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Comforter
Is Muhammad the Comforter?

Is Muhammad the Comforter?

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In John 14:16-17 – Jesus says to His disciples, Peter, James, John and the others:

1.“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, 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.”

Muslims claim that the Comforter that is addressed by Jesus in this verse is Muhammad.

Let’s examine if this could be true.

In John 14:16-17, Jesus us speaking to his disciples.

The Father will send another Comforter (“Ahmad”).  Another? Was there a previous Ahmad that Jesus asked the Father to send? Who was it?

Th Spirit of Truth. Is Muhammad a spirit?

The world cannot receive, because the world cannot see him or know him? Why not? Was Muhammad invisible? The world did see Muhammad. The world did know him.  The world cannot receive him? Hundreds of millions of muslims have received him.

You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. Remember Jesus was speaking to His disciples. Did Peter and John know Muhammad? Did they write about him? Did Muhammad dwell with them? Was Muhammad IN the disciples?

 

2. John 14:26 – But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

This verse clearly says that the Comforter is the Holy Spirit but let’s just ignore that.

The Father will send the Comforter in Jesus name. Was Muhammad sent in Jesus name?

He shall teach all things and bring to remembrance all things that Jesus said to His disciples. Did Muhammad remind and teach Jesus’ disciples of what Jesus had told them? When did Muhammad meet them? Is that Muhammad’s message in the quran?

 

3. John 15:26 – But I will send you the Comforter — the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me.

I will send you the Comforter. Did Jesus send Muhammad?

The Spirit of Truth. Again is Muhammad a spirit?

He will come to you from the Father. Did Muhammad come from the Father? Wasn’t he a just man born on earth? Wouldn’t this be shirk to associate Muhammad had been with God before he came?

 

4. John 16:14 – Jesus is speaking: He (Comforter) will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.

He will bring me glory. Did Muhammad give Jesus glory or did he give Allah glory? This Comforter would seem to be blaspheming Allah.

The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me. Did Muhammad tell the disciples what he received from Jesus? Or did he tell what he received from Allah?

All that belongs to the Father is mine. Jesus is basically saying that He is equal with the Father, and that is why what the Spirit receives from Jesus is the same as receiving from the Father.

 

5. John 16:13 – When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.

He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard.  This is clarified in verse 14, that He will only speak what He receives from Jesus.  What did Muhammad receive from Jesus that he spoke?

He will tell you about the future. Did Muhammad make any prophecies about the future?

 

6. John 16:7 – Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

Muslims see this verse and question, “Wait a minute, the Holy Spirit had already come, so why would Jesus say that the Comforter would only come to you after Jesus departs?”

In the Old Testament times, the Holy Spirit only came upon prophets, kings and priests to guide them in their service. But now Jesus was promising the Holy Spirit would come EVEN to them, the disciples. See the prophecy in Joel 2:28

I will send him to you. Did Jesus send Muhammad? Why didn’t Muhammad ever mention this?  Did Jesus send him to His disciples, Peter, John and others? If Jesus sent Muhammad, why did Muhammad know or say nothing about Allah and followed the multiple pagan gods like his parents for 40 years of his life?

 

7. John 7:39 – Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

This verse confirms what I said above. Jesus is saying that the disciples and believers would receive the Holy Spirit. They had not received the Holy Spirit yet at that point in time. They would receive the Spirit after Jesus had ascended to heaven.

 

8. Luke 24:49 And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

This was spoken by Jesus after His resurrection and before His ascension. He was telling them to wait in the city of Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit comes.

If this reference is to Muhammad, the disciples would have had to wait in Jerusalem for a mighty loooong time. More than 600 years! And even then Muhammad didn’t come to Jerusalem, did he? The disciples obeyed Jesus and waited in Jerusalem. 40 days after Jesus had ascended to heaven, the Comforter, the Holy Spirit did come as promised! (You can read about it in Acts 2)

 

9. Acts 2:33 – Peter said: “And the Father, as He had promised, gave Jesus the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today.”

Here is Peter acknowledging what had just happened. They received the Holy Spirit just as Jesus had promised (as in the verses recorded in John).
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10. John 16:8-9 – Jesus is speaking: And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin….The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me

One of the things which the Comforter will do is to convict the world of sin. What is that sin? The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in Jesus.
Did Muhammad do that? Did he convict the world of the sin of refusing to believe in Jesus or refusing to believe in Allah?

 

Finally, let’s see what happens when one receives the Comforter, Holy Spirit….
Romans 8:16 – For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

Galatians 4:6 – And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.”

