and you provide for the destitute, and you lend support whenever a just cause is struck by misfortune.”

She therefore knew his character well enough to rule out any possibility that he could lie, behave immorally, or be manipulated by Satan.

Abu Bakr, for his part, was one of the most intelligent and upright people alive. He was greatly respected among Quraysh for his learning, benevolence, and sound judgment. Once the Prophet’s real state became clear to him, he knew with absolute, intuitive certainty that Muhammad was a truthful prophet. In fact, he enjoyed the most perfect certainty, knowledge, and spiritual condition of anyone on earth.

The same applies to Heraclius, emperor of the Christians: when the Prophet sent him an invitation to embrace Islam, he asked about ten specific points, as recorded in the two Sahihs on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbas, who said:

“Abu Sufyan ibn Harb told me directly, from his own mouth to mine:

‘I set out during the armistice that existed between me and the Messenger of Allah. While I was in al-Shām, a letter from the Messenger of Allah was brought to Heraclius. Dihyah al-Kalbi had delivered it to the governor of Busra, who then passed it on to Heraclius. Heraclius said, ‘Is there anyone here from the people of this man who claims to be a prophet?’ They answered, ‘Yes.’’”