THE QURAN AND HADITH CONFIRM PAUL'S PROPHETHOOD

 

1. PAUL'S PROPHETHOOD ACCORDING TO THE HOLY QURAN

To begin, I remind Muslims that Islam has the following characteristics (swifat ul I’iman mufaswalu):

1. Faith in God.

2. Faith in the Angels of Allah.

3. Faith in the Books of Allah.

4. Faith in the Prophets of Allah.

5. Faith in the Good and Bad of Allah.

6. Faith in the Last Day.

Based on today’s topic, I will focus on Faith in the Prophets.

Muslims believe there are about 124,000 Prophets. Out of these, only 25 were known to Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), as we read in:

[AN-NISAAI – 164]
"And We sent Messengers We have mentioned to you before and Messengers We have not mentioned to you. And Allah spoke to Moses directly."

This means that Muhammad knew very little about the Prophets, i.e., only about 0.0002% of them. This is also the understanding of all Muslims regarding Prophets. However, Allah S.W directed Muhammad on where to get more light by saying:

[YUNUS – 94]
"So if you are in doubt, [O Muhammad], about that which We have revealed to you, then ask those who have been reading the Scripture before you. The truth has certainly come to you from your Lord, so never be among the doubters."

So, concerning the Prophets, almost all the Prophets narrated to Muhammad are found in the Bible. As we saw in the first part of our topic today, we inform Muslims about Paul’s prophethood.

If you read the Quran carefully, you will find that the story of Paul is well described.

Examine this verse:

[YA-SIN – 13-14]
"And present to them an example: the people of the city, when the messengers came to it—
When We sent to them two but they denied them, so We strengthened them with a third, and they said, 'Indeed, we are messengers to you.'"

This verse tells the story of Allah's messengers. Commentators and scholars like Sheikh Balwani and Yusuf Ali have interpreted this verse and said that the city to which the messengers were sent is Antioch.

Ibn Kathir, in his commentary, states that the messengers were John, Simon, and Paul.

Here, I quote Ibn Kathir:

"It is narrated by Ibn Jurayj from Wahb bin Sulayman, transmitted by Shu’ayb Al-Jaba’i, 'The names of the first two messengers sent were Simon and John, and the name of the third was Paul. The city was Antioch.' They said (to the people of the city), 'Indeed, we are sent to you as messengers,' meaning 'Messengers from Allah who created you and commands you to worship Him alone and not associate any partners with Him.' Qatada said they were messengers of Jesus, son of Mary (a.s), sent to the people of Antioch. They said, 'You are but human beings like us... How can you receive revelation when you are human like us? Why do we not receive revelation like you?' This was the attitude of the people of other nations who said, 'We do not believe,' as Allah tells us in Surah 64:6: 'That was because their messengers used to come to them with clear proofs, but they said, "Shall mere men guide us!" So they disbelieved and turned away. And Allah was in no need of them.'"

Thus, we see that the argument against Paul is a recent invention. Muslims, scholars, and early ulama did not have this argument against Paul.

2. PAUL'S PROPHETHOOD ACCORDING TO THE HADITH

After seeing the evidence from the Holy Scriptures about the prophethood of Paul, let’s turn to the hadiths of Prophet Muhammad. Why should we turn to hadith? Because of the advice given by Allah S.W within the Quran itself:

[AN-NISAAI – 59]
"O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best [way] and best in result."

In a book called SIRAT NABAWIYA, written by Ibn Hisham, a student of Ibn Ishak, in the fourth volume of that book, page 140, Muhammad lists the names of the disciples of Jesus. He divides them into two groups: those who followed Jesus during His life and those who followed after He ascended. Muhammad describes each of the disciples and where they were sent; concerning Paul, he states that Paul was sent to Rome.

Here, I quote Ibn Hisham:

أسماء رسل عيسى عليه السلام

"Amesema ibh Is-hak: walikuwa miongoni mwa wanafunzi wa Yesu (amani iwe juu yake) wale waliomfuata wale waliokuwa baada yake duniani: Petro Mwanafunzi wa Yesu, na pamoja naye alikuwepo Paulo miongoni mwa wafuasi, Paulo hakuwa miongoni mwa wale wanafunzi wa Yesu. Naye (Paulo) alitumwa Rumi. Na Andrea naye alitumwa katika nchi ambayo wakazi wake wanakula watu. Na Tomaso alitumwa katika nchi ya Babeli katika nchi za mashariki. Na Philipo alitumwa katika nchi pande za Afrika, na Yohana alitumwa Efeso na Yakobo alitumwa Yerusalemu na Batholomeo alitumwa Uarabuni katika nchi ya Hijaz. Na Simoni alitumwa Baribari."

Majina ya Mitume wa Yesu Masihi:
“Amesema ibn Is-hak: walikuwa miongoni mwa wanafunzi wa Yesu (amani iwe juu yake) wale waliomfuata wale waliokuwa baada yake duniani: Petro Mwanafunzi wa Yesu, na pamoja naye alikuwepo Paulo miongoni mwa wafuasi, Paulo hakuwa miongoni mwa wale wanafunzi wa Yesu. Naye (Paulo) alitumwa Rumi. Na Andrea naye alitumwa katika nchi ambayo wakazi wake wanakula watu. Na Tomaso alitumwa katika nchi ya Babeli katika nchi za mashariki. Na Philipo alitumwa katika nchi pande za Afrika, na Yohana alitumwa Efeso na Yakobo alitumwa Yerusalemu na Batholomeo alitumwa Uarabuni katika nchi ya Hijaz. Na Simoni alitumwa Baribari.”

It is surprising to see that despite such significant evidence, today’s Muslims (especially activists) have chosen to ignore this truth and start misleading people, either intentionally or out of ignorance. The question is: for whose benefit are they doing this?

My Muslim friend, I want to warn you that Satan is cunning and will always come with deception, using false teachers. Some will come as defenders of the faith, but they are the greatest destroyers of the faith.

Allah S.W says in the Quran to tell Muslims:

[AL-BAQARA – 136]
"Say: We have believed in Allah and what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Descendants, and what was given to Moses and Jesus, and what was given to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims [in submission] to Him."

You see that Allah S.W has instructed Muslims not only to believe in the 25 mentioned Prophets in the Quran but also to believe in what was revealed to the descendants of Jacob. PAUL IS ALSO A DESCENDANT OF THE PROPHET JACOB. But not only that, Allah S.W has asked Muslims to believe in what was revealed to "other prophets." PAUL IS ALSO AMONG THE OTHER PROPHETS.

Therefore, rejecting Paul is to reject the faith, reject the Quran, and ultimately reject Allah Himself. AND THIS IS EXTREME UNBELIEF.

Is there any hadith where the Prophet warned his companions or Muslims in general about Paul’s teachings?

No, instead, we see Muhammad himself quoting Paul's teachings and calling it a message from Allah:

“It is narrated by Abu Huraira, the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w) said; Allah said, ‘I have prepared for My righteous servants what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human heart has conceived.’”

Thus, we see that the argument against Paul’s prophethood has no foundation in the teachings of the Holy Scriptures and is a distortion by self-seeking religious teachers.

Shalom,

Max Shimba Ministries Org