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"That
Prophet"?
Yusuf Estes
"Are you THAT Prophet?"
[Bible - John 1:20]
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"The
Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, whom the Father will send in my
name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance
all that I said unto you."
[Bible - John 14:26]
Jesus,
the son of Mary, said, "A messenger will come after me,named
Ahmad."
[Quran 61:6]
The
chief priests and Levites asked John the Baptist, "If you
are not the Christ (Messiah), and not Elijah - are you THAT
Prophet?"
[John 1:20] |
When
the chief priests and Levites asked John the Baptist who he
was, they asked him in a very strange way. First the questioned
him as to whether or not he was the anticipated "Messiah"
[Christ in Koine Greek]. He was not the "Messiah"
that had hoped for. Next they asked if he was the prophet Elijah
and again he tells them, "No." Now comes the really
strange part. Finally, they asked him if he is "That Prophet?"
What
did they mean by "That Prophet?" We of course, know
who the "Christ" is. After all, Christians should
know that "Christ" is merely a shortened form of the
Koine Greek word "christos," intended to mean the
Hebrew word "Messiah."
The
Jews of two thousand years ago were definitely looking for the
Messiah, who it was foretold in their books, would come and
lead them to victory over their oppressors and thus gain for
them mastery over this world. They were very oppressed under
Roman domination and even their own Jewish kings were seen as
nothing more than puppets or agents for the disbelievers. Certainly,
they would have been most happy to see someone come on the scene
who would defeat their Roman masters and slave drivers.
Then
the priests and Levites asked John the Baptist if he might be
the prophet Elijah, returning back after hundreds of years being
away. There was the notion amongst them that Elijah would come
back. But again, John the Baptist is denying he is Elijah.
Then,
who is he? They wonder at this man living out in the desert
and forsaking wealth and luxury and fasting, avoiding the material
attractions of life.
Again,
they ask John the Baptist who he is. "Are you THAT Prophet?"
And one more time he denies being "THAT Prophet,"
but then he does tell them about someone who will come after
him soon, whom he claims he is not worthy to even unlace his
shoes.
However,
this does not answer the question, "Who were they expecting
besides the Messiah?" Could it be they were looking for
someone like Muhammad? (Could be)
Who
is THAT Prophet? -
Keep
reading and learn who "That Prophet" is and what other
proofs can be discovered within the Holy texts to support this
idea.
____________________
For
centuries Muslims have believed Jesus, peace be upon him, was
"THAT Prophet" mentioned in these words of the Gospel
of John. The Quran states one of the important features of Jesus'
mission was to give the "bashir"
or 'glad tidings' of the coming of the Prophet Muhammad,
peace be upon him. During his short missionary career that lasted
not more than three years, and which was overshadowed by the
hostile attitude of his own people, Jesus gave them the good
news of Ahmad, (one of the forms of "Muhammad")
the last messenger of God, who would perfect the divine teaching
both in theory and in practice. The Quran mentions that, Jesus
says:
"O
Children of Israel! I am the messenger of Allah {Almighty
God} (sent) to you, confirming the Law (Torah
or Old Testament) before me, and giving glad tidings
of a messenger to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmad."
(Surah
61:6)
The
Quran gives the name as Ahmad, one of several ways to say Muhammad's
name. Just as we have in English the name Joseph, and often
use a shorter form such as "Joe" or the familiar form,
"Joey," and other names like "Jonathan"
which becomes "John"; "Jack" or "Johnny",
so in the same way we find Arabic has similar forms for a name.
Muhammad, Ahmad and Hamad are a few of the names originating
from the root word, "hamd" (meaning 'praise) in Arabic,
and can be understood as "The one who praises (God)";
"the praised one"; "praising"; etc.
Abdullah
Yusuf Ali in his translation of the meanings of the Quran to
English, he states, "Ahmad or Muhammad, the Praised
One is a translation of the Koine Greek word Periclytos.
In the present gospel of John 14:16, 15:26 and 16:7, the Greek
word Paracletos is translated in the NIV as Comforter.
Paracletos can mean an Advocate, or "one called
to the help of another", "a kind friend." Muhammad,
peace be upon him, was known from birth as one who brought comfort
and reconciliation to family, friends and strangers alike, especially
in bringing together the ties of kinship and brotherly love.
Another
nick name of the prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, mentioned
in the Bible (or at least what is left of it in the English
language) is "The Spirit of Truth." As-Saddiq means
exactly that and it is was another name given to Muhammad, peace
be upon him, by those who knew his proclivity for honesty and
integrity.
The
New Testament Gospel according to John, Jesus, peace be upon
him, promises them the Paracletos will come four times
(John 14:16; 14:26; 15:26; 16:7). Naturally, Jesus, peace be
upon him, did not return in their lifetime nor did any other
prophet for that matter, so later thinkers came up with the
notion that it was not Jesus "in person" but rather,
Jesus coming back in "spirit form." This led some
Christians to assert, this was to be the Holy Spirit, who would
descend upon the disciples on the Day of the Pentecost (Acts
2), to witness Christ and lead them into the whole truth and
to be with the believers forever, and they would not die (John
3:16), but have everlasting life. Also, some added verses later
(see footnotes to Revised Standard Version of the Bible) to
the very last chapter of Mark (16), wherein, they have the Spirit
coming upon them in such a way they imagined themselves going
to be able to speak with new languages; pick up snakes, lay
hands on the sick to cure them and even drink poison and nothing
would hurt them. [Luke 23:17-18]
Another
point is, the Paracletos, comforter or the Spirit of truth,
was going to dwell with us from now on. Certainly anyone could
see Muhammad's influence and his message of worshipping only
One God without any partners has prevailed long after his earthly
life.
For
more about Muhammad, peace be upon him - click
here
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