Psalm 22:

Is it a Prophecy about Christ?

Gen. James Green

“To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent. But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded. But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. But thou art he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother’s breasts. I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly. Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help. Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me. Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion’s mouth: for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns. I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel. For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard. My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him. The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever. All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. For the kingdom is the LORD’S: and he is the governor among the nations. All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul. A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this” (Psalm 22).

B OTH MUSLIMS and Jews accuse the Christians of having a “corrupted” Bible. I’ve dealt with this on certain texts over the years, but today I want to introduce Tim Hegg’s article on Psalm 22:16: “like a lion,” or “they pierced?,” following my article dealing with the Muslims; he deals with the Jews.

For centuries there has been a question about the correct meaning of Psalm 22:16. The Septuagint, a translation of the Hebrew text into Greek, beginning 300 years before Christ, says that ‘they dug a hole in,’ or ‘they pierced, my hands and my feet.’ However, the Hebrew clearly says “like a lion” instead of “they dug a hole.” The difference is in the last letter on the left side of the (yod) word.

Both Muslim and Jewish scribes believe that the Christian church “messed” with the “original Biblical texts.” On the other hand, there have been counter claims that Jewish scribes altered their own text in order to DISCREDIT a key prophecy—Ps. 22—about Christ’s crucifixion. We know Muhammad was taught this (by who?). Still others have claimed that the Septuagint (LXX) was “altered” by the early church in order to make the Old Testament agree with the New Testament. Of course we’re only dealing with Ps. 22.

I’ll let Tim Hegg tell about the great discovery at Nachul Hever, where ONE scrap of text contained the line from Ps. 22:16.

Islam’s Claim

IN THIS ARTICLE I will introduce Ibn Kathir’s Stories of the Prophets, also Al Fida Ishamail Ibn Kathir Al Kurashi Al Damashce (Beirut: Dar Al-Arab Heritage, 1408 AH, 1988). Most modern Muslims are familiar with this guy’s book. One will “catch the spirit” of the Islamic mind concerning what our Bible really says, compared to what they

1- believe it says, and

2- what they want it to say.

When one reads their Qur’an—which they claim is the FINAL REVELATION of Allah to humankind, one will see just how “crazy” a mind can go on religious matters (when they try to convince us that our Bible has been “corrupted.” Yet, if you ask them to produce just ONE uncorrupted Bible (they must [?] have one in order to tell us that our Bible has been altered /corrupted), they CAN’T produce it!!

In this study, I want to show you the differences between the Quranic, and the much older Biblical account of the death of Christ—which they DENY (by crucifixion). When our Bible and their Quran disagree, they, of course, will hurl the “corrupted Bible” issue at you…without any proof from their side.

Jesus the Christ

THE QURAN contains many positive verses about Jesus: He was sinless, a Prophet, a healer, but never that He was Divine (God the Son), nor did He die on the Cross for the sins of the world. It is this that we want to examine.

The Quran accuses some evil Jews of hiding, as well as perverting some Biblical texts. In Muhammad’s day there were both good and bad Jews. Sura 7:159 tells us that the people of the book (Jews/Christians) HAD the AUTHENTIC Bible of Moses. I ask, when did our Bible become corrupted? Do Muslims have a corrupted Bible? Their “Prophet” never accused the Christians of corruption, only certain Jews, yet, today, we are also accused of this SIN! This alleged conspiracy has brought millions to their death (ISIS reminds us of all this).

A. A. Abdul-Hagg asks: “In the name of common sense, one might ask as to how the Jews and Christians, who were known to be irreconcilable enemies of each other (Sura 2:113), got together to corrupt the Bible?” Good question. However, we do know that the Jews omit certain words and add certain words in order to discredit the claims of certain texts, e.g., Ps. 22:16. Jews did this. Why murder innocent Christians for something they did not do? Hegg points out in the following article that the “original” (off the original) texts agree, not disagree.