Does Muhammad join himself to our spirit? Does Muhammad affirm we are God’s children? Does he prompt us to call God as Father?

It is the Holy Spirit that enable Christians to call God Father.
Is Muhammad the Comforter that Jesus promised? No, Jesus was clearly speaking about the Holy Spirit and not a human being.
In trying to force Muhammad into the role of the Comforter, you are dishonoring Muhammad.  He would never say or do any of these things that is described and spoken of for the Comforter.

 

PROLOGUE

Why do Muslims claim that the Comforter that is addressed by Jesus refers to Muhammad? Why? Because they say in the original Greek the word used is “Periklytos” which means “praised one” referring to Muhammad.

Let’s see if there is historical basis for this claim.

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It says PARAKLETOS!

When we look into the original Greek text, the word used is NOT Periklytos but PARAKLETOS.  Παράκλητον

Parakletos means advocate, ‘the one called alongside to help’ or comforter.  Not “praised one.”

Could “Parakletos” be a corruption? Did someone change the word sometime in history to remove this reference to Muhammad?

Well, let’s look at history then. Examine the manuscript evidence. The Codex Sinaiticus (http://www.codexsinaiticus.com)  is dated 350 A.D. If you study the word in this manuscript, you will find that it is “PARAKLETOS” Παράκλητον  not periklytos as alleged!

Notice the screenshot of the manuscript on the left and the  RED underlined word.

Remember, this document precedes Muhammad by more than 300 years; way before the advent of Islam and centuries before Muhammad was even born! No one knew who Muhammad was. Why would anyone change words that they knew nothing about?

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The Origins Of Muhammad’s Revelation

The Origins Of Muhammad’s Revelation

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The basis of the Quran is the revelation to Muhammad.  According to Islam, the revelation was given by the angel Jibreel.

Were there witnesses who saw and heard this to verify the claim? No

Did Muhammad do any miracles to prove what he said happened? No.

I wanted to find out more so I did a brief study on these claims to find evidence that what Muhammad said is true. I think both Christians & Muslims might be surprised (or shocked) by some of these things. I’m sharing it here. If there are any errors, it is unintended. Please let me know, with your proof, so I can correct it. All references about the incident are from accepted Muslim sources like Sahih Hadith Bukhari & Hadith Muslim. (My own analysis of events is based on comparison with the Bible.)

This is how it all unfolded….

Muhammad had an encounter with an angel. He did not know who or what this spiritual being was. The angel that appeared to him began to strangle and press him violently and tried to force him to recite/read. Even though Muhammad pleaded that he was illiterate but the angel kept insisting and kept up the torture. This happened repeatedly for a total of three times.

First of all, an angel is a servant of God and will only do what they are commanded by God. No angel of God has ever acted in a such a violent and abusive manner against a single human being in this way. Secondly, shouldn’t the angel have known that Muhammad was illiterate, yet he cruelly forced Muhammad to do what poor Muhammad just could not do. Thirdly, this incident caused Muhammad such great fear and he was so terrified that he ran back home to his wife Khadija to find comfort.

In the Bible, any time that an angel appears to a human being, his first words are almost always, “DO NOT FEAR.” Because such fear is not from God! We see this repeated over and over again the Bible.  No prophet was ever abused in such a manner! Muhammad was so overcome with FEAR that he is described in Islamic sources as: trembling, heart beating fast, snorting like a horse, and neck muscles twitching. In fact, Muhammad is convinced that it is a demon!

At home Khatija comforts and assures her husband that Allah would not shame him. (even though she did not even witness what actually happened, she was trying her best to make Muhammad feel better; she was just being a good wife!).  How did Khadija come to her conclusion that the “angel” was not from satan? By unveling her private parts with the prophet seated on her lap. Her reasoning was that an angel of God would not be hanging around to while she exposes her private parts.

She [Khadija] said to the apostle of God, ‘O son of my uncle, are you able to tell me about your visitant, when he comes to you?’ He replied that he could, and she asked him to tell her when he came. So when Gabriel came to him, as he was wont, the apostle said to Khadija, ‘This is Gabriel who has just come to me.’ ‘Get up, O son of my uncle, she said, ‘and sit by my left thigh’. The apostle did so, and she said, ‘Can you see him?’ ‘Yes,’ he said. She said, ‘Then turn round and sit on my right thigh.’ He did so, and she said, ‘Can you see him?’ When he said that he could she asked him to move and sit in her lap. When he had done this she again asked if he could see him, and when he said yes, she disclosed her form and cast aside her veil while the apostle was sitting in her lap. Then she said, ‘Can you see him?’ And he replied, ‘No.’ She said, ‘O son of my uncle, rejoice and be of good heart, by God he is an angel and not a satan.’

