(40) “Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but the Messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets. And Allah is All-Knowing of everything.”

That is, the Messenger, “Muhammad”—peace and blessings be upon him—was not “the father of any of your men,” O Muslim community. This severed, in this respect, Zayd ibn Hāritha’s attribution to him.

Since this negation, if the apparent wording is taken at face value, encompasses every circumstance—that is, neither biological nor adoptive fatherhood—and it had previously been established that the Messenger—peace and blessings be upon him—is a father to all the believers and that his wives are their mothers, He precluded this type of fatherhood from falling under the general purview of the aforementioned prohibition, saying: “but the Messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets.” That is, this is his rank: the rank of one who is obeyed and followed, whose guidance is emulated and in whom faith is placed; one whose love must be given precedence over the love of every other person; and a sincere counselor whose kindness [and counsel] (1) toward them—that is, the believers—makes him like a father to them.

“And Allah is All-Knowing of everything.” That is, His knowledge encompasses all things. He knows best where to place His messages, who is fit to receive His favor, and who is not.