Sura 32:24 reads: “And verily we gave Moses the book; wherefore be not in doubt as to the reception of it.” Was Muhammad right or wrong? According to him, the Bible was not corrupted in his day; other places he believes it to be. It would be strange if Allah commanded his people (Muslims) to believe in and live by revealed Scriptures already corrupted. I highly suggest my readers read the following suras/verses: 46:11, 12, 30; 2:89 (Note: this attestation by the Quran covers not only the books of Moses, but ALL revelations previous to it—now contained in our Holy Bible); 35:31; 6:93; 10:38 (Both Islamic scholars Al Baidhawi and Jalaluddin agree that the expression that which precedeth it” means the Holy Scriptures revealed before the Quran. One needs to read Pickethall’s 5:48 and 3:48. Al Baidhawi writes (as quoted by W. Muir, CORAN, p. 205) “A keeper over the whole of the sacred books, such as shall preserve them from change, and witness to their truth and authority.” Sura 6:115, 10:65, and 6:34 tell us that “The Words of the Lord are perfect in truth and justice; there is none who can change His Words. He both heareth and knoweth.” I could write pages on this, so let us proceed on to the death of Christ Jesus.

Lies of

Jesus’ Crucifixion

IN “STORIES of the Prophets” by Ibn Kathir, a couple of passages from the Quran have been inserted:

“And they deceived, and Allah deceived. And Allah is the best deceiver. When Allah said, O Isa (Jesus) surely I am causing you to die, and I am raising you up to me and purifying you from those who became infidels and make those who follow you above those who become infidels, until the resurrection day. Then to me is your return, so I will judge between you about what you were differing” (Quran 3:54, 55, 2/110).

“They have incurred divine displeasure: in that they broke their covenant; that they rejected the signs of God (Allah); that they slew the messengers in defiance of right; that they said, ‘Our hearts are the wrappings which preserve God’s Word; we need no more’—nay, God hath set the seal on their hearts for their blasphemy, and little is it they believe;—that they rejected faith; that they uttered against Mary, a grave false charge; that they said (in boast), ‘we killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Apostle of God’—but they killed Him not, nor crucified Him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow, for of a surety they killed Him not:—Nay, God raised Him up unto Himself; and God is Exalted in Power, Wise;—and there is none of The People of the Book but must believe in Him before His death; and on the Day of Judgment He will be a witness against them” (Quran 155-159 taken from Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s 1934 translation). One needs to read Ali’s footnotes on these verses. He says in part: “The Orthodox Christian churches make it a cardinal point of their doctrine that His (Jesus’) life was taken on the Cross, that He died and was buried, that on the third day He rose in the body with His wound intact…which is REJECTED BY ISLAM” (note 663). So, when you hear these fool “Christians” claiming that Islam and Christianity are in agreement, better do your homework! They MOCK the “crucifixion” dear ones.

Tell me, Muslims, which one of you was THERE when Jesus was crucified? NONE!!, but many of Jesus’ disciples witnessed that event, and hundreds literally saw Him after that event. Are we to believe your CORRUPTED Quran? Certainly not!!

Ali continues: “…the Quranic teaching is that Christ was NOT crucified nor killed by the Jews (they are half right, the Romans did the killing with their pleadings!)…” Then Ali gets into la-la-land stuff (like Twilight Zone!) by saying: “…certain apparent circumstances which produced that ILLUSION in the minds of some of His enemies…” HA! It is recorded long before the Quran came along, that Jesus was put to death on the Cross—not a mere illusion Muslims!! Ali tries in vain to make out that God raised Jesus up (rata’a) to Himself, by passing crucifixion. Well, Ps. 22:16 refutes that claim (see New Testament: Luke 23:34, 35; Jn. 19:16-28; 2 Cor. 5:21; Mk. 15:34; Mt. 27:39-43; Ps. 16:9-11 declares that Jesus’ dead body was not to decay, but be resurrected; Ps. 22:1 speaks of Jesus’ Words on the Cross, see also 2 Cor. 5:21 and Mk. 15:34; Acts 2:31 and Jn. 20:9; Ps. 31:5 and Lk. 23:46 speaks of Jesus’ Words on the Cross; Ps. 69:21 and Mt. 27:34 speaks of the Thirst of Jesus on the Cross; Isa. 50:6 and Mt. 26:67; 27:26-30 speaks of Jesus flogged before His Cross experience; and Isa. 53 certainly bears witness of Jesus’ ordeals, see also 1 Pet. 2:24; Mt. 27:26, 41-43; Col. 1:20, Gal. 1:4; 1 Jn. 4:10; Zech. 12:10 and Jn. 1:11; 10:30 and 19:34-37 speaks of Jesus’ body that would be pierced; etc.).

Do Muslims Have

The Holy Spirit?

