Having reviewed the above hadith, I will draw your attention to the hadith about the Messiah of the latter days. This is contained in the book Sahih Muslim Kitabul-Fitan in the chapter about dajjals [antichrist]. This is a long hadith and only relevant portions are mentioned here.
Narrating the accounts relating to the descent of Messiah son of Mary, the Holy Prophet(sa) says:
....The Prophet of Allah, ‘Isa will be besieged along with his Companions.
Then he says:
Then, the Prophet of Allah, ‘Isa will turn to God with full attention along with his companions, Allah be pleased with them.
Then he says:
Then the Prophet of Allah, ‘Isa will descend along with his companions.
Further, he says:
....Then the Prophet of Allah, ‘Isa will turn to God with full attention along with his companions, Allah be pleased with them. (Sahih Muslim Kitabul-Fitan, chapter Dhikrud-Dajjal wa sifatohu wama ma‘ahu)
This hadith is noted in Sahih Muslim, one of the most important books among the six authentic compilations of ahadith. It is to be noted that the Holy Prophet(sa) calls the Messiah who is to come, the Prophet of God, four times. In addition, the Holy Prophet(sa) calls the companions of the Messiah,‘Sahabah’, followed by the appellation ‘Allah be pleased with them’.
Our opponents may say Jesus(as) was an old Prophet, who will return. Then will his companions of the old time, for whom the word Sahabah was used, also return with him? It is obvious that the Holy Prophet(sa) is referring to an event destined to take place in the future.
Irrespective of whether thirty or three million dajjals or impostors appear, the fact remains that the Holy Prophet(sa) has addressed the Messiah of the Latter Days as a Prophet of God. No one can deprive him of the title bestowed upon him by the Holy Prophet(sa).
An interesting incident about the Czar of Russia will make this point clearer. He had asked his doorman not to let anyone enter as he was busy in some important task and did not wish to be disturbed. Shortly, a son of the Czar sought entry into the Czar’s room but was stopped by the doorman. The prince challenged his authority to do so. The doorman indicated that it was the order of the Czar and he would not allow him to go in. The prince beat him up and attempted to go in, but the doorman again intervened. The doorman was beaten up again, but he would still not allow the prince to enter. At this, the Czar came out and the prince told him what had happened and that the doorman claimed that he was stopping the prince at the order of the Czar. The Czar said to the prince ‘you have disobeyed my order’ and ordered the doorman to whip his son, at which the prince pleaded, saying ‘Your majesty, the law of the land does not permit an ordinary man to whip an officer.’ Hearing this, the Czar elevated the doorman to the post of a captain and ordered him to whip his son. The prince pleaded again, saying ‘Your majesty, the law of the land does not permit a junior officer to whip a senior officer.’ At this, the Czar promoted the doorman to the rank of a general and ordered the punishment to be carried out. The son further pleaded, saying ‘Your majesty, the law of the land forbids a person who is not a prince from beating a prince.’ Thereupon, the Czar elevated the doorman to the status of a prince and ordered that the punishment be carried out. Thus, an ordinary soldier was elevated to the rank of a prince without any hindrance and no one could deprive him of the status. Would you not grant to the Holy Prophet(sa) the authority that the Czar had?
With regards to the appearance of thirty dajjals in the Muslim ummah, we have the following in the Commentary of Sahih Muslim, known as Ikmalo-Ikmalil-Mu‘allim by Imam Abu ‘Abdullah al-Ubayy, vol. 7, p. 258:
The truth of this hadith has been fully established. The number of impostors from the time of the Holy Prophet(sa) till today has reached the count indicated by the Holy Prophet(sa) in his prophecy.
This, indeed, is the fulfillment of a divine plan, that the prophesied count of the impostors was completed before the advent of the true claimant to prophethood [i.e., Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(as)], and it was documented in the above noted book. It could be argued that there may have been some more impostors making claims following the year 895 A.H. till the time of the Promised Messiah(as). This would cast doubts upon the number mentioned in the hadith about thirty dajjals, but that is not so. This argument is put to rest by a top scholar of ahl-e-Hadith, Nawwab Siddiq Hasan Khan, a contemporary of the Promised Messiah(as). He writes:
The prophecy made by the Holy Prophet(sa) regarding the advent of dajjals in this ummah has been fulfilled and their number as foretold has been completed. (Hijajul-Karamah fi Atharil-Qiyamah, p. 239)
According to the above reference, with the number of impostors as prophesied in the hadith having been completed already, the time was nigh for the Messiah to come. All false ones had been silenced and the ummah was quietly waiting for the true Messiah. Glory be to Allah that he destined that a top scholar of ahl-e-Hadith should declare that the time of the false ones is passed and now the true one will appear.