What is the wisdom behind the creation of the angels? Were they created for no purpose except for the joy of creating them, or for the purpose of testing and trial? When Allah created Iblis, did He know what his fate would be and his future actions on earth? And is it the case that Allah could not create Iblis to follow the guidance He wanted him to follow?
Firstly:
The Muslim’s faith is not complete until he affirms for his Lord, may He be exalted, what He has affirmed for Himself of names, attributes and actions, and what His Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) has affirmed for Him. One of the names that are affirmed for Allah, may He be exalted, is al-Hakim (the Most Wise) and one of the attributes that are affirmed for Him is wisdom. Therefore Allah, may He be exalted, does not create anything except for a wise reason, and He does not prescribe any law except for a wise reason. It is not essential that human minds should understand these reasons in all cases; rather Allah may disclose some of those reasons to His slaves, and He may conceal some of them from them, as a trial for them and as a test to see whether they will behave as true slaves of their Lord and submit to Him.
Secondly:
It was Allah’s will to create the angels with no desire for sin; rather their entire purpose is to obey the Lord of the Worlds. So there is no trial or test for them in this world, and in the hereafter there will be no reckoning or requital for them.
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Allah, may He be glorified, has created His creation in different forms. So He created the angels with reason and no desires, and their nature does not prompt them to behave in a way different from what they were created for. They were created from light that is free of any blameworthy elements or characteristics. He created the animals with desires and no reason, and He created the two races of the jinn and humankind and instilled in them reason and desires, and different natures according to the substance from which they are made, their physical shape and the way they are put together. These are the ones who are subjected to tests and trials, and may receive reward or punishment. If it had been His will, He would have made their natures and inclinations all the same, with no variation between them. But what He, may He be glorified, did is based on pure wisdom, as dictated by His lordship and divinity.
(End quote from Tariq al-Hijratayn, p. 203).
Thirdly:
The noble angels are one of the creations of Allah, may He be exalted. They are honourable slaves who do not disobey Allah in what He commands them to do, and they do what they are commanded. Their Lord, may He be exalted, entrusts them with whatever tasks He wills. If you learn about those tasks and deeds that those noble creatures do, you will understand the wisdom behind their creation. In brief, their tasks and deeds are of three types:
1.
Worshipping Allah, may He be exalted, glorifying Him, venerating Him and exalting Him.
Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
{They exalt [Him] night and day [and] do not slacken}
[al-Anbiya’ 21:20].
And He tells us that the angels say:
{And indeed, we are those who line up [for prayer],
And indeed, we are those who exalt Allah.}
[as-Saffat 37:165-166].
It was narrated from Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) that he said: “I see what you do not see, and I hear what you do not hear. The heaven is creaking and it should creak, for there is no space in it the width of four fingers but there is an angel there, prostrating to Allah.”
Narrated by at-Tirmidhi, 2312, and Ibn Majah, 4190. Classed as hasan by al-Albani in Sahih at-Tirmidhi.
2.
Running the affairs of that which Allah, may He be exalted, has created, and running the affairs of His Dominion, by the permission of their Lord and at His command.
So some of the angels have the task of bearing the Throne; their number is eight. Others have the task of conveying the revelation; others are the keepers of Paradise; others are the keepers of Hell, others are the angels of provision, and so on through a series of supremely important tasks that the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, has enjoined upon them.
3.
Taking care of the children of Adam, by the permission of their Lord and at His command.
Among the angels are those who guard the children of Adam, and those who record the deeds of the children of Adam. Some of them are given the task of taking souls; others are given the task of questioning the deceased in his grave and praying for forgiveness for the believers, and so on through a series of supremely important tasks having to do with humans that the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, has enjoined upon them.
Please see the answer to question no. 14610. You may also see more details having to do with the angels in the book ‘Alam al-Mala’ikah al-Abrar by Shaykh Dr. `Umar Sulayman al-Ashqar, which is an important and comprehensive book on this issue. [Available in English translation under the title The World of the Noble Angels, published by International Islamic Publishing House (IIPH), Riyadh].
Fourthly:
With regard to your saying, “When Allah created Iblis, did He know what his fate would be and his future actions on earth?”, you should understand, firstly, that a person’s faith is not valid unless he believes that Allah, may He be exalted, knows all that has happened and will happen, and all that did not happen and how it would be if it did happen. The one who doubts any of that is a disbeliever in Allah the Almighty.
