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Fatwa CenterA person has free will, accordingly he is punished or rewarded
Question
How is the individual held accountable and punished in this worldly life by the authorities, for example for something that Allaah has decreed upon him. As long as Allaah has decreed such a sin or mistake on him, why should he be punished?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and messenger.
Allaah has endowed man with a will power with which he can do what he wants and leave what he does not. Any sane person admits this fact. Thus, if a person does something that necessitates punishment in this life or the Hereafter, they will deserve this punishment because they willingly acted against the Commandment of Allaah.
It should be noted that Allaah connected everything with its means. In other words, Paradise is gained via means, and so is salvation from Hell, earning sustenance or being deprived of it.
Therefore, if a person pursued proper means to achieve something, they would realize their relevant goal, unless Allaah wills otherwise for any impediments.
Actually, much evidence from the Quran, Sunnah and reason attest to this fact.
The Quran stated many verses in this regard. Allaah Says (what means):
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{[By] that We repaid them because they disbelieved. And do We [thus] repay except the ungrateful?}[Quran 34:17]
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{For wrongdoing on the part of the Jews, We made unlawful for them [certain] good foods which had been lawful to them, and for their averting from the way of Allaah many [people], And [for] their taking of usury while they had been forbidden from it, and their consuming of the people's wealth unjustly. And we have prepared for the disbelievers among them a painful punishment.}[Quran 4:160-161]
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{And whatever strikes you of disaster - it is for what your hands have earned; but He pardons much.}[Quran 42:30]
As for the evidence from the Sunnah, the Prophet 
stated that one's lifespan is only increased by being dutiful to his parents and relatives, destination is revoked only by supplication and that a man is deprived of sustenance due to a sin he commits. [Ahmad and Ibn Maajah]
In another narration the Prophet mentioned that victory is attained through patience. [Ahmad]
As for reason, it is known that marriage and intercourse are necessary for having children, food and water are essential to relief hunger and thirst, proper clothes are needed to guard against the cold, fighters must be trained before entering the battlefield and many other logical occurrences attest to this.
Allaah Knows best.
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