Muhammd (pbuh) In the Bible

BIBLE PROPHECIES ABOUT THE ADVENT OF MUHAMMAD Abraham is widely regarded as the Patriarch of monotheism and the common father of the Jews, Christians and Muslims. Through His second son, Isaac, came all Israelite prophets including such towering figures as Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon and Jesus. May peace and blessings be upon them all. The advent of these great prophets was in partial fulfillment of God’s promises to bless the nations of earth through the descendents of Abraham (Genesis12:2-3).Such fulfillment is wholeheartedly accepted by Muslims whose faith considers the belief in and respect of all prophets an article of faith.    

BLESSINGS OF ISHMAEL AND ISAAC Was the first-born son of Abraham (Ishmael) and his descendants included in God’s covenant and promise? A few verses from the Bible may help shed some light on this question;  

1)       Genesis 12:2-3 speaks of God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants before any child was born to him.  

2)       Genesis 17:4 reiterates God’s promise after the birth of Ishmael and before the birth of Isaac.  

3)       In Genesis, ch. 21. Isaac is specifically blessed but Ishmael was also specifically blessed and promised by God to become “a great nation” especially in Genesis 21:13, 18.   4)       According to Deuteronomy 21:15-17 the traditional rights and privileges of the first born son are not to be affected by the social status of his mother (being a “free” woman such as Sarah, Isaac’s mother, or a “Bondwoman” such as Hagar, Ishmael’s mother). This is only consistent with the moral and humanitarian principles of all revealed faiths. 5)       The full legitimacy of Ishmael as Abraham’s son and “seed” and the full legitimacy of his mother, Hagar, as Abraham’s wife are clearly stated in Genesis 21:13 and 16:3. After Jesus, the last Israelite messenger and prophet, it was time that God’s promise to bless Ishmael and his descendants be fulfilled. Less than 600years after Jesus, came the last messenger of God, Muhammad, from the progeny of Abraham through Ishmael. God’s blessing of both of the main branches of Abraham’s family tree was now fullfilled. But are there additional corroborating evidence that the Bible did in fact foretell the advent of prophet Muhammad?     

MUHAMMAD: The Prophet Like Unto Moses: Long time after Abraham, God’s promise to send the long-awaited Messenger was repeated this time in Moses’ words. In Deuteronomy 18:18, Moses spoke of the prophet to be sent by God who is:  

1)       From among the Israelite’s “brethren”, a reference to their Ishmaelite cousins as as Ishmael was the other son of Abraham who was explicitly promised to become a “great nation”. 

2)       A prophet like unto Moses. There were hardly any two prophets, who were so much alike as Moses and Muhammad. Both were given comprehensive law code of life, both encountered their enemies and were victors in miraculous ways, both were accepted as prophets/statesmen and both migrated following conspiracies to assassinate them. Analogies between Moses and Jesus overlooks not only the above similarities but other crucial ones as well (e.g. the natural birth, family life and death of Moses and Muhammad but not of Jesus, who was regarded by His followers as the Son of God and not exclusively a messenger of God, as Moses and Muhammad were and as Muslim belief Jesus was). 

THE AWAITED PROPHET WAS TO COME FROM ARABIA 

Deuteronomy 33:1-2 combines references to Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. It speaks of God (i.e. God’s revelation) coming from Sinai, rising from Seir (probably the village of Sa’ir near Jerusalem) and shining forth from Paran. According to Genesis 21:21, the wilderness of Paran was the place where Ishmael settled (i.e. Arabia, specifically Mecca). 

Indeed the King James version of the Bible mentions the pilgrims passing through the valley of Ba’ca (another name of Mecca) in Psalms 84:4-6. 

  

Isaiah 42:1-13 speaks of the beloved of God. His elect and messenger who will bring down a law to be awaited in the isles and who “shall not fail nor be discouraged till he have set judgment on earth.” Verse 11, connects that awaited one with the descendants of Ke’dar. Who is Ke’dar? According to Genesis 25:13, Ke’dar was the second son of Ishmael, the ancestor of prophet Muhammad. 

  

MUHAMMAD’S MIGRATION FROM MECCA TO MEDINA: PROPHECIED IN THE BIBLE? 

