Question: Is there any utterance
about the advent of Prophet Muhammad (sws) in the Bible? Many Muslims claim
so. What are your thoughts?
Answer: There are several places
where the advent of the Prophet Muhammad (sws) is thought to have been
mentioned in the Bible. In the New Testament’s Gospel according to John,
Jesus (sws) prays to God that people are given another ‘Comforter’. There
is also mention of the ‘Spirit of Truth’ who ‘will guide you into all truth:
for he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall
he speak and he will show you things to come’, (John 16:13). As the scholar
Abdus Sattar Ghauri has pointed out, it is clear from the Biblical text
that Jesus (sws) stands as a separate entity to the ‘Comforter’ or ‘Spirit
of Truth’. Furthermore, it is evident that the prophecy given to Moses
(sws) spoke of the advent of a Prophet (sws). This figure was thought to
be distinct from Christ (sws). Evidence of this can be found when John
the Baptist is asked if he is Christ, Elias or the Prophet and he answers
‘no’ to all three (John 1: 19-21). Some connect this ‘Comforter’ with the
‘Holy Ghost’ mentioned in John 14:26. However, as Jamal Badawi has pointed
out, this designation is ‘inconsistent’ with the profile given of the ‘Comforter’,
as even the Dictionary of the Bible (J Mackenzie) seems to imply. As Badawi
goes on to point out, the Prophet Muhammad (sws) fulfilled all the criteria
of the ‘Comforter’ or ‘Paraclete’, such as: ‘He testified of Jesus (sws),
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)’ and ‘such teachings will remain forever because he was the
last messenger of God’. Furthermore, the requirement of ‘teachings remaining
forever’ is not only clearly evidenced by the preservation of the Qur’an
over the course of the last 1400 years, but also in the incredible volume
of Ahadith literature which, through proper examination, provides
further details on Prophetic teachings.
Evidence for Prophet Muhammad (sws)
in the Old Testament is bountiful. Deuteronomy 18:18 shows Moses (sws)
speaking of the prophet to be sent by God who must fulfill several criteria,
the most compelling of which is to be from among the ‘brethren’ of the
Isrealites. As Abdus Sattar Ghauri points out, this is clearly a reference
to the Ishmaelites, their cousins, as evidenced by Genesis XVI: 10-12,
and although modern translators have attempted to change this word to ‘people’,
the Hebrew is best translated as brethren. Furthermore, Mathew 21:43
has Jesus (sws) admonishing the Israelites by stating ‘the kingdom of God
shall be taken from you, and given to a nation’. The language of the text
indicates this nation will be different from the Israelites.
In addition, Badawi shows that Deuteronomy
33:1-2 combines ‘references to Moses, Jesus and Muhammad’ by speaking of
God’s revelation coming from the Sinai, Seir (likely a the village Sa’ir
near Jerusalem) and Paran (Genesis 21:21 indicates this is where Ishmael
settled, which we now know as Makkah).
Finally, one of the clearest evidences
of Prophet Muhammad’s (sws) advent comes from King Solomon where he uses
the words ‘Muhammadim’ to describe the coming Prophet (sws). As Ghauri
points out the actual Hebrew words are mydmhm vlkv, pluralized to show
respect and majesty. Many Biblical translations have changed this proper
noun to ‘lovely’, but the Hebrew Bible remains in tact with these words.
I hope that some of these references
are helpful. For more detailed arguments and evidence please examine
the works of scholars like Abdus Sattar Ghauri, Jamal Badawi, Zakir Nayak,
etc.
(Adnan Zulfiqar)
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