 

Later she and Muhammad went to visit her cousin, Waraqa, whom they hoped could make sense of had happened and advise Muhammad. Waraqa was literate and he was supposedly a Christian. I say “supposedly” because there was a heretic cult in that place at the time. They were the Nestorians, whose beliefs differed from what the Bible teaches.

In all likelihood, Waraqa was a Nestorian and not a true Christian, follower of Jesus Christ.

What makes me say this?

What can we know about Waraqa? It is said that he used to “read the Gospel in Arabic”. This is false because the Gospel had not been translated to Arabic at that time! So what was he reading?!

It is also said that Waraqa used to “write/copy the Gospel in Hebrew.” Again this is untrue because the Gospel was only translated to Hebrew a few centuries later. So what was Waraqa copying?!

When Muhammad relates his encounter with the angel to Waraqa, this man, who was old and almost blind by this time, tells Muhammad that the angel is Jibreel (Gabriel). How and why did Waraqa come to such a conclusion when he himself was not there to witness what happened?

Waraqa claims the angel is the SAME Jibreel (Gabriel) that appeared to Moses.  But wait a minute! This is a very crucial point. Gabriel did not appear to Moses!

 

There is no evidence anywhere in the Bible or in history where Gabriel had appeared to Moses! Where did Waraqa get his information?

In truth, the angel Gabriel is recorded as having appeared to three people in the records of the Bible – Daniel, Zechariah & Mary but NOT to Moses. So what Waraqa said was innaccurate!

Muhammad believes what Waraqa tells him. But he is worried that the Arabs might oppose him because of the revelations. Waraqa assures him that he will support Muhammad as long as he is alive. Unfortunately Waraqa dies a few days later having fed misinformation to his nephew, the would-be prophet!

Muhammad is sad and becomes suicidal and tries to kill himself on several occasions.

Being suicidal is a satanic act. God would never lead anyone to suicide. Muslim scholar Bassam Zawadi defends Muhammad’s attempt to commit suicide and says it is because of depression. He argues, “What, a Prophet cannot be depressed? Says who? What criteria are people using to say that?”

I will give you 3 examples from the Bible of people who were suicidal.

1. King Saul – an evil spirit tortured him. He was often depressed and needed David to soothe him with music. In the end how did Saul die? By killing himself with his own sword.

2. Judas Isacriot – satan entered him. He betrayed Jesus. Regretted it, and he hanged himself.

3. In Mark 9:21 is the story of a young boy who was demon possessed and the evil spirit would always attempt to “kill him by causing him to fall into water (to drown) or fire (to be burnt).” Read the story, Jesus heals the boy. And “the spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out.” And the boy was restored and healed completely.

Did you notice that, “convulsed him violently”. That’s what an evil spirit does to a body it can inhabit.  Similiar to what Muhammad experienced then?

A depiction of Muhammad receiving his first revelation from the angel Gabriel. From the manuscript Jami' al-tawarikh by Rashid-al-Din Hamadani, 1307, Ilkhanate period.
A depiction of Muhammad receiving his first revelation from the angel Gabriel. From the manuscript Jami’ al-tawarikh by Rashid-al-Din Hamadani, 1307, Ilkhanate period.

Let’s move on.

After a period of silence, Muhammad again encounters the same angel. And from then on, the revelations became more regular.

According to Muhammad, the angel that appeared to him had 600 wings. Isn’t this a contradiction? The Quran says the maximum number is 4 wings (sura 35:1), which in turn contradicts what the Bible says about angels (seraphims) that have 6 wings. No record anywhere of any angel with 600 wings!

Who is this angel that came to Muhammad? This must be some “special” angel who wanted to terrify and impress Muhammad! Also Muhammad saw the angel filling the sky and horizon and sitting on a throne. A THRONE? An angel that has a throne? This is very very strange!

There is no record anywhere that angels have thrones. The throne is only for God. It becomes clear that this being is a usurper. He is not acting on God’s instructions. This being has his own throne and authority and seems to change/disguise himself to have more wings than even God’s angels!

Therefore, I am convinved that the angel that showed up to Muhammad was not Jibreel (Gabriel) as Waraqa had mistakenly led Muhammad to believe.  Some Hadith sources give the name of the angel as NAMUS.

It is worrisome that there are no such names for any angels anywhere else in the Bible or the Quran.

