How Many Prophets Are There in Islam?

The Qur’an does not print a number of prophets. It says messengers were related and messengers were not related, it names a line from Adam to Jesus, and it calls Muhammad the seal of the prophets. A figure such as 124,000 is not in the Qur’an passages or the two Sunni reports quoted here.

Key Points

• Qur’an 4:164Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [We sent] messengers about whom We have related [their stories] to you before and messengers about whom We have not related to you. And Allāh spoke to Moses with [direct] speech.Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says there were messengers whose stories were related and messengers whose stories were not. Qur’an 40:78Qur’an 40:78 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We have already sent messengers before you. Among them are those [whose stories] We have related to you, and among them are those [whose stories] We have not related to you. And it was not for any messenger to bring a sign [or verse] except by permission of Allāh. So when the command of Allāh comes, it will be concluded [i.e., judged] in truth, and the falsifiers will thereupon lose [all].Qur’an 40:78 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says the same.
• Qur’an 33:40Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalMuḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source calls Muhammad the seal of the prophets. Sahih al-Bukhari 3535Sahih al-Bukhari 3535 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanNarrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "My similitude in comparison with the other prophets before me, is that of a man who has built a house nicely and beautifully, except for a place of one brick in a corner. The people go about it and wonder at its beauty, but say: 'Would that this brick be put in its place!' So I am that brick, and I am the last of the Prophets."Sahih al-Bukhari 3535 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanOpen source has him call himself the last of the prophets. The hadith does not say how many came before.
• Qur’an 2:136Qur’an 2:136 · Saheeh InternationalSay, [O believers], "We have believed in Allāh and what has been revealed to us and what has been revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the Descendants [al-Asbāṭ] and what was given to Moses and Jesus and what was given to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims [in submission] to Him."Qur’an 2:136 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source names belief in what was revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, the Descendants, Moses, Jesus, and the prophets. Qur’an 6:84–86Qur’an 6:84-86 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We gave to him [i.e., Abraham] Isaac and Jacob - all [of them] We guided. And Noah, We guided before; and among his descendants, David and Solomon and Job and Joseph and Moses and Aaron. Thus do We reward the doers of good. And Zechariah and John and Jesus and Elias - and all were of the righteous. And Ishmael and Elisha and Jonah and Lot - and all [of them] We preferred over the worlds.Qur’an 6:84-86 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source adds David, Solomon, Job, Joseph, Aaron, Zechariah, John, Elias, Elisha, Jonah, and Lot.
• Qur’an 16:36Qur’an 16:36 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We certainly sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], "Worship Allāh and avoid ṭāghūt." And among them were those whom Allāh guided, and among them were those upon whom error was [deservedly] decreed. So proceed [i.e., travel] through the earth and observe how was the end of the deniers.Qur’an 16:36 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says a messenger was sent to every nation: worship God and avoid taghut. Qur’an 22:75Qur’an 22:75 · Saheeh InternationalAllāh chooses from the angels messengers and from the people. Indeed, Allāh is Hearing and Seeing.Qur’an 22:75 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says God chooses messengers from the angels and from the people.
• Qur’an 3:42Qur’an 3:42 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [mention] when the angels said, "O Mary, indeed Allāh has chosen you and purified you and chosen you above the women of the worlds.Qur’an 3:42 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says Mary was chosen above the women of the worlds. It does not call her a prophet. Sahih al-Bukhari 3769Sahih al-Bukhari 3769 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanNarrated Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Many amongst men attained perfection but amongst women none attained the perfection except Mary, the daughter of `Imran and Asiya, the wife of Pharaoh. And the superiority of `Aisha to other women is like the superiority of Tharid (i.e. an Arabic dish) to other meals."Sahih al-Bukhari 3769 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanOpen source praises Mary and Asiya and does not give them that title.
• Christians say that in these last days God has spoken by his Son (Hebrews 1:1–2Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James Version^1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, ^1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James VersionOpen source). The Son is the Word who was God (John 1:1John 1:1 · King James VersionIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source).

The Qur’an Gives No Total

Qur’an 4:164Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [We sent] messengers about whom We have related [their stories] to you before and messengers about whom We have not related to you. And Allāh spoke to Moses with [direct] speech.Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International) says:

And [We sent] messengers about whom We have related [their stories] to you before and messengers about whom We have not related to you. And Allāh spoke to Moses with [direct] speech.

Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh International

Qur’an · accepted by Muslims

Qur’an 40:78Qur’an 40:78 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We have already sent messengers before you. Among them are those [whose stories] We have related to you, and among them are those [whose stories] We have not related to you. And it was not for any messenger to bring a sign [or verse] except by permission of Allāh. So when the command of Allāh comes, it will be concluded [i.e., judged] in truth, and the falsifiers will thereupon lose [all].Qur’an 40:78 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says messengers were sent before, some whose stories were related and some whose stories were not. Qur’an 35:24Qur’an 35:24 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, We have sent you with the truth as a bringer of good tidings and a warner. And there was no nation but that there had passed within it a warner.Qur’an 35:24 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says there was no nation but that a warner had passed in it. Qur’an 16:36Qur’an 16:36 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We certainly sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], "Worship Allāh and avoid ṭāghūt." And among them were those whom Allāh guided, and among them were those upon whom error was [deservedly] decreed. So proceed [i.e., travel] through the earth and observe how was the end of the deniers.Qur’an 16:36 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says a messenger went to every nation with the words “Worship Allah and avoid taghut.”