NO! THE BIBLE declares that no man or woman can know Jesus or His Word without the Holy Spirit. Pray tell me how Muslims can interpret Scripture without it? They can’t!

Back to Ibn Kathir’s fabricated stories. He interpreted Quran 3:54-55 and 4:155-159 that Allah (Muslims’ “moon god”) told us that he raised ‘Isa up to the heavens after he caused him to die thru sleeping.’ To make himself even more of a fool, Kathir said that Muhammad Ibn Isaac said this king’s name was David Ibn Nora (or king Ibn Nora). Where does he get this piece of info? Not from the Bible? In fact, the Romans placed a sign above Jesus’ head that read: “Jesus, king of the Jews” (Jn. 19:19). Herod the Great had died 25 years prior to Jesus’ death, who, by the way, was an Edomite Jewish Roman-client king. During Jesus’ life, Judea province was formed under Roman rule, and governed by a prefect (not a king!). P. Pilate was the prefect of Judea from 26-36 AD, which covered the time of Jesus’ Cross ordeal. One only needs to read Kathir’s falsehoods in order to see the mindset of Muslims.

What of Quran 4:159?

“AND THERE is none of the People of the Book but must believe in him before his death…” Did Jesus DIE or SLEEP? Well, Ali’s footnote 665 states: “Interpreters are not agreed as to the exact meaning (wow!). Those who hold that Jesus did not die refer the pronoun ‘his’ to Jesus. They say that Jesus is still living in the body, and that he will appear just before the Final Day in preparation from the coming of Imam Mahdi, when the world will be purified of sin and unbelief (—of course with their “bloody” help=heads roll, Christians are burnt alive etc.)…others think that ‘his’ is better referred to ‘none of the People of the Book,’ and that the emphatic form ‘must believe’ denotes more a question of duty than a fact.”

Kathir believes that it “means that they will believe in Jesus after he comes down to earth at the end of time before the hour of judgment. Surely he will come down, kill the pig, break the Cross, establish a tribute tax, and believe in Islam. He will also kill the antichrist” (U.K. Dakdok, “Exposing The Truth about the Quran,” p. 32).

Redemptive Death

of Christ

THE QURAN recognizes that the practice of offering sacrifices is universal (see Quran 22:32-34). The pre-Islamic Arab did this to their various gods/goddesses. But idolatry, according to both Old Testament and Islam, was punishable by death. When Muhammad destroyed all those idols contained in the Kaaba, he retained the shrine itself, which has become Islam’s great “Black” idol. So, why should Muslims murder Jews/Christians/pagans for “idol worship” when they, by the millions, worship the “Black Shrine”?

And, may I now address, do Muslims murder Christians for worshiping Jesus—the very Jesus they claim was/is SINLESS? And, to put it more explicit, why murder Christians for obeying the Bible, when Islam demands obedience to their unholy book?...or die. One only has to check out what Muslims do during Ramadan (see Quran 2:185). Yet, when we Christians and Jews worship (or celebrate/honor) certain Biblical days, we are accused of IDOLATRY. HYPOCRITES!!

Did you know that Ramadan and other Islamic exercises are believed to be of ATONING value? SO since, not “if,” Jesus is our ATONEMENT for sin, why should we not honor/celebrate/worship Him, and what He did? (Note: Hebrew sacrifices only covered sins of the people, but did not remove them; Christian New Testament sacrifice of Jesus—death on the Cross—removes the sins; [Kaffora, in Arabic] agrees with the Old Testament atonement= “covering up by a substitute” [see Mishkat, Book 4, cpt. 49. Eminent Hebrew scholar Edersheim tells us what blood atonement is in his “The Temple,” pp. 321, 322.)

I need to mention all this in order to show WHY Christians honor/worship Jesus the risen Christ and Lord.

“Atonement,” in the Biblical context, means an “expiation for sins, or man, made by God.” The closest thing we find in the Quran is Sura 37:99-111, about Abraham and his son (the Quran does not mention what son Abraham was to offer, but most Muslims believe it was intended to be Ishmael, not Isaac (“Al-dhabib”). That was Old Testament. Now we come to the New Testament.

