—because they are inwardly certain and fully convinced, acknowledging the Prophet ﷺ in their very hearts, yet pride and envy kept them from following him.

The Jews, too, know in their hearts that he is the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, but envy and arrogance prevail: “Those to whom We gave the Scripture recognize him as they recognize their own sons” (Qur’an 2:146). About the idolaters He said: “We certainly know that what they say grieves you; it is not you they deny, but it is the signs of Allah that the wrongdoers reject” (Qur’an 6:33). The words “they do not deny you” mean that they actually believe you to be truthful.

Abu Talib even recited:
I know full well that Muhammad’s creed
Is the finest faith this world has ever seen.
Were it not for blame—or fear of some reproach—
You would have found me open in professing it.

Such words are noble indeed. In fact, everything authentically reported from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is true, contrary to those who claim that what comes from him divides into mass-transmitted (mutawātir) and solitary (āḥād) reports and that only the former should be accepted. They allege that solitary reports yield knowledge but not certainty and therefore are inadmissible in matters of creed. This is wrong: whatever is soundly traced back to the Prophet ﷺ—whether mass-transmitted or solitary—confers sure knowledge.