NOW?” — WHEN REPENTANCE COMES TOO LATE

 

FAJR REMINDER: “NOW?” — WHEN REPENTANCE COMES TOO LATE

Rabī‘ Al-Akhīr 10, 1448 AH (22nd September, 2026)

Arrogance is not merely an unpleasant quality. It is a dangerous disease of the heart—one that Allāh dislikes and that can ultimately lead a person to destruction.

The Prophet (ﷺ) gave us a precise description of this destructive disease. ‘Abdullāh Ibn Mas‘ūd (Raḍiyallāhu ‘Anhu) reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:

الْكِبْرُ بَطَرُ الْحَقِّ وَغَمْطُ النَّاسِ

“…Arrogance is rejecting the truth and looking down on people.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 91]

Look carefully at this definition. Arrogance is not only walking proudly, speaking boastfully, or displaying one's wealth. At its heart is something far more dangerous: rejecting the truth when it comes to you and looking down upon those whom you consider beneath you. And perhaps no creature illustrates this more clearly than Iblīs.

He was the first to display arrogance towards Allāh and His creation. When Allāh commanded him to prostrate to Ādam (‘Alayhi Salām), he refused. He considered himself superior to Ādam and rejected the command of his Creator. A single act of arrogance exposed what was concealed within him. And from that moment, the path of arrogance became a path of rebellion, rejection, and destruction.

Fir‘aun, too, was among those whose arrogance led them to destruction. He knew the truth brought by Prophet Mūsā (‘Alayhi Salām), yet he refused to humble himself before it. He looked down upon Prophet Mūsā (‘Alayhi Salām), rejected his message, and fought relentlessly against the truth.

Allāh (ﷻ) says:

وَلَقَدْ أَرَيْنَاهُ آيَاتِنَا كُلَّهَا فَكَذَّبَ وَأَبَىٰ

“And indeed We showed him (Fir‘aun) all Our Signs and Evidence, but he denied and refused.”
[Sūrah Ṭā-Hā (20): 56]

Fir‘aun did not merely reject the truth privately. He waged war against it. He used his authority, influence, and whatever means were available to him to prevent people from accepting the message of Prophet Mūsā (‘Alayhi Salām). He sought to make people despise and avoid him, even accusing him of sorcery and challenging him to a contest. But no amount of power can rescue a person from the consequences of rejecting the truth.

And what was the end of Fir‘aun?

Destruction.

The very power with which he oppressed others could not save him when the Decree of Allāh came. He and his hosts were drowned in the sea.

Then came the moment when his arrogance finally collapsed. As death became certain and the punishment was directly before him, Fir‘aun suddenly declared his faith. Allāh (ﷻ) informs us that he said:

آمَنتُ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا الَّذِي آمَنَتْ بِهِ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ وَأَنَا مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ

“I believe that there is no deity except Him in Whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am one of the Muslims (those who submit to Allāh's Will).”
[Sūrah Yūnus (10): 90]

But the time had passed.

Allāh (ﷻ) said:

آلْآنَ وَقَدْ عَصَيْتَ قَبْلُ وَكُنتَ مِنَ الْمُفْسِدِينَ

“Now (you believe), while you refused to believe before and you were one of the Mufsidūn (evil-doers, corrupts, etc.).”
[Sūrah Yūnus (10): 91]

Pause at that word:

“Now?”

How frightening is that question!

He believed—but when?

After years of rejection.
After years of rebellion.
After witnessing the signs.
After fighting the truth.
After leading others astray.

And finally, when the sea surrounded him and death stood before him, he declared his belief.

But that declaration no longer benefited him.

This teaches us a terrifying reality: there is a time when the opportunity for repentance comes to an end.

Tawbah (repentance) and Īmān (faith) do not benefit a person once he has reached the final stage of death, when the unseen has become manifest and the soul is being taken.

Allāh (ﷻ) says:

وَلَيْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السَّيِّئَاتِ حَتَّىٰ إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّي تُبْتُ الْآنَ

“But repentance is not accepted from those who continue to commit evil deeds until, when death approaches one of them, he says, ‘Indeed, I repent now.’”
[Sūrah An-Nisā’ (4): 18]

Ibn ‘Umar (Raḍiyallāhu ‘Anhumā) reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَقْبَلُ تَوْبَةَ الْعَبْدِ مَا لَمْ يُغَرْغِرْ

“Indeed, Allāh accepts the repentance of His servant as long as his soul has not reached his throat.”
[Jāmi‘ At-Tirmidhī 3537]

Therefore, the intelligent person does not wait for the moment when he sees death approaching before turning back to Allāh.

Repentance belongs to today—not to the moment when today is no longer yours.

Do not say, “I will repent later.”

Do not say, “I will change when I become older.”

Do not say, “I will return to Allāh when my life settles down.”

You do not know whether you will be given another opportunity.

Fir‘aun thought he had time. He discovered, when there was no time left, that he did not.

Fir‘aun was destroyed, just as Iblīs was cast away, and Allāh made him a sign for those who would come after him. His body was preserved as a lesson for those who would witness it.

Allāh (ﷻ) says:

فَالْيَوْمَ نُنَجِّيكَ بِبَدَنِكَ لِتَكُونَ لِمَنْ خَلْفَكَ آيَةً وَإِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ النَّاسِ عَنْ آيَاتِنَا لَغَافِلُونَ

“So this day We shall deliver your (dead) body (out of the sea) that you may be a sign to those who come after you! And verily, many among mankind are heedless of Our Āyāt (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.).”
[Sūrah Yūnus (10): 92]

But the lesson did not end with his drowning.

Fir‘aun became an example of what happens when arrogance is allowed to grow until it blinds a person from the truth. He did not merely destroy himself; he led his people towards destruction with him.

Allāh (ﷻ) says:

وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا مُوسَىٰ بِآيَاتِنَا وَسُلْطَانٍ مُّبِينٍ ۝ إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ وَمَلَئِهِ فَاتَّبَعُوا أَمْرَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَمَا أَمْرُ فِرْعَوْنَ بِرَشِيدٍ ۝ يَقْدُمُ قَوْمَهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فَأَوْرَدَهُمُ النَّارَ وَبِئْسَ الْوِرْدُ الْمَوْرُودُ

“And indeed We sent Mūsā with Our Āyāt (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.) and a manifest authority; to Fir‘aun and his chiefs, but they followed the command of Fir‘aun, and the command of Fir‘aun was no right guide. He will go ahead of his people on the Day of Resurrection and will lead them into the Fire, and evil indeed is the place to which they are led.”
[Sūrah Hūd (11): 96–98]

What a terrifying ending for a man who once possessed power, authority, armies, and worldly greatness.

The man who arrogantly claimed supremacy was eventually powerless before death.

The man who rejected the truth was eventually forced to acknowledge it—but too late.

The man who sought to lead people away from Prophet Mūsā (‘Alayhi Salām) ended up leading his own people towards the Fire.

This is the reality of arrogance: it makes a person reject what could save him, despise those who may be better than him, and persist in a path that can ultimately destroy him.

Arrogance begets destruction.

And delaying repentance can turn a moment of regret into an eternal loss.

So let us humble ourselves before the truth while we still have the opportunity to do so.

Let us return to Allāh before we are forced to return to Him.

Let us repent while repentance is still accepted, and let us never allow pride to prevent us from bowing before the One before Whom every soul will eventually stand.

I beseech Allāh (ﷻ) to save us from arrogance, heedlessness, delayed repentance, and a death upon which repentance will no longer benefit us.

Aameen.