Ever since Muhammad
uttered the claim that the Bible foretold him, Muslim apologists have been
desperate to prove that references to Muhammad are found there. That is
understandable; if he was correct, that would help to authenticate his
prophethood, if he was incorrect, then he was ignorant, misleading or
deceptive, and his prophethood would be discounted.
Muhammad's claim is
found in the Qur'an: Sura (chapter) 7:157:
"...to those that follow the apostle - the
unlettered prophet, whom they shall find described in the Torah and the
Gospel...".
Thus, the Qur'an states
that the writings of the Torah and the Gospel foretell Muhammad.
But Pathetic to say Muhammad was no where in Sacred scriptures!
TEXT - ISAIAH CHAPTER 21
Isaiah 21: (KJV)
1) The burden of the desert
of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the
desert from a terrible land. 2) A grievous vision is declared unto me, the
treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up Elam:
besiege Media: all the sighing thereof have I made to cease. 3) Therefore are
my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken ahold upon me, as the pangs of a
woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at
the seeing of it. 4) My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of
my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me. 5) Prepare the table, watch in
the watchtower, eat, drink: arise ye princes and anoint the shield. 6) For thus
hath the Lord said unto me, Go set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
7) And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a
chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed: 8) And he cried,
A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime and I
am set in my ward whole nights. 9) And behold there cometh a chariot of men
with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, "Babylon is fallen,
is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the
ground. 10) O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard
of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you. 11) The
burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night?
Watchman, what of the night? 12) The watchman said, The morning cometh and also
the night, if ye will inquire, inquire ye: return, come. 13) The burden upon
Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye traveling companies of
Dedanim. 14) The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was
thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled. 15) For they fled from
the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the
grievousness of war. 16) For thus hath the LORD said unto me, Within a year,
according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail:
17) And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of
Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD God of Israel hath spoken it
REVIEW OF ISAIAH CHAPTER 21, The Meaning what a Average Jew/Christian understand is :
This is part of the announcement of God's punishment on
several nations, which is listed in the chapters 13-24 of the Isaiah. Many
nations are mentioned. In chapters 18, 19, and 20, Egypt and Cush (Ethiopia)
are named, in chapter 17 - Damascus (Syria), in 15 and 16 - Moab (Jordan), in
chapter 14 - Assyria and Philistine, in chapter 22 - Jerusalem, and 23 - Tyre,
and so on. Each chapter describes judgment upon these nations.
Another facet of this
passage is see that God uses nations to punish other nations. In Isaiah 8:7,
God says He is going to use Assyria as one instrument of judgment. Likewise in
chapter 21, God is going to use Elam and Media as instruments of judgment on
various nations.
It is certainly not
impossible to have a "positive" prophecy in the midst of the oracles
of judgment, but the whole context of these passages shows that severe judgment
and punishment are going to be dealt out to various nations and groups of
people. Nor do the words in this prophecy really look any different from all
the "judgment of God on the nations" oracles that come in chapters
before and after the specific text of chapter 21. Clearly, it takes no
scholar to understand that Isaiah 21 is a prophecy of doom on Babylon, Edom,
Arabia, and others. There are no Messianic prophecies found here.
Historical facts after the prophecy:
- Isaiah prophesied this around 700 BC. Babylon was conquered in 539 BC by the Elamites and Medes under Cyrus II [1, p. 243 - 250].
- These are historical facts, they fit within the context of Isaiah's prophecy; and they fulfill the prophecy.
- Just as Isaiah predicted, Babylon was conquered. The temples destroyed.
- Northern Arabia and Kedar were attacked and conquered by Nebuchadnezzar (605 - 562 BC.) [1, p.1533].
Lets Look in to the Muhammad in Isaiah's 21. . .
Isaiah saw a vision of two riders. "And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels." Isaiah 21:7
Isaiah saw a vision of two riders. "And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels." Isaiah 21:7
Claim:
Who is the promised prophet who would ride
the camel? If it is not Muhammad (pbuh) then this prophecy has yet to be
fulfilled. Let us read on...
Reply:
- Error in assuming that Muhammad was the rider on the camel. Review the Isaiah text again, it says in KJV, "And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels." Isaiah 21:7. The reference is to a man in a chariot. Muhammad never rode a chariot that I know of (Is there any Hadits to prove welcome!). Camels, yes, but not chariots.
- Assumes it must be Muhammad as the rider on the camel (chariot). But many famous people have ridden camels. I'm sure Alexander the Great did, Caesar could have, and, I'm sure Moshe Dyan did as well. Perhaps Isaiah saw Moshe Dyan in his vision leading the victorious Israeli troops routing the Arabians, Kedarites, Edomites, Babylonians, etc.!