Have you not read the verses in which Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
{[He is] the Knower of the unseen; not even the weight of a speck of dust, in heaven or on earth, escapes Him, nor is there anything smaller or greater than that, but it is [inscribed] in a clear record}
[Saba’ 34:3]
{so that you may know that Allah has power over all things and that He encompasses all things in His knowledge }
[at-Talaq 65:12]
{Do you not see that Allah knows all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth?}
[al-Mujadilah 58:7]
{He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden, and He has knowledge of all things}
[al-Hadid 57:3]?
We wonder whether you are aware of these verses and hundreds of others like them, and hundreds of hadiths?
Fifthly:
With regard to your saying, “And is it the case that Allah could not create Iblis to follow the guidance He wanted him to follow?”, this is also a strange thing for you to say. If you are Muslim, how can you believe in a Lord who is helpless? And how – then – can you believe in a Lord who created the angels to be obedient slaves of His, they turned out to be a Allah, may He be exalted, wanted them?
We told you at the beginning of this answer how the creation of Iblis and Adam was different from the creation of the angels. In fact, this should make you realize the perfect might and power of Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, and how great His Dominion is. For He has created creatures who cannot disobey Him for even the blink of an eye; rather they are constantly obedient to Him. They are the angels. And He has created creatures who never obey Him; rather they disobey Him, disbelieve in Him and stubbornly go against His commands. They are the devils. And He has created creatures who combine both characteristics: faith and disbelief, obedience and disobedience. They are the children of Adam (humans). All of them are created by Allah, and if it had been His will, He could make them all one group, one creation and one religion. But His wisdom and His decree determined otherwise, and He is the One Who is to be praised for all that He does, all that He says and all that He creates, may He be glorified. {He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned} [al-Anbiya’ 21:23].
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Allah, may He be glorified, is the Creator, Lord and Sovereign of all things, and there is great wisdom and purpose in what He creates; it is an immense blessing and a mercy in general and specific terms. He is not to be questioned about what He does, whilst they are to be questioned, not only because of His might and control, but because of His perfect knowledge and might, and His mercy and wisdom.
(End quote from Majmu` al-Fatawa, 8/79).
Sixthly:
You should understand that everyone who drifts away from the straight path has received the message of guidance, but it is he who has rejected it and was too arrogant to follow it. So guidance in the sense of evidence and teaching reached them, and Allah, may He be exalted, established proof against them, but they refused to accept it and follow it, therefore they are the ones who chose to go astray. Allah’s guidance and message reached all of creation, and His proof was established against them, as He, may He be glorified, says (interpretation of the meaning):
{Say: Allah alone has the ultimate proof. If He had so willed, He could have guided you all}
[al-An`am 6:149].
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Here Allah, may He be glorified, tells us that He has established proof against them by sending His Messengers and His Books, and by telling them what is beneficial for them and what is harmful for them, and by the fact that they were able to believe by knowing His commands and prohibitions, as He gave them hearing, vision and reason. Thus His ultimate proof was established against them and their false argument, that their misguidance was by His will and decree, was demolished. Then Allah affirmed the perfect nature of that proof by saying: {If He had so willed, He could have guided you all}. This means that He, and no one else, is the Lord, the Sovereign, the One Who is in control of His creation, and that there is no lord and no god besides Him, so how can they worship any other god alongside Him? Thus affirming the divine will and decree is part of His ultimate proof against them and that all affairs are under Allah’s control, and that everything other than Allah is in vain. Therefore the divine will and decree that is inevitably executed is the greatest proof of Allah’s oneness, but the wrongdoers and deniers made it a justification for associating others with Him (shirk). Thus the proof of Allah is the ultimate proof, and their argument carries no weight with their Lord and Allah is the source of strength.
(End quote from Shifa’ al-`Alil, 35)
We advise you to seek Islamic knowledge, and to learn what will benefit you in your faith and bring you closer to your Lord, may He be glorified and exalted. Spend your time in memorizing Quran and studying the hadiths of your Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Study the biographies of the early generations and scholars of this ummah, and you will see – by Allah’s leave – much goodness. The hours of your life are too precious to waste in that which is of no benefit, and our lives are too short to waste them on that which could be detrimental to us on the day when we meet our Lord, may He be exalted.
The most important advice we give you is, alongside all of that, to remember Allah, may He be exalted, during the night and throughout the day, and to strive hard in worshipping and obeying Him, for the Shaytan is an insidious whisperer, but when you remember Allah, he retreats and grows too weak to harm you, but if you neglect to remember Allah, the Shaytan will come back and distract you with his whispers and intrusive thoughts.
And Allah knows best.
