adjective describing al-wazn (i.e., al-wazn al-ḥaqq—the just weighing—on the Day when God questions the nations and the Messengers).

Issue 2: The Meaning of Weighing Deeds

There are two main interpretations regarding the meaning of weighing deeds:

The First Opinion: It is reported that the Almighty will set up a scale with a tongue and two pans on the Day of Resurrection, by which the deeds of the servants—both good and evil—will be weighed.

Ibn Abbas said: As for the believer, his deeds will be presented to him in the most beautiful form. They will be placed in one pan of the scale, and his good deeds will outweigh his bad deeds. This is what is meant by: {فمن ثقلت موازينه فأولئك هم المفلحون} (So whoever's scales are heavy, those are the successful ones [saved]). He supported this with the verse in Surah Al-Anbiya: {ونضع الموازين القسط ليوم القيامة فلا تظلم نفس شيئا} (And We will set up the scales of justice for the Day of Resurrection, so no soul will be treated unjustly in anything) (Al-Anbiya: 47).

Regarding the how of weighing deeds under this view, there are several possibilities:

1. The Form of Deeds: The deeds of the believer are conceptualized in a beautiful form, and the deeds of the disbeliever in an ugly form, and this form is what is weighed, as mentioned by Ibn Abbas.
2. The Scrolls of Deeds: The weighing pertains to the scrolls upon which the deeds of the servants are written. When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was asked what would be weighed on the Day of Resurrection, he replied: (The scrolls). This view is held by the majority of commentators for this verse.

It is narrated from Abdullah ibn Salam that the scale of the Lord of the Worlds will be set up between the Jinn and humankind. One pan will face the Throne, corresponding to Paradise, and the other pan will face Hell. If the heavens and the earth were placed in one pan, it would encompass them. Jibril (Gabriel) will hold its tongue, observing its balance.

It is narrated from Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: (A man will be brought on the Day of Resurrection to the scale. Ninety-nine registers, each as far as the eye can see, filled with his sins and wrongdoings, will be brought and placed in one pan of the scale. Then, a slip of paper, like the tip of a finger, containing the testimony of "There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His servant and Messenger," will be brought out and placed in the other pan, and it will outweigh [the sins]).

It is narrated from Al-Hasan: One day, while the Messenger (peace be upon him) was resting his head on Aisha's lap (may Allah be pleased with her) and had dozed off, tears streamed from her eyes. He asked her: (What has afflicted you that makes you weep?) She replied: I remembered the gathering of people and whether anyone would remember anyone else. He told her: (They will be gathered barefoot, naked, and uncircumcised. {For every man among them, that Day, will be a matter that occupies him} (Abasa: 37). No one will remember anyone else concerning the scrolls, and concerning the weighing of good and bad deeds.)

Ubayd ibn Umayr narrated that a large, gluttonous, heavy-drinking man will be brought, but he will have no weight equivalent to a gnat.

The Second Opinion: This is the view of Mujahid, Al-Dahhak, and Al-A'mash. They hold that the term al-mizan (the scale) refers to Justice and Judgment. Many later scholars adopted this view, arguing that applying the word wazn (weighing) to this meaning is permissible in the Arabic language, and since the evidence supports it, we must adhere to it.

The justification for allowing the term wazn to mean justice:

1. Justice in giving and taking is only apparent through measures like capacity (kayl) and weight (wazn) in this world. Thus, it is not far-fetched to use wazn as a metaphor for justice.
2. This is supported by the fact that if a person lacks standing or value to another, it is said: "So-and-so does not hold any wazn (weight/regard) for so-and-so." Allah says: {فلا نقيم لهم يوم القيامة وزنا} (And We will not assign to them, on the Day of Resurrection, any weight) (Al-Kahf: 105).
3. It is also said: "So-and-so belittled so-and-so." This phrase is used regarding someone's wazn or wizān (equivalent/measure), even though there is no literal weighing. The poet said:

I was, before meeting you, a person of strength, I had a mīzān (measure/argument) for every disputant.

Here, he meant he had words that matched the words of his opponent, using wazn as a metaphor for justice.

If this is established, we must conclude that this meaning is intended here. The evidence is that a scale is used to ascertain the measure of something. However, the measures of reward and punishment cannot be shown by a physical scale because the deeds of the servants are accidents (a'rāḍ), which have perished and ceased to exist. Weighing the non-existent is impossible. Even if they remained, weighing them would still be impossible.

As for their claim that the weighed items are the scrolls of deeds or forms created according to the measure of deeds: We respond that the accountable person on the Day of Resurrection is either one who affirms that the Almighty is Just and Wise, or one who does not. If he affirms it, then God's judgment regarding the measures of reward and punishment is sufficient, based on his knowledge that God is Just and Right. If he does not affirm it, he would not know the preponderance of the good deeds over the bad deeds (or vice versa), as he might suspect that the Almighty showed this preponderance not based on justice and fairness. Thus, this weighing has absolutely no benefit.

The first group responds: All accountable beings will know on the Day of Resurrection that the Almighty is pure from injustice and tyranny. The benefit of setting up that scale is to manifest that preponderance to the people of the Resurrection. If the preponderance appears on the side of good deeds, the person's joy and delight will increase due to the manifestation of God's grace and his high station before the people of the Resurrection. If it is the opposite, his distress, sorrow, fear, and disgrace at the standing place of Resurrection will increase.