"The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled. For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war" Isaiah 21:14-15
Claim:
"Tema" is: "a place name and tribal name of Arabia; a son of Ishmael.... The name survives in Teima, an oasis of the part of the Arabian desert called the Nefud in N Central Arabia."
Claim:
"Tema" is: "a place name and tribal name of Arabia; a son of Ishmael.... The name survives in Teima, an oasis of the part of the Arabian desert called the Nefud in N Central Arabia."
- This word, Tema, is the name of the ninth son of Ishmael (the father of the Arabs), in Genesis 25:13-15,
Strong's concordance tells us that this name was also applied to the land settled by Tema the son of Ishmael. Indeed, this word, Teima, is an Arabic word which means "Barren desert". It remains the name of a city in the Arabian peninsula just north of "Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah," or "Madinah" for short . Muhammad and his companions were given sanction to migrate. They departed Makkah during the night and left all of their possessions behind. Upon reaching Madinah they were greeted by its citizens with open arms and Muhammad assigned each one of the Muhajireen (citizens of Makkah) to one of the Ansar (citizens of Madinah) to house and feed them until they could strike out on their own. This became the first year of the Arab "Hijra" (Emigration) calendar used in Islamic countries to this day.
Reply:
Misleads Statement, "Tema" was "just north", of Medinah. How much is "just north"? Tema is about 400 kilometers north of Medina!, not just a few miles away.
CONCLUSION
Muslim claims tried to prove that Isaiah 21 contained prophecies concerning Muhammad and the Muslims. They failed. As is evident, the prophecies in Isaiah 21 dealt with the countries near Israel at that time. And, as is documented by history, those prophecies were fulfilled.
Muslim claims made contextual errors in trying to relate Tema to Muhammad and trying to relate Kedar with Mecca. See the Jews victories over the Islamic forces during this century. Argument, that Isaiah 21 predicts Muhammad is to be rejected.
- " the grievousness of war", Muhammad was not emigrated from the heat of War. There was even no war at Mecca against Muhammad, He flees from there of cowardliness.
Misleads Statement, "Tema" was "just north", of Medinah. How much is "just north"? Tema is about 400 kilometers north of Medina!, not just a few miles away.
- Remember, distances of that size isolated communities far more than they do today. In that time Muhammad's migration to Yathrib (Medina's name before Muhammad got there) had nothing to do with Tema, nothing at all. But Tema is further away from Medina than Mecca and in the opposite direction. It is utter nonsense to suggest that people in Tema had anything to do with Muhammad's migration.
- In fact, not even the Islamic sources tell us people of Tema helped Muhammad in the hijra.
- The "inhabitants" of Medina didn't greet Muhammad and his followers with open arms.Only the immigrants from Mecca and the handful of Qaylites waited for him.
- The Jews numbered just under 1/2 of the cities population, and they and most of the other inhabitants of Yathrib were curious, suspecting, but not open-armed. Most were skeptical. Within about a year's time, the Jews, en masse had rejected him. The Jews mocked him, and proved his "religion" and "revelations" wrong, i.e., the Jews made a fool out of Muhammad, and were a threat to his credibility. Eventually, he either forced them to leave, or massacred and enslaved them.
- "Arabia, and all the princes of Kedar." Ezekiel 27:21
Claim:
The Arabs of Makkah, the capital of the paganistic tribes of Arabia of the day, were indeed defeated by the Muslims in the second year after their forced immigration from Makkah to Madinah (The Hijra). This victory signaled the turning point for Islam and a transition from a position of weakness to one of power and victory (for more, please read chapter 10).
- Non Proven claim, Arabia was capital of pagans.
- The victory of Badr was not a major turning point. Shortly thereafter, Muslims were badly defeated at the battle of Uhud. Muhammad even received a severe facial wound, an arrow pierced his cheek, knocking out a tooth or two, and caused him to bleed profusely. So, that this time, the Muslims were not a major power.
Reply:
CONCLUSION
Muslim claims tried to prove that Isaiah 21 contained prophecies concerning Muhammad and the Muslims. They failed. As is evident, the prophecies in Isaiah 21 dealt with the countries near Israel at that time. And, as is documented by history, those prophecies were fulfilled.
Muslim claims made contextual errors in trying to relate Tema to Muhammad and trying to relate Kedar with Mecca. See the Jews victories over the Islamic forces during this century. Argument, that Isaiah 21 predicts Muhammad is to be rejected.
Further reading of refutals :http://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/ishmael2.htm,http://www.answering-islam.org/Responses/Al-Kadhi/r06.04.html,http://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/ishmael.htm
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