Warn Your Nearest Kindred

The early stage of daʿwah, the secret stage, was over with the revelation of the verse:

This is in Sūrat al-Shuʿarāʾ. It was revealed to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) went out and stood on the mountain of al-Ṣafā, and he called out, wā ṣabāḥāh. Wā ṣabāḥāh is like sounding the alarm, the sirens — it is not said unless there's an emergency going on, something very critical. So everyone who heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) ran towards the source of the voice, and the ones who couldn't go would send someone to report back to them. So wā ṣabāḥāh is something that is not said unless it's something very important.

So all of the people gathered. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) asked them, "If I tell you that there is an army behind this mountain that is about to ambush you, attack you, would you believe me?" They said, "We have never heard you lie." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: innī nadhīrun lakum bayna yaday ʿadhābin alīm — I am here to warn you of a severe punishment. I came to warn you. Allah (swt) sent me as a warner to you, and I'm warning you of a severe punishment that would befall you if you don't believe.

These were the words the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) chose to deliver in his first public speech to the people of Quraysh: "I am here to warn you." So it can be seen that it was very straightforward, without much introduction, straight to the point: "I am warning you of a severe punishment." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did that because — the anbiyāʾ, Allah (swt) tells them that your duty is al-balāgh al-mubīn: your duty is to convey the message plainly. So when the message is conveyed, it shouldn't be confusing, it shouldn't be obscure, it shouldn't be sugar-coated, it shouldn't be altered — it should be straightforward, because leaving doubts in the mind of the listener, or confusing them, is not the aim.

Now, unfortunately, many times when daʿwah is made, the listener ends up confused. The listener comes out not knowing what's going on. What is being talked about? What are the consequences of belief, and what are the consequences of disbelief? But the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) would leave no doubts in the mind of the listener. The listener would know that if they believe, they would be promised Jannah, and if they don't, they're risking Hellfire. They know that the consequence of disbelief would be Hellfire, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) would make his warnings very straightforward.