In answer to the video "Muhammad, Psychology and Satan"
The prophet Muhammad did feel immense guilt during his mission. The Quran would repeatedly explain that he shouldnt at all, the sinners' rejection wasnt due to some inner flaw in him or the message he was conveying, yet the prophet, like all prophets, grieved over the doom of his nation. But in Muhammad's case, his grief was much more intense since he initiated the end of prophethood. He would pray for the sinners to be forgiven, even the hypocrites, at a stage of his prophethood in Medina when such individuals tried destroying the Muslims from within. The Quran would tell him that such empathy is misplaced and fruitless 9:80. Yet when the one known as the leader of the hypocrites passed away, the prophet still offered funeral prayers for him, after which the Quran forbade him this attitude
"When `Abdullah bin Ubai (the chief of hypocrites) died, his son came to the Prophet and said, "O Allah's Messenger! Please give me your shirt to shroud him in it, offer his funeral prayer and ask for Allah's forgiveness for him." So Allah's Messenger gave his shirt to him and said, "Inform me (When the funeral is ready) so that I may offer the funeral prayer." So, he informed him and when the Prophet intended to offer the funeral prayer, `Umar took hold of his hand and said, "Has Allah not forbidden you to offer the funeral prayer for the hypocrites? The Prophet said, "I have been given the choice for Allah says: '(It does not avail) Whether you (O Muhammad) ask forgiveness for them (hypocrites), or do not ask for forgiveness for them. Even though you ask for their forgiveness seventy times, Allah will not forgive them. (9.80)" So the Prophet offered the funeral prayer and on that the revelation came: "And never (O Muhammad) pray (funeral prayer) for any of them (i.e. hypocrites) that dies." (9. 84)".
His forbearing forefather Abraham before him similarly argued with God to spare people deserving to be wiped out for their sins 11:75-6. Ibrahim pleads with God for the whole nation of Lut, not only for Lut. Not because he sided with the sinners but to avert the death of everyone, sinners and righteous alike, including Lut. Hence the statement that "Lut is in it" of 29:32 in reaction to the first encounter with the messengers, as they said they will destroy everyone in the town. This type of intercession is not about forgiveness, as in the prohibition of 9:113. Abraham's "intercession" in Genesis is the same. He pleads for the town by virtue of the righteous in it, even if "perhaps ten will be found there". These potential 10 are Lut's few followers alluded to in the Quran 29:32. It is worthwhile noting here the Quran's rectification of typical HB naive anthropomorphisms. God has to go personally to Sodom to confirm the news that came to Him about the wickedness of its people Gen18:21. Then begins the unrealistic back and forth bargaining with Abraham where God says what He would do depending on what He finds out once He gets to the city. The Quran, as it always does in its retelling of defective HB narratives, protects God's omniscience
29:32"We are more knowing of who is within it. We will surely save him and his family, except his wife. She is to be of those who remain behind".
Moses too, following the same pattern, is shown interceding for the Israelites 7:155. He also intercedes for the Egyptians 7:134-5. This is because in the Quran, contrary to the HB account, the purpose of the successive plagues was to make the sinful people, including Pharao, mend their ways.
The primary prophetic function however, is delivering warnings and glad tidings. Intercession is not what prophets are sent for, rather a natural result of their empathetic disposition towards their own people and families who are among their addressees. It is a personal choice by the prophets, not a divine requirement. Throughout the Quran, the prophet is referred to with the word nadhir, though often simply rendered "warner" the term in classical Arabic implies the type of warning of an imminent danger stemming out of genuine concern and compassion for the addressee. But it isnt simply an emotional, erratic, or difficult to grasp type of warning. Rather it is made clear and obvious 67:26"I am only a nadhir mubin/obvious, clear warner".
Christians see prophetic intercession as necessarily flowing from their unbiblical "loving God" mantra, because it fits their father-son/sacrifice plot. However, the normal course of action in the prophetic pattern is that rejection eventually leads to destruction of an entire nation save the prophets and their righteous followers (if there are any). That is why at the golden calf incident, prior to Moses pleading for the community, God says
Ex32:10"Now leave Me alone, and My anger will be kindled against them so that I will annihilate them, and I will make you into a great nation".
