How is Allah merciful by putting people in hell?

To answer this question, we need to first understand the wider implications of Allah’s attribute of “mercy”.

Those who enter Hell will either be from among the believers or the disbelievers. As for the believers who enter Hell, they are those who did not associate anything with Allah, but they committed many sins that far outweighed their good deeds. They will enter Hell for a period known only to Allah, then through His mercy they will be made to enter Paradise.

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Some people will be brought out of the Fire, having been burnt all over except for their faces, and they will enter Paradise.” [1]

As Paradise is a place reserved only for the pure, and the impure cannot enter it unless they are cleansed, Allah puts the believers in Hell to purify them of their sins and prepare them to enter Paradise, cleansed. If Allah did not punish them for their sins, then there would be no justice, and the oppressed will not get their due rights. But eventually, as they are believers, the mercy of Allah, i.e. Him being ‘Ar-Raheem’, overpowers and He grants them Paradise.

Furthermore, the people of Paradise will, at the sight of the people of Hell, be immensely grateful to Allah for saving them. It includes all the believers, those who entered Hell and were then taken out, as well as those who did not enter it to begin with, and this increases them in thanking Allah.  Hence, Allah is merciful to the believers by putting them in Hell, not only as a means of purification of their sins but also a means to increase them in gratitude towards Allah for saving them from the eternal punishment, because it is only through Allah’s mercy that anyone can enter Paradise.

As for the disbelievers who enter Hell, they shall remain in it till eternity. Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala says: “But the ones who deny Our verses and are arrogant towards them - those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide therein eternally.” [2]

The reason they will be cast into Hell is stated by Allah Himself in the Qur’an. Allah says: “Indeed, those who do not expect the meeting with Us and are satisfied with the life of this world and feel secure therein and those who are heedless of Our signs, for those their refuge will be the Fire because of what they used to earn.” [3]

Allah’s mercy can be seen in placing the disbelievers in the Hellfire due to the fact that those same disbelievers were the ones who not only disbelieved in Allah (which is the greatest crime one can commit) but also wronged others. They committed their crimes against Allah, first and foremost, by claiming that He does not exist, or by worshiping partners with Him, which is the only sin that Allah will never forgive. While they were on earth, they also committed crimes against humanity, possibly through fornication, theft, or murder.

Therefore, it is merciful to all those that were harmed by the disbeliever that he be sent to the depths of Hell.  And so, Allah’s attribute of mercy is one that has the element of justice included in it. If Allah were to leave and excuse the disbelievers in the next life, as He had done with them in the Dunya (world) then it would be open injustice. Moreover, being merciful to one (the wrongdoer) could imply simply being unjust to another (to whom the wrong has been done).

Furthermore, it is from Allah’s mercy that the disbelievers lead happy and enjoyable lives in this world and it will be His mercy that He sends them to the Hellfire, as a reward for the believers. Finally, we could also argue that Allah’s mercy is evident in the fact that He did not force any creature to do anything. Although all deeds were written, it was each individual’s choice to perform either good or bad deeds. Therefore, after one has chosen the path of amusement and happiness in this life at the sake of his Hereafter, we can only conclude that it is Allah’s mercy to put him in the place that he chose for himself.

By refusing to follow his fitrah (natural disposition) that inclines one to believe in the Lordship of Allah, this disbeliever took a path in opposition to that which Allah wanted him to follow. Since he knew that he was doing wrong, harming others, and disbelieving in Allah, and he also knew what the consequences of his actions would be (since it was revealed to him), never considering to repent and return to the path of righteousness; it is only merciful to give him the reward that he chose and not the reward that is reserved for those who are pious. And so, Allah is merciful through His justice. This means that because of His justice which is complete justice, a justice that gives everyone exactly what they deserve, no one will be left asking, “What did I do to deserve Hell?”

The above discussion should make it clear that the mercy, guidance, punishment and misguidance delivered by Allah are not arbitrary at all. Rather, there is divine wisdom behind all of these and Allah is not unjust in His decisions.

And Allah knows best.

References:

[1]  Muslim, book1, Hadith 380

[2]  Al-A’raf 7:36

[3]  Yunus 10:7,8