Introduction
Since Prophethood is a means by which the noblest of all knowledge can be acquired and the greatest and most honorable deeds can be carried out; it is of Allah’s mercy to give these Prophets the signs by which they could be known and through which they could be identified, though, every one of those who claimed to have a mission has some signs and conditions that could indicate his truthfulness if he is truthful or otherwise if he is a liar. These signs are many.
Signs of Prophethood and their Evidences
First, The Messenger should call to worship Allah alone and to the abandonment of worshipping others besides Him. For this is the purpose for which Allah created the creation. Secondly, The Messenger should call people to believe in him and put his message into practice. Allah commands His Messenger, Muhammad (PBUH) to say: “O mankind! Verily, I am sent to you all as the Messenger of Allah.” (Holy Quran 7:158)
Thirdly, Allah strengthens him with various kinds of signs of prophethood. Among these signs are the Verses that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) brought from Allah and which his people could not repudiate or produce its equivalent. Another example is the sign of Prophet Musa (PBUH) when his rod turned into a snake; the sign of Prophet Isa (PBUH) who healed the blind and the leper by the permission of Allah, and the sign of Muhammad (PBUH) which is the great Quran, even though he was an illiterate who could neither read nor write among many other signs of the Prophets.
Among these signs is the clear and vivid truth that the Prophets and the Messengers (peace be upon them) brought and which their opponents could neither disprove nor deny. Rather, their opponents knew that what the Prophet had brought was the truth that could not be resisted. Among the signs also are perfect conditions, beautiful traits, and magnanimous conduct with which Allah Almighty distinguished the Prophets.
Fourthly, His message should agree with the fundamentals to which all Messengers and Prophets are called. The fifth sign is that He should not call others to the worship of himself or to direct any act of worship to him. He should also not call to the glorification of his tribe or clan. Allah commands His Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to tell people: “Say: I do not tell you that with me is the treasure of Allah, nor (that) I know the Unseen; nor I tell you that I am an angel. I but follow what I revealed to me.” (Holy Quran 6:50)
Last, but not least, He should not ask people for any of the things of this world as a wage for his mission. Allah says, informing us about His Prophets Noah, Hud, Salih, Lut, and Shuaib, that they told their people: “No reward do I ask of you for it (my message of Islamic monotheism); my reward is only from the Lord of all that exists. (Holy Quran 26:109)
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) also told his people: “No wage do I ask of you this (the Quran) nor am I of those who pretend and fabricate things.”(Holy Quran 38:86)
The Impact and Legacy of Prophets
These Prophets and Messengers whom I have told you something of their qualities and signs of their prophethood, are many. God Almighty says: “And verily, We have sent among every nation a Messenger (proclaiming): Worship Allah (Alone) and avoid all false deities.” (Holy Quran 16:36)
These messengers have made mankind happy; history recorded their stories, and the injunctions of their religion were repeatedly transmitted, that they are the truth and the just. Likewise, repeatedly narrated is the victory with which Allah honored them and the destruction of their enemies, like the destruction of the people of Noah with flood, the drowning of Pharaoh, punishment for the people of Lut, and the victory of Muhammad over his enemies and the spread of Islam.
Conclusion
Whoever knows the above will know certainly that the Prophets brought for mankind good and guidance; that they directed them to all that could benefit them and warn them against all that could be harmful. The first of them was Adam (PBUH) and the last of them was Muhammad (PBUH).
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