Why Baha’ullah was not annihilated by Allah(swt) ?.

One of the verses that Baha’is use to support their beliefs and consider as proof of the legitimacy of their leaders is verse 44 of Surah Al-Haqqah in the Quran, which says:

“And if he [i.e. , the Prophets] had forged this discourse and thereafter ascribed it to Us,We would surely have seized him by the right hand, and then severed his life vein; and not one of you would have been able to withhold Us from doing so”.

(69:44-47)

They interpret this to mean that if anyone lies about God, God will seize them and cut off their life. And since Bab and Baha’u’llah did not experience this fate, they must be true messengers of God.

Critique:

We need to look at the Quran itself and the verses before this one to correctly understand about the interpretation of this verse. In verse 40, it says:

"Indeed, it is the word of a noble Messenger. And it is not the word of a poet; little do you believe. Nor is it the word of a fortune teller; little do you remember. It is a revelation from the Lord of the worlds." (69:40-43).

As you can see, God first introduces the person referred to in this verse and says that he is a noble prophet, not a poet or someone who speaks nonsense or tells fortunes. His words are revelations from God. It then adds that if this person, whose prophethood is proven and whose words are divine revelations, were to lie about God, God would disgrace him and would end his life. So, this verse never claims that if anyone lies about God and His messenger, God will immediately send a sword from the sky to kill and disgrace him.

In Arabic, there are two words used to express a condition, similar to the word "if" in English. One word is "إن" (in), which is used for possible conditions, like:

"If you help Allah, He will help you and make your steps firm." (47:7)

This means that if you help God, He will help you and make your steps steady. In this case, both the condition and the result are possible.

The other word is "لو" (law), which is used for conditions where the condition or the result is not practical.

In any case, it shows that something did not happen, like:

"If there had been other gods besides Allah in the heavens and earth, they would have been ruined." (21:22).

This sentence shows that having more than one god is impossible. Similarly, in the verse from Surah Al-Haqqah, God uses "لو" (law) for a condition about a prophet whose mission He has already confirmed, indicating that it is impossible for this prophet to lie about God. This supports the truthfulness of the prophet’s words.

From the verse, the word "تَقَوَّلَ" (taqawwala) is a singular, masculine, past tense verb, and its subject is "he" (هو), referring to the same prophet mentioned earlier. The plural pronoun is not used, meaning the subject "تَقَوَّلَ" is specific and clear.

Additionally, throughout history, many people around the world have falsely claimed to be prophets and gathered followers.

They created laws and religious rules, and history shows that no unseen sword came to expose their lies and cut their throats. Instead, some of them and their followers remained for many years. For example, "Mani" and "Mazdak" in pre-Islamic Iran, and the "Montanists," followers of "Montanus," who started a religion opposing the New Testament in the second century AD. They had many followers and lasted for almost 400 years in Europe until their temples were destroyed during the time of "Justinian."

In post-Islamic history, "Al-Muqanna," Hashim ibn Hakim, who claimed prophethood in Eastern Turkestan and Transoxiana, had followers called "White-clad" because they wore white clothes. His followers continued for about 500 years after his death and gradually disappeared. You can find a detailed account in the book "Mah-e Nakhshab" by Saeed Nafisi.

In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 24, verse 11, Jesus predicts the coming of false prophets, saying they will perform such wonders that, if possible, they would deceive even God’s chosen ones.

Similarly, during the time of the Babi and Baha’i leaders, there were men who claimed to be prophets and messengers, and their own followers recognized them as false and deceitful.

Abu’l-Fadl Golpaygani writes in his book "Fara’id":

"There have always been and will always be false claimants to prophethood in the world."

He then lists some of these claimants, including historical figures like "Tayyur of Syria" and "Judas of Galilee" during Jesus’ time, "Sajah" during Prophet Muhammad’s time, and individuals like "Sayyid Alaa," "Haj Mulla Hashim," "Ahmad Kermani," and "Khafash Yazdi" during the time of the Bab. Abdul Hamid Ishraq Khavari mentions in his book "Rahiq Makhtum":

"Twenty-five people in Iran and Iraq claimed to be ‘He whom God shall make manifest,’ such as Sayyid Basir Hindi, Dayyan, Sayyid Alaa Mirza, Hussain Qutb Tabrizi, Mirza Ghoghaei, Dervish Mulla Jafar Kashi, and Muhammad Nabil Zarandi, who later became a Baha’i."

Reference :- Rahiq Makhtum, Volume 2, page 782.

Baha’u’llah himself states in the book "Iqtidarat":

"… and there have always been and will always be many false claimants…"

Reference: – Iqtidarat, page 135.

So it’s evident that God doesn’t always expose false claimants through miraculous means. Additionally, this verse doesn’t apply universally to every claimant; as mentioned, it specifically refers to the Prophet of Islam.

This passage discusses debates surrounding the Baha’i faith, highlighting how both sides behave during discussions. It suggests that if supporters expect divine punishment for Baha’i leaders, it’s noted that God has already taken actions to undermine their claims. It emphasizes that critics rely on Baha’i texts to debunk their beliefs, while Baha’is, unable to counter with logical arguments, resort to accusations of slander and falsehood, believing it strengthens their resistance against what they perceive as truth.