for humankind gained by ten perfect men, who are like stars, certainly reduce to nothing the harm caused to mankind through the people of misguidance embracing unbelief, who are so base as to be considered vermin. Since this is so, divine mercy, wisdom, and justice have permitted the existence of Satan, and allowed him to molest men.
O people of belief! Your armour against this awesome enemy is the fear of God fashioned on the workbench of the Qur’an, and your shield is the Noble Messenger’s (UWBP) practices, and your weapon, seeking refuge with God from Satan, and seeking forgiveness, and taking refuge in divine protection.
THIRD INDICATION
Q u e s t i o n : The very great complaints and massing of forces against the people of misguidance in the All-Wise Qur’an does not appear to the reason to be conformable with its equitable and apt eloquence and the congruence and moderation of its style. It is quite simply as though it is mustering armies against a single man. It threatens him on account of one minor action as though he had committed thousands of crimes. It affords him a position and complains about him as though he were an aggressive partner, despite his being bankrupt and having no share of the property. What is the reason for this and the wisdom in it?
T h e A n s w e r : The reason for it is this: because the evil spirits and those who follow them take the path of misguidance, they can cause great destruction with a small act, and they can violate the rights of many creatures and cause much harm with a small deed.
For example, by some small action or neglecting a small duty, a man on a king’s large merchant ship can be the cause of all the efforts of those employed on it and all the fruits of their labour being lost and going for nothing. The illustrious owner of the ship therefore complains about and threatens the rebellious man in awesome fashion on account of all his subjects who are connected with the ship. And he inflicts a terrible punishment on him, taking into account not his insignificant action but its dreadful results, not in his own name but in that of the rights of his subjects.
In exactly the same way, through their apparently insignificant mistakes and sins, the people of misguidance, Satan’s party, who are on the ship of the earth together with the people of guidance, transgress against the rights of numerous creatures and nullify the results of their elevated duties. The Monarch of Pre-Eternity and Post-Eternity’s awesome threats and complaints about them, therefore, and His mobilization of forces against them are pure wisdom within perfect eloquence, and are most apt and appropriate.