Is it prescribed for the khateeb to say “Aqoolu qawli haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say these words of mine and I ask Allah for forgiveness)?

Question: 118336

At the end of the Friday khutbah the khateeb says, “Aqoolu qawli haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say these words of mine and I ask Allah for forgiveness). Is there any basis for this in Islam? Is there anything wrong with that? We prayed in one of the mosques and at the end of the khutbah the khateeb said, “I say these words of mine and I ask Allah for forgiveness for me and you and for all the Muslims.” When the prayer was over, one of the congregation of the mosque objected to that and said: “This is an innovation that is said in the khutbah.” Then he said: “It is not only your words, you quoted Qur’aanic verses and hadeeths, and the words of the Salaf, so how could you say that these are your words?”.

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah and his family.

There is nothing wrong with the khateeb saying at the end
of his speech, “Aqoolu haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say this and I ask
Allah for forgiveness)” or “Aqoolu qawli haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say
these words of mine and I ask Allah for forgiveness)”, whether this is the
first or second Friday khutbah or any other kind of speech. These are
words that are narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) and from the khateebs among his Companions (may Allah be pleased
with them).

Ibn Hibbaan (3828) narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be
pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) gave a speech on the day of the conquest of Makkah. He praised and
glorified Allah then he said: “To proceed: O people, Allah has taken away
from you the pride in ancestry of Jaahiliyyah. O people, people are of two
types, the righteous and pious one who is dear to his Lord and the wretched
evildoer who is worthless before his Lord.” Then he recited the verse
(interpretation of the meaning): “O mankind! We have created you from a
male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know
one another. Verily, the most honourable of you with Allaah is that
(believer) who has At‑Taqwa [i.e. he is one of the Muttaqoon (the pious. See
V.2:2)]. Verily, Allaah is All‑Knowing, All‑Aware” [al-Hujuraat 49:13].
Then he said: “Aqoolu haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say this and I ask Allah
for forgiveness).”

This hadeeth was classed as saheeh by Shu’ayb al-Arna’oot in
his Tahqeeq, and by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah,
2803. The biographers narrated that Thaabit ibn Qays ibn Shammaas, the
khateeb of the Ansaar (may Allah be pleased with him) said it in the
presence of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Ibn
Ishaaq said in the report of the delegation of Banu Tameem and their
boasting in front of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah upon him):
The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah upon him) said to
Thaabit ibn Qays ibn al-Shammaas, the brother of Banu al-Haarith ibn al-Khazraj:
Get up and answer the man’s speech. Thaabit got up and said: Praise be to
Allah Who created the heavens and the earth and established His rule
therein, and His knowledge encompasses His Throne; nothing exists but by His
bounty. By His power He made us kings and chose the best of His creation as
a Messenger, who is the most honourable in lineage, the most sincere in
speech, and the noblest in ancestry, and sent down to him His Book and
entrusted him (to guide) His creation. He was Allah’s choice from among the
worlds. Then He summoned men to believe in him, and the emigrants (Muhaajireen)
from his people and his kinsmen believed in Allah’s Messenger; the most
honourable of men in lineage, the highest in dignity, and the best in deeds.
The first of creation to answer and respond to Allah when the Messenger
called them were ourselves. We are Allah’s helpers and the assistants of His
Messenger, and we will fight men until they believe in Allah. He who
believes in Allah and His Messenger has protected his life and property from
us; and he who disbelieves we will fight for the sake of Allah unceasingly
and killing him will be a small matter to us. These are my words and I seek
Allah’s forgiveness for myself and the believers, both men and women. Peace
be upon you.

End quote from al-Seerah al-Nabawiyyah by Ibn Hishaam,
2/562; al-Seerah by Ibn Katheer, 4/79.

These words were also narrated from Abu Bakr, ‘Umar and ‘Ali
(may Allah be pleased with them) in their khutbahs, and some contemporary
scholars use them in their khutbahs such as Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah
have mercy on him).

As for the objection to the khateeb mentioning things that
are not his own words, such as verses, hadeeths and reports, this objection
is not valid, because what these words refer to is everything that the
khateeb said in his khutbah, even the verses, hadeeths and reports that the
khateeb quoted.

The point is that saying these words is permissible and there
is nothing wrong with it, and there is no justification for objecting to
it.

We ask Allah to help us to understand His religion properly.

And Allah knows best.

Source:

Islam Q&A

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