Habakkuk 3:3 speaks of God (God’s help) coming from Te’man (an Oasis North of Medina according to J. Hasting’s Dictionary of the Bible), and the holy one (coming) from Paran. That holy one who under persecution migrated from Paran (Mecca) to be received enthusiastically in Medina was none but prophet Muhammad.
Indeed the incident of the migration of the prophet and his persecuted followers is vividly described in Isaiah 21:13-17. That section foretold as well about the battle of Badr in which the few ill-armed faithful miraculously defeated the “mighty” men of Ke’dar, who sought to destroy Islam and intimidate their own folks who turned -to Islam. 

  

THE QUR’AN (KORAN) FORETOLD IN THE BIBLE? 

For twenty-three years, God’s words (the Qur’an) were truly put into Muhammad’s mouth. He was not the “author” of the Qur’an. The Qur’an was dictated to him by Angel Gabriel who asked Muhammad to simply repeat the words of the Qur’an as he heard them. These words were then committed to memory and to writing by those who hear them during Muhammad’s lifetime and under his supervision. 

  

Was it a coincidence that the prophet “like unto Moses” from the “brethren” of the Israelites (i.e. from the lshmaelites) was also described as one in whose mouth God will put his words and that he will speak in the name of God, (Deuteronomy 18:18-20). Was it also a coincidence the “Paraclete” that Jesus foretold to come after Him was described as one who “shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak (John 16:13) 

  

Was it another coincidence that Isaiah ties between the messenger connected with Ke’dar and a new song (a scripture in a new language) to be sang unto the Lord (Isaiah 42:10-11). More explicitly, prophesies Isaiah “For with stammering lips, and another tongue, will he speak to this people” (Isaiah 28:11). This latter verse correctly describes the “stammering lips” of Prophet Muhammad reflecting the state of tension and concentration he went through at the time of revelation. Another related point is that the Qur’an was revealed in piece-meals over a span of twenty three years. It is interesting to compare this with Isaiah 28:10 which speaks of the same thing. 

  

  

THAT PROPHET- PARACLETE- MUHAMMAD 

Up to the time of Jesus (peace be upon him), the Israelites were still awaiting for that prophet like unto Moses prophesied in Deuteronomy 18:18. When John the Baptist came, they asked him if he was Christ and he said “no”. They asked him if he was Elias and he said “no”. Then, in apparent reference to Deuteronomy 18:18, they asked him “Art thou that Prophet” and he answered, “no”. (John 1: 1 9-2 1). 

  

In the Gospel according to John (Chapters 14, 15, 16) Jesus spoke of the “Paraclete” or comforter who will come after him, who will be sent by Father as another Paraclete, who will teach new things which the contemporaries of Jesus could not bear. While the Paraclete is described as the spirit of truth, (whose meaning resemble Muhammad’s famous title Al-Amin, the trustworthy), he is identified in one verse as the Holy Ghost (John 14:26). Such a designation is however inconsistent with the profile of that Paraclete. In the words of the Dictionary of the Bible, (Ed. J. Mackenzie) “These items, it must be admitted do not give an entirely coherent picture.” 

  

Indeed history tells us that many early Christians understood the Paraclete to be a man and not a spirit. This might explain the followings who responded to some who claimed, without meeting the criteria stipulated by Jesus, to be the awaited “Paraciete”. 

It was Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who was the Paraclete, Comforter, helper, admonisher sent by God after Jesus. He testified of Jesus, taught new things which could not be borne at Jesus’ time, he spoke what he heard (revelation), he dwells with the believers (through his well-preserved teachings). Such teachings will remain forever because he was the last messenger of God, the only Universal Messenger to unite the whole of humanity under God and on the path of PRESERVED truth. He told of many things to come which “came to pass” in the minutest detail meeting, the criterion given by Moses to distinguish between the true prophet and the false prophets (Deuteronomy 18:22). He did reprove the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment (John 16:8-11) 

  

WAS THE SHIFT OF RELIGIOUS LEADERSHIP PROPHECIED? 