They then differed on the manner of this manifestation: Some said a light will appear for the preponderance of good deeds, and darkness for the preponderance of bad deeds. Others said the preponderance will appear directly in the pan.

Issue 3: Singular vs. Plural Scales

The more apparent view is to affirm the existence of scales (plural) on the Day of Resurrection, not just one scale. The evidence is the verse: {ونضع الموازين القسط ليوم القيامة} (And We will set up the scales of justice for the Day of Resurrection) (Al-Anbiya: 47), and in this verse: {فمن ثقلت موازينه} (whoever's scales are heavy).

Based on this, it is plausible that there is one scale for the deeds of the heart, one scale for the deeds of the limbs, and another scale for matters related to speech.

Al-Zajjaj said that Allah used the plural form al-mawāzīn (scales) here, saying {فمن ثقلت موازينه} (whose scales are heavy) and not mīzānahu (his scale) for two reasons:

1. The Arabs sometimes use the plural form to refer to a singular item (e.g., saying someone traveled to Mecca ‘alā al-bighāl [on mules], even if he rode only one).
2. The intended meaning of al-mawāzīn here is the plural of mawzūn (that which is weighed), meaning the weighed deeds themselves, not the plural of mīzān (scale).

A counterargument can be made: These two reasons necessitate deviating from the apparent meaning of the word, which should only be done when the literal meaning cannot be upheld. There is no impediment here to upholding the literal meaning. Therefore, the word should be taken in its true sense. Just as establishing a scale with a tongue and two pans is not impossible, establishing scales in this manner is also not impossible. What necessitates abandoning the literal meaning and resorting to interpretation?

Regarding the verse: {ومن خفت موازينه فأولئك الذين خسروا أنفسهم بما كانوا بآياتنا يظلمون} (And whoever's scales are light, those are the ones who have lost themselves, because they used to reject Our signs unjustly.)

This verse contains several issues:

This verse indicates that the people of the Resurrection are divided into two groups: those whose good deeds outweigh their bad deeds (and are successful), and those whose bad deeds outweigh their good deeds. The third category—those whose good and bad deeds are perfectly equal—is not mentioned here, implying they do not exist.

The majority of commentators state that {ومن خفت موازينه} (whoever's scales are light) refers to the disbeliever. The evidence for this comes from the Qur'an, Hadith, and scholarly tradition (Athar).

Evidence from the Qur'an: The statement {فأولئك الذين خسروا أنفسهم بما كانوا بآياتنا يظلمون} (those are the ones who have lost themselves, because they used to reject Our signs unjustly). There is no meaning to a person being unjust toward God's signs except that he disbelieved in them and denied them. This points to the people of disbelief being intended.

Evidence from Hadith: It is narrated that if a believer's good deeds are light, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) will be brought out of his chamber with a slip of paper like the tip of a finger, which he will cast into the right pan (the good deeds), causing the good deeds to outweigh the bad. That believing servant will then say to the Prophet (peace be upon him): "May my father and mother be sacrificed for you! How beautiful is your face and how excellent is your character! Who are you?" He will reply: (I am your Prophet Muhammad, and this is your prayer upon me, which you used to perform. I have repaid you when you were most in need of it.) Al-Wahidi narrated this in Al-Basit.

The majority of scholars narrate the Hadith mentioned earlier: that the Almighty will cast the book containing the testimony of "There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His Messenger" into the pan of good deeds.

Al-Qadi stated that this must be interpreted to mean that the person performed the two testimonies with their due rights of worship. If this were not considered, anyone who uttered the testimonies would believe that sins do not harm him, which would be an incitement to disobeying Allah.

Counterargument: Reason dictates the correctness of what this Hadith indicates. The more noble and higher the rank of a deed, the greater its reward must be. It is known that knowledge of and love for Allah are of a higher station and greater rank than all other deeds. Therefore, they must have the greatest reward.

Evidence from Tradition (Athar): Ibn Abbas and most commentators applied this verse to the people of disbelief.

Addressing the Murji'ah: Since this principle is established (that the light-scaled are the disbelievers), the Murji'ah—who claim that sin does not harm a believer—rely on this verse. They argue that the Almighty limited the people at the standing place to two categories: those whose good deeds outweighed their bad deeds (and were deemed successful), and those whose bad deeds outweighed their good deeds (and were judged as disbelievers who unjustly rejected God's signs). This, they claim, proves that the believer is never punished.

Our Response: The most that can be said is that the Almighty did not mention this third category in this specific verse. However, He mentioned it in other verses, such as: {ويغفر ما دون ذلك لمن يشاء} (And He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills) (An-Nisa: 116). The explicit statement (Mantuq) takes precedence over the implied meaning (Mafhum), so we must affirm the existence of this third category. Furthermore, the verse states concerning the light-scaled group: {فأولئك الذين خسروا أنفسهم} (those are the ones who have lost themselves). We agree that this description only fits the disbeliever. As for the sinful believer, he will be punished for a number of days, then he will be pardoned and delivered to God's mercy. In reality, he has not lost himself; rather, he has attained eternal, unending mercy from Allah. And Allah knows best.

Al-A'raf: (9) Indeed, those who denied Our signs and were arrogant toward them—for them the gates of the heaven will not be opened, nor will they enter Paradise until the camel enters into the eye of a needle. And thus do We recompense the criminals.