Those lines refuse a closed headcount. Teachers sometimes say twenty-five. The verses do not print the number twenty-five. They print names. A reader can count the names the book uses. The book itself does not say “there are twenty-five.”

Sahih al-Bukhari 3535Sahih al-Bukhari 3535 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanNarrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "My similitude in comparison with the other prophets before me, is that of a man who has built a house nicely and beautifully, except for a place of one brick in a corner. The people go about it and wonder at its beauty, but say: 'Would that this brick be put in its place!' So I am that brick, and I am the last of the Prophets."Sahih al-Bukhari 3535 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanOpen source compares the prophets to a house missing one brick and says, “So I am that brick, and I am the last of the Prophets.” Sahih al-Bukhari 4416Sahih al-Bukhari 4416 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanNarrated Sa`d: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) set out for Tabuk. appointing `Ali as his deputy (in Medina). `Ali said, "Do you want to leave me with the children and women?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Will you not be pleased that you will be to me like Aaron to Moses? But there will be no prophet after me."Sahih al-Bukhari 4416 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanOpen source says, “There will be no prophet after me.” Neither report says 124,000. This page does not quote a hadith it has not opened for that figure. Which Muslims Accept Which Hadith?

Names the Qur’an Uses

The names in the passages above and in the related verses include Adam (Qur’an 2:31Qur’an 2:31 · Saheeh InternationalAnd He taught Adam the names - all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, "Inform Me of the names of these, if you are truthful."Qur’an 2:31 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source, Qur’an 3:33Qur’an 3:33 · Saheeh InternationalIndeed, Allāh chose Adam and Noah and the family of Abraham and the family of ʿImrān over the worlds -Qur’an 3:33 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source), Idris (Qur’an 19:56Qur’an 19:56 · Saheeh InternationalAnd mention in the Book, Idrees. Indeed, he was a man of truth and a prophet.Qur’an 19:56 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source), Noah, Abraham, Lot, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job, Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, Elijah (Elias), Elisha, Jonah, Zechariah, John, and Jesus. Hud is sent to Aad (Qur’an 11:50Qur’an 11:50 · Saheeh InternationalAnd to ʿAad [We sent] their brother Hūd. He said, "O my people, worship Allāh; you have no deity other than Him. You are not but inventors [of falsehood].Qur’an 11:50 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source). Salih is sent to Thamud (Qur’an 11:61Qur’an 11:61 · Saheeh InternationalAnd to Thamūd [We sent] their brother Ṣāliḥ. He said, "O my people, worship Allāh; you have no deity other than Him. He has produced you from the earth and settled you in it, so ask forgiveness of Him and then repent to Him. Indeed, my Lord is near and responsive."Qur’an 11:61 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source). Shuayb is sent to Madyan (Qur’an 7:85Qur’an 7:85 · Saheeh InternationalAnd to [the people of] Madyan [We sent] their brother Shuʿayb. He said, "O my people, worship Allāh; you have no deity other than Him. There has come to you clear evidence from your Lord. So fulfill the measure and weight and do not deprive people of their due and cause not corruption upon the earth after its reformation. That is better for you, if you should be believers.Qur’an 7:85 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source). Muhammad is the messenger the Qur’an is addressing.

Qur’an 21:85Qur’an 21:85 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [mention] Ishmael and Idrees and Dhul-Kifl; all were of the patient.Qur’an 21:85 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source and Qur’an 38:48Qur’an 38:48 · Saheeh InternationalAnd remember Ishmael, Elisha and Dhul-Kifl, and all are among the outstanding.Qur’an 38:48 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source name Dhul-Kifl with the patient and the outstanding. Those two verses do not call him a prophet in the wording Saheeh International prints. Counting him in a list of twenty-five is a teacher’s choice, not a sentence the verse states.

Qur’an 21:25Qur’an 21:25 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We sent not before you any messenger except We revealed to him that, "There is no deity except Me, so worship Me."Qur’an 21:25 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says no messenger was sent before except with “There is no deity except Me, so worship Me.” That is the Muslim claim about every prophet’s message. It is the point Christians dispute when the prophet in view is Jesus, whom the Gospel calls God. Was Jesus a Muslim?

Arab peoples in these verses are addressed by Hud, Salih, and Shuayb, and the book also names Ishmael and Muhammad. A hadith list of “five Arab prophets” is not quoted here, because this page has not opened that report.

The Last Prophet

Qur’an 33:40Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalMuḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source calls Muhammad the Messenger of God and the seal of the prophets. Muslims read “seal” as last. Who Was Muhammad? Bukhari 3535 and 4416, quoted above, say the same in Sunni hadith. What Do Sunni Muslims Believe?

Were There Female Prophets?