“Namus” is an Arabic word that means “law” or “custom”. Whereas “Gabriel” means ‘God is my Strength’. So we have Gabriel whose name shows that he is a servant of God and depends on God as his strength, and Namus, who has his own throne and by the definition of his name, would imply that he depends on the law or customs (rituals).  Two very different beings.

So who was it who gave those revelations to Muhammad that became the basis for the Quran?

 

My conclusions

What Muhammad experienced during the first encounter shows signs of being an encounter by an evil spirit in the manner in which it attacked Muhammad. Hadiths show that Muhammad experienced the influence of magic, witchcraft, had delusions, became suicidal, became stark raving mad for 1 year before he recovered.

Fear is not from God, but from satan. Confusion is not from God. Muhammad was fearful. Muhammad was confused. He was possessed by an evil spirit who abused, tortured and treated him violently so that Muhammad would fall under his authority. It was not the REAL Gabriel. He would never have done that. Waraqa was grossly mistaken.  Read the accounts of Gabriel’s visits to humans and notice that his first words are always “Do not fear!” Satan is able to disguise himself as an angel of light. (2 Cor 11:14).

Satan is known as the father of lies. (John 8:44). What kind of message do you think the father of lies revealed? Jesus said, “The devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy”. (John 10:10)

In my opinion, Muhammad is not to be blamed. The finger needs to be pointed at NAMUS.

Who is NAMUS?

 

 

Hadith sources and references:

Sahih Bukhari Vol 1, Bk 1, No. 3; Vol 6, Bk 60, No. 478; Vol 9, Bk 87, No. 111; Sahih Muslim Bk 001, No. 0301, all by Aisha.

Sahih Bukhari Vol 1, Bk 1, No. 3; Vol 4, Bk 55, No. 605;  Vol 4, Bk 54, No. 461: ; Vol 6, Bk 60, No.444, 445, 447,448; Vol 8, Bk 73, No. 233 by Jabir bin Abdullah;

Sahih Muslim Bk 001, No. 0304, 0307, 0330, 0331, 0332, 0333, 0337, 0340.

Sahih Bukhari Vol 4, Bk 54, No. 457: by Aisha; Vol 4, Bk 54, No. 458: by Masruq; Vol 6, Bk 60, No. 379: by Abdullah; Vol 6, Bk 60, No. 380

Suicidal: Sahih Bukhari 9:87:111. Ibn Ishaq p.106-107

Delusions: Bukhari 8:73:220.

Deception: Ishaq 323

Witchcraft: Sahih Muslim 26:5428

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Jesus and Muhammad

Jesus and Muhammad

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If you study their biographies, Jesus and Muhammad lived very different lives. Their actions, their words and their teachings were different.

 

Let’s look at a few examples.

 

Muhammad said: “Allah hates those who don’t accept Islam.” (Qur’an 30:45, 3:32, 22:38)

Jesus said: God loves the whole world and desires salvation for all. (John 3:16)

 

Muhammad said: “Fight everyone in the way of Allah and kill those who disbelieve in Allah.” (Ibn Ishaq 992)

Jesus said: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 5:14)

 

Muhammad said: “I have been commanded to fight against people till they testify that there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah” (Muslim 1:33)

Jesus said: “I have come to seek and save those who are lost.” (Luke 19:10)

 

Muhammad stoned women for adultery. (Muslim 4206)

Jesus saved a woman from being stoned for adultery. (John 8:7)

 

Muhammad permitted Muslim stealing from unbelievers. (Bukhari 44:668, Ibn Ishaq 764)

Jesus said: “You shall not steal.” (Matthew 19:18)

 

Muhammad permitted Muslims to lie. (Sahih Muslim 6303, Bukhari 49:857)

Jesus said: “You shall not (lie) bear false witness.” (Matthew 19:18)

 

Muhammad owned and traded slaves. (Sahih Muslim 3901)

Jesus never owned or traded any slaves.

 

Muhammad and his followers beheaded 800 Jewish men and boys. (Sahih Muslim 4390)

Jesus and his followers beheaded no one.

 

Muhammad ordered the murder of those who insulted him. (Bukhari 56:369, 4:241)

Jesus preached forgiveness. (Matthew 18:21-22, 5:38)

 

Muhammad said: Jihad in the way of Allah elevates one’s position in Paradise by a hundred fold. (Muslim 4645)

Jesus said: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9)

 

Muhammad married 13 wives and kept many sex slaves. (Bukhari 5:268, Qur’an 33:50)

Jesus never married.

