From what have been stated so far, we can conclude that so long as prophets hold the position of nubuwwah and risalah , they are only guides who make known to people what is lawful { halal } and what is unlawful { haram } and show them the ways to attain felicity and prosperity, and they have no responsibility except reporting what is revealed to them by God or delivering a message.
The station of imamah The station of divine imamah , from a Qur’anic perspective, is different from any of the two stations mentioned earlier and it is identical with broader discretion and practice in the domain of administering the society and leading the people. Now, in the light of the luminous Qur’anic verses, we shall introduce some clear proofs in this regard: 1. Concerning the bestowal of the station of imamah on a revered prophet, viz.
Ibrahim al-Khalil (Prophet Abraham) ( ‘a ), the Holy Qur’an thus states: وَإِذِ ابْتَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ رَبُّهُ بِكَلِمَاتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ قَالَ إِنِّي جَاعِلُكَ لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًا قَالَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِي “And when his Lord tested Abraham with certain words, and he fulfilled them, He said, ‘I am making you the Imam of mankind. Said he, ‘And from among my descendants?’” [^5] In the light of this Qur’anic passage, we realize two facts: a.
The quoted verse clearly states the difference between the concept of imamah and that of each of the two concepts of nubuwwah and risalah because many years prior to a series of divine tests, one of which was the decision to sacrifice his own son (Isma‘il), Ibrahim ( ‘a ) attained the station of nubuwwah , and we will prove this fact in the following: We all know that God, the Exalted, granted two sons (Isma‘il and Ishaq) to Ibrahim ( ‘a ) when he was old as he has been quoted by the Glorious Qur’an as saying: الْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ الَّذِي وَهَبَ لِي عَلَىٰ الْكِبَرِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ وَإِسْحَاقَ “All praise belongs to Allah, who, despite {my} old age, gave me Ishmael and Isaac.” [^6] Now, it is clear that it was prior to a series of hard divine trials one of which was the decision to sacrifice Isma‘il ( ‘a ) that God, the Exalted, bestowed the station of imamah upon Ibrahim ( ‘a ) during the autumn of his life.
That is, it was during the last phase of his life that he became a leader over the people, whereas he held the station of nubuwwah a long time earlier; for, he used to receive divine revelation, which is a sign of nubuwwah before he had children { dhurriyyah }.[^7] b.