The Witness of Previous BooksThe Bible and Torah to the Call of Allah's Messenger (sws)

We find a lot of verses that refer to the prophecy of Muhammad (sws) and bear witness to his call in the Torah and the Bible. The Holy Quran speaks about this frankly when Allah Almighty says,

We are going to mention some passages from previous books that preached the coming of Muhammad (sws) in the Torah:
1- From Deuteronomy, Chapter 18: 18:

I will raise them up a Prophet from amongst their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.

The word, "amongst," is not mentioned in the Septuagint17 or the Samaritan Pentateuch,18 so the text must therefore refer to the Israelites' brethren: the Ishmaelites

This clearly states that Allah Almighty will send a prophet from the brothers of the sons of Israel, meaning, the sons of Ismail (Ishmael, peace be upon him).

If the promised prophet was going to come from the sons of Israel, Allah would have said "a prophet from you" because the grandsons of Israel were excited about Moses (peace be upon him), so what was meant by "their brethren" was the sons of Ishmael (peace be upon him), because Ishmael was the brother of Isaac, the father of Israel (Jacob).

  This interpretation is emphasized by the phrase, "like unto thee." The similarity between Muhammad and Moses is clear because both of them came with a complete law. Likewise, both of them fled their enemies. Muhammad emigrated to Medina while Moses fled to al-Mada'in. As we see, there is even a coincidence between the names of the two cities [one is the plural of the
other in Arabic, ed.]. Both of them fought their enemies and were rewarded victory by Allah. 

There is no similarity between Moses and Jesus according to Christians, who claim that Jesus is God or His son. That is due to their lies and slanderous allegations.

In the Torah, Seir is a name of a mountain in Palestine. Paran is a mountain in the Hijaz where Ishmael (peace be upon him) emigrated with his mother Hagar. To be sure of that, we can read what is mentioned in the Samaritan Torah, according to a version issued in 1851, which says that Ishmael inhabited the area of Paran in the Hijaz.

Following this explanation, we can say that what is mentioned in Deuteronomy likens the prophecy of Moses (peace be upon him) to the first light of morning ("the Lord came from Sinai"), the prophecy of Jesus to the break of dawn ("And dawned on them from Seir"), and the prophecy of Muhammad (sws) to the rising of the sun and the spread of its light to the horizon. That is because he is the last of all prophets and messengers, and no prophet or messenger will come after him. 

In the Holy Quran, Allah said,

The fig and the olive are a reference to where they grow—the land from which Jesus came. Mount Sinai refers to the place Moses came from, and "this city of security" is a reference to the place Muhammad came from—the Holy City of Mecca, which is also where Ismail lived.

The following is some evidence from that which was mentioned in previous scriptures, foretelling the prophecy of Muhammad (sws):

1 - In the Torah, Book of Deuteronomy, it speaks of a prophet like you from your brethren. It tells him to advise them to obey any words the prophet says.

This means that Allah Almighty would send a prophet coming from the brothers of the Jews (the sons of Ismail). Allah Almighty asked Moses to tell his people about the prophet. If Allah wanted him to be from the people of Israel, he would say from your people, the twelve parties of the sons of Israel, but Allah said, from your brothers, meaning the sons of Ismail (Ishmael). Ishmael was the brother of Isaac (who is Israel's, i.e. Jacob's, father), peace be upon them all.

The similarity between Muhammad (sws) and Moses is clear, because both of them were sent with a complete law. But Jesus said, "I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill." [Matthew 5:17]

Again, both Muhammad (sws) and Moses emigrated to escape their enemies: Muhammad (sws) fled to Medina while Moses fled to Mada'in, and the similarity between the two city names is not lost to the Arabic speaker. Both of them fought their enemies and were granted victory by Allah. There is no similarity between Moses and Jesus to a Christians, for they claim that Jesus is a god
or the son of God.

2 - The Jews knew well the features and the descriptions of the final prophet from their books. They believed that he would be one of them as were many prophets before him. In Medina, they predicted the coming of a prophet by whose side they would fight. The Arabs did not predict that this prophet would be one of them because they worshipped idols beside Allah. The people of Medina knew about the matter of a coming prophet from the Jews, so they were the first to believe and support him, while the Jews envied the prophet and the people of Medina greatly. They denied his prophecy, although his features and description were mentioned in their books. As we see, the Jews of Medina were one of the reasons that motivated the people of Medina to become the first to believe in the prophet and his call. They had heard a lot about him from the Jews who lived with them in Medina. 

From the Torah, Isaiah, 29:12,

Then the book is delivered to one who is illiterate, saying, "Read this, please." 

And he says, "I am not literate."

The Prophet Muhammad (sws) was illiterate and could not read or write. So, the Prophet's (sws) illiteracy was a true witness to his call and prophecy.

He was illiterate, yet he educated the whole of mankind, both learned and unlearned. He taught them the meaning of monotheism and pure worship of Allah. He is the one who was sent with a straight law and sublime teachings. He was unable to read or write, but scientists, jurists and modern scholars have all graduated from his university.

