Imam Shabir Ally

Opening Remarks and Upcoming London Debates

Webcasting around the world from the desert metropolis of Phoenix, Arizona. This is the dividing line. The Apostle Peter commanded Christians to be ready to give a defense for the hope that is within us.

Yet to give that answer with gentleness and reverence. Our host is dr. James white director of Alpha Omega ministries and an elder at the Phoenix Reformed Baptist Church. This is a live program and we invite your participation.

If you'd like to talk with dr. White call now at 602 973 460 to or toll-free across the United States. It's 1 877 7 5 3 3 3 4 1. And now with today's topic here is James white.

And good morning. Welcome to the dividing line on a Tuesday. We are going to try to Do a dividing line on Thursday, but we're gonna be flying by the seat of our pants skin of our teeth. Whatever other terminology you wish to use.

Because I won't be here and we're gonna be trying to do it by Skype and we haven't done that before. I did a Skype interview a couple days ago, man. It sounded good sound like we were sitting in the same room.

Really really really sounded good. So it can work very very well, but we will find out we will See what we can see and do what we can do to to make that work. For you here on the dividing line now developments in London.

A couple extra costs have come up. So if you Would feel so led to help us make all that work. That would be a very encouraging to us. It's always encouraging to have folks standing with us, especially as I'm looking at the single busiest.

Two weeks of ministry in my adult life. Anyways, that's for certain. So the more people standing with us that would be and if they're not huge costs. So, you know some people don't give because they figure I you're talking thousands of bucks.

No. You need to pick up a few items and a couple people at 20 or 30 bucks. We'll be able to cover everything over time very easily. Just let you know about that. And of course, you know, the continued support of the ministry is important as well.

But here's the situation. Announced last week. I think it was last week. Thanks for going so fast. I don't remember which day of the week it is anymore. But announced last week that should barely will be in the UK at the same time.

He contacted me and we are going to arrange these debates now. Last evening I was talking with Doug McMaster's the pastor of Trinity Road Chapel in London where we're gonna be having the second debate on Thursday evening on the deity of Christ with Sammy's authority and We were talking about the fact I'm preaching at Doug's Church twice on Sunday Sunday morning Sunday evening and we're talking about having a debate in the afternoon.

Can you imagine that preaching Sunday Sunday morning? Debating the afternoon preaching in the evening. I that's that's that's. Mental suicide you just ain't gonna survive that so I had we were trying to figure out we're trying to get locations.

We're still working on locations. Only one that we've really got nailed down right now that I know of. At least for my debates and let me mention David Wood is doing more debates than I am during that time period.

He is a debating machine. He does not eat drink or sleep. I do not believe he's human and so I I think he's doing seven if I recall correctly, it's just an outrageous number of debates and. But we're still working on trying to get locations.

And so I suggested last evening to Shabir an email that we had thought of dividing our topic up which is is Jesus prophesied in the Old Testament is Muhammad prophesied in the Bible into two different debates do one on Saturday one on Sunday a Problem with that is doing on Sundays.

It's not gonna work for me. So I said, you know, I'm there through Monday I don't leave till Tuesday morning. So I've got Monday. So what if we did like a three and a half hour debate? We do like a hundred was a hundred and five minutes per or something like that I forget how it works out, but basically an hour and 45 minutes per topic and we do.

The first part of it is just prophesied in the Bible take the break and then do the second part of it is Muhammad prophesied in. The Bible actually would be Jesus in the Old Testament because New Testament sort of relevant that point.

But anyway, that's what we're going to. Well, I suggest that last night. So This morning I heard back from Shabir that That that sounds fine and we'll try to do it on Monday. That's very good for me because then I'd be debating on Tuesday Thursday Monday and Thursday and so instead of you know, just cramming it all.

You know day by day by day. At least I get a couple nights rest between each one and because I to use the Athletic analogy leave it on all on the court when it comes to a debate. It is something I really pour myself into so Generally the idea of doing multiple multiple multiple ones is not overly wise for me but we're going to have to trust the Lord on that so I Don't have the locations yet.

No, I'm we're talking to folks at Trinity Road Chapel that might work out that. They're gonna be talking to some other folks today and tomorrow. It nearby that have good facilities that might work out as well.

We will find places but those of you who? Are going hey, we want to have all this stuff set up right now. Well, I wish we did that'd be very nice that'd be very useful, but We're working on it and there's normally a fair amount of delay.

Given the fact that we're going transatlantic. So any happens over here in the evenings happening over there early in the morning and and so on and so forth and so. That's just part of part of the situation that we're dealing with there.

So that's what's that's what's coming up there. Do you have a schedule of anything yet? What? Is there anything scheduled yet for a location and yeah, yeah, I've already mentioned that Thursday that like I said the debate with Sammy's authority is that Trinity Road Chapel at 8 p .m.

And that's already. Not until we've got now this is gonna it's gonna come together and when we've got the information we'll give you the information. That's there's another way to do it. If anybody has a better way.

That's exactly right. If anybody we'd like to step up and Shell out a Couple thousand pounds to rent facilities stuff like that great fine. Then you have you have ground to complain. But if you don't then you don't so that's sort of how that works.

So we will we will let people know when we know we can't do we can't do the impossible. So we are doing the best we can in that situation. So that's what's coming up. I'm really excited about these debates.

The topics are great. Obviously one of the topics we've done many times before. But it always bears repetition the first debate on whether worship of the Trinity involves shirk. Is the first time that I know of anyone who's debated that subject.

I came up with that topic myself. I think it's very very important. Then Shabir and I have never debated the topic that we are going to be debating. I'm gonna be playing something here in a little while so you can hear sort of have a preview and Then the debate of Duke the I'm sorry the dialogue at Duke on the subject of the Quran the Bible likewise is Extremely useful and for us will be new the only only one of the debate topics that we're doing have we done before and a number of times actually in defense of the deity of Christ and so Excited about all those things.

