27. Why was Muhammad’s prophetic
claim rejected by the Jews and
Christians of his time?
Muhammad’s failure to understand the basic beliefs of
Judaism and Christianity was a principal reason why both
groups of his day did not believe that he was a prophet.
Also, it was common for people in the ancient world to ask
for a sign, which normally involved miracles, of someone
who claimed to be a prophet. The Jews asked Jesus many
times to perform miracles to prove He was the Messiah.
Elijah and Moses, as well as others who were sent to the
people of Israel, performed miracles as testimony that their
messages were from God.
Muhammad, however, was unable to present a single
miracle to those who rejected him. His failure to present a
miracle, and his defensiveness in the face of those who
dismissed his prophetic claims as a result, is evident
throughout the Koran. Allah supposedly tells Muhammad’s
followers that ‘‘your companion [Muhammad] is not seized
with madness: he is but a perspicuous warner’’ (Sura 7:184);
and ‘‘your companion is not one possessed’’ (Sura 85:22).
Allah repeatedly reassures Muhammad himself that ‘‘you
are no soothsayer, nor are you one possessed’’ (Sura 52:29);
and ‘‘You are not, by the grace of your Lord, mad or
possessed’’ (Sura 68:2). As we have seen, Muhammad’s
own distress and uncertainty when he first began to receive
revelations led him to the brink of suicide. Ultimately,