The Biblical prophecies on the advent of the Prophet Muhammad
are evidence of the truth of
Islam for people who believe in
the Bible.
In Deuteronomy 18, Moses
stated that God told him: “I will
raise up for them a prophet
like you from among their brothers; I will put
my words in his mouth, and he will tell them
everything I command him. If anyone does not listen to my
words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call
him to account.” (Deuteronomy 18:18-19)3
From these verses we conclude that the prophet in this prophecy
must have the following three characteristics:
1) That he will be like Moses.
2) That he will come from the brothers of the Israelites, i.e. the
Ishmaelites.
3) That God will put His words into the mouth of this prophet
and that he will declare what God commands him.
Let us examine these three characteristics in more depth.
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(1) See Al-Borhan fee Oloom Al-Qur’an, Al-Zarkashy, vol. 2, p. 224.
(2) See Al-Borhan fee Oloom Al-Qur’an, Al-Zarkashy, vol. 2, p. 226.
(3) The verses of the Bible in this book have been taken from The NIV
Study Bible, New International Version.
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1) A prophet like Moses:
There were hardly any two prophets who were so much alike
as Moses and Muhammad . Both were given a comprehensive
law and code of life. Both encountered their enemies and were
victorious in miraculous ways. Both were accepted as prophets
and statesmen. Both migrated following conspiracies to assassinate
them. Analogies between Moses and Jesus overlook not only
the above similarities but other crucial ones as well. These include
the natural birth, the family life, and the death of Moses and
Muhammad but not that of Jesus. Moreover, Jesus was regarded
by his followers as the Son of God and not exclusively as a prophet
of God, as Moses and Muhammad  were and as Muslims believe
Jesus was. So, this prophecy refers to Muhammad  and not to
Jesus, because Muhammad  is more like Moses than Jesus.
Also, one notices from the Gospel of John that the Jews were
waiting for the fulfillment of three distinct prophecies: 1) The
coming of Christ, 2) The coming of Elijah, 3) The coming of the
Prophet. This is obvious from the three questions that were posed
to John the Baptist: “Now this was John’s testimony, when the
Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he
was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, ‘I am not
the Christ.’ They asked him, ‘Then who are you? Are you
Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered,
‘No.’” (John 1:19-21). If we look in a Bible with crossreferences,
we will find in the marginal notes where the words “the
Prophet” occur in John 1:21, that these words refer to the prophecy
of Deuteronomy 18:15 and 18:18.1 We conclude from this that
Jesus Christ is not the prophet mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:18.
2) From the brothers of the Israelites:
Abraham had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac (Genesis 21).
Ishmael became the grandfather of the Arab nation, and Isaac
became the grandfather of the Jewish nation. The prophet spoken
of was not to come from among the Jews themselves, but from
among their brothers, i.e. the Ishmaelites. Muhammad , a descendant
of Ishmael, is indeed this prophet.
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(1) See the marginal notes in The NIV Study Bible, New International Version on verse 1:21, p. 1594.
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Also, Isaiah 42:1-13 speaks of the servant of God, His “chosen
one” and “messenger” who will bring down a law. “He will not
falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In
his law the islands will put their hope.” (Isaiah 42:4). Verse 11,
connects that awaited messenger with the descendants of Kedar.
Who is Kedar? According to Genesis 25:13, Kedar was the second
son of Ishmael, the ancestor of the Prophet Muhammad .
3) God will put His words in the mouth of this prophet:
The words of God (the Holy Qur’an) were truly put into
Muhammad’s  mouth. God sent the Angel Gabriel to teach
Muhammad the exact words of God (the Holy Qur’an) and asked
him to dictate them to the people as he heard them. The words are
therefore not his own. They did not come from his own thoughts,
but were put into his mouth by the Angel Gabriel. During the life
time of Muhammad , and under his supervision, these words
were then memorized and written by his companions.
Note that God has said in the prophecy of Deuteronomy: “If
anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in
my name, I myself will call him to account.” (Deuteronomy,
18:19). This means that whoever believes in the Bible must believe
in what this prophet says, and this prophet is Muhammad .