  Salman, the Persian (one of the Companions) went to the Arab countries to wait for that honest prophet, leaving behind all the luxury he had in Persia. 

In the Gospel of John, it says,

The son of man will come and the Paraclete (Consoler) after him will come to you with secret knowledge and explain everything to you. He will testify to me as I testify to him. 

The Gospel of John preaches that a prophet will come after Jesus. 

Now we are going to learn the meaning of the word, "Paraclete."

This word, which was mentioned in the London copy of 1821, 1831 and 1844, means "one who receives a lot of praise" and this is found in the Greek language. This is also the meaning of the name, "Ahmad," as Dr. Carlonlino, who has a Ph.D. in Ancient Greek, has said.

In the Hebrew dictionary, the word "farqaleet" means "praise." The names Ahmad, Muhammad, and Mahmoud are all derived from "praise," "al-hamd," and all these names describe the Prophet (sws). Allah's Messenger (sws) is praised in the earth and in the heavens, and Allah Almighty has given him the praised position in the Afterlife.

If we explain the word, "Consoler," we will find that it is the coming of Allah's Messenger (sws). To console the believers and the afflicted, he asked them to be patient and reminded them of the great reward of Allah.

In the Gospel of John 16: 12-14: Jesus, son of Mary, described the Paraclete who will come after him, saying:

I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when he, the Spirit of Truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak; and he will tell you things to come.

We notice that all the qualities mentioned in the Gospel of John apply to Allah's Messenger (sws):
• He blamed those who do not believe in the mission of Jesus (peace be upon him) for
their disbelief.
• He guides to the truth.
• He does not speak on his own, but from what he hears and what is revealed to him by
Allah.
• He tells of things to come in the future, for example when he (sws) said,

What the Prophet (sws) said came to pass in the year 41 Hijri, after his death. Al-Hassan gave up the caliphate to Mu`awiya to prevent bloodshed between Muslims.Allah's Messenger (sws) also said,

This did indeed happen, and what the Prophet (sws) foretold came to pass. The Prophet (sws) honored Jesus, son of Mary, and what is mentioned in the Holy Quran supports this.

Many other verses describing the characteristics of the awaited prophet, as in the Gospel of John, apply to Allah's Messenger (sws).

In the Gospel of Matthew 21: 42-44: Jesus, son of Mary, tells us about the nation of that illiterate prophet, 

Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures:

The stone that the builders refused

Has become the head cornerstone.

This was the Lord's doing,

And it is marvelous in our eyes.

"Therefore I say unto you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. And whosoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."

This is the nation of the Prophet Muhammad (sws).

Before the mission of the Prophet Muhammad (sws), the Arabs were disunited and fighting tribes, without king or chief, and ignorance prevailed, so most of them were illiterate.

But after the final prophet (sws), Allah reconciled their hearts and reunited them under the leadership of that honest prophet, Muhammad (sws). They believed him and his message, so Muslims developed a great and vast nation, stretching to the north, south, east and west. That was due to the victory of Allah and His support for them.

There are many books that preach about the Prophet Muhammad (sws) and his message. Some references on that topic are:
• Guiding the Perplexed in Answers to the Jews and Christians, by Ibn al-Qayyim
• What the Torah and the Bible Say about Muhammad (sws), by Ahmad Deedat
• Muhammad in the Torah and the Bible, by Ibrahim al-Khalil, a priest who embraced Islam

Millions of those who adopt Islam have been assured by clear texts that Islam is the religion of Allah, the Creator, and that Prophet Muhammad (sws) was the last of all prophets and messengers.

All of this was written in the Torah and the Bible, as well as in previous books.

What will you do in the appointed day,

And in the day of the feast of the Lord?

For indeed they are gone because of destruction.

Egypt shall gather them up;

Memphis shall bury them.

Nettles shall possess their valuables of silver;

Thorns shall be in their tents.

      [Hosea 9: 5-6] 

Those who are the progeny of Israel were rescued from the affliction of the Pharaoh and his assistants. Egypt captured them, and Memphis—an ancient Egyptian city—was their graveyard.

The word found as "nettles" in the English translation is pronounced "mahmad" in the original Hebrew, and it is a proper noun, referring to the Prophet Muhammad (sws).

If we take these two words as a separate sentence from the next two words and translate the Hebrew text literally, we would find a plural pronoun referring to the singular, and that does not make sense in the Hebrew language.

Wilhelm Gesenius mentioned in his book, "Hebrew Grammar," that the origin of that sentence is: "mahmadi lakhsabam."

The Hebrew text remained unvocalized for more than a thousand years until Jewish scholars added the vowels according to their understanding. Some they got right, some they got wrong and some they distorted on purpose. Before it was corrupted, the word "mahmad" was written "mhmd" without vocalization. All scholars of the Old Testament agreed on that. All that is left is to admit that "mhmd" is a proper name that refers to the Prophet Muhammad (sws), for he truly is the Prophet of Allah.