We read in the Qur’an accounts of prophets (peace be upon them) who were sent to their communities with the divine message, requiring them to worship none other than God, and to believe in the Day of Judgment, and to prepare for it by doing what is right and refraining from what is wrong and sinful. All prophets exerted strenuous efforts in advocating God’s message and explaining it to their peoples. Some, like Moses and Jonah, were successful, while others were less so. God gives us detailed accounts about some of these prophets but he gives us only glimpses about others. Moses’ story is mentioned many times, with varying details, in the Qur’an, while we know very little about the Prophet Idris and his people. However, the fact that Idris is mentioned in the Qur’an as one of the prophets is enough for us to hold him in high regard and to pray to God to bless him with all other prophets.
We note that the Qur’an has told us about the very early prophets Adam and Noah, and then about Abraham and his nephew Lot, his two sons Ishmael and Isaac and his grandson Jacob. All prophets who followed were Abraham’s descendents through Jacob and his father Isaac, except for Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who was a descendent of Ishmael. We also note that all these lived within a small area of the world, extending from Iraq to Egypt, without going into the Arabian Peninsula. The Qur’an also tells us about two other prophets who did not belong to this blessed line of descent. These were Hud whose people lived in the area of the sand dunes in southern Arabia, and Salih who lived with his people in a hilly part of northern Arabia. However, the Qur’an states that prophets were sent to all communities warning them of the Day of Judgment: “We have sent you with the truth, as a bearer of happy news and a warner. There was never a community that has not had a warner.” (35: 24)
What this means is that the Qur’an tells us about prophets who were close to the area where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) lived. This is logical because the Arabs, the first people to be addressed by the Qur’an, knew something of their history or were in contact with Jews and Christians who were aware of the history of such prophets. Yet this does not mean that other areas did not receive the divine message, delivered to them by prophets from their own communities. All it means is that God has chosen not to tell us about these, probably because their messages were subject to distortion affecting even the very basic principle of God’s oneness. Addressing the Prophet, God says in the Qur’an: “We sent other messengers before your time; some We have given you an account of, while others We have not.” (40: 78)
What is common to all forms of the divine message, delivered by all prophets, is the belief in God’s oneness which, by implication, includes belief in the Day of Judgment, and the fulfillment of two essential duties: prayers and zakah. The first is a duty maintaining the relation between man and God and the second ensures good relations in society as the rich are required to help the poor. Beyond that, divine messages differ in their details but all insist on good action and refraining from sin.
When humanity attained maturity, God decided to give mankind the final version of His message, which meant giving them its complete form. Since this form will by definition apply to all future generations, it had to be embodied in a book which will remain always available so that people can refer to it, rather than referring to the practice of their parents or ancestors. The only practical example that gives them guidance is the practice of the last messenger, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Hence, the message is given in the Qur’an, God’s word revealed to Prophet Muhammad and guaranteed by God to remain intact forever.
What position does Prophet Muhammad hold among all God’s messengers? He gives us the following illustration: “This is an example of my position in relation to prophets who were before me. It is like a man who built a building, giving it a solid structure and decorating it beautifully, except for a single brick in one of its corners. People went around it admiring it, but they all said: ‘Would that this missing brick is put in place.’ I am this last brick; and I am the last of all prophets.” (Related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
We note the Prophet’s humility as he describes himself as a brick in a building when he actually brought the work of earlier prophets to fruition. He does not say that he is the foundation of that building, or its main pillars. He is a single brick in a perfect and beautiful building. Yet it is the brick that makes the building complete. Without it, it will remain short of completion and people will look for an addition. Once he came with his message, the ultimate structure was in its final shape, solid in its foundation, attractive in appearance and perfect in details.
This example also stresses that prophethood is a progressive process and a continuous line. Nothing has changed in the divine faith across all generations. It remains the same, calling on all people to believe in God’s oneness. This is what the Qur’an reports of all prophets. Each one of them said to his people: “Worship God alone; you have no deity other than Him.” Hence, any ideology that does not uphold the principle of God’s absolute oneness is polytheistic in nature and cannot belong to the divine faith. It should be rejected outright.
This principle is epitomized in the declaration that is required of every Muslim. Whoever wants to be a Muslim must be fully conscious of the meaning of his declaration and what it entails as he says: “I bear witness that there is no deity other than God; and I bear witness that Muhammad is God’s messenger.” This declaration means that God is the only deity to whom all the universe submits, and that everything relating to religion is given to us through God’s last prophet and messenger, Muhammad (peace be upon him).
