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"AHMED" MISTAKEN FOR PARACLETE |
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yet we see that the Prophet did so, in accepting the vain imagination of the
heretic as given in the verse of the Qur'an quoted above.
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The Muslims hold that Christ announced to his followers that they were to
expect a Prophet named Ahmed; and in proof they adduce the following verse from
the Qur'an, Surah lxi. 6: And when Jesus Son of Mary said, 0 children of Israel, I
am the apostle of God unto you, confirming that which was delivered unto me in
the Torah and bringing good tidings of an apostle who shall come after me,
named Ahmed. This passage no doubt refers to the Comforter, the Paraclete
promised in the Gospel of John.1 But anyone who attentively reads what is said
in the passages on the subject, will perceive that they make no promise of any
prophet's advent, but of the coming of the Holy Ghost; a promise fulfilled
shortly after our Saviour's ascent to heaven, by the descent of the Holy Spirit,
as described in Acts ii. 1-11.
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The origin of the misapprehension in the Qur'an came from the Arabs not
knowing the meaning of Paraclete (Faraclete), and fancying it to signify Ahmed,
or "the praised one"; while the real sense of the name is the
Comforter. But there is in Greek another word which to the ear of a foreigner
would have a nearly similar sound, namely, Periclete (praised or celebrated);
and it is extremely probable that the people of Arabia, not familiar with Greek,
mistook its meaning thus and named the promised one Ahmed, or "the
praised."2
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We read in ancient times of one Mani1 in Iran, who fancied himself a prophet,
and claimed to be the Paraklete promised by the Messiah. But he was rejected by
the Christians of Persia, who, being well acquainted with the gospel, knew that
our Saviour made no promise of any prophet to come.
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We have it in tradition that Muhammad said Jesus would descend upon earth,
there live forty years, and become married.2 Anyone acquainted with the Bible
will understand how this strange imagination arose; for in Rev. xix. 7-9, we
read as follows:
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Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the
Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that
she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the
righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are
called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the
true sayings of God.
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And if it be asked, Who is the Bride spoken of here? the answer is in ch. xxi.
2: "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out
of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." We see then that
the Bride spoken of here is the Christian Church which will be on earth at the
second coming of Jesus; and their "marriage" is simply the symbol of
the perfect union, love and devotion that will subsist between the two, as
between a husband and his wife. The whole story of the Commentators is but a
foolish myth.3
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