The most significant objections of the leaders of polytheism were directed towards the oneness of Allah The Exalted, belief in the Last Day, the prophethood of Muhammad and the Noble Quran, which The Lord of the Worlds had revealed to him:
Third: Their objection to the Prophethood of Muhammad
They objected to the person of the Messenger of Allah as they believed that a messenger should not be an ordinary man like them, but rather an angel or someone accompanied by angels; Allah The Almighty Says (what means):
{And what prevented the people from believing when guidance came to them except that they said, “Has Allah sent a human messenger?”} [Quran 17: 94]
{And they say, “Why was there not sent down to him an angel?” But if We had sent down an angel, the matter would have been decided; then they would not be reprieved.} [Quran 6: 8]
{And if We had made him an angel, We would have made him [appear as] a man, and We would have covered them with that in which they cover themselves.} [Quran 6: 9]
This means that if Allah The Almighty had sent to mankind a messenger from the angels, this messenger would have nonetheless appeared as a man whom they could address and take lessons from. Had it been as such, they would have been in confusion, just as they confused themselves in accepting the message of humans and wanted a messenger who needs neither food nor going to the markets. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And they say, “What is this messenger that eats food and walks in the markets? Why was there not sent down to him an angel so he would be with him a warner? Or [why is not] a treasure presented to him [from heaven], or does he [not] have a garden from which he eats?” And the wrongdoers say, “You follow not but a man affected by magic.”} [Quran 25: 7-8]
It is as if they did not hear that all the messengers would eat, walk and work. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And We did not send before you, [O Muhammad], any of the messengers except that they ate food and walked in the markets. And We have made some of you [people] as trial for others - will you have patience? And ever is your Lord, Seeing.} [Quran 25: 20]
They wanted the messenger to be a very wealthy and reputable person. Describing their attitude, Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And they said, “Why was this Quran not sent down upon a great man from [one of] the two cities?”} [Quran 43: 31] They meant Al-Waleed bin Al-Mugheerah in Makkah and ‘Urwah bin Mas‘ood Ath-Thaqafi in At-Taa’if.
They accused the Messenger of Allah of madness. Allah The Almighty Says (what means):
{And they say, “O you upon whom the message has been sent down, indeed you are mad. Why do you not bring us the angels, if you should be among the truthful?”} [Quran 15: 6-7]
{How will there be for them a reminder [at that time]? And there had come to them a clear Messenger. Then they turned away from him and said, “[He was] taught [and is] a madman.”} [Quran 44: 13-14]
However, Allah The Almighty refuted their accusation in the verse in which He Says (what means): {You are not, [O Muhammad], by the favor of your Lord, a madman.} [Quran 68: 2]
They also described him as a soothsayer and a poet. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {So remind [O Muhammad], for you are not, by the favor of your Lord, a soothsayer or a madman. Or do they say [of you], “A poet for whom we await a misfortune of time?”} [Quran 52: 29-30]
They were, in fact, certain that the Messenger of Allah did not recite poetry, was of sound mind and that what he said was different from the rhyme of soothsayers and the words of magicians. Nevertheless, they accused him of being a magician and a liar. Allah The Almighty Says (what means):
{And they wonder that there has come to them a warner from among themselves. And the disbelievers say, “This is a magician and a liar.”} [Quran 38: 4]
{We are most knowing of how they listen to it when they listen to you and [of] when they are in private conversation, when the wrongdoers say, “You follow not but a man affected by magic.” Look how they strike for you comparisons; but they have strayed, so they cannot [find] a way.} [Quran 17: 47-48]
Verses were revealed to the Messenger of Allah refuting the polytheists' allegations and clarifying for him that the former messengers were subjected to mockery and that torture was the end of those who mocked them. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And already were messengers ridiculed before you, but those who mocked them were enveloped by that which they used to ridicule.} [Quran 6: 10]
Verses also taught him that the polytheists were not belying his person, but rather they were belying his message, and denying the verses of Allah The Almighty by changing their meanings. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {We know that you, [O Muhammad], are saddened by what they say. And indeed, they do not call you untruthful, but it is the verses of Allah that the wrongdoers reject.} [Quran 6: 33]
The most significant objections of the polytheists – I