Jews/Muslims

THE SUFFERING and death of Jesus has become a stumbling block to the Jews and Muslims. The condescension of Jesus, the Son of God (God in flesh!), is spoke of in Phil. 2:6, 7 (see Heb. 1:9 also). He came to earth in order to free the spiritual slaves, (from Satan’s grip) and die for their sins (see Mark 10:45). I do not have to repeat the whole account, one can read the (reliable) Scriptures themselves. But when one reads the Quran, harmonization is difficult (see Sura 3:7 for example). The Bible declares that God does not desire for sinners to perish (see 2 Pet. 3:9, since man’s sins have separated us from Him (see Isa. 59:2), therefore ALL sinners are under the judgment of God, for the wages of sin is death (both naturally and spiritually—Rom. 6:23). Through REPENTANCE we can receive FORGIVENESS (Rom. 3:26 and Jn. 3:16).

But the Quran (Q=Qur‘an) teaches otherwise. The mercy of God is acknowledged along with Allah’s LACK of concern as to the FATE of mankind. Just HOW do Muslims find forgiveness? They don’t!! Both Jesus and the Baptist preached REPENTANCE (see Mat. 3:2 and 4:17; see also Acts 3:19 and 18:3).

The Quranic position on the nature of sin/forgiveness consists of strands of teaching, which is difficult to harmonize the pattern. “Forgiveness of sin” is mentioned below:

Q 39:54; 40:1; the conditions follow: 3:29; 57:28; 46:30; 71:4=follow in Muhammad; 9:5; 49:14; 9:12=conversion to Islam; 5:78; 33:73; 4:51=forsaking polytheism; 5:96-98; 58:3=making an expiation of breaking the ceremonial law; 64:17; 9:100; 30:27=a reward of good actions (like MURDERING non-Muslims!).

“Salvation” (Noja) is only mentioned in Q 40:41. “Regeneration” is hardly mentioned, but it is a MUST to be “born-again” as Jesus declares 3 times in John cpt. 3. The Bible tells us that Jesus is the “bridge” or “mediator” to God. Islam speaks of “Al-Sirat,” or a bridge across the fire of Hell. The Author of Sharh al-Muwaqif says this:

“Besides those who are unbelievers, all those (Muslims) who are sinners and have committed great sink (kabir), will go to Hell, but they will not remain there always, for it has said in the Quran (see 99:7 which says: ‘He who does an atom of good shall see its reward’). Wow! What a doctrine to believe in. The Bible tells us just the opposite.

Pardon

WHILE IT IS TRUE that a Muslim has only to ask for pardon and receive forgiveness (see Mishkat, Book X, cpt. II), Allah is NOT God! The Muslims god is a made-up god who cannot forgive. This is why we MUST witness to the Muslims—they ARE LOST!

Muslim Scholars

ONE AUTHOR and preacher stated that he was overwhelmed by the sheer number of stories written by Muslim scholars that are fabricated. And they want us to believe in them? The biggest of course is the “sleeping” lie, or “swooning on the Cross” lie.

It is said by many scholars (anti-Islam ones), whose literature I’ve read over the years, that hardly any two Muslim scholars agree on Quranic interpretation.

Just what do the Muslims say about Quran 19:33, 34?: “And the peace be on me the day I was born and the day I die and the day I am raised alive. This is Isa, son of Mary, the saying of truth about which they doubt.” Ali has in his footnote 2485 (which he cites also v. 15) that “Christ was not crucified (see 4:157 which I’ve already quoted). But those who believe that he never died should ponder over this verse” (v. 33). Ali comments on v. 34: “The disputations about the nature of Jesus Christ were vain, but also persistent and sanguinary. The modern Christian churches have thrown them into the background, but they would do well to abandon irrational dogmas altogether.” Thanks Ali for Islamic advice!

Back to Quran 3:55

ALI’S TRANSLATION of 3:55 reads in part: “Behold! God said: ‘O Jesus! I will take thee and raise thee to myself and clear thee (of the falsehoods) of those who blaspheme…” His footnote 394 states: “Read this with 4:157 where, it is said that the Jews neither crucified nor killed Jesus, but that another was killed in his likeness…” Well now, neither the Quran nor the Hadiths ever let us know who this was, never named...Why not?

My first quote of 3:55 was taken from “The Generous Quran,” (an accurate modern English translation of the Quran by U.K. Dakdok). Dakdok makes note of the Arabic word “motawafek,” which is in the present tense, meaning: “I am causing you to die,” which means the death of Jesus will take place at any time. The order of the verse is: death by crucifixion, rising, and purification.

