الآية رقم (12) - يَعْلَمُونَ مَا تَفْعَلُونَ

(12) - (They know whatever you do. (12))

Their documentation and recordings should come exactly as what happened in reality, consequently, accountability, reward, recompense and punishment come accordingly. Verify, Allah (swt) does not do injustice even as much as an atom’s weight. Allah (swt) says:

 {فَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيْرًا يَرَهُ % وَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ شَرًّا يَرَهُ }

(So whoever does an atom’s weight of good will see it, % And whoever does an atom’s weight of evil will see it.) (Az-Zalzalah: 7-8)

That is why Allah (swt) entrusted the deeds’ registration to His angels who never commit mistakes, forget or fall in distraction or inattentiveness. So, these are the four characteristics of the registrars: memorizing in themselves, also it is correct to say that they keep what they write, also they are noble. Since the noble characteristic is to be happy with good and unhappy with the evil, so, their nature matches the task they are assigned; when they see good deed, they hurry in writing it because they love that and when they see bad deed they hurry in registering it because they hate that deed.

However, there is a difference between the assignment and the self-preparation of those angels; they have a specific task and they are prepared to do it properly.

Then, notice the precision and affirmation in the word (recording); they are not just memorizing and noble in themselves, moreover, they are (recording) in addition to memorizing, hence, what is memorized will be their witness while the records will be a proof against its owner when the books are made public. Allah (swt) says:

 {اقْرَأْ كِتَابَكَ كَفَىٰ بِنَفْسِكَ الْيَوْمَ عَلَيْكَ حَسِيبًا}

([It will be said], “Read your record. Sufficient is yourself against you this Day as accountant.”) (Al-Israa: 14)

One manifestation of Allah’s (swt) mercy upon us is that He (swt) made the writer of good deeds is a master over the writer of bad deeds to give the Man a chance to repent and go back to the right path, for Allah (swt) does not intend to nitpick us, rather, to catch our good deeds. The proof of this is that Allah (swt) considers the deeds of hearts and it is enough to give your heart a chance to think about good for a while, that is why the Prophet (saws) said:

“He who intended to do good, but did not do it, one good was recorded for him, and he who intended to do good and also did it, ten to seven hundred good deeds were recorded for him. And he who intended evil, but did not commit it, no entry was made against his name, but if he committed that, it was recorded.”[1]

Allah (swt) says:

 لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ وَنَعْلَمُ مَا تُوَسْوِسُ بِهِ نَفْسُهُ ۖ وَنَحْنُ أَقْرَبُ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ حَبْلِ الْوَرِيدِ % إِذْ يَتَلَقَّى الْمُتَلَقِّيَانِ عَنِ الْيَمِينِ وَعَنِ الشِّمَالِ قَعِيدٌ % مَّا يَلْفِظُ مِن قَوْلٍ إِلَّا لَدَيْهِ رَقِيبٌ عَتِيدٌ

(And We have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him, and We are closer to him than [his] jugular vein % When the two receivers receive, seated on the right and on the left. % Man does not utter any word except that with him is an observer prepared [to record].) (Qaaf: 16-18)

Allah (swt) describes the angel here as being observer, prepared to record and seated, however, Allah (swt) does not describe the angel as (Qa’id) which is also in Arabic indicates sitting because the former one means seated but able to stand up whereas (Qa’eed) is a characteristic accompanying its owner, as when we say merciful and generous. So that the angel is your companion that never leaves you and always attentive to follow your deeds.

[1] Sahih Muslim, The book of Faith, Hadith No. 130.