40ما كانَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَبا أَحَدٍ مِن رِجالِكُم وَلٰكِن رَسولَ اللَّهِ وَخاتَمَ النَّبِيّينَ ۗ وَكانَ اللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيءٍ عَليمًاAli Unal(O believers, know that) Muhammad is not the father of any man among you, but he is the Messenger of God and the Seal of the Prophets.1 God has full knowledge of everything.The verse implies that those of superior rank and responsibility feel a fatherly affection toward those who work under them. If they are spiritual leaders, Prophets, or saints, for example, their compassion and affection will far exceed that of a father. As the people will see them as a father, they may consider it improper for such people to marry one of their women. To remove this illusion, the Qur’ān tells us that: “Divine Mercy causes the Prophet to have great affection for you. Due to his position as your leader, you are like his children. But as he is not your biological father, he can marry one of your women. His calling you ‘my sons’ does not mean you are legally his sons.” The verse also contains an implicit prediction, which, of course, proved to be true. It is that God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, would not have a male child to survive and succeed him. He would be succeeded by a female child, and his progeny would continue through her. As known, the Messenger’s line continued through Fātimah, his beloved daughter, who alone survived him from among his children.