There Is Nothing in Between

Let's go back. How many are the ones who made this plan? Nine. And then who was the one who went ahead and made the first move? One. Nine men are the ones who administered the execution of the camel, and the plan to kill Sayyidunā Ṣāliḥ. How come the rest of the people of Thamūd were destroyed? It was only nine; Allah (swt) told us in the Qur'an. How come, because of nine, the whole nation was destroyed?

Because they knew about this corruption, and they did not stop it. Because they were a silent majority. Because they thought that they can eat, and drink, and have sex, and sleep, and they can be secure and safe: we are safe in our houses; nothing is going to affect us. There is no grey area; there is nothing in between. You're with Ḥizb al-Raḥmān, the party of Allah (swt), or the other side is Ḥizb al-Shayṭān, the party of Shayṭān. There is nothing in between.

That is how the masses of the people are. I mean, take any nation — let's take the US, for example. Who are the decision makers in America? The President, the National Security Council, a few influential men in Congress, a few CEOs of big corporations in America, a few heads of major banks, a few of the strong Jewish lobbyists, and then a few of the professors and think tanks in major universities in the US: 200, 300, 400 people. And the rest of the people are between the aisles, and the malls, and the grocery stores, sitting on the benches, watching games, or on their couches, eating and drinking and sleeping.

Wa-lladhīna kafarū yatamattaʿūna wa yaʾkulūna kamā taʾkulu al-anʿāmu wa-l-nāru mathwan lahum: they eat and drink like cattle, and Hellfire is their final abode. The masses of the people: that's what they do.

There are a few of al-malaʾ, and Allah (swt) said about them in the Qur'an: al-malaʾ. We have been talking about al-malaʾ a lot until now. Al-malaʾ are the ones who rejected the message of Nūḥ. Al-malaʾ are the ones who rejected the message of Hūd. And now al-malaʾ are the ones who rejected the message of Ṣāliḥ. Al-malaʾ are the chiefs and the leaders. The rest of the people, they are after dunyā — running after dunyā, running after this world. But they are not secure.

If you do not choose — you cannot stay in the middle; you cannot stay on the fence. You have to make a decision. Do you want to be with Ḥizb al-Raḥmān, or Ḥizb al-Shayṭān? There's nothing in between. And when these nine men plotted their evil, and no one of the society stopped them, everyone else in the society was included in the punishment. A very important lesson for us to learn.

Now, there is ṣirāʿ bayna al-ḥaqqi wa-l-bāṭil: now there is a conflict between truth and evil. The conflict is happening. There's a conflict between Islam and kufr. And the ones who are leading and representing Islam are a very small minority. And then the ones who are leading kufr are a very small minority. And then the masses of the people are like the people of Thamūd: doing nothing. So we need to choose, and make a decision. Are we going to be with the ones who are representing Islam, or are we going to be with the ones who are representing evil? Because there's nothing in between.