Specialities of Nabi ﷴ ﷺ
It was the blessing of Allah ﷻ and His mercy to human beings, above all other creatures on this earth, to endow them with intellect and to enlighten them with His divine guidance through a long string of prophets and messengers, starting with Aadam AS.
Prophets and messengers were all normal human beings like the rest of us, as Allah ﷻ says:
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِنَ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلَّآ إِنَّهُمْ لَيَأْكُلُونَ ٱلطَّعَامَ وَيَمْشُونَ فِى ٱلْأَسْوَاقِ
We never sent any messenger before you ˹O Prophet˺, who did not eat food and go about in market-places. [Al-Furqan 25: 20]
قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَنَا۠ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ
Say [O Muhammad], “Surely I am only a mortal the like of you … [Al-Kahf 18: 110]
Yet, the chosen prophets were endowed with such moral, spiritual, and intellectual merits to be trustworthy of delivering Allah’s guidance.
Further, they vary in their esteem and quality.
تِلْكَ ٱلرُّسُلُ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۘ مِّنْهُم مَّن كَلَّمَ ٱللَّهُ ۖ وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَهُمْ دَرَجَـٰتٍ
Those are the Messengers; We have graced some of them over some others; of them [there are some] to whom Allah spoke, and some He raised in degrees. [Al-Baqarah 2:253]
Among them are a more eminent group described as ulul-azm {those endowed with resolve.}
These are Nuh, Ibrahim, Musa, Isa and, on top of them, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon them all), whose message came to be the final word and the Seal of all Divine Messages. Allah has repeatedly testified to the greatness of Nabi ﷺ.
لَّقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِى رَسُولِ ٱللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلْيَوْمَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَ وَذَكَرَ ٱللَّهَ كَثِيرًا
You have indeed, in the life of Rasool-Allah, the ‘Best Model’ for him whose hope is in Allah and the Day of the Hereafter, and who engages himself much in the remembrance of Allah. [Ahzab 33: 21]
وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ
And surely you [O Muhammad] are indeed of a magnificent character. [Al-Qalam 68: 4]
The Ahaadith of Nabi ﷺ also makes it very clear that Nabi Muhammed ﷺ enjoys the highest rank among all the prophets.
إِنَّ مَثَلِي وَمَثَلَ الأَنْبِيَاءِ مِنْ قَبْلِي كَمَثَلِ رَجُلٍ بَنَى بَيْتًا فَأَحْسَنَهُ وَأَجْمَلَهُ، إِلاَّ مَوْضِعَ لَبِنَةٍ مِنْ زَاوِيَةٍ، فَجَعَلَ النَّاسُ يَطُوفُونَ بِهِ وَيَعْجَبُونَ لَهُ، وَيَقُولُونَ هَلاَّ وُضِعَتْ هَذِهِ اللَّبِنَةُ قَالَ فَأَنَا اللَّبِنَةُ، وَأَنَا خَاتِمُ النَّبِيِّينَ
Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, “My similitude in comparison with the other prophets before me, is that of a man who has built a house nicely and beautifully, except for a place of one brick in a corner. The people go about it and wonder at its beauty, but say: ‘Would that this brick be put in its place!’ So I am that brick, and I am the last of the Prophets.” [Bukhari 3535]
He (peace be upon him) truthfully described himself: “From among the sons of Adam, Allah chose Quraysh; from among Quraysh, He chose Kinanah; from among Kinanah He chose Bani Hashim; and from Bani Hashim He chose me” (Muslim).
The Prophet ﷺ said, “None of you will have faith till he loves me more than his father, his children and all mankind” (Al-Bukhari). Yet, he severely warned Muslims of exaggeration in praising or respecting him: “Do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians praised the son of Maryam, for I am only a servant. So, call me the Servant of Allah and His Messenger” (Al-Bukhari). Exaggerating the character or status of prophets and messengers has repeatedly led to all sorts of deviations from truth, which inflicted all messages prior to Islam.
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