What is his family status amongst you?
Heraclius put this to Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, whom he had seated in front of him as the closest in lineage to the Prophet ﷺ among the Quraysh present, after warning Abu Sufyan's companions behind him to signal if he lied.
He belongs to a good, noble family amongst us.
Has anybody amongst you ever claimed the same, to be a prophet, before him?
No.
Was anybody amongst his ancestors a king?
No.
Do the nobles or the poor follow him?
It is the poor who follow him.
Are his followers increasing in number, or decreasing?
They are increasing.
Does anybody amongst those who embrace his religion become displeased and renounce the religion afterward?
No.
Have you ever accused him of telling lies before his claim to be a prophet?
No.
Does he break his promises?
No. He has not broken any promise. But right now, we just have a treaty with him, and we don't know what he might do.
Have you ever had a war with him?
Yes.
What was the outcome of the battles?
Sometimes he was victorious, and sometimes we were victorious.
What does he order you to do?
He tells us to worship God and God alone, and to not worship anything that our forefathers used to worship. And he orders us to pray, to speak the truth, to be chaste, and to keep good relations with our kith and kin.
I asked you about his family, and your reply was that he belongs to a very noble family, indeed, all the prophets come from noble families in their peoples. I questioned you whether anybody else amongst you claimed to be a prophet before, and your reply was no; had it been yes, I would have thought this man was following the previous man's statement. I asked you whether any one of his ancestors was a king; your reply was no, and had it been yes, I would have thought this man wanted to take back his ancestral kingdom. I asked whether he was ever accused of telling lies before he said what he said, and your reply was no, so I wonder how a person who does not tell a lie about people could ever tell a lie about God. I asked whether the rich or the poor follow him; you replied the poor, and indeed all the prophets of God, the poor accept their Message before the rich. I asked whether his followers were increasing or decreasing; you replied increasing, and this too is the sign of the Truth. I asked whether anybody who embraced his religion later became displeased and discarded it; your reply was no, and indeed this is the sign of true faith, when its delight enters the hearts and mixes with them completely. I asked whether he had ever betrayed; your reply was no, and indeed the prophets of God can never betray or break a promise. Then I asked what he ordered you to do; you replied he ordered you to worship God alone, not to worship anything along with Him, forbade you idols, and ordered you to pray, to speak the truth, and to be chaste. If what you have said is true, he will very soon occupy this place underneath my feet. And we knew from our scriptures that God would be sending somebody, but we did not expect it to be from your race. If I could reach him, I would go immediately to meet him, and if I were with him, I would certainly wash his feet.