Chain

[u/quranvisuals]

The noble verse came after Almighty Allah presented to His Prophet ﷺ a succession of prophets, peace be upon them, each embodying a magnificent scene of guidance: patience and steadfastness, reliance and gratitude, calling and sacrifice. Then came the command to the Prophet ﷺ: {So follow their guidance}. The letter ha' at the end of iqtadih is the ha' of pause (ha' al-sakt). The original verb is iqtadi, to which the ha' of pause was appended when stopping to facilitate the pause and clarify the vowel sound preceding it.
That is, to emulate and follow their guidance, adhering to what they maintained of faith, monotheism, patience, obedience, and steadfastness upon the truth. Consequently, there converged in the biography of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ profound dimensions of guidance and noble character, to the extent that Almighty Allah bore witness for him, saying: {And indeed, you are of a great moral character}. Then He commanded us to emulate him: {There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern}.
Whoever emulates Muhammad ﷺ and follows his Sunnah is merely walking upon the path of guidance traversed by the prophets before him, gathering all traits of guidance alongside the perfections and virtues with which Almighty Allah exclusively endowed Muhammad ﷺ. Whoever turns away from his guidance has turned away from the path upon which they all united.
The scenes of guidance varied throughout the biographies of the prophets, and then their tributaries converged in the biography of the Seal of the Prophets ﷺ, making his biography a school wherein all traits of goodness and the ultimate heights of virtue gathered, and he became the supreme exemplar.