Synopsis of the Blessed Progeny

44 SYNOPSIS OF THE BLESSED PROGENY (Bashir Ahmaa Orchard) We read in the Bible that God said to Abraham: ‘I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea-shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be ‘blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.’ (Gen. 22:17,18) . Abraham had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac, and in the above prophecy it-has been foretold that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through his progeny. Let us see how this prophecy was intended to be fulfilled. It was to be fulfilled through the advent of a coming great prophet who was none other than the Holy Prophet Muhammad (A.D. 570-632), on whom be peace. With respect to the children of Israel who were the progeny of Isaac, God said to Moses: The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.’ (Deutr. 18:15) ‘I will raise (Israelites) up a Prophet from among their bretheren, like unto thee, and I will put my words in his mouth and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.’ (Deutr. 18:18) God told Moses that he would raise a prophet from among the brethren of the Israelites who were the Ishmaelites, descendants of Ishmael. Furthermore he would be like unto Moses about whom it must be remembered was a law-bearing prophet. Again this prophet would speak all thatjie is commanded. How clearly this prophecy was fulfilled ‘in the person of the Holy Prophet of Islam who was • not only a descendant of Ishmael but also ft law-bearing prophet unlike other prophets who followed in the wake of Moses and who brought no new law, including Jesus who daimedjae had come to fulfil the law of Moses and not to change it (Matthew 5:17). The message of the Holy Prophet was only that which he was commanded by God to convey to mankind. Solomon was one of the non-law-bearing prophets raised for the SYNOPSIS. OF THE. BLESSED PROGENY 45 Israelites who followed Moses. He also foretold the coming of a great prophet: ‘My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. His eyes are as eyes of doves by the rivers of water, washed with milk and fitly set. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with saphires. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon: Yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, 0 daughters of Jerusalem.’ (Songs of Solomon. 5:10-16) There is also another pertinent prophecy in the Old Testament to be considered before making comment: ‘The Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them, he shined forth from Mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints; from his right hand went a fiery law for them.’ (Deutr. 33:2) These two prophecies both refer to the advent of one and the same person who would be a shining star in the spiritual firmament and would be associated with ten thousand special people. In the New Testament we do not find mentioned any event connecting Jesus with a group of ten thousand righteous persons. It is mentioned that on one occasion he fed five thousand people (Mark 8:19) On the other hand it is a well known historical fact that after his forced emigration from Mecca to Medina due to the brutal hostility of the Meccans, the Holy Prophet of Islam eventually returned accompanied by ten thousand devoted followers. The second prophecy directs attention to three manifestations of God. First through Moses to whom the ten commandments were revealed on Mount Sinai; second through Jesus who appeared in Seir which is a part of Palestine: third through the Holy Prophet of Islam who appeared in Mecca which is surrounded by the hills of Paran. For a detailed explanation on this topic the reader is recommended to read ‘An introduction to the Study of the Holy Quran’ by Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad. Our Christian friends claim that the fore-mentioned prophecies refer to the coming of Jesus, but reasons have already been advanced to show that they were fulfilled in the person of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be on him. Furthermore Jesus himself foretold the appearance of a divine Messenger who was yet to appear: 46 , , • REVIEW OF REUGIONS . ‘It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement.’ (John 16:7,8) ‘I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Hobeit when, he the spirit of truth is come, he will guide you unto all truth: for he shall not speak of himself: but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come’ (John 16: 12-13) • Again, our Christian friends say that Jesus is referring to the coming of the Holy Spirit. The prophecy, however, makes use of the personal pronoun ‘he’ pointing to a person who would hear, speak and foretell things to come. This description was fulfilled in the person of the Holy Prophet of Islam who was constantly receiving divine revelations which he heard and also conveyed to the people. Many revelations which he received foretold things to come. Furthermore the Holy Spirit was not a creation of God which hitherto had not made its appearance. We read in the Bible that the Holy Spirit was with David who prayed: ‘Cost me not away from Thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.’ (Psalms 51:11) Addressing the Israelites Jesus also said: ‘Therefore I say unto you, The Kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.’ (Matthew 21:43) ‘For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.’ (Matthevj 23:39) Here again Jesus foretells that God’s blessings would be given to another nation which would come through another person raised in the name of the Lord. That person was.the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace .be on him, belonging to the progeny Ishinael to whom was transferred the Kingdom of God from the Israelites. Mankind should, therefore, hearken to the call of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, the progeny of Ishmael whose advent had been prophesied by Moses, Solomon and Jesus, and who was commanded by God to declare: “Say, ‘0 mankind, truly I am a Messenger to you all from Allah.’ ” (21:10) continued on page 43