1/53. Chapter:
Sahih Muslim 120b — Islam, Good Conduct, and Previous Sins
Will a person be punished for his actions during the Jahlilliyyah?
Hadith About Islam Erasing Previous Sins Through Good Conduct
Sahih Muslim : 120b
Sahih MuslimHadith Number 120b
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ نُمَيْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي وَوَكِيعٌ، ح وَحَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، - وَاللَّفْظُ لَهُ - حَدَّثَنَا وَكِيعٌ، عَنِ الأَعْمَشِ، عَنْ أَبِي وَائِلٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ قُلْنَا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَنُؤَاخَذُ بِمَا عَمِلْنَا فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ قَالَ " مَنْ أَحْسَنَ فِي الإِسْلاَمِ لَمْ يُؤَاخَذْ بِمَا عَمِلَ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ . وَمَنْ أَسَاءَ فِي الإِسْلاَمِ أُخِذَ بِالأَوَّلِ وَالآخِرِ " .
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud Narrated from:
We once said: Messenger of Allah, would we be held responsible for our deeds committed in the state of ignorance? He (the Holy Prophet) observed: He who did good deeds in Islam would not be held responsible for what he did in the state of ignorance, but he who committed evil (after having come within the fold of Islam) would be held responsible for his previous and later deeds.
Reference : Sahih Muslim 120bIn-book reference : Book 1, Hadith 226USC-MSA web (English) reference : Book 1, Hadith 218
Summary of Sahih Muslim Hadith 120b
This version repeats the same core teaching with clear wording: whoever does good in Islam will not be held responsible for what was done in ignorance, but whoever does evil in Islam will be taken for the first and the last. It is a hadith about previous sins, but it is also about what a person does next. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not answer with despair. He gave a path of hope: do good in Islam. He also did not remove accountability from someone who enters Islam and continues in evil. For readers, the message is practical: do not live trapped by the past, but do not treat the new life in Islam carelessly either.
What we learn from this hadith
- A good Islamic life matters after leaving the past behind.
- The Hadith gives hope to people worried about previous sins.
- Doing evil after Islam is not treated lightly.
- A person should move forward with faith and good deeds.