Qur’an 3:42Qur’an 3:42 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [mention] when the angels said, "O Mary, indeed Allāh has chosen you and purified you and chosen you above the women of the worlds.Qur’an 3:42 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says the angels told Mary that God had chosen her and purified her and chosen her above the women of the worlds. Qur’an 19:17Qur’an 19:17 · Saheeh InternationalAnd she took, in seclusion from them, a screen. Then We sent to her Our Angel [i.e., Gabriel], and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man.Qur’an 19:17 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says the angel came to her as a well-proportioned man. Qur’an 66:12Qur’an 66:12 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [the example of] Mary, the daughter of ʿImrān, who guarded her chastity, so We blew into [her garment] through Our angel [i.e., Gabriel], and she believed in the words of her Lord and His scriptures and was of the devoutly obedient.Qur’an 66:12 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says Mary, the daughter of Imran, guarded her chastity. None of those verses calls her a prophet.

Sahih al-Bukhari 3769Sahih al-Bukhari 3769 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanNarrated Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Many amongst men attained perfection but amongst women none attained the perfection except Mary, the daughter of `Imran and Asiya, the wife of Pharaoh. And the superiority of `Aisha to other women is like the superiority of Tharid (i.e. an Arabic dish) to other meals."Sahih al-Bukhari 3769 · Muhammad Muhsin KhanOpen source says many men attained perfection, and among women none except Mary the daughter of Imran and Asiya the wife of Pharaoh. The report does not say “prophet.” Qur’an 22:75Qur’an 22:75 · Saheeh InternationalAllāh chooses from the angels messengers and from the people. Indeed, Allāh is Hearing and Seeing.Qur’an 22:75 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says God chooses messengers from the angels and from the people. It does not name a woman in that sentence.

What Is the 7 7 7 Rule?

The Qur’an does not state a rule under that name. Qur’an 2:29Qur’an 2:29 · Saheeh InternationalIt is He who created for you all of that which is on the earth. Then He directed Himself to the heaven, [His being above all creation], and made them seven heavens, and He is Knowing of all things.Qur’an 2:29 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says he made seven heavens. A numbered social rule is not that verse. Who Is Allah? answers the same question.

The Christian Claim

Muslims are right that their book names many messengers and then stops the line at Muhammad. Christians say the prophets spoke beforehand, and that God has spoken by his Son (Hebrews 1:1–2Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James Version^1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, ^1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;Hebrews 1:1–2 · King James VersionOpen source). That Son is not one more warner. John 1:1John 1:1 · King James VersionIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source says the Word was God. John 20:28John 20:28 · King James VersionAnd Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.John 20:28 · King James VersionOpen source has Thomas call the risen Jesus Lord and God. The Deity of Christ Jesus in the Qur’an and the Gospels

Frequently Asked Questions

Are There 124,000 Prophets in Islam?

Qur’an 4:164Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh InternationalAnd [We sent] messengers about whom We have related [their stories] to you before and messengers about whom We have not related to you. And Allāh spoke to Moses with [direct] speech.Qur’an 4:164 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source and Qur’an 40:78Qur’an 40:78 · Saheeh InternationalAnd We have already sent messengers before you. Among them are those [whose stories] We have related to you, and among them are those [whose stories] We have not related to you. And it was not for any messenger to bring a sign [or verse] except by permission of Allāh. So when the command of Allāh comes, it will be concluded [i.e., judged] in truth, and the falsifiers will thereupon lose [all].Qur’an 40:78 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source say some messengers were not related. They do not give 124,000. Bukhari 3535 calls Muhammad the last and does not give a total. A number from a report this page has not quoted is not stated here.

How Many Prophets Did Allah Create?

The Qur’an does not say. It says he sent messengers, named some, and did not relate others. Qur’an 39:62Qur’an 39:62 · Saheeh InternationalAllāh is the Creator of all things, and He is, over all things, Disposer of affairs.Qur’an 39:62 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source says God is the Creator of all things. That is creation in general, not a census of prophets.

Who Was the Last Prophet Sent by Allah?

Qur’an 33:40Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalMuḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source calls Muhammad the seal of the prophets. Bukhari 4416 says there will be no prophet after him. Christians do not receive that seal. What Do Christians Believe About Muhammad?

Did Islam Have Any Female Prophets?

The verses about Mary do not call her a prophet. Bukhari 3769 praises Mary and Asiya without that title.

What Is the Order of the Prophets in Islam?

The Qur’an is not a timeline with dates. It names Adam, then Noah and Abraham, then the line through Moses and Jesus, and it addresses Muhammad as the seal. Hud, Salih, and Shuayb are placed with their peoples, not with a year.

Who Are the Arab Prophets?

In the verses quoted here, Hud is sent to Aad, Salih to Thamud, and Shuayb to Madyan. Ishmael and Muhammad are also named. The book does not publish a sentence that says “five Arab prophets.”

Keep Reading

• Who Was Muhammad?
• Was Muhammad a Real Person?
• Who Is Allah?
• Jesus in the Qur’an and the Gospels
• Was Jesus a Muslim?
• The Deity of Christ