Was Prophet Ilyas (A.S) A Nabi Or A Rasul?
Although Quran doesn’t give too much detail about Him, but it appears from the available information ( Quran and Bible ) that Prophet ilyas (Elijah) was a nabi and not a rasul: وَإِنَّ إِلْيَاسَ لَمِنْ الْمُرْسَلِينَ. إِذْ قَالَ لِقَوْمِهِ أَلَا تَتَّقُونَ. أَتَدْعُونَ بَعْلًا وَتَذَرُونَ أَحْسَنَ الْخَالِقِينَ. وَاللَّهَ رَبَّكُمْ وَرَبَّ آبَائِكُمُ الْأَوَّلِينَ. فَكَذَّبُوهُ فَإِنَّهُمْ لَمُحْضَرُونَ. إِلَّا عِبَادَ اللَّهِ الْمُخْلَصِينَ. وَتَرَكْنَا عَلَيْهِ فِي الْآخِرِينَ. سَلَامٌ عَلَى إِلْ يَاسِينَ. إِنَّا كَذَلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ. إِنَّهُ مِنْ عِبَادِنَا الْمُؤْمِنِينَ. Similarly, Ilyas [72] too was surely among our prophets. Recall when he said to his nation: [73] “Do you have no fear? Do you call upon Bal [74] and leave aside Him Who is the best of Creators? God, Who is your Lord and of your previous ancestors as well?” Ultimately, they rejected him; so, now they too will also surely come apprehended. God’s chosen servants will however remain secure. We [blessed Ilyas too and] left a group from the earlier generations on his ways. Peace be to the great Ilyas [75] Thus do We reward those who are thorough in their deeds. [76] Surely, he was from among Our believing servants . (37:123-132) (Excerpt from Quranic Exegesis: Javed Ahmed Ghamidi) (Translated by Dr. Shehzad Saleem) _________________________ [72] He was from the progeny of Aaron and lived in Jal‘ad. Researchers place him around 850 to 875 BC. He is called Elijah in the Bible. The Israelites never listened to him in his lifetime but after his death became so fond of him that they are now waiting for his return. [73] . I.e., the Israelites whose kingdom had become divided into parts by that time. One part was occupied by the progeny of David (sws) and the other was governed by Akhi Abb. Elijah (sws) discharged his obligation of prophethood in both parts. [74] . In ancient Semitic languages, this word is used in the meaning of إله. Thus they had given this name to a specific city. Bal was the biggest idol of the Phonecian nation of Lebanon. His wife ‘Astarat was their most prominent female idol. When Akhi Abb the king of the Israelites married Isabel, the princess of Sayda (present Lebanon), the ailment of worshipping Bal spread through her among the Israelites too and sacrifices were offered openly in the name of Ba‘l in the cities of the Israelites. It was this period which when Elijah (sws) was sent as a prophet to them. [75] . The actual word is: اِلۡ یَاسِیۡنَ. It is the plural of اِلْيَاس the way the Quran has used the plural طُوْرسِيْنِيْن of the word طُوْر on similar lines. In Arabic, just as a plural denotes multiplicity it also denotes vastness or refers to the grandeur of a person or a thing. Here it is used to express grandeur in this writers opinion.