So, what he asked WAS GRANTED, and he was granted full...

So, what he asked WAS GRANTED, and he was granted full authority of Imamah, and the wrong-doers were excluded from its reach, and it was made exclusive to the righteous scholars among his offspring.[^6] In other words, Imamah has never ceased on the earth – at least, since the time of Ibrahim. It has remained “uninterrupted”, “perpetual” and “forever”, within the offspring of Ibrahim the Khalil. Therefore, there is always an Imam for all mankind from the offspring of Prophet Ibrahim.

In fact, there is one right now! Moreover, Imamah never gets to wrong-doers. Therefore, the Imam from the offspring of al-Khalil is one who never does wrong. With these facts, would it still be wise to insist that Imamah is prophethood? Is nubuwwah “uninterrupted”, “perpetual” and “forever”? Prof. Ibn Yasin records: أخرج الطبري بسنده الصحيح عن مجاهد (قال لاينال عهدي الظالمين) قال: لا يكون إماما ظالما.

Al-Tabari records with his sahih chain from Mujahid that he said: “(My Covenant shall not reach the wrongdoers) There will never be an Imam who does wrong.”[^7] Meanwhile, the offspring of Ibrahim al-Khalil, as Allah states, are in two categories only: سلام على إبراهيم كذلك نجزي المحسنين إنه من عبادنا المؤمنين وبشرناه بإسحاق نبيا من الصالحين وباركنا عليه وعلى إسحاق ومن ذريتهما محسن وظالم لنفسه مبين Peace be upon Ibrahim. Thus indeed do We reward the good-doers.

Verily, he was one of Our believing slaves. And We gave him the glad tidings of Ishaq, a prophet from the righteous. We blessed him (i.e. Ibrahim) and Ishaq, and of their offspring are good-doers and some that are plainly wrongdoers to themselves. [^8] Of course, anyone who disobeys Allah is someone who wrongs himself: ومن يتعد حدود الله فقد ظلم نفسه And whosoever transgresses the set limits of Allah, then indeed he has wronged himself.

[^9] We also read: ومن يتعد حدود الله فأولئك هم الظالمون And whosoever transgresses the set limits of Allah, then such are the wrongdoers. [^10] Imam Salihi al-Shami (d.

942 H) explains: معنى قوله تعالى}: ومن يتعد حدود الله فأولئك هم الظالمون) {البقرة ٢٢٩ (وذلك أن حدود الله هي محارمه ونواهيه The meaning of the Most High’s Statement: {And whosoever transgresses the set limits of Allah, such are the wrongdoers} {Baqarah: 229), that is, the set limits of Allah are things He has made haram and His prohibitions.[^11] ‘Allamah al-Albani (d.