Last Words Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. Whom did Prophet Muhammad instruct to lead the communal prayers when his illness prevented him from doing so?
Umar ibn al-Khattab
Abu Bakr al-Siddiq
Ali ibn Abi Talib
Usama ibn Zayd
2. After Prophet Muhammad’s death, which Quranic verse did Abu Bakr famously recite to remind the community that messengers had died before him?
Quran 2:156, beginning “Indeed, we belong to God”
Quran 5:3, including “Today I have perfected your religion”
Quran 9:40, including “Do not grieve; God is with us”
Quran 3:144, beginning “Muhammad is only a messenger”
3. Which member of Prophet Muhammad’s family received private words from him that first caused her to weep and then to smile?
Safiyyah bint Abd al-Muttalib
Fatimah bint Muhammad
Umm Salama
Asma bint Abi Bakr
4. In which year did Prophet Muhammad die, using the commonly accepted Islamic and Common Era dating?
8 AH / 630 CE
9 AH / 631 CE
10 AH / 631 CE
11 AH / 632 CE
5. Some people in Medina initially struggled to accept the news of Prophet Muhammad’s death. What was the central point of Abu Bakr’s address to them?
The community should wait for a written document before responding
The burial had to occur before anyone discussed what had happened
The companions should leave Medina until emotions had settled
Muhammad had died, while God lives and is never subject to death
6. A social-media post presents one quotation as the undisputed and complete “last words” of Prophet Muhammad. What is the best way to assess it?
Check its narration and context, including whether it records public counsel or the final private moment
Reject it because no reports about final words can be compared
Accept it if the quotation appears on several popular websites
Prefer whichever version contains the greatest number of instructions
7. According to Fatimah’s later explanation, what news helped account for her change from weeping to smiling during that final conversation?
She would soon move to Mecca with her family
She would be the first of his family to join him after his death
Her father would recover after a short illness
She had been chosen to lead the public prayers
8. According to a report narrated by Aisha, which phrase best captures Prophet Muhammad’s final private utterance?
“Religion is sincere counsel”
“With the Highest Companion”
“Convey from me, even one verse”
“The pilgrimage has been completed”
9. Who narrated the well-known account of hearing “With the Highest Companion” during Prophet Muhammad’s final moments?
Aisha bint Abi Bakr
Fatimah bint Muhammad
Ali ibn Abi Talib
Abu Bakr al-Siddiq
10. Which reported scene from the final illness emphasizes Prophet Muhammad’s awareness of the difficulty of dying?
He wiped his face with water and said that death has agonies
He stood for an extended sermon after the evening prayer
He instructed the community to postpone all funeral arrangements
He asked for his travel equipment to be prepared for Syria
11. How should a student distinguish the reported exhortation about prayer and the final phrase “With the Highest Companion”?
Treat both as competing translations of one Arabic sentence
Accept the exhortation but reject every report from the household
Recognize the exhortation as final-period counsel and the latter as a reported private utterance near death
Assume the private phrase was delivered earlier as a public sermon
12. A companion recalls the teaching that prophets are buried where they die. Which burial location follows that report in Prophet Muhammad’s case?
Near the Kaaba in Mecca
The cemetery of al-Baqi beside other companions
The room of Aisha, where he died
At the site of the Battle of Uhud
13. In the context of the final-illness narration, what does the phrase “the Highest Companion” most directly express?
A request for his closest companions to gather
A wish to return immediately to Mecca
A choice of companionship with God in the hereafter
An appointment of a political successor
14. Aisha described helping Prophet Muhammad use an item brought by her brother during his final illness. What was it?
A leather water flask for travel
A small container of perfume
A miswak, or tooth-cleaning stick
A written copy of a treaty
15. Where did Prophet Muhammad spend his final illness and die, according to the commonly cited reports?
In Abu Bakr’s home outside central Medina
In the mosque’s main prayer area
In Fatimah and Ali’s home
In Aisha’s room in Medina
16. Several sayings are described online as Prophet Muhammad’s “last words.” What is the most historically careful way to understand them?
A final private utterance should be distinguished from earlier instructions and public counsel
Every reported saying must have been spoken in the same conversation
The shortest wording is automatically the most authentic account
Only statements delivered to a large audience can count as final words