One of the most tender passages in all of Islam, where Allah addresses us directly and repeatedly as 'O My servants.' He has forbidden injustice upon Himself; all of us are hungry but those He feeds, lost but those He guides, sinful by night and day while He forgives all; our piety adds nothing to His kingdom and our sin takes nothing from it; and in the end He returns to us only our own deeds.
Where this hadith comes from
This is a hadith qudsi, a sacred saying in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) conveys the very words of Allah, words that are not part of the Qur'an. It is narrated by Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (ra) and recorded by Muslim, and it is graded sahih (authentic). Across the whole passage Allah addresses us tenderly and repeatedly as 'O My servants.'
Its concern is pure creed and the purifying of the heart: that Allah is utterly just and free of all need, that we depend on Him for everything, and that our deeds return to us in full. It is the same hadith found in the Forty of Imam an-Nawawi (Hadith 24), where a fuller reflection sits.
The key words
What it means, line by line
Allah opens by forbidding oppression upon Himself and then forbidding it among us: 'so do not oppress one another.' He then names our total dependence: all are astray but those He guides, hungry but those He feeds, unclothed but those He clothes, sinful by night and day while He forgives all, so we are told to seek each thing from Him directly.
Then He sets our smallness beside His sufficiency: we can neither harm nor benefit Him; the piety of all creation together would not increase His kingdom, nor their wickedness decrease it; and were everyone to ask at once and be given, it would diminish what He has no more than a needle dipped into the sea. He closes with perfect justice: 'it is but your deeds that I reckon up for you and then repay you for,' so whoever finds good should praise Allah, and whoever finds otherwise should blame only himself.
Utterly dependent, endlessly invited
The hadith dissolves our pride and lifts our hope at once. Every blessing we imagine we secured, food, guidance, forgiveness, is named here as His gift, and we are told to seek each from Him directly. We own nothing; we are guests at His table. Yet the same passage shows a Lord delighted to give: ask Me, He says, and seek My forgiveness, for I forgive all sins.
He needs nothing; the gain is ours
Allah states that if all of us, the first and the last, jinn and humankind, were as pious as the most pious heart, it would not increase His kingdom by anything; and if all were as wicked as the worst, it would not decrease it. He needs no worship from us. He commands it for our sake. And He closes with perfect justice: these are only your deeds, which I record and repay in full; so let whoever finds good praise Allah, and whoever finds otherwise blame only himself.
Carry this with you
Small before Allah, safe in His mercy, and always invited to ask.
He will never wrong you.
Allah forbade injustice upon Himself. Your safety rests on His own promise.
You depend on Him for all.
Fed, guided, forgiven, every blessing is His gift. So seek each one from Him directly.
He needs nothing from us.
All our piety adds nothing to His kingdom; all our sin takes nothing from it. Worship is for our sake.
Your deeds return to you.
Find good, praise Allah; find otherwise, blame only yourself. Perfect justice, perfect mercy.
A du'a to carry
رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَآ أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ ٱلْخَٰسِرِينَ
Rabbana zalamna anfusana wa in lam taghfir lana wa tarhamna lanakunanna mina-l-khasirin
Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers. (Al-A'raf 7:23)
A du'a of the dependent servant
Allah leaned close and called us 'My servants,' over and over, to tell us He will never wrong us, that all we have is from Him, and that He needs nothing we could bring, yet invites us endlessly to ask.
O Allah, we have wronged ourselves; feed us, guide us, and forgive us, for everything is in Your hand. If You do not forgive us and show us mercy, we are lost. Ameen.
The hadith qudsi is from sunnah.com: 'O My servants, I have forbidden oppression for Myself...' narrated by Abu Dharr al-Ghifari (ra), recorded by Muslim, graded sahih. The supporting Qur'an (7:23) is in Uthmani script verified via quran.ai (ar-uthmani-minimal) with the Saheeh International translation. Per the editorial policy this stays with the creed and spirit (Allah's justice, our dependence, His mercy). FOR SCHOLAR REVIEW before publication.