Quran 5:117

“ISA SAID, ‘I did not tell them except what you had commanded me, that serve Allah, my lord and your lord, and I was a witness among them as long as I was with them. So when you caused me to die, you were the watcher over them, and you are the witness of all things.’” This was the answer to the question Allah asked in v. 116 (which was whether or not Jesus had ever asked his people to worship him and Mary as gods; he denies this claim, which God would never have asked).

But what we need to pay attention to is the Arabic words “falama tawafytamy,” or “when you caused me to die.” This verb, according to Arabic scholars, is written in the past tense which means the action of the verb had already been completed, which, of course, teaches that Jesus did die. It is pointed out that in order to deny Jesus’ death (on the Cross), Islamic scholars just LIE, putting the statement in the future. I’ve always said many Islamic scholars/authors etc. are BIG LIARS!

To Believe,

or Not to Believe

AS I HAVE always said, the Quran is not reliable for truth. The Bible is reliable. There are thousands of ancient manuscripts that agree with each other; no corruption. Sure some translations word things differently, but the message and messengers are the same. Did Muhammad really believe in the Bible (centuries before the Quran)? “Say: We believe in God and in what he has sent to us, to Abraham, and to Ishmael, to Jacob” (Quran 2:127; 3:84).

“Say: We believe in this Book (Bible) revealed to us, as well as in what has been revealed to you. Our God and yours are one” (Quran 29:46). NO! Islam’s Allah and our LORD God Almighty are not one! If Muhammad really believed in the people of the Book, he would believe in what they preached—Jesus died on a Cross for the sins of the world!

“Those to whom knowledge has come see that the revelation sent down to you from your Lord—That is the Truth” (Quran 34:6).

“To whom we have given the Book, know that it has been sent down from your Lord in Truth” (Q 6:114).

“When they listen to the revelation received by the apostle, you will see their eyes overflowing with tears, for they recognize the truth” (Q 5:83).

“Truth has arrived, and falsehood perished” (Q 17:81).

“O People of the Book! You have no ground to stand upon unless you stand fast by the Pentateuch (Old Testament), the Gospel (New Testament), and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord” (Q 5:68).

“O my Lord! Let my entry be by the gate of truth and my exit by the gate of truth” (Q 17:80).

These suras/verses were written long before the making of the Quran. The Quran describes the GENUINE/REAL faith of people by their acceptance of the whole revelation: “But those among them (Nosrania-see 2:62; 5:18=general name for Christians, which associates the early believers with Jesus of Nazareth) who are well-grounded in knowledge, and the believers (among Arabs) believe in what has been revealed before you (the Old Testament/ the New Testament)” (Q 4:162, see also 5:59).

Question

SINCE THE QURAN highly praises the People of the Book and the Book (whole Bible!) itself, why do Muslims refuse to believe in it? Can they show us all the “corruption” in our Bible AFTER these suras were written and later compiled into what is known as the Quran? Did John 14:6 exist in Muhammad’s day (the very Words of Jesus where He said: “I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE: no man cometh unto the Father [God, not the Arab God Allah!], but by Me”)? In fact, do the Muslims believe anything written in the Holy Bible? Was Muhammad mad? He asked the Arabs and the children of Israel (and Christians) to believe in the Pentateuch/Gospel AND the Quran (which had not even been compiled).

He or she who only believes in the Gospel will be one of those “Christians” who, according to Q 4:171 and 5:77, “exaggerates” his/her religion (We have those even today). Those who believe in the (Arabic) Quran will be one of those Muslims considered as followers of Muahaf ‘Uthman (the revisionists of the Quran at the time of Caliph Uthman), and not of Muhammad.

“O believers! Believe in God, in his apostle, in the book that has come to you and in the Scriptures coming down before it” (Q 4:136).

“We believe in god and the revelation that has come to us and that which came before us” (Q 5:59).

Let me quote the whole verse: “Say: ‘O People of the Book! Do ye disapprove of us for no other reason than that we believe in God, and the revelation that hath come to us and that which came before (us), and (perhaps) that most of you are rebellious and disobedient?” (Ali’s translation). He has a footnote (769) that says in part: “…who were the people who incurred the curse of God?” He lists several books/verses which, by the way are correct. Just because God’s own people (Israelites/ Hebrews/Jews, or what have you) disobeyed Him and His Word in no wise makes His written Word wrong. In fact, it tells the truth on the Jews (and our New Testament also points out this very sin of disobedience). But, my point in this is to show you that when sura 5:59 was written, the Muslims believed in: “the revelation that hath come to us and that which came before (us)…” They didn’t claim corruption!! These truly know and believe “that there is no god except Him whom the children of Israel believe in” (Q 10:90).

