Al-Jawāb as-Sahīh li-man baddala dīn al-Masīh - Ibn Taimiya - (2/360)

He—exalted is He—also says:
“We never sent a messenger before you without revealing to him: ‘There is no god but I; so worship Me.’” (al-Anbiyāʾ: 25)

And He—exalted is He—says:
“We have sent a messenger to every community, saying, ‘Worship Allah and shun the false deities.’ Some of them Allah guided, while others were destined to stray. So travel through the land and see how the deniers ended.” (al-Naḥl: 36)

Second aspect: The People of the Scripture are well aware that Allah has always sent human beings like themselves and never dispatched an angel to mankind. Yet some unbelievers claimed that Allah would send only an angel—or at least a human accompanied by one—and they found it strange that a mere man should be sent with no angel visibly alongside him. Allah—exalted is He—says:
“Nothing kept people from believing when guidance came to them except that they said, ‘Has Allah sent a human being as a messenger?’” (al-Isrāʾ: 94)

Say: “If there had been angels walking about on earth in peace, We would certainly have sent down to them an angel as a messenger.” (al-Isrāʾ: 95)

He—exalted is He—also says:
“We sent Noah to his people and he declared, ‘My people, worship Allah; you have no god but Him. Will you not be mindful?’ But the leading disbelievers among his people said, ‘This man is only like yourselves; he wants to gain ascendancy over you. Had Allah willed, He would have sent down angels. We have never heard of such a thing among our earliest forefathers. He is nothing but a man possessed—so wait and watch him for a while.’” (al-Muʾminūn: 23–24)

وَقَوْلُهُ - تَعَالَى -: {وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلَّا نُوحِي إِلَيْهِ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنَا فَاعْبُدُونِ} [الأنبياء: ٢٥] وَقَوْلُهُ - تَعَالَى -: {وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَسُولًا أَنِ اُعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ هَدَى اللَّهُ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ حَقَّتْ عَلَيْهِ الضَّلَالَةُ فَسِيرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ فَانْظُرُوا كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُكَذِّبِينَ} [النحل: ٣٦] . الْوَجْهُ الثَّانِي: أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ إِنَّمَا أَرْسَلَ إِلَى النَّاسِ بَشَرًا مِثْلَهُمْ لَمْ يُرْسِلْ إِلَيْهِمْ مَلَكًا، فَإِنَّ مِنَ الْكُفَّارِ مَنْ كَانَ يَزْعُمُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُرْسِلُ إِلَّا مَلَكًا أَوْ بَشَرًا مَعَهُ مَلَكٌ وَيَتَعَجَّبُونَ مِنْ إِرْسَالِ بَشَرٍ لَيْسَ مَعَهُ مَلَكٌ ظَاهِرٌ ; كَمَا قَالَ - تَعَالَى -: {وَمَا مَنَعَ النَّاسَ أَنْ يُؤْمِنُوا إِذْ جَاءَهُمُ الْهُدَى إِلَّا أَنْ قَالُوا أَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ بَشَرًا رَسُولًا} [الإسراء: ٩٤] قُلْ {لَوْ كَانَ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَلَائِكَةٌ يَمْشُونَ مُطْمَئِنِّينَ لَنَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَلَكًا رَسُولًا} [الإسراء: ٩٥] وَقَالَ - تَعَالَى -: {وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَى قَوْمِهِ فَقَالَ يَاقَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُمْ مِنْ إِلَهٍ غَيْرُهُ أَفَلَا تَتَّقُونَ - فَقَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْ قَوْمِهِ مَا هَذَا إِلَّا بَشَرٌ مِثْلُكُمْ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَتَفَضَّلَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَلَوْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ لَأَنْزَلَ مَلَائِكَةً مَا سَمِعْنَا بِهَذَا فِي آبَائِنَا الْأَوَّلِينَ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا رَجُلٌ بِهِ جِنَّةٌ فَتَرَبَّصُوا بِهِ حَتَّى حِينٍ} [المؤمنون: ٢٣ - ٢٤]