Everyone besides Moses it seems, was implicated, from close or far with idolatry. God then reconsiders what He would have normally done, which is to wipe out everyone at once, leaving it to the Israelites themselves to purge their ranks from those more directly involved in the sin. 3000 apostates were slaughtered in a day, with many more marked for death pending execution. The second day, thinking enough was done to earn the remaining guilty forgiveness, Moses intercedes once more but is rejected, as the chapter ends with the statement that "the Lord struck the people with a plague, because they had made the calf that Aaron had made". A similar situation occurs with the incidents of the scouts. The Israelites anger YHWH again, He decides to wipe everyone out, Moses intercedes, but only gets a delayed punishment. Instead of exterminating the whole nation right away, God decreed for them a 40 years desert wandering during which the land would be entirely prohibited to enter. The purpose was to eliminate the generation of guilty, making place for others that would in turn be tried with the privilege of entering the blessed land, together with those that had not shown distrust in God at the initial command Numb14:1-39. Through this 40 years "slow death" God caused a separation between the obedient and the defiant as reflected in Moses' prayer in the Quran 5:25. Although Moses accepted God's decree, understanding that the guilty only got what they deserved, it nevertheless grieved him to see them in that condition "grieve not for the iniquitous".
Jesus, on the day of resurrection will be confronted to the delusion of his followers who ended up idolizing him and his mother. In response he will completely dissociate himself from their sin, declaring his submission to God alone. He will then leave the matter in Allah's hands, whether He deems it fit to punish them. And finally, Jesus, forbearing and empathetic like all prophets towards their followers, will suggest the possibility of forgiveness by virtue of Allah's might and wisdom 5:116-8.
Muhammad once said
"My example with my nation and my people is that I see them trying to jump into the fire, and I’m holding onto their belt trying to drag them out, and they want to try to disobey me and jump into the fire".During some of his khutbas he would speak with so much concern and passion of the impending danger of the day of judgement that his otherwise radiant merciful face would be transformed, his eyes turning red, his voice increasing along with his anger and fear
9:128"Indeed, there has come unto you an Apostle from within yourselves: heavily weighs upon him [the thought] that you might suffer [in the life to come], full of concern for you [is he, and] full of compassion and mercy toward the committed Muslims".
Of course no prophet would remain emotionless or with a blank, expressionless face when addressing his people with warnings. It would have been interesting to have access to preserved descriptions of Moses' face when he tore his clothes appart from desperation and asked God to terminate his life Numbers11 from frustration of having to deal with the constant opposition of his people, as described throughout the book of Exodus.
One also may wonder what would have been Jesus' face like, and his gesticulations for instance when he was angered by his close disciples' repeated incapacities to understand his implicit messages or when he kicked out the money-lenders from the Temple, threatened the Israelites with divine judgment, which includes destruction, for their rejection of him. An even more imposing sight would have been to see and hear Jesus as he went off on his tirade against the Jewish elite calling them all sorts of injurious names from "sons of hell" to "race of vipers" etc. terms that would later gladly be picked up by the Roman and Greek former pagans turned Christian antisemites, in their persecutions of those responsible for the death of their hero. That is besides YHWH's dragon like description, fuming through his nostrils as he issued his threats of punishment Jer17:4.
As he was grieved and over passionate in his admonitions, God would advise the prophet Muhammad not to destroy himself with sorrow, belief cannot be imposed on anyone 18:6,26:3,35:8. The Quran tells him not to show impatience for their lack of receptivity and to go on with his mission as bidden. The success of his mission doesnt depend on the people accepting his message at all costs, rather to bring about a wilful intellectual and moral revolution for the establishment of a righteous society. The process must be natural, not supernatural, so that people might naturally enter this exemplary society based on their rationality, high ideals, best principles of life.
If he cannot endure that lengthy and emotionally painful process patiently, and if he imagines that a miracle, conforming to their whims would break their spiritual inertion, then God tells him, he should try by himself to bring about such a Sign and search for it in the heavens and the earth but at the end he will understand that
6:33-6"Only those accept who listen; and (as to) the dead, Allah will raise them, then to Him they shall be returned".In other words, and as Jesus tells the Pharisees that similarly challenged him for a sign
Mk8:11-13"Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it."Jesus categorically denied them the performance of Signs, and effectively, Jesus never appeared to those very people who demanded him a miracle after his alleged resurrection. Whoever follows this Quran does it for his own good and whoever rejects it, then Muhammad is only a warner
27:92,20:54,10:41"And if they call you a liar, say: My work is for me and your work for you; you are clear of what I do and I am clear of what you do".He was sent with the truth and to create discipline by setting practical examples, with the same basic warnings as the messengers and prophets of old 35:24,53:56 so that
25:57"he who will, may take the way to his Lord".
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