In times of severe distress, the dua of the Prophet Ayub (AS) is a helpful one for all of us, “And ˹remember˺ when Ayub (Job) cried out to his Lord, “I have been touched with adversity, and You are the Most Merciful of the merciful.” So, We answered his prayer and removed his adversity, and gave him back his family, twice as many, as a mercy from Us and a lesson for the ˹devoted˺ worshippers.” (Surah Al-Anbya Ayats 83-84).
We must remember that Ayub (AS) was a prosperous man with faith in Allah (SWT). Allah (SWT) tested Ayub (AS) with numerous trials and tribulations like the destruction of his cattle and the crushing of his family under his roof. Furthermore, he (AS) suffered from sores that covered his entire body. In those days, when someone was extremely sick, society would quarantine them and so, this was the situation with Ayub (AS).
When a person is in isolation, they begin living a purposeless and unproductive life that can lead to extreme pessimism. They might start feeling that Allah (SWT) has abandoned them just like the rest of society.
In the case of Ayub (AS), he is a prophet which is the highest and noblest rank that Allah (SWT) can give a human being. However, for much of his life, Ayub (AS) can’t do any kind of dawah since he (AS) was bedridden. Some would describe Ayub (AS) as paralyzed and that the only thing functioning is his tongue and, in this state, he (AS) calls on Allah (SWT) for help as mentioned above in Surah Al-Anbya, Ayats 83-84.
What is amazing in Ayub’s (AS) call to Allah (SWT) is the way he understates that harm or adversity affecting him. Instead of complaining that the adversities he (AS) is facing are ruining, or destroying his life, Ayub (AS) is saying the adversities are barely impacting him. What this tells us is that Ayub (AS) realizes that whatever hardship he (AS) is facing now, Allah (SWT) is preventing greater harm to happen to him. Because of this, his current adversities are barely a touch.
Furthermore, we must understand that physical well-being, financial well-being, and social well-being are secondary compared to spiritual well-being. If sickness and hardship get to a point where we are cutting ourselves from Allah (SWT) then this would be more devastating than the adversity we are going through.
Another remarkable aspect of Ayub’s (AS) dua is that he’s (AS) not asking Allah (SWT) for any relief from his hardships but acknowledges that Allah (SWT) is the “Most Merciful of the merciful.” Also, Ayub (AS) is admitting that Allah (SW) is the most loving and caring and that he (AS) appreciates Allah’s (SWT) love and care for him, as no human can match it.
Even though Ayub (AS) didn’t ask or request any help or relief from Allah (SWT), Allah (SWT) responded by removing his hardships. Besides curing Ayub’s (AS) illness, Allah (SWT) alleviated his abandonment and loneliness by giving back his family and more people like his family so that he (AS) could preach Allah’s (SWT) message.
Furthermore, this dua is a powerful reminder to all of us who worship Allah (SWT). This dua of Ayub (AS) is a priceless gem that reminds us that we worship Allah (SWT) because we know that no one will love or care for us more than Allah (SWT). Consequently, when we turn to Allah (SWT) with this attitude then Allah (SWT) will remove the hardships that we are experiencing in our lives. Generally, whenever Allah (SWT) mentions the duas in the Quran of the other prophets, this is an alarm bell for us to pay extra attention to them and incorporate them into our lives. Ayub’s AS) dua is important for us as it prevents our hearts from becoming hard or negative toward Allah (SWT) when going through difficulties we should realize that things could be worse but Allah (SWT) cares for us and prevents this from happening.