Following the rejection of the last Israelite prophet, Jesus, it was about time that God’s promise to make Ishmael a great nation be fulfilled (Genesis 21:13, 18). In Matthew 21:19-21, Jesus spoke of the fruitless fig tree (A Biblical symbol of prophetic heritage) to be cleared after being given a last chance of three years (the duration of Jesus’ ministry) to give fruit. In a later verse in the same chapter, Jesus said: “Therefore, say I unto you, The Kingdom of God shall be taken away from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruit thereof” (Matthew 21:43). That nation of Ishmael’s descendants (the rejected stone in Matthew 21:42) which was victorious against all super-powers of its time as prophecied by Jesus: “And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder” (Matthew 21:44). 

  

OUT OF CONTEXT COINCIDENCE? 

Is it possible that the numerous prophecies cited here are all individually and combined out of context misinterpretations? Is the opposite true, that such infrequently studied verses fit together consistently and clearly point to the advent of the man who changed the course of human history, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Is it reasonable to conclude that all these prophecies, appearing in different books of the Bible and spoken by various prophets at different times were all coincidence? If this is so here is another strange “coincidence”! 

One of the signs of the prophet to come from Paran (Mecca) is that he will come with “ten thousands of saints” (Deuteronomy 33:2 KJV). That was the number of faithful who accompanied Prophet Muhammad to Paran (Mecca) in his victorious, bloodless return to his birthplace to destroy the remaining symbols of idolatry in the Ka’bah. 

Says God as quoted by Moses:
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him. (Deuteronomy 18:19) 

  

Dear Readers: May the light of truth shine in your heart and mind. May it lead you to peace and certitude in this life and eternal bliss in hereafter. 

AMEEN 

For further information please contact: 

http://www.islamicity.com/Mosque/Muhammad_Bible.HTM 

Does God pray to Himself?

http://www.themodernreligion.com/comparative/christ/bible_son.htm

What about “Unto us a child is born”?

Taken from the book, “What did Jesus Really Say?“”

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

When someone reads this verse of Isaiah they immediately see a clear prophesy of God coming to earth in the form on a human child. Is this not what the verse says? Does it not say that Jesus shall be the “incarnation” of God on earth? Actually, it does not. Let us study it together.

Firstly, it is important when applying a prophesy to someone to not selectively pick and choose catch phrases from the prophesy and disregard the rest. In this prophesy we find that the very first stipulation presented for this person is that he shall carry the government upon his shoulders. However, as is popular knowledge, Jesus (pbuh) never in his whole lifetime ever formed a government nor became a head of state.

In fact we find him saying in the Bible quite explicitly:

• John 18:36 “Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.”
• Matthew 22:21 “Then saith he (Jesus) unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.”

So according to the Bible, Jesus never tried to establish a government nor to challenge the authority of the pagan emperor Caesar over himself and his followers. Now, if someone were to go the extra mile and to make the case that Jesus commands a “spiritual” government in the hereafter, then we need to know whether the hereafter shall be a place of governments, kings, laws and regulations?

Secondly, when we study the words “mighty God” carefully, we notice an interesting fact. For some reason, the words used are not “Almighty God” but rather “mighty God.” Naturally, this makes one curious as to what the original Hebrew text actually says. So we decide to study it.

The word for “Almighty” as applied exclusively to God in the OT is the Hebrew word “Shadday” {shad-dah’-ee}. However, this is not the word used in this verse. The actual word used in this verse is the Hebrew word “Gibbowr” meaning “mighty” and not “The Almighty.” Now, although to us such a difference might seem subtle and insignificant, still, to the Jews, the difference was quite pronounced. Let me elaborate…..

In the famous Hebrew and Chaldee Dictionary by James Strong the word “gibbowr” or short “gibbowr” {ghib-bore’}, is translated as; warrior, tyrant:-champion, chief, excel, giant, man, mighty (man, one), strong (man), valiant man. On the other hand the word “Shadday” {shad-dah’-ee}, is translated as, the Almighty:-Almighty.

