Is Iblis, may Allah curse him, an angel or from other than them? And if he is from other than them what is the meaning of exception in Allah's statement: “All the angels prostrated themselves, except Iblis.” (Qur'an, 15:30,31)? A – It should be known that the angels are creatures of Allah. He created them from light, they never disobey Him, and do as He says. As for Iblis (Satan), Allah mentioned that he was amongst the Jinn, Allah says: “...and when We said to the angels, prostrate yourselves to Adam, they all did, except Iblis who was from the Jinn, who transgressed the command of his Lord. (Qur'an, 18:50) Allah mentions in the Qur'an what Iblis said when He commanded him to prostrate to Adam. He said: “You created me from Fire, and You created him from clay!” (Qur'an, 38:76) As for the type of exception, in Allah's Words: “All the angels prostrated themselves, except Iblis.” (Qur'an, 38:73-74) It is an individual exception, as one may say: Everyone came except for a donkey. There are some people of knowledge who say Iblis, may Allah curse him, is an angel except that he disobeyed Allah and insisted on being disobedient. – Permanent Committee for Islamic Research and Verdicts; Fatawa Islamiyah, vol. 1 pg. 96. Labor pains expiate sins Q- My wife used to pray regularly until her first child. After that she became quite lazy, claiming that a woman's sins are all forgiven due to the pain she faces during labor. What do you say to her? A – This is not true. If the woman, like other humans, faces some hardship and she is patient and hopes for reward for that, she will be rewarded due to that pain and affliction. In fact, the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave examples of much lesser types of pain which expiate sins, such as being pricked by a thorn. If a person has patience and expects reward from Allah for anything that has afflicted him, he will be rewarded according to what he shows by way of patience and expectations. The essence of affliction is the removal of his sins. The one who is afflicted has his sins removed under any circumstance. Furthermore, if this is accompanied with patience, the person will also be rewarded for his patience on his affliction. When a woman gives birth, there is no doubt that she suffers a lot of pain and hardship. That pain removes some of her sins from her. If she is also patient and expecting reward from Allah, then, in addition to having sins removed, she will also be rewarded and have good deeds recorded for her. – Ibn Uthaymeen; Fatawa Al
