—and those who excel in doing good; He loves the repentant and He loves those who keep themselves pure. Yet khulla (intimate friendship) has been bestowed upon only two of all created beings: Abraham and Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon them both. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Allah has taken me as an intimate friend just as He took Abraham as an intimate friend.” (1)

“And Allah spoke to Moses directly” (An-Nisāʾ 4:164), demonstrating that He has favored some of the prophets above others. Although every one of them occupies the loftiest station, Allah, Majestic and Exalted, still grants certain prophets distinctions over their peers: “Those messengers—We have favored some of them above others; among them are those to whom Allah spoke, and We raised some of them in rank” (Al-Baqarah 2:253).

Thus each prophet is given a unique honor: Abraham and Muhammad, peace be upon them both, were singled out for intimate friendship, whereas Moses was distinguished by being spoken to directly, without an angelic intermediary. Moses actually heard Allah’s speech; Allah called to him and conversed privately with him—calling (munādāh) being a raised voice and private conversation (munājāh) a subdued one. Both occurred with Moses, a virtue granted to no other.

The word “directly” (taklīman) was added for emphasis so that no one might claim the expression is figurative. By reinforcing it with the verbal noun, the verse affirms that it was genuine speech from Allah Himself. In this is a proof of the divine attribute of speech and of Moses’ unique distinction.