Oppression too has an evil end:
Just as evil schemes incur adverse consequences on those who devise them, oppression as well entails the swiftest punishment. It was said: whoever draws the sword of oppression will be killed with it; an oppressor will inevitably have a taste of his own medicine; oppression defeats those who commit it; oppression always comes to a bad end; whoever digs a pit for his brother shall fall therein; shun oppression for it is indeed worthy of shunning. ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allah be pleased with them, used to say: “If it happened that a mountain oppressed another mountain, Allah, The Almighty, would level the oppressive one.” He also said: “A king uttered a word of oppression while sitting on his throne; Allah, The Exalted, transformed him into another creature, perhaps a fly or something else. He was consigned to oblivion.”
‘Abdullaah ibn Mu‘aawiyah Al-Haashimi relates, “When he was on his deathbed, ‘Abdul-Muttalib asked his ten sons to assemble and advised them as follows, ‘Beware of oppression! I swear by Allah, He did not create anything with a swifter punishment than oppression. I have never witnessed people who survived despite their oppression, except perhaps your relatives from Banu ‘Abd Shams.’”
Ibn Al-Qayyim said: “How strange is a human self; it combines the arrogance of Satan, the envy of Qaabeel (Cain), the insolence of the people of ‘Aad, the transgression of the people of Thamood, the audacity of Nimrod, the brazenness of Pharaoh, the oppression of Qaaroon, the ugliness of Haamaan, the sinful desires of Bal‘aam, the cunning of the people of Sabbath, the rebelliousness of Al-Waleed, and the ignorance of Abu Jahl… And of the beastly qualities, it has the keenness of a crow, the voracity of a dog, the vanity of a peacock, the vileness of a scarab, the ingratitude of a lizard, the grudge of a camel, the leaping of a cheetah, the hostility of a lion, the wickedness of a mouse, the maliciousness of a snake, the levity of a monkey, the persistent hoarding of an ant, the slyness of a fox, the lightness of a butterfly, and the laziness of a hyena. However, despite all that, striving and struggling (against such bad qualities) eventually pay off and eliminate them.”
Quranic Texts Dispraising Oppression:
There are texts in the Quran that denounce oppression without right; Allah, The Exalted, Says (what means): {The cause is only against the ones who wrong the people and tyrannize upon the earth without right. Those will have a painful punishment.} [Quran 42:42] Oppression incorporates arrogance, injustice, corruption, and commission of sins. It is one of the five things that all divine messages prohibit, as Allah, The Exalted, Says (what means): {Say, “My Lord has only forbidden immoralities – what is apparent of them and what is concealed – and sin, and oppression without right, and that you associate with Allah that for which He has not sent down authority, and that you say about Allah that which you do not know.”} [Quran 7:33]
The promise of Allah, The Exalted, to support the oppressed person should be sufficient for him. He Says (what means): {That [is so]. And whoever responds [to injustice] with the equivalent of that with which he was harmed and then is oppressed – Allah will surely aid him.} [Quran 22:60] The Prophet said: “No sin is worthier of its doer’s punishment being hastened by Allah in the worldly life, in addition to what is stored for him in the Hereafter, than oppression and severance of ties of kinship.” [Ahmad, Abu Daawood, At-Tirmithi: Hasan Saheeh] He also said: “No act of obedience to Allah has a swifter reward than upholding ties of kinship; and nothing prompts punishment swifter than oppression, cutting off ties of kinship, and perjury which incurs penury on the oath-maker.” [Al-Bayhaqi, Al-Albaani: authentic]
It was also narrated that the Prophet said: “Allah revealed to me that you should humble yourselves to one another until none shows arrogance towards another nor oppresses another.” [Muslim]
Lessons from the Stories of the Destroyed Oppressors
Reflect on the stories of oppressors and their fates in past and recent history, and you will find conformity between the pages of history and the pages of the Quran.
Consider Pharaoh, who committed oppression in the land without right, claimed Lordship and Divinity, and said, as cited in the verse (which means): {Does not the kingdom of Egypt belong to me, and these rivers flowing beneath me?} [Quran 43:51] He tried to apprehend Prophet Moosa (Moses), may Allah exalt his mention, and those who believed in him from the Children of Israel. Along with his army, he pursued them out of oppression and enmity. However, Allah, The Exalted, drowned him as an apt punishment for his actions. Later, the Egyptians saw his rotten corpse after they had earlier worshipped him instead of Allah, The Exalted, Who Said (what means): {So today We will save you in body that you may be to those who succeed you a sign.} [Quran 10:92]
The Quran relates the story of another oppressor, Qaaroon. Allah, The Exalted, Says (what means): {Indeed, Qaaroon was from the people of Moses, but he oppressed them.} [Quran 28:76] He also Says that some people gave him advice, saying (what means): {And desire not corruption in the land. Indeed, Allah does not like corrupters.} [Quran 28:77] But he did not heed this advice, so Allah, The Exalted, destroyed him, and he was taken to meet his Lord, unlamented. Allah, The Exalted, Says (what means): {And We caused the earth to swallow him and his home.} [Quran 28:81]
The stories of the oppression of past nations against the Prophets and Messengers of Allah abound in lessons and admonitions for all those who are endowed with sound intellect. Allah, The Exalted, seized them with His might and power. The people of Prophet Nooh (Noah) and ‘Aad, Thamood, and many other generations lived and disbelieved in their Messengers and then perished. They will meet their Lord and their deeds will be presented to Him; He Says (what means): {And how many have We destroyed before them of generations? Do you perceive of them anyone or hear from them a sound?} [Quran 19:98]