Khilafat Keeps Prophethood Alive — Page 7
‑ 7 ‑ replies: َو ْنِم ْيِتَّيِّرُذ. That is: ‘Raise prophets from among my progeny too, for if I die, who will carry this mission forward. ’ However, God told Abraham as that he was wrong in this and revealed to him that at various times the people of his progeny would be among the most unjust, therefore, He could never entrust them with this mission. Conversely, God would command his progeny to keep his practice alive, and those who would live up to this, would be appointed as imams. Thus, in this verse Allah the Exalted speaks of two types of religious leadership. First, prophethood which is divinely bestowed, and secondly khilafat which involves the agency of other human beings and which is hinted at by the words َو اْوُذِخَّتا ْنِم ِماَقَّم َمٖهٰرْبِا ىًّلَصُم. There is an element of human influence in this and so people are commanded to strive for it. Through this verse, Allah the Exalted has instructed human beings that when prophet-