Finality of prophethood from the Holy Quran

Dr. Mohammed Alam Qurayshi

It is the firm belief of all Muslims, irrespective of the sect they belong to, that the Holy Quran is the last and final message of Almighty Allah revealed upon His last Prophet Hazrat Mohammed (p.b.u.h). After this divine message no other message is to come till the day of Judgment. This book is the fountain of knowledge and a lantern of guidance forever. Everything is present in it.

Allah the Alimighty has introduced Quran as the fountainhead (source) of all knowledges. We can refer to some of the verses of the Quran itself wherein the superiority of the Quran has been emphasized.

"Nothing have We omitted from the Book, and they (all) shall be gathered to their Lord in the end."

(Chapter of An'am, verse 38)

"...nor anything fresh or dry (green or withered), but is (inscribed) in a Record Clear (to those who can read)."

(Chapter of An'am, verse 59)

"..and We have sent down to thee the Book explaining all things"

(Chapter of Nahl, verse 89)

The above verses are suffiently clear to prove that Allah has explained everything in the Quran.

From the point of view of traditions, the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) says about its superiority: "The superiority of the Quran over other writings is like the superiority of Allah over His creatures."

(Ref: Sahih Al-Tirmizi)

One can derive the following conclusions from this seemingly simple tradition.

The tradition clearly indicates that there has never come a book better than the Holy Quran and will never ever come till the end of this World. The tradition emphasizes the importance of Quran over other books just as Allah the Almighty enjoys superiority over His creatures.

The superiority of Allah is such that there is no comparison between Allah and His creatures. In the same manner, the pre-eminence of the Holy Quran over other books - both worldly and divine is incomparable.

The magnificence of Allah over His creatures transcends time. Allah was, is and will continue to enjoy this superiority over His creatures till the end of time. In the same manner, the supremacy of the Holy Quran transcends time - it will continue to enjoy its domination over all books - past, present and future till the end of time.

It is noteworthy that despite the presence of the past books, Allah chose the Holy Quran as His final revelation and chose the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) as the dispenser of this revelation. Thus, the tradition not only highlights the importance of the Holy Quran, but also underlines the finality of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) - just as no revelation would be required after the Holy Quran, no prophet would be required after the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h)

Quran introduces itself in its own words

The Holy Quran introduces itself as follows:

"This is the Scripture whereof there is no doubt. A guidance unto those who fear Allah, believe in the Unseen, are steadfast in prayer, give charity from what We have provided for them, and believe in the Revelation sent to you (O Mohammed) and before you, and (in their hearts) have the assurance of the Hereafter. They are on (true) guidance, from their Lord, and it is these who shall be successful."

(The Holy Quran, Chapter of Baqarah, verses 2-5)

In the light of the above verses, we can derive the following conclusions in respect to the finality of prophethood.

All Muslims believe that Quran is a revelation sent by Allah to the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h)

All Muslims also believe in the revelations sent to prophets before the Holy Prophet of Islam

They have an assurance of the Hereafter implying that the revelation to the Prophet Mohammed is the last revelation till the Day of Judgment and that there will be no further Prophets or revelations. Because had there been any future revelations to come Allah would have surely introduced it as He introduced the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) in past scriptures and would not have directly talked about the Hereafter.

Mohammed (p.b.u.h) is the last prophet and messenger

The Holy Quran, the last torch of guidance for humanity, specifically declares the finality of Prophethood of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) in the following verse

"Mohammed (p.b.u.h) is not the father of any of your men, but he is the Messenger of Allah and the seal (last) of the Prophets. And God is Aware of everything."

(Chapter of Ahzab, verse 40)

Read Dictionary Meaning of Khatam

This verse has been revealed in the fifth passage of the chapter of Ahzab. It is an unambiguous verse and clearly states the order of Allah. The verse unequivocally highlights the position of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) and his stature as the last prophet of all time.

It is clear for all Muslims that when Allah says that the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) is the last prophet then it does not leave any scope or window for any person to stake claim to the holy office of prophethood.

The Law of Mohammed (p.b.u.h) is the Last Law

Allah was well aware that the line of Prophethood would end in Mohammed (p.b.u.h) whose law was the last law. Had he not done away with this custom, there would arise no man comparable in status to Prophet Mohammed (p.b.u.h) who could accomplish the task. Even if a reformer arose in later times that would break this custom, his act would not have constituted a universal or permanent precedent for Muslims of all ages and all countries to follow. No other person that follows would embody the divine sanctity, which is attached to the person of Prophet Mohammed (p.b.u.h).

Additionally many other verses of the Holy Quran declare the Universality of Prophet Mohammed (p.b.u.h) till the Day of Judgment.

Allah the Almighty declares in the first verse of the chapter of Furqaan thus, "Blessed is He who sent down the Furqaan (the Quran) to His servant that it may be an admonition to all creatures"

Every person born till the day of Judgment is a creature of Allah. Since the Quran will remain in force till the Day of Judgment, it means that the admonition to creatures is for eternity, which in turn implies that the Prophethood of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) will be valid for all creatures till the end of mankind.

Also another verse declares,

"And We have not sent you (O Mohammed) save as a harbinger of good tidings and a warner unto all mankind, but most of mankind do not know."

(The Holy Quran, Chapter of Saba, verse 28)

Thus the prophethood of Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) is binding upon all mankind. Thus all men in whatever age they may come in this world before its end have no choice but to accept the prophethood of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) if they are to achieve salvation.

Islam is the final religion

The following verse clearly explains the superiority of Islam over all religions past and present. Allah declares,

"If anyone desires a religion other than Islam, never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter, he will be in the ranks of those who have lost (all spiritual good)."

(The Holy Quran, Chapter of Ale' Imran, verse 85)

This verse decrees the establishment of Islam as the final religion of Allah. This verse invalidates all new religions that appeared after Islam like, Sikhism, Qadianism and Bahaism. Thus the doors of prophethood were closed on all future claimants, thereby establishing the finality of Islam as well as that of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h).

Further references in Quran

The finality of Quran, Islam and the prophethood of The Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) is also implied by the following verses:

"And this Quran has been revealed to me that with it I may warn you and whomsoever it reaches"

(Chapter of Anam, verse 19)

"It is nothing but a reminder to the Nations"

(Chapter of Suad, verse 87)

"And most surely it is a mighty book. Falsehood shall not come to it from before it nor from behind it"

(Chapter of Fusselat, verse 41-42)

The Conclusion

For a person to be a Muslim, the following conclusion can be drawn from the references made in this article as:

* Mohammed (p.b.u.h), is the Last Prophet - no prophet nor any messenger is to come after him.

* Quran is the revealed book from the Almighty Allah to Mohammed (p.b.u.h).

* No new Law will be revealed from the Almighty Allah for the mankind, as Quran is to remain till the day of Judgment.

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