Prophet vs. Messenger

Anonymous, thank you for your question and your compliment. They are both sincerely appreciated.

It is said, "Every messenger is a prophet, but not all prophets are messengers."

As I stated in a previous post, there were thousands of prophets.  The word for prophet in Arabic is "nabi."  We do not know all of them by name, obviously.  But, paraphrased, there is a verse in the Qur'an that states "God sent a prophet to every people (widely accepted to mean every "tribe") on Earth."

Of these thousands, there were over 300 messengers.  The word for messenger in Arabic is "rasoul."  Again, we do not know all of them by name.  What we do know is that these men came down with "books" or "messages" that added to the previous messenger's.  These men changed the course of humanity.

The Qur'an eludes to prophets and their books ("kitabs" in Arabic).

As I mentioned before, there are five "super prophets" or "super messengers."  These messengers changed more in their time on Earth than all the others.  They are Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Mohamed (pbut).

If you think about it - regardless of your own religious beliefs, or lack of religious beliefs, you've probably heard of these men.  Most people are aware, regardless of their own backgrounds, of at least a portion of their stories.  Even if you find them to merely be men of history or if their stories are merely fables to you - you have still heard of them.

Noah (pbuh) had a boat and there was a great flood.  He boarded the human believers and animals onto the ark, two by two.  It rained for 40 days and 40 nights until it stopped.  Once it stopped, humanity started over - a clean slate.

Abraham (pbuh) is known as the "father" of the religion - which is true whether you are Jewish, Christian, or Muslim.  The story of his two wives.  The story of God testing him to sacrifice his only son and then, in God's mercy, sending down a lamb in place of Ishmael.  The man who built the corner stone of the faith (figuratively and literally in Jerusalem and in Mecca).

Moses (pbuh) talked to God.  He actually HEARD God's voice.  From the house of Pharaoh, where he was a prince of Egypt to being treated like a slave.  The ten commandments and leading the chosen people out of Egypt and into Canaan.  He was the messenger of the Torah or Old Testament.

Jesus (pbuh) was born of the Virgin Mary.  He cured the sick and brought back the dead.  He healed all wounds - physical and spiritual.  He is the promised one and the Messiah.  He shall return.  He was the messenger of the New Testament.

Mohamed (pbuh) was the seal of all prophets.  He is the final messenger and served to remind humanity of Jesus' words and all the words of God from the mouths of all the prophets who came before him.  He is the spirit of truth.  He was the messenger of the Qur'an, which was the book to combine all books.  The "final version" and the only one where God promises that the words will be protected.

These men changed mankind and the history of mankind on Earth forever.

Prophets, like Adam (pbuh), were God's chosen men to guide the people.  Adam (pbuh) is a bit of a hard example, I'll admit.  He was the first man.  A creation of God almighty.  He wasn't a messenger, but he and Eve (may God be pleased with her) served as the guides for the first human beings on Earth.  How to live life.  How to love God.  How to worship Him.  They laid the foundation of morality.

This is the difference between a prophet and a messenger.  So again, every messenger is a prophet (since they too reaffirm the words of those before them) but not every prophet is a messenger.  Does that make sense?

I should also say, after every blog really, that if there are any mistakes here, they are my own and they do not reflect on God and his prophets nor on Islam.  I do my best to disseminate information in the hopes of educating, but I am only human, therefore fallible.  Please read and accept my words, knowing that I write them with the best of intentions.  Should I be wrong, please forgive my transgressions.

I hope you found this helpful.  Please keep the questions coming.