— Ryoichi Mita
— Ruwwad Center
Repentance from Sin brings Forgiveness: Is it Open or Restricted?
In the last verse (119): ثُمَّ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لِلَّذِينَ عَمِلُوا السُّوءَ بِجَهَالَةٍ (Then your Lord – for those who did evil through ignorance ...), it will be noticed that the sense of ignorance has been conveyed by the use of the word: جَهَالَةٍ (jahalah), not: جَھل (jahl). As for the word: جَھل (jahl), it is employed as an antonym of: عِلَم (` ilm: knowledge) and releases the sense of a lack of knowledge or understanding while the word: جَهَالَةٍ (jahalah) denotes acting ignorantly - even if done knowingly. This tells us that the forgiveness of sins through Taubah (repentance) is not restricted to a situation where a sin is committed with lack of understanding or volition. (Rather, a true taubah or repentance may forgive all sins, even though committed deliberately).