The word translated as “God” here is the Hebrew word “El” {ale} which in addition to it’s use to refer to God Almighty in the Bible is also used to refer to mighty men, to demons, to angels, and to idols. As we have already seen in the previous section, it was a common practice in the Bible to use the word “god” to convey an air of authority or power. Some of the examples presented were:

“I have said, Ye (the Jews) are gods; and all of you are children of the most High” Psalms 82:6 and “And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh”Exodus 7:1 as well as “the god of this world (the Devil) hath blinded the minds of them which believe not.” 2 Corinthians 4:4

When reading such verses we begin to understand the reason why Isaiah 9:6 refers to a “mighty god” and not an “Almighty God.” If the author did indeed mean to convey that this person would be the “incarnation” of God Almighty who would come down to earth in the form of a human being in order to walk among us and die on the cross, then why did this author chose to “water down” his statement by only referring to him with the generic term used for humans, demons, idols, and angels, and not the specific term reserved for God Almighty alone?

And finally, we study the term “everlasting father.” In the Bible, the term “everlasting” or “forever” is often used as a figurative term and does not necessarily convey its literal sense, for example,

• “and my servant David [shall be] their prince forever.” Ezekiel 37:25.
• and “The king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD … He asked life of thee, [and] thou gavest [it] him, [even] length of days for ever and ever.”Psalm 21:1-4 , etc…

The same goes for the use of the term “father”. It does not necessarily mean; “the Heavenly Father” (God), or the biological father. Let us read for example:

• Joseph is called a father to Pharaoh. Genesis 45:8,
• and Job is called the father of the needy. Job 29:16. etc..

So, just as king David shall be an “everlasting prince” so too shall this person be called an “everlasting father.” This is the language of the Jews. This is how it was meant to be understood. We can not simply interpret a verses in a vacuum of the culture, customs, and verbal constructs of the people who wrote them. We must always be careful when “translating” such verses to make sure that we translate them as they were intended by the author and as his people had come to understand them.

I am sure that the people of this age would be quite upset if one of them were to write to their closest friend “you are an angel and a prince” and then centuries later a Japanese speaking person were to say: “See? The author has just born witness that his friend is a divine creature with wings that came down to earth and became royalty. He says so very clearly right here!”

Well is all of this only my own personal attempt to pervert the verses and manipulate their meanings? Far from it. Many Christian scholars have known and recognized the true meaning of this verse and translated it into English accordingly, however, their translations were not met with a whole lot of enthusiasm and thus, they did not receive the same degree of publicity as has such translations as the King James Version. For example, Mr. J. M. Powis Smith in “The Complete Bible, an American Translation,” quotes this same verse as follows:

“For a child is born to us, a son is given to us; And the government will be upon his shoulder; And his name will be called ‘Wonderful counselor is God Almighty, Father forever, Prince of peace’” “The Complete Bible, an American Translation,” Isaiah 9:6

And again, if we were to read the translation of another Christian, for example Dr. James Moffatt, we would find that in his translation “The Holy Bible Containing the Old and New Testaments” the verse reads:

“For a child has been born to us, a child has been given to us; the royal dignity he wears, and this the title he bears – ‘A wonder of a counselor, a divine hero, a father for all time, a peaceful prince’” “The Holy Bible Containing the Old and New Testaments” Isaiah 9:6

Because God “gave His only begotten Son..”?

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”John 3:16

The above is the King James “translation” of John 3:16. If we were to open up the Revised Standard Version of the Bible on this exact same verse we would find it now translated as “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only son, ….”

What is going on here? The RSV is the work of thirty two Biblical Christian scholars of the highest eminence backed by fifty cooperating Christian denominations. They produced the RSV in an effort to correct the “many” and “serious” errors they had found in the King James Bible. So why have they scrapped the word “begotten” from this cornerstone of Christian preaching? The reason is because they have decided to be honest with us when translating this verse.

The Greek term for “begotten” in ancient Greek is “gennao” {ghen-nah’-o} as found for example in Matthew 1:2. In the verses under consideration, however, the word used was not “gennao” but “monogenes” {mon-og-en-ace’}.

“Monogenes” is a Greek word which conveys the meaning “unique” and not “begotten.” Thus, the true translation of this verse is “His unique son.”

Some of the more honest translations of the Bibles, such as the New Testament by Goodspeed and J. M. Powis Smith (published in 1923) have indeed given the same translation as that of the RSV. However, such “tell it as it is” Bibles were not generally met with a lot of enthusiasm since they forced the reader to face the fact that much of what the translators of the KJV have “translated” for them was not in fact part of the Bible.

