It was narrated that in the days that Prophet Musa/ Moses (pbuh)
wandered with Bani Israel (Children of Israel) in the desert,
an intense drought befell them. Together, they raised their
hands towards the heavens praying for the blessed rain to come.
Then, to the astonishment of Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh)
and all those watching, the few scattered clouds that were
in the sky vanished, the heat poured down, and the drought
intensified.
It was revealed to Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) that there
was a sinner amongst the tribe of Bani Israel (Children of Israel)
who had disobeyed Allah (SWT) for more than forty years of his life.
"Let him separate himself from the congregation,"
Allah (SWT) told Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh). "Only then shall
I shower you all with rain."
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) then called out to the throngs of
humanity, "There is a person amongst us who has disobeyed
Allah (SWT) for forty years. Let him separate himself from
the congregation and only then shall we be rescued from
the drought."
That man waited, looking left and right, hoping that someone
else would step forward, but no one did. Sweat poured forth
from his brow and he knew that he was the one. The man knew
that if he stayed amongst the congregation all would die of thirst
and that if he stepped forward he would be humiliated for all
eternity.
He raised his hands with a sincerity he had never known before,
with humility he had never tasted, and as tears poured down on
both cheeks he said, "O Allah, have mercy on me! O Allah,
hide my sins! O Allah, forgive me!"
As Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) and the people of Bani Israel
(Children of Israel) waited for the sinner to step forward,
the clouds hugged the sky and the rain poured.
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) asked Allah (SWT),
"O Allah, you blessed us with rain even though the sinner
did not come forward."
And Allah (SWT) replied, "O Musa, it is for the repentance of
that very person that I blessed all of Bani Israel (Children of Israel)
with water."
Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh), wanting to know who this
blessed man was, asked, "Show him to me O Allah!"
Allah (SWT) replied, "O Musa, I hid his sins for forty years,
do you think that after his repentance I shall expose him?"
The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said:
"My entire nation is safe, except al-Mujahirin
(those who boast of their sins). Among the Mujaharah is
that a man commits an (evil) act, and wakes up in the morning
while Allah has kept his (sin) a secret, he says:
'O Fulan! Last night I did this and that.' He goes to sleep
while Allah has kept his (sin) a secret but he wakes up
in the morning and uncovers what Allah has kept a secret!"
[Saheeh al-Bukhari]
