Messenger
Isma'il peace be upon him
True to his promise
The firstborn son of Ibrahim, from Hajar. He grew up in Makkah, helped his father build the Ka'bah, and is the ancestor of the northern Arabs and of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Rasul (messenger): a prophet sent with a message to a people. Marked here when the Quran explicitly calls him a messenger; scholars also count others, such as Dawud, who was given the Zabur. Nabi (prophet): one who receives revelation from Allah. Every messenger is a prophet, but not every prophet is a messenger.
- Sent to
- The tribes of Hijaz around Makkah
- Region
- Makkah
- Named in the Quran
- 12 times by name
Key events
- Left as an infant with his mother Hajar in the barren valley by the Sacred House (14:37), where as reported in Sahih al-Bukhari the well of Zamzam sprang forth.
- Hajar's search for water between Safa and Marwah became a rite of Hajj and 'Umrah (al-Bukhari; 2:158).
- Submitted willingly when his father was commanded to sacrifice him (37:102) the son meant here is Isma'il according to most scholars.
- Raised the foundations of the Ka'bah with Ibrahim (2:127).
- Praised as "true to his promise, a messenger and a prophet" (19:54).
Lesson
Patience and obedience to Allah and to one's parents.