 

 

Muhammad ordered the murder of women. (Ibn Ishaq 819, 995)

Jesus never harmed any woman.

 

Muhammad killed captives taken in battle. (Ibn Ishaq 451)

Jesus never took captives or killed anyone.

 

Muhammad encouraged his men to rape their female slaves. (Abu Dawood 2150, Qur’an 4:24)

Jesus never enslaved women or encouraged rape.

 

Muhammad tortured people. (Muslim 4131, Ibn Ishaq 436, 595, 734, 764)

Jesus suffered torture, but never tortured anyone.

 

Muhammad said: “Fight them until there is no more persecution and religion is only for Allah” (Qur’an 8:39)

Jesus said: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44)

 

Muhammad praised the brutal murder of a half-blind man (al-Tabari 1440)

Jesus healed blind men (Mark 8:28, etc)

 

Muhammad ordered a slave to build the pulpit from which he preached Islam. (Bukhari 47:743)

Jesus washed his disciples feet to teach humility and servanthood. (John 13:5)

 

When Muhammad first heard from the angel, he was terrified, ran away fearing it was a demon and he even wanted to commit suicide.

When Jesus heard from God, he began his ministry with boldness.

 

God never spoke directly to Muhammad, but rather Muhammad received his calling from from an angel in the darkness of a cave.

God spoke directly to Jesus, in the daylight and with witnesses around.

 

Muhammad succumbed to magic and witchcraft.

Jesus commanded evil spirits and demons to flee from him.

 

Muhammad was a sinner. (Quran 40:55, 48:1-2)

Jesus never sinned. (1 Peter 2:22)

 

Muhammad performed no miracles.

Jesus performed many miracles.

 

 

Muhammad was just a man.

Jesus claimed to be God (John 8:24; 8:58), who had come in the form of a man.

 

As you can see the teaching and actions of Jesus and Muhammad were diametrically opposed. The thing is, if you accept one, you would have to reject the other becsue both cannot be right at the same time..

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Why Was The Quran Compiled Into A Book?

Why Was The Quran Compiled Into A Book?

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I have a question.

Who gave the instructions to compile the Quran into a book?

The Prophet Muhammad never gave any such command while he was alive. There was no such instructions from Allah during Muhammad’s lifetime.  The Quran then only existed in the memories of the reciters and some parts were written on stones, bones and leaves.

WHO made the suggestion to compile the Quran into a book? And this was years after Muhammad had died, so it wasn’t from Muhammad, the last prophet, and not from Allah.

The man was Umar ibn ibn Al-Khattāb. He was a close sahaba (companion) of the Prophet. (He would later go on to become the second caliph after Abu Bakr).

Umar got this idea because many of the reciters died in battle and he feared the the words of the Quran would be lost. So he suggested his idea to Abu Bakr, the closest companion of Muhammad.  Abu Bakr was shocked and said, “‘How can I do something which Allah’s apostle has not done?” But Umar kept on arguing until Abu Bakr was persuaded.

Then they went to get Muhammad’s personal scribe to be involved in the project, Zaid ibn Thabit.  What was Zaid’s initial reaction? Zaid said, “How dare you do a thing which the Prophet has not done?” They argued until they persuaded him.

The reactions of Abu Bakr and Zaid Ibn Thabit tell us that Muhammad had no intentions for the Quran to be compiled into a book but to remain in the memories of the reciters.

You can read it for yourself in the Hadith. See Sahih Bukhari Book 6, Volume 60 Hadith 201

 

Look at the Quran you hold in your hands. The words came from Allah but compiling it into a book was not Muhammad’s intention nor Allah’s command.  If it was, then the instructions would have been given during Muhammad’s lifetime.

Umar thought up the idea. Umar was not a prophet, but a companion of the prophet.

Another question that comes to mind is why isn’t the Quran arranged in the order that the verses were originally revealed to the Prophet?  In the Quran itself Allah says to Muhammad: “We have rehearsed it to you in slow, well-arranged stages, gradually” (Surah 25.32) ; meaning that the Quran was to be well-arranged and revealed in stages gradually and in order.

That would have made more sense.  But instead it was arranged according to the length of the chapters! Did Umar and Abu Bakr and Zaid make a mistake in the well-arranged order of the revelations that Allah gave to Muhammad?  They were not prophets and they did not have a divine right to compile the Quran in the way they did. Ultimately, were they right or wrong?  Unfortunately, the Prophet was no longer around to approve or disapprove of what they had done to the words of Allah.