We have already seen in previous sections that the Bible bears witness that God has “sons” by the tons. So what does the Bible mean by “only son” or “unique son” when referring to Jesus? It means what the Bible has told us and the Qur’an has confirmed for us, namely, that Jesus was “unique” in that he was born of a human mother without a father. God merely said to him “Be!” and he was.

The “son of God”

The “son of God” adapted Taken from the book, “What did Jesus Really Say?“”

And unto Him belongs whosoever is in the heavens and the earth and those who dwell in His presence do not scorn to worship Him nor do they weary. They glorify Him night and day; They flag not. Or have they chosen gods from the earth who raise the dead If there were therein gods besides Allah then verily both (the heavens and the earth) would have gone to ruin. Glorified be Allah, the Lord of the Throne from all they ascribe (unto Him). He is not questioned as to that which He does, but they will be questioned. Or have they chosen other gods besides Him, say: Bring your proof (of their godhead), this is the reminder of those with me and those before me, but most of them know not the truth so they are averse (to it). And we sent no messenger before you but we inspired him (saying): There is no god save Me (Allah) so worship Me. And they say: The Compassionate has taken unto himself a son. Nay! but (they) are but honored servants. They speak not until He has spoken and they obey His command. He knows what is before them and what is behind them and they cannot intercede except for those whom He accepts and they quake for awe of Him. And whosoever among them says: I am a god other than Allah, the same shall We reward with Hell. Thus do We reward the wrong doers.”The noble Qur’an, Al-Anbia(21):19-29

“And the angles said ‘O Mary, Allah gives you glad tidings of a Word from Him, his name is Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, High honored in this world and the next, of those near stationed to Allah.“The noble Qur’an, A’al-Umran(3):40.

We as Muslims do not differ with Christians in the fact that Jesus (pbuh) was indeed born miraculously without a human father. Muslims only differ with Christians in the Christian’s claim that Jesus (pbuh) must have a father. Trinitarians believe that if he has no human father then his father must be God. Muslims believe that he had no father whatsoever, and this was the essence of his miraculous birth.
“The similitude of Jesus before Allah is as that of Adam, he created him from dust, then said to him: ‘Be’ and he was” The noble Qur’an, A’al-Umran(3):59.

They say: Allah has taken a son. Glorified be He! He has no needs! His is all that is in the heavens and that is in the earth. You have no warrant for this, do you say regarding Allah that which you know not?” The noble Qur’an, Yunus(10):68

“The Messiah, son of Mary, was only a messenger, messengers (the like of whom) had passed away before him. And his mother was a saintly woman. They both used to eat (earthly) food. See how we make the signs clear for them, then see how they are deluded!” The noble Qur’an, Al-Maidah (5):75.

“And this is life eternal, that they might know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John 17:3.

Notice the above words of the Bible: “YOU the ONLY true God.” Some Christians manage to see a hidden abstract meaning for the verses of the Bible. Even when they read the above verse they some times manage to understand something totally different than that which they are reading. Some interpret the word “you” to be “we,” and thus, understand the above verse to say “WE the only true god.” Jesus (pbuh) is obviously talking to a distinctly different entity than himself and telling that entity that He ALONE is the only true God. Is Jesus (pbuh) incapable of saying “I the only true God” or “We the only true God” if that is what he meant? Can we see the difference?

Mr. Tom Harpur says in the preface to his book: “The most significant development since 1986 in this regard has been the discovery of the title “Son of God” in one of the Qumran papyri (Dead Sea Scrolls) used in relation to a person other than Jesus…..this simply reinforces the argument made there that to be called the Son of God in a Jewish setting in the first century is not by any means the same as being identical with God Himself.” For Christ’s Sake, pp. xii.

With regard to your second comment, Mr. J, I am not “implying” anything. The Qur’an clearly states in no uncertain terms that God “created” Jesus. Let us quote from the unbiased Webster’s dictionary as to what is “implied” by the word “begotten”: “To procreate as the father, sire, to produce as an effect or an outgrowth.” Muslims feel such claims with regard to God Almighty are an abomination.