It Was True

IN MUHAMMAD’S DAY there were real Christians and fake ones—as today. He was wrongly taught by the fakes that did not believe in Christ’s divinity, the tri-unity etc. But the orthodox nature of Jesus Christ had been agreed on at the counsel of Nicaea (325 AD), but various creeds remained—the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of the East were divided. The Quran can be discerned by some of those sects/creeds that did not follow the Scripture. Sadly, Islam’s prophet believed/preached falsehoods—not from the Scripture, but from false teachers, Waraqa Ibn Naufal being one of Muhammad’s teachers (see my other articles on Naufal). The Nosrania (non-Trinitarian sect) opposed the Trinitarians. So, the Quran’s “People of the Book” were a mixture of sectarian Jews, Nosrania believers, and true orthodox Christians. But, the Holy Bible remained the same.

Condemnation!

“They do blaspheme who say: ‘God is the Messiah, the son of Mary.’ But the Messiah said: ‘O children of Israel! Worship God, my Lord and your Lord. Whoever joins other gods to God, God will forbid him the paradise, and the fire will be his abode’…They do blaspheme who say: ‘God is one of the three in a Trinity.’ There is no god except one God. The Messiah, son of Mary, is no more than an Apostle…” (Q 5:73-75). Sorry Muslims, the tri-unity (3 in ONE or 3 in unity) is a Bible doctrine (see our articles on this also).

So, Islam’s prophet was taught both truth and falsehoods…but the Word is still the same for all to read.

Mt. 26:2

DID MUHAMMAD ever read Matthew 26:2?: “Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified.”

Was this saying of Jesus in the original text? Of course! His crucifixion occurred on the day of “the preparation of the passover” (see Jn. 19:14). Jesus IS our passover…sacrificed for us! (see 1 Cor. 5:7).

Heb. 10:19, 20

“HAVING THEREFORE, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.”

Jesus, thru His atoning death upon the Cross (see Gal. 3:13, 14), fulfilled the demand of the law upon sinners, through Himself and opened the WAY for them to the very presence of God, as Heb. 10:19, 20 states.

The appearance of the Word in flesh, His unique ministry (unlike Muhammad’s, which was WAR/SLAVERY etc.), and His atoning death was complete. He came to be SAVIOUR, not just for the “lost Jews,” but for the “lost world” (see Jn. 10:16).

Light!

“FOR GOD, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).

This salvation/reconciliation is now in progress—for Muslims as well. The Bible calls it being “born again,” or being “born of the Spirit” (Jn. 3); we only experience this when we repent of our sins, forsake them, invite Christ into our hearts…then the “Spiritual Light” comes in and sparks divine life/light into our human spirit.

The phrase “face of God” is found in the Quran (see 2:115; 28:88; 13:22; 6:52; 30:38 etc.). Our Bible, dear Muslims, carries the “Good News” that we can receive “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

JESUS IS OUR MEDIATOR, NOT MUHAMMAD, BETWEEN GOD AND MAN. Paul, whom the Muslims recognize as a great man of God, wrote: “For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1 Cor. 13:12). Today, we can know God/Jesus in part; but in the resurrection, fully. We only experience Them (Father-Son-Holy Spirit) in part now, but this is more than what Islam offers.

A truly born-again person comes to know Them in a tri-personal dimension. The Father and the Holy Spirit are present in the Son who walks hand-in-hand with any true Christian (see 1 Cor. 1:9; 1 Jn. 3:6).

To be sure, the earliest suras dwell on the omnipotence of God (they call him Allah) rather than His unity (3 in one). This is not polytheism. Even Islam teaches this tri-unity concept. The Quran affirms that Jesus was empowered by and endowed with the Holy Ghost (or Spirit), see Surat al-Baqarah (The Cow) 2:253= “And we gave Jesus, son of Mary clear proofs (of Allah’s sovereignty) and we supported him with the holy Spirit” (see also 4:171). Luke 4:1 reads: “And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost…” (see also v. 14). The Father sent the Holy Spirit unto Jesus=3 in persons, yet ONE GOD!

Of course most Muslim scholars do not agree on interpretation. Of course! Al Saddi and Kaab write: “The Holy Spirit is Gabriel, and his support of Jesus was by being His companion and friend…” Of course they are WRONG!

