The fate of those who disobeyed God is mentioned in the Holy Quran:

أَوَلَمْ يَسِيرُوا فِي الأَرْضِ فَيَنْظُرُوا كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الّذِينَ كَانُوا مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ، كَانُوا أَشَدَّ مِنْهُمْ قُوَّةً وَآثَاراً فِي الأَرْضِ فَأَخَذَهُمُ اللهُ بِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَا كَانَ لَهُمْ مِنَ اللهِ مِنْ وَاقٍ. ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَانَتْ تَأْتِيهِمْ رُسُلُهُمْ بِالبَيِّنَاتِ فَكَفَرُوا فَأَخَذَهمُ اللهُ إِنَّهُ قَوِيٌّ شَدِيدُ العِقَابِ.

“Have they not traveled in the earth and seen how was the end of those who were before them? Mightier than these were they in strength and in fortifications in the land, but Allah destroyed them for their sins; and there was not for them any defender against Allah. That was because they came to them their apostles with clear arguments, but they rejected them; therefore, Allah destroyed them; Surely He is Strong, Severe in retribution. (40:21-2)”

Jesus Christ (a.s) is quoted as saying:

أَلم تَعلَموا أنّه مَن شَمَخَ بِرأسِه الى السّقفِ شَجَّهُ ومَن خفَضَ بِرأسِه عَنه استَظلَّ تحتَهُ وأكَنَّهُ، وكَذلكَ مَن لم يَتواضعْ للهِ خَفَضَهُ ومَن تواضعَ للهِ رَفَعَه.

“Do you not know that anyone who raises his head so high that it touches the ceiling, the ceiling will break his head? But one who lowers his head, the same ceiling will serve as a canopy to give him shelter and comfort under its shade. Likewise, one who is not humble before Allah will be degraded, whereas one who is humble before Allah will be promoted.”^[78]

As long as the human society obeys the divine laws under the heavenly canopy, it will enjoy welfare and receive God’s mercy, but if it disobeys God and becomes arrogant, God will say:

إِنّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ.

“Surely, We have revealed the Reminder and We will most surely be its guardian. (The Holy Quran; 21:32)”

The devils can never infiltrate into this guarded canopy and any time the followers of Satan have attempted to transgress, they have been badly defeated and become examples for others.

فَجَعَلْنَاهُمْ أَحَادِيثَ وَمَزَّقْنَاهُمْ كُلَّ مُمَزَّقٍ.

“So, We made them stories and scattered them with an utter scattering. (The Holy Quran; 34:19)”

Have a look at history and see what God has done to those who fought against the heavenly canopy:

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرّحْمنِ الرّحِيمِ. أَلَمْ تَرَ كَيْفَ فَعَلَ رَبُّكَ بِأَصْحَابِ الفِيلِ. أَلَمْ يَجْعَلْ كَيْدَهُمْ فِي تَضْلِيلٍ. وَأَرْسَلَ عَلَيْهِمْ طَيْراً أَبَابِيلَ. تَرْمِيهِمْ بِحِجَارَةٍ مِنْ سِجِّيلٍ. فَجَعَلَهُمْ كَعَصْفٍ مَأْكُولٍ.

“In the Name of Allah the Most Compassionate the Most Merciful. Have you not considered how your Lord dealt with the possessors of the elephant? Did He not cause their war to end in confusion, and send down to prey upon them birds in flocks casting against them stones of baked clay; so, He rendered them like straw eaten up? (The Holy Quran; 105:1-5)”

أَلَمْ تَرَ كَيْفَ فَعَلَ رَبُّكَ بِعَادٍ. إِرَمَ ذَاتِ العِمَادِ. الّتِي لَمْ يَخْلَقْ مِثْلُهَا فِي البِلادِ. وَثَمُودَ الّذِينَ جَابُوا الصَّخْرَ بِالوَادِ. وَفِرْعَوْنَ ذِي الأوْتَادِ. الّذِينَ طَغَوْا فِي البِلادِ. فَأَكْثَرُوا فِيهَا الفَسَادَ. فَصَبَّ عَلَيْهِمُ رَبُّكَ سَوْطَ عَذَابٍ. إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَبِالْمِرْصَادِ.

“Have you not considered how your Lord dealt with Ad; the people of Ihram and the possessors of lofty buildings, the like of which were not created in the other cities; and with (the people of) Thamud who hewed out the rocks in the valley, and with Pharaoh, the lord of hosts; who committed inordinacy in the cities; so, they made great mischief therein? Therefore, your Lord let down upon them a portion of the chastisement. Most surely, your Lord is watching. (The Holy Quran; 89:7-15)”

In the Holy Quran; Sura of al-Ankabut –the spider-, after speaking about the painful fate of the former nations afflicted with heavenly and earthly tribulations, God says:

فَكُلاًّ أَخَذْنَا بِذَنْبِهِ فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ أَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِ حَاصِباً وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ أَخَذَتْهُ الصَّيْحَةُ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ خَسَفْنَا بِهِ الأَرْضَ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ أَغْرَقْنَا، وَمَا كَانَ اللهُ لِيَظْلِمَهُمْ وَلكِنْ كَانُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ.

