Prophecies in the New Testament

Apart from the prophecies of Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), in the Old Testament, we also find mentioning of the coming of the Last and Final Messenger of God in the New Testament. Let us analyse them:

Gospel of John 14:16 :
"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever"

Gospel of John 14:25-26 :
"These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."

Gospel of John 15:26 :
"But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me"

Gospel of John 16:7 :
"Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you"

Gospel of John 16:12-14 :
"I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come."

The Greek word translated in the King James Version as 'Comforter', is "Paracletos". Another versions translate it as 'Counselor', 'Advocate' or 'Helper'.

In the above quoted verses, it is clear that Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) is prophecising the coming of someone, who:

(1) Will abide forever (John 14:16) and shall teach all things (John 14:26)
Since the 'Comforter' will abide forever and shall teach all things, it emphasizes that he will be the last prophet.

The phrase "will abide forever" does not mean that he will physically abide forever, rather his Prophethood will last forever, as he will be the Last Prophet and the Laws he will come with, will remain till the Last Day. Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) is quoted many times in the Bible as telling his followers that they will never taste death, for example John 8:51-55, John 10:28 etc. Obivously he did not mean that they will physically live here forever. Similarly, the comforter is not to live physically here forever.

(2) Will remind what Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) said (John 14:26)
In John 14:26 Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) is speaking to his followers. Not with those who disbelieved in him, but to those who believed in him; and says that the Comforter will "remind" them what he (Jesus Christ) taught and preached. This obivously means that the Comforter was to come at a time when the teachings of Jesus (peace be upon him) has been forgotten. Qur'an does confirm this, in chapter 5, verse 14, which says:
"And from those who said: "We are Christians." We took their covenant, but they forgot a good part of the message which was sent to them."

Further, it is interesting to note that the Qur'an is also called "Ad-Dhikr" i.e. "The Reminder".

(3) Will testify about Jesus Christ (peace be upon him)
Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him) explicitly spoke about Jesus (peace be upon him) and testified to his miraculous birth (which many modern Christians doubt). He testified to Jesus (peace be upon him) being the Messiah, the Christ. He testified to the miracles performed by Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) including that of giving life to dead with God's permission and healing those born blind and lepers with God's permission. He testified to the second coming of Jesus Christ (peace be upon him).

(4) Will guide to all truth (John 16:13)
Even Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) had the truth, but his people did not receive it.
"He came unto his own, but his own received him not."
[The Bible, Gospel of John 1:11]
Therefore he said, "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter" (John 14:16) and that he will guide them into "all truth". This Comforter who will guide them into "all truth" is described as "Spirit of Truth". Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), even before his Prophetic Mission, was known among his people as "As-Sadik" which means "The Truthful" and "Al-Ameen" which means "The Trustworthy" and even after his Prophetic Mission started, friends and foes alike still recognised him as "Truthful". Indeed, Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him) was the "Spirit of Truth", who came with the Truth; and Allaah says:
"O mankind! The messenger (Muhammad) has come to you with truth from your Lord"
[Al Qur'an 4:120]
"We (God) have sent you (O Muhammad) with the Truth, as a bringer of glad tidings and a warner"
[Al Qur'an 2:119]
"Those are the Verses of Allaah. We recite them upon you (O Muhammad) in Truth. And verily, you are among the messengers"
[Al Qur'an 2:252]

(5) Will not speak of himself (John 16:13)
We see in John 16:13 a very interesting statement that the comforter "shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak". This statement reminds us about the prophecy of Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him) from the Old Testament, from the Book of Deuteronomy 18:18-19.

And Qur'an confirms this:
"Nor does he (Muhammad) speak of his own desire. It is but an inspiration that is inspired (unto him)."
[Al Qur'an 53:3-4]

(6) Will show things to come
Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him) did say many things which came true in future.

So these prophecies refer to no one else but Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him).

Some Christians say that these prophecies refer to the 'Holy Ghost' and not to Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him). Let us analyse..
  • Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) used the pronoun "he", while refering to the Comforter. Had it been a "Spirit" or a "Ghost", he would have used "it" and not "he". His use of "he" clearly indicates that he was speaking about a human prophet!
  • The condition for the Comforter to come as mentioned in John 16:7 is that Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) has to depart. The comforter will not come till Jesus (peace be upon him) is present. However, we know that the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit was present before Jesus (peace be upon him) and even with him. So obivously he is not refering to the Holy Ghost. Furthermore, in John 14:16 Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) says that God will give "another" comforter. If Comforter is Holy Ghost, then how many Holy Ghosts are there?
  • The Jews were expecting three different personalities - Christ, Elijah (Elias) and "that Prophet". The Bible says: "And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No." (John 1:19-21). Who is this "the prophet"? Surely not Jesus Christ (peace be upon him)! According to the scholars of Bible the "that prophet" mentioned here is the same as Book of Deuteronomy 18:18-19, which surely is not the Holy Ghost!
So a proper study of the prophecies, make it clear that the Comfoter and Spirit of Truth mentioned in the New Testament is no one else but Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), as Allaah reminds us:
"And remember, Jesus, the son of Mary, said, 'O Children of Israel! I am the messenger of Allaah (sent) to you, confirming the Law (which came) before me and giving glad tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmed.' But when he came to them with clear signs, they said, 'This is evident sorcery!'"
[Al Qur'an 61:6]