Ibn Jubair writes: “Spirit of the Holy is the supreme name for Allah and by it Jesus was raising the dead.”

Ibn Abbas writes: “As it was the spirit which was breathed into Him and the Holy One is Allah so He is the Spirit of Allah” (see Abd Al-Fadi, pp. 11, 12).

Jesus = Word of God

THE QURAN TESTIFIES that Jesus is the Word of God: “The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His Word which He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him” (Surat al-Nisa [women] 4:171, see also Surat al-Imran [The Family of Imran] 3:39).

Jesus = Allah’s

Mediator and Messiah?

SURAT AL-ZUMAR (The Troops) 39:44 tells us that intercession belongs to Allah alone, but, as usual, we find contradictions, the Quran hints that intercession is also one of the privileges of the Messiah (see Surat al-Imran 3:45). “Messiah” is the Hebrew title for God’s anointed Savior. “Christ” is the Greek equivalent. “Almassen” is the Arabic term. The Quran affirms Jesus as the only Messiah of God.

Conclusion

WHAT DO THE Scriptures declare? Prof. Michael Green (no relation), of Regent College, stated that the Gospels are the best authenticated of all ancient documents from that period some two thousand years ago. He declared: “We have copies of them going back to well within the century of their composition, which is fantastic compared with the classic authors of the period.” He continues: “And in striking contrast to the 2 or 3 manuscripts we have attesting the text of these secular writers, we have hundreds of the New Testament. They give us the text of the New Testament with astonishing uniformity” (“The Signature of God,” p. 83).

Sadly, Muslims see Jesus as a sinless moral teacher, but reject the Bible’s claim of His deity and that He died for our salvation. But the Bible is true and accurate. The reliability of the New Testament is confirmed by the world’s best Scholars. Adding to this are discoveries of archeology (following my article) that have the accuracy, authority, and the inspiration of Scripture. Small details are noted among them, but the BIG picture is unified.

Adding to this is the confirmation from non-Christian sources. One may like to examine Cornelius Tacitus’ (Gov. of Asia and Roman historian) manuscript. He himself declared: “Christus (Christ), the founder...was PUT TO DEATH by Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberius…” (see Annals XV 44). This guy had complete access to the government archives of Rome, confirmed many details in the Gospels, Acts, and Romans.

Suetonius (Roman Historian), in his “Life of Claudius” (25'4), he referred to the Christians causing trouble in Rome. He identifies the sect of Christians being derived from: “the instigation of Chrestus” which was his spelling of the name of Christ.

Pliny or Plinius Secundus, declared that Christians were: “in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verse a hymn to Christ as to a god…” This guy was governor of the Roman province of Bithynia (Turkey) in A.D. 112. In his Epistles X96, he states that Christians would not worship Emperor Trajon and would not curse their leader, Christ, even under torture. Praise God for those faithful Christians. He declared that their martyrdom was because of their love for Jesus.

Lucian of Samosata lived a century after Christ. In the Passing Peregrinus, he wrote that Jesus was worshiped by His disciples and was “The man who was crucified in Palestine because He introduced this new cult into the world.”

We’re all familiar with Falvius Josephus, who, in Antiquities of the Jews, book XVIII, cpt. III, Sect. 3 wrote: “…Christ, and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men among us, had condemned Him to the Cross…Josephus wrote accurate accounts of the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.”

One can research this subject. Numerous liberal scholars have lied about all these references to Christ, claiming them to be forgeries or interpolations. They claim Josephus’ works are not true. Well, can they prove this? They can’t produce one iota of proof, if they had found even ONE copy of his work that failed to mention Jesus, we would consider. None so far.

History of the Christian church, by Phil Schaff, notes that ALL ancient copies of Josephus’ book, even including the early Slavonic (Russian) and Arabic language versions, contain words about Jesus.

I have Craig Blomberg’s “Historical Reliability of the Gospels” (1987) that states: “Many recent studies of Josephus however, agree that much of the passage closely resembles Josephus’ style of writing elsewhere.” He goes on to write: “most of the passage seems to be authentic and is certainly the most important ancient non-Christian testimony to the life of Jesus which has been preserved” (see also R. C. Stone’s article, “Josephus,” and Arnold Toynbee).

