MUHAMMAD’S PROPHECY THAT HIS COMPANIONS WOULD ABANDON ISLAM AND RETURN TO CHRISTIANITY

MUHAMMAD’S PROPHECY THAT HIS COMPANIONS WOULD ABANDON ISLAM AND RETURN TO CHRISTIANITY

(Friday, January 21, 2022)

The Prophet’s Words to His Companions

In Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 8, under the chapter “The Saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him),” it is recorded that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said to his Companions:

“You will surely follow the ways of those who came before you!”

This narration is reported by ʿAṭāʾ ibn Yasār from Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī, who said that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) declared:

“You will certainly follow the path of those before you, step by step and cubit by cubit, even if they were to enter into a lizard’s hole, you would surely follow them.”

The Companions asked, “O Messenger of Allah, do you mean the Jews and the Christians?”
The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, “Who else could it be if not them?”
(Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 8, p. 151)

This prophetic statement corresponds with the Qur’anic verse in Surah Āl ʿImrān (3:144), which says:

“Muhammad is no more than a Messenger; many were the Messengers that passed away before him. If he dies or is slain, will you then turn back on your heels?”

The Fulfillment of the Prophecy After the Prophet’s Death

The words of Allah and His noble Messenger began to manifest immediately after the Prophet’s death. It had scarcely been a moment after his passing when a man—identified as ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb—emerged from the Prophet’s house with his sword unsheathed and proclaimed before the gathered people:

“Let no one dare say that Muhammad is dead!”

ʿUmar’s resistance to acknowledging the Prophet’s death revealed an inner motive—a denial and emotional rebellion that the Qur’an had forewarned: “Will you turn back on your heels?”

Later, ʿUmar summoned his close companion Abū Bakr, who was at that time outside Madinah with his wife. When Abū Bakr arrived, he entered the Prophet’s house, confirmed his death, and then came out to address the people, saying:

“Indeed, Muhammad was but a Messenger; Messengers have passed away before him. Now Muhammad has died.”

Following this declaration, Abū Bakr and ʿUmar hastened to Saqīfah, where they became involved in a heated dispute with the Anṣār (the Helpers) over the issue of succession. Abū Bakr was eventually chosen as Caliph after threats, pressure, and promises of wealth were made to secure allegiance.

This political struggle marked the beginning of what the Qur’an described as “turning back on their heels.”

Following the Path of Those Who Came Before

The subsequent actions of Abū Bakr, ʿUmar, and their supporters mirrored the Prophet’s warning that his community would imitate the previous nations “step by step and cubit by cubit.” Just as the earlier communities had deviated from divine truth, certain Companions also diverged from the Prophet’s teachings immediately after his death.

Today, we witness many Muslims who pride themselves on being “pure believers” yet follow in the footsteps of those early figures, Abū Bakr and ʿUmar—figuratively entering the “lizard’s hole” that the Prophet described.

They frequently invoke terms such as bidʿah (innovation), claiming that the Prophet did not perform certain acts, while insisting that revering and blessing Abū Bakr and ʿUmar is obligatory, equivalent to the pillars of prayer and fasting.

Some even go so far as to utter blasphemous statements about the Prophet himself—such as ʿUmar’s alleged remark that “the Prophet is delirious”—a statement that deeply contradicts the honor and infallibility accorded to him by Islam.

Conclusion

This narration, as cited from Sahih al-Bukhari and correlated with Qur’an 3:144, has been interpreted by some scholars as a prophetic forewarning: that after his death, certain followers would deviate from the true path of Islam and adopt practices or ideologies resembling those of past religious communities.

Such interpretations continue to inspire theological debates concerning the succession crisis, the legitimacy of early caliphs, and the fulfillment of the Prophet’s words regarding imitation of previous nations.

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