What are the professions of the prophets mentioned in the Quran?

A Brief Description of the Question: 

What are the professions of the prophets mentioned in the Qur’an?

The Answer: 

Each of the prophets whose names are mentioned in the Qur’an had been busy with one or more than one worldly occupations and they made their worldly living out of these occupations. So, they could teach people good and useful professions and they did not have to be in need of other people. That is why they could support the belief in oneness of Allah without fear of anybody.

The Prophets Whose Names Are Mentioned in the Qur’an:

According to a narration, 124 thousand and according to another narration, 224 thousand prophets were sent. Only 28 of them are mentioned in the Qur’an. Here is the list of the prophets whose names are mentioned in the Qur’an:

1. Adam                                        8. Ishma’il….                                  15. Harun (Aaron)                   22.Zakaria (Zacharias)
2. Idris (Enoch)                           9. Is’haq (Isaac)….                        16. Dawud                                23.Yahya (John)
3. Noah                                      10.Yaqub (Jacob)….                       17. Sulayman                           24. Isa (Jesus)
4. Hud                                        11. Yusuf (Joseph)….                     18. Yunus (Jonah)                   25.Uzair*
5. Saleh                                     12. Ayyub (Job)…..                           19. Ilyas (Elijah)                       26. Luqman*
6. Ibrahim (Abraham)             13.Shu’ayb (Jethro)                         20.Al-Yasa (Elisha)                 27. Dhul-Qarnayn*
7. Lot                                          14.Musa (Moses)                            21.Dhul-Kifl (Ezekiel)              28. Muhammad (pbuh)

* These three holy people are also considered to be saints of Allah.

The following are those whose names are not mentioned in the Qur’an but are considered to be prophets: Sheeth (Seth), Yusha (Joshua), Jarjis (George) and Daniel.

THE PROFESSIONS OF SOME PROPHETS:

ADAM (pbuh) : He was the first agriculture engineer and farmer.

SETH (pbuh): Carder, Silk-monger, Weaver = He was the first to establish the textile industry.

IDRIS (pbuh): Since he was the first to invent the needle, the first to open a hole on it and to thread, he is considered to be the establisher of the tailoring and confectioning.

NOAH (pbuh) : He was the father of the carpenters, shipmen and mariners.

HUD (pbuh): He was a trader. He is deemed as the father of all the traders.

SALEH (pbuh): He used to raise herds of camels. He used to both drink their milk and to sell it to make his living. The camel of Saleh is famous.

IBRAHIM (pbuh): He guided Sulayman (pbuh) and Sinan, the Architect, owing to his construction of the Kaaba.

LOT (pbuh): He was a historian. He is the father of all the travellers.

ISHMA’IL (pbuh): He used to make his living out of hunting on the land and in the sea. He is regarded as the father of the hunters. He could speak 70 languages. He is also the father of the translators.

IS’HAQ (pbuh): He was a shepherd.

YAQUB (pbuh): He was also a shepherd.

YUSUF (pbuh): He is a prophet who first invented the clock and first to establish an office for agricultural products, and who stocked in abundance and distributed to public in scarcity.

AYYUB (pbuh): He was an agriculturalist.

SHU’AYB (pbuh): He was also an agriculturalist.

MOSES (pbuh): He used to be a shepherd and to serve for Shu’ayb (pbuh). Serving for a revered person is also one of the professions of the prophets.

HARUN (pbuh): He used to be a vizier.

DAWUD (pbuh): He used to be a commandant who forged the iron and made armors and who established a regular army and defeated Jalut’s (Goliath’s) army.

SULAYMAN (pbuh): He used to be a king, a ruler. He used to make baskets from rushes. He is the first to forge copper mine.

DHUL-KIFL (pbuh): He used to bake bread. He is the father of the bakers.

ILYAS (pbuh): He is the father of the weavers and thread-choosers.

YUNUS (pbuh): He used to fish to make a living. He is the father of the fishermen.

UZAYR (pbuh): He used to be a gardener. He is the first to teach people how to graft fruit tress and to raise saplings, and how to prune trees. He is the father of those who are occupied with gardening.

LUQMAN (pbuh): He is the father of doctors and pharmacists.

ZACHARIA (pbuh): He used to be a carpenter. (Musnad, 2:405)

ISA (pbuh): He was a hunter. He used to make his living on hunting. He is the father of the hunters.

MUHAMMAD (pbuh): He used to be a shepherd when he was young and then he used to deal with trade and jihad.

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