Julius Africanus (AD 215) recorded the writings of pagan historian Thallus (AD 52), who recorded in his history that there was a miraculous darkness at the Passover in AD 32. He believed it to be a solar eclipse, but the Bible tells us it was because of the death of Christ on the Cross.

Henry M. Morris, PhD (whose works I have read) boldly says that we can totally, WHOLLY TRUST THE MANUSCRIPTS AS CORRECT RECORDS of the events in the Bible. One needs to read Philip Schaff’s “The Person of Christ” (1913), who wrote about Jesus’ influence on the world.

Also, we have the Dead Sea Scrolls which testify of Jesus.

In 1991, an unpublished scroll was published, which contained incredible references to the “Messiah” who suffered crucifixion for the sins of them (translated by Dr. R. Eisenman). He declared this: “The text is of the most far-reaching significance because it shows that whatever group was responsible for these writings was operating the same general Scriptural and Messianic framework of early Christianity.” This 5-line scroll contained information about the DEATH of the Messiah. It spoke of Isaiah’s Messianic prophecy (cpt. 53) . We know Isaiah 53 speaks of the Messiah (Jesus) who would first suffer DEATH before He would return to rule the nations.

The scroll also spoke of the Messiah as a “leader of the Community” (Christian Ekklesia) who was “PUT TO DEATH.”

There is more...

4Q246 SCROLL refers to the hope of a future Messiah figure…who is called “the Son of God” and the “Son of the Most High”—exactly like what we find in Luke’s Gospel (see 1:32, 35).

Still, there is more...

IN 1971 (THE YEAR I GOT SAVED), Jose O’ Callaghan studied some of the very small fragments from cave 7 at Qumran. These fragments were of the Greek language, “beget,” “Gennesaret,” New Testament words (see Mark 6:52, 53). This discovery was reported in several large newspapers. The LA Times read: “9 New Testament fragments dated AD 50 to AD 100 have been discovered in a Dead Sea cave.”

O’ Callaghan finally figured out that what he discovered were parts of Mk. 4:28; 6:48; 12:17; Acts 27:38; Rom. 5:11, 12; 1 Tim. 3:16 and James 1:23-24.

Of course there are those who disbelieve. So what? Truth is truth.

Back to the Quran

FOR THE RECORD, Q 4:157, 158; 19:33; 5:116, 117; 2:87 and 3:55 all support the fact that Jesus the Christ died. So, “Innimutawaf-feeka” (Q 3:55), is translated as “I am gathering three.” We’ve already seen that Muslim scholars disagree—some believe this to mean “sleep,” or “a death of sleep,” or God took Jesus in His sleep (see “The Cross in the Gospel and Quran” by Iskander Jadeed). But no Muslim scholar will ever deny that the Baptist died (beheaded!, see 19:15). However, dear Muslims, the same wording is given about Jesus in 19:32-34. Amen.

Want to be Saved?

THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY to reconcile ourselves as sinners to a holy God. The true path to salvation, according to the Bible is through personal repentance of our sins, and placing our total faith in Christ’s sacrificial death on the Cross. Every one of us has rebelled against God through our personal sins: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

The Scriptures declare that our sinful rebellion has alienated each of us from the holiness of God, and prevents us from ever entering Heaven, unless our sins are forgiven by God. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

The death of Jesus Christ on the cross is the key to bringing us to a place of true peace in our heart. The death of our old nature, when we identify with Christ’s death, is the key to finding true peace with God. The only way we can be filled with the grace of God is to approach Him as we would bring a container to a well. It must be empty. It is only then that God can begin to fill us with His grace and spirit.

God cannot simply ignore our sin and allow an unrepentant sinner into Heaven despite their rejection of God. God’s absolute justice makes it impossible for Him to ignore our sins. God’s holiness demands that “death,” as the “wages of sin,” must be paid for our sins in order for His justice to be satisfied (Romans 6:23).

If unrepentant sinners actually entered Heaven without repenting of their sins, their presence in the Holy New Jerusalem would actually turn that portion of Heaven into Hell. If you think carefully about it, sinners who reject the forgiveness and worship of Christ would not want to live in Heaven. They would despise the holy living and glorious worship of God. The sacred nature of a holy Heaven and the evil nature of sin make it absolutely impossible for God to forgive men’s sins unless they wholeheartedly repent and turn from them. Only then, can God forgive and transform us into sinners saved by the grace of Jesus Christ who cleanses us from our sinful rebellion against His laws.