By Him Who chose Muhammad (ﷺ) in the worlds. And the Jew said: By Him Who chose Moses in the worlds. Thereupon the Muslim lifted his hand and slapped at the face of the Jew. The Jew went to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and told him about his affair and the affair of the Muslim. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: Don't make me superior to Moses for mankind will swoon and I would be the first to recover from it and Moses would be at that time seizing the side of the Throne and I do not know (whether) he would swoon and would recover before me or Allah would make an exception for him.
The Book of Virtues - Sahih Muslim 2373 c
This narration from Sahih Muslim presents a profound lesson in humility and proper conduct regarding the Prophets of Allah. The incident begins with a Muslim and a Jew each swearing by their respective prophets in a manner that could lead to rivalry.
The Prohibition of Exaggeration
The Muslim's action of slapping the Jew demonstrates the danger of excessive zeal in defending the honor of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) without proper knowledge. Such physical retaliation is forbidden in Islam when no actual harm or insult to the religion has occurred.
The Jew's statement "By Him Who chose Moses in the worlds" constitutes a legitimate oath recognizing Moses as a chosen prophet, not an insult to Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ).
The Prophet's Exemplary Humility
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) immediately corrected the Muslim's behavior and demonstrated supreme humility by refusing to be elevated above Moses. This teaches us that all prophets are brothers in prophethood, each chosen for their specific mission.
His statement "Don't make me superior to Moses" establishes the principle that Muslims must respect all prophets equally without making distinctions in their fundamental status as messengers of Allah.
The Day of Resurrection Context
The Prophet's description of the Day of Resurrection, where people will swoon and he would be the first to recover, while Moses would be holding the Throne, contains profound wisdom.
This illustrates that different prophets have different distinctions and honors granted by Allah, and we should not speculate about matters beyond our knowledge. The Prophet's uncertainty about whether Moses would swoon or be exempted teaches us to speak only about what we know with certainty.
Legal and Moral Implications
This hadith establishes that physically attacking someone for expressing legitimate respect for their own prophet is prohibited. It also forbids Muslims from initiating conflicts over matters of comparative honor between prophets.
The proper Islamic conduct is to recognize the excellence of all prophets while understanding that each Muslim must believe Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) is the final prophet and our guide, without denigrating other prophets.