“So, each We punished for his sin; of them was he on whom We went down a violent storm, and of them was he whom the rumbling overtook, and of them was he who We made to be swallowed up by the earth, and of them was he who We drowned; and it did not beseem Allah that he should be unjust to them, but they were unjust to their own souls. (29:40)”

For thousands of years, those who disobeyed God have tried to transgress the bounds of decency with their lusts and arrogance but they have been defeated with humiliation. Nevertheless, the prophets’ laws have survived and the pleasant call of ‘I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and Mohammad is the Messenger of Allah,’ is heard at dawn, noon, and in the evening forever:

وَرَفَعْنَا لَكَ ذِكْرَكَ.

“And We exalted for you (Prophet Mohammad) your esteem. (The Holy Quran; 94:4)”

Speaking about what earns people and what is worthless, God says:

فَأَمَّا الزَّبَدُ فَيَذْهَبُ جُفَاءً وَأَمَّا مَا يَنْفَعُ النَّاسَ فَيَمْكُثُ فِي الأَرْضِ.

“Then as for the scum, it passes away as a worthless thing; and as for that which profits people, it tarries in the earth. (The Holy Quran; 13:17)”

In the same way that the sun shines upon the decayed bodies of the unjust tribes of Ad and Thamud whom were chastised by God, it will shine upon our dead bodies. The earth keeps on going round the sun forever.

قُلِ اللَّهُمَّ مَالِكَ المُلْكِ تُؤْتِي المُلْكَ مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَتَنْزِعُ المُلْكَ مِمَّنْ تَشَاءُ وَتُعِزُّ مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَتُذِلُّ مَنْ تَشَاءُ بِيَدِكَ الخَيْرُ إِنَّكَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ. تُولِجُ اللَّيْلَ فِي النَّهَارِ وَتُولِجُ النَّهَارَ فِي اللَّيْلِ وَتُخْرِجُ الحَيَّ مِنَ المَيِّتِ وَتُخْرِجُ المَيِّتَ مِنَ الحَيِّ

“Say: O Allah; Master of the Kingdom, Thou givest the kingdom to whomsoever Thou pleasest and take away the kingdom from whomsoever Thou pleasest and Thou exaltest whom Thou pleasest and abasest whom Thou pleasest; in Thine hand is the good. Surely, Thou hast power over all things. Thou makest the night pass into the day and Thou makest the day pass into the night, and Thou bringest forth the living from the dead and Thou bringest forth the dead from the living. (The Holy Quran; 3:26-7)”

To sum it up, the divine laws are invincible and unchangeable:

فَلَنْ تَجِدَ لِسُنَّةِ اللهِ تَبْدِيلاً وَلَنْ تَجِدَ لِسُنَّةِ اللهِ تَحْوِيلاً

“For you shall not find any alteration in the course of Allah; and you shall not find any change in the course of Allah. (The Holy Quran; 35:43)”

It is the disobeying man who will come to perdition.

وَمَنْ يَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَ اللهِ فَقَدْ ظَلَمَ نَفْسَهُ

“… Whoever goes beyond the limits of Allah indeed does injustice to his own soul. (The Holy Quran; 65:1)”

For what we have said we come to the conclusion that God neither needs our obedience to Him nor does He fear our disobedience to Him, and that neither our obedience to Him benefit Him nor does our disobedience to Him harm Him. Rather it is we, human beings, who are strongly in need for God. We, human beings, are obliged to be humble for Him. If God has accepted our servitude and submission, it is a favor on His part, for if we thank Him all the time, we have done little of what we should do.

Notes:

^[49] The Hadith Qudsi is the words of Almighty God reported by the Prophets and their successors.

^[50] See al-Mahajjat ul-Beidhaa; vol. 5

^[51] See Jami’us-Sa’aadat; Vol. 3 p.322

^[52] Quoted from ad-Deilami’s Irshad ul-Quloub

^[53] See Mir’aat ul-Anwaar

^[54] See Mir’aat ul-Anwaar; the introduction, p. 13

^[55] See Kelimat Meknuneh Faiz; 159

^[56] See Kelimat Meknuneh Faiz; 161 (as quoted from Bassa’ir ud-Darajaat)

^[57] See Kelimat Meknuneh Faiz; 160

^[58] See Kelimat Meknuneh Faiz; 161 and Tafsir al-Mizan; vol. 1 p. 39

^[59] See Qadi Saeed Qummi’s Asrar ul-Ibadat, p. 6