Is Muhammad Prophesied in the Bible (Exalted One)?

doug5Solas

July 26, 2024

The Premise

This one is also interesting. Many Muslims assert that in the Gospel of John, there is a promise Muhammad will come. The passage in question is chapters 14 – 16. The assertion is this: This section is a multi-faceted prophecy. It describes Muhammad’s coming to the believers.

In this context, they assert the Helper of John 14:16 (2x), 15:26, and 16:7 is none other than Muhammad. “How in the world do they get that assertion?”, you might ask. Let’s keep in mind that Muslims believe in an exclusive Monotheistic paradigm of God (Allah). They do not believe that either:

The Christian view of Yahweh which entails a triune model, one being in three persons, is an accurate representation of a monotheistic God.
or the corollary, that Jesus or the Holy Spirit are divine.

Their view is like that of the Jews. It is the Muslim’s ruling presupposition. It opens the door to their false assertion about John 14-16 passage. They have closed your mind to the Christian model of the triune God. They must devise different means of explaining Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

I won’t describe the details leading to the Muslim interpretation. It is somewhat convoluted. Here is a distillation of the fallacies:

In the early days, there was confusion among Muslim scholars. They were unable to read the Gospels in the original Greek. They only had access to Syriac and Arabic versions. They took the Syriac (paraquat) and/or the Arabic (faraquet) to equate to Muhammad’s name. They then projected the following idea. The Christians had not translated it with prejudice. So, Muhammad got no consideration.
By the nineteenth century, the fallacy morphed. There were now ample Muslim scholars who could read Greek. They decided [for no good reason] that Christians altered the text. The Greek word (paraclete) replaced the original (periklutos). Paraclete translates to “helper or advisor.” Periklutos translates to “exalted one.” This served to discredit Muhammad in the mind of Muslims.
It need hardly be said that the word περικλυτος (Periklutos) never occurs in either the Greek New Testament or the Greek translation of the Old Testament (Septuagint).^[1]

Our response as Christians should not be one of surprise or disdain. Muslims are not the only sect to try and marginalize the person of Jesus. It may seem clear to the believing Christian that the references are about the Holy Spirit. But, without evidence to support our claim, our assertion is no stronger than theirs. So, what is our evidence? It comes from the inspired, infallible Word of God, the Bible.

The Rebuttal

The greater context of John 14 – 16 is what we Christians call the Passion Week. Jesus came to Jerusalem for his final visit. He came to execute his purpose for the Incarnation. He came to offer his life as a sacrifice for man’s sins, the redemption of believers.

In John 12, we see the triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Then we see him declare the need to die to self before glorification. He emphasizes this need for his disciples. He shares his impending crucifixion and how that will draw all men unto him. He explains that this is the reason he came to the earth.

In chapter 13, we see the Last Supper. We see the washing of the disciples’ feet, demonstrating the heart of service required by them. He reveals the betrayal that is about to take place. He reiterates that love is primary and will be the sign that they are His disciples. He prophesies Peter’s denials.

In chapter 14, he proclaims profound and personal thoughts about himself. He shows them what life will look like after he is gone. He assures them that his work will go on in them. And that to secure these works, the Father will give them another helper.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. (John 14:16-17, emphasis mine)

God will not leave them alone as orphans.

These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. (John 14:25-26, emphasis mine).

In chapter 15, he makes the Vine and Branches analogy. He encourages them by reminding them that He chose them; they did not choose him. To be fruitful, they must stay connected with him. He warns the world will hate them as it did him, without a cause.

But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning. (John 15:26-27, Emphasis mine).

In chapter 16, Jesus explains that he is telling them these things to keep them from falling away. He warns them again that the world will persecute them. He explains that he hasn’t emphasized these things before because he was with them. But now he is going away, and it is to their advantage that this happens. If he doesn’t go away the Helper will not come.

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. (John 16:7-11, Emphasis mine).

What We Learn

We learn quite a bit from these passages. Let’s take a look at what those things are:

Jesus is instructing his disciples, preparing them for being without him.
This is a deliberate act from God.
Jesus requested the gift.
The helper is unique to believers (the world cannot know him).
He is supernatural (spirit) but personal (him, not it).
He is even more immanent than Jesus because he will indwell the believer.
He is holy (the Holy Spirit). He is without sin.
He brings to mind and causes us to remember all that Jesus said.
That makes the magnification of Jesus the primary task of the Holy Spirit.
He bears witness to Jesus.
He is the spirit (essence) of truth.
He proceeds from The Father and is of the same essence as the Father.
He cannot come unless Jesus leaves this world.
He will convict the world about sin because of unbelief in Jesus.
He will convict the world of righteousness because Jesus enters the Father’s presence.
He will convict the world about judgment because it comes to Satan.

Conclusion

Right from the start, Muhammad fails to meet the requirements. Jesus gives the disciples final instructions about what they can expect when he is gone. He was not speaking about a distant future event.

Muhammad was born about 540 years after this recorded conversation in the Gospel of John. Until he became an adult, he would not have been a candidate to “help” anyone. That would put off his usefulness as a helper for another 30 years.

It makes no sense that Jesus would imply the immediacy he did if it were going to be 570 in the future. The failure to qualify continues through the other elements of the conversation.

Further, Muhammad, as another human, cannot spread himself across the entire Church. Nor can he indwell even one believer, let alone all the believers. He did not proceed from the Father. These facts also prove the Holy Spirit is a member of the Godhead. And that puts the Holy Spirit in an order of being to which Muhammad cannot aspire.

Muhammad did not come in the name of Jesus. He did not magnify Jesus or teach anyone to remember what Jesus said. These are attributes of the Holy Spirit.

The Muslim assertions are without merit on the face of it.

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^[1]Andrews, Pat: paper, downloaded from https://static1.squarespace.com/static/638a0df4d337cc176a1f3645/t/6659c0fbee0b5d7b17ec4df1/1717158139918/Who-Is-The-Paraclete-Pat-Andrews-Pfander.pdf

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In this newly revised and expanded edition, Grant Osborne provides seminary students and working pastors with the full set of tools they need to move from sound exegesis to the development of biblical and systematic theologies and to the preparation of sound, biblical sermons.
Osborne contends that hermeneutics is a spiral from text to context–a movement between the horizon of the text and the horizon of the reader that spirals nearer and nearer toward the intended meaning of the text and its significance for today.
Well-established as the standard evangelical work in the field since its first publication in 1991, The Hermeneutical Spiral has been updated to meet the needs of a new generation of students and pastors. General revisions have been made throughout, new chapters have been added on Old Testament law and the use of the Old Testament in the New, and the bibliography has been thoroughly updated.
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