The Albaani Site

Questioner: In [his book] Al-Waabil as-Sayyib, Ibn al-Qayyim mentioned that the Fire will come to an end.  What do you say [about that]?

Al-Albani:  Ibn al-Qayyim has two sayings.  The one which it is fitting to adopt [or rely upon] is the elaboration which he mentioned in Al-Waabil as-Sayyib: [that] there are two Fires, one for the disbelievers and another in which the disobedient Muslim sinners [faasiqs] are punished.

The first fire will not cease to exist, it is the second one which will.

And that which is found in some of his books and some of the books of his Shaikh, Ibn Taymiyyah, the apparent meaning of which is that the fire will cease to exist totally–it is fitting that this is taken to mean the perishing of the fire which the disobedient sinners from the Muslims will enter.  Because they will be saved one day, as he عليه الصلاة والسلام said, “Whoever says, ‘Laa ilaaha illallaah,’ it will help him one day …” [Compilers note: it will help him one day before Allaah].

And I have written an introduction to this book [Raf’ul Astaar of San’aani], almost fifty pages long, confirming the view that as-San’aani, may Allaah have mercy on him, held: that the saying that the fire of the disbelievers will cease is something which contradicts the Book and the Sunnah.

And the [high] regard we have of the Shaikh of Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah and his student Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah is that they would not fall into a contradiction as apparent as this one.

So it is fitting that the fire which he stated would cease be taken to mean that of the disobedient sinners from this Ummah and not the fire of the disbelievers.

Fataawaa Jeddah, 4.