I am working diligently day and night Studying and Obtaining resources and doing all the things that I need to do to properly Represent the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so I am very focused upon that at this point in time now What I would like to do and I did not get a chance to do this way I would like to do it.

Shabir Ali’s Opening Statement on Muhammad in the Bible

So I'm gonna have to sort of make it work here. I Was thinking What I would like to do is I would like to play for you Shabir's opening statement now such. Say, how did you get the opening statement debate as taking place yet?

Well in 2005 in Glasgow Scotland where I would love to have this debate as well in Glasgow Scotland Shabir Ali debated Anish Arosh on whether Muhammad is prophesied in the Bible. So It is has been fascinating for me to listen to this presentation For a number of reasons first of all to compare and contrast it with the standard presentation that you hear from an Ahmadita.

We have played on this program in years past. I'm a DDOT attempts to find in the New Testament and in the Bible references to Jesus and of course the standard text Deuteronomy 18 the Song of Solomon and John 14 and 16 and the the Pericle.

And we have documented the many errors that our committee that made especially in in John in his attempts to to come up with this Identification now Shabir Ali is a very intelligent man. He has heard all these things and I'm so thankful and in this presentation He does not argue that The the text itself at the term Pericle has been changed that originally read something else.

He does not do that and the fact that he does not would seem to indicate to me that he recognizes. He does not have any chance whatsoever of substantiating that allegation. He is going to attack the text in the New Testament.

He is going to chop it up into little pieces and turn it into a jigsaw puzzle and move pieces around so he can make his argument work and he's going to do that based upon embracing liberal Western scholarship and Even though he complained to Robert Maury about Robert Maury doing that that is Shabir Ali's modus operandi that is his approach is he when he defends the Muslim position he wears his Muslim hat and he is a supernaturalist and he believes in revelation and so on so forth.

But when he attacks a New Testament, he takes off his Muslim hat puts on his John Dominic Crossan look-alike mask and all of a sudden is a Western naturalistic humanist and Then goes back and forth between the two and I think that is the fundamental refutation of Shabir Ali's methodology.

But it's not just Shabir Ali. I have not met the consistent Muslim yet. I continue my search. Maybe I'll find one in London. Who puts his Muslim hat on and keeps his Muslim hat on? Maybe I actually sort of doubt that's going to happen because I think that that epistemological Schizophrenia is forced upon them by the nature of The Quran itself and its lack of cohesion with the Old and New Testaments and the people that allegedly.

It is actually speaking in accordance with so what I would like to do. Is I'm going to play for you Shabir Ali's opening statement from the debate in 2005. It's fairly lengthy and I'm not gonna be breaking in.

I want you as our listening audience and again We have an odd listening audience. We have a listening audience of people who? Want to be challenged. They want to learn they want to expand and I know that this is not quote-unquote good radio, but this is good apologetics and Here's my challenge to you.

I want you to put yourself in a position where you're sitting in my seat in London in a couple of weeks and This is the presentation that you are going to be hearing and you are going to have to stand up and respond to it.

How would you do so? I want you if you can. I know not everyone can do this, but set aside the distractions around you and Do what I do as I listen. I've listened to this debate multiple times already.

I've covered. Oh. About 100 280 some odd miles over the past two and a half weeks on the bike and. And my little iPod shuffle is is wheezing because it has been used so much and I have listened to this over and over again.

As I listen to a presentation. You'd you'd you want to just keep enough distance you want to be listening to it carefully. You want to be constantly testing it for consistency? But you also want to have enough distance to keep some perspective on it and ask the question is the person who's making this argumentation.

Staying consistent with their own worldview. What is the background here what resources. Where would you want to go to be able to check out the assertions that Shabir Ali makes. Obviously I have Been checking those things out and I have the luxury I guess we could say of being able to look at those things with a little more time in this context.

Which I would not have and will not have as I sit there in London. But how would you respond? What would be if you were to prioritize. Remember normally when you get a response unless it's the opening statements?

When you get a response you have less time the other guy did to give a response and. So you have to prioritize. What is most important? What is what do I want to communicate to the audience? Who are the people?

I'm trying to contact trying to to minister to here and So with that in mind the one of the reasons I said I was having to hurry too much this morning is I Am going to have to use the YouTube version of this which means I don't have an mp3 format.

I can't queue it up real nicely. And so I'm a little concerned as to how that's going to work. But I'm going to try to find Exactly where to get started and it should be fairly close to the building.

I'm going to call the first speaker for tonight. It's Mr. Shabir Ali. And he will. I will ask him to adhere strictly to the format and he I'll ask him to come to the stage Where he will speak for 40 minutes.

Thank you all very much. I'm delighted to be with you speaking in this hall one more time. I begin by praising God the creator of the heavens and the earth and asking to send peace and blessings upon all of you.

And upon all of his prophets and messengers throughout time in the spirit of dialogue and friendship. I'd like to first begin by saying that I was at the bookshop a couple of days ago. And I saw a book that I have benefited from reading and I felt that my friend dr Anisha Roche may also appreciate the book like this.

I'd like to offer him this gift. Now folks to begin with I'd like to offer five Arguments to show that the Bible both in the Old and New Testaments speak of Muhammad. First I'd like to say that Muhammad is the Prophet like Moses spoken of in the book of Deuteronomy.

William Montgomery Watt writes in his book Muslim Christian encounters on page 36 the passage in Deuteronomy in chapter 18 verses 14 to 19 in which Moses says to the Israelites that God will raise up for them from among their brothers a Prophet like himself seemed to state a general principle namely that when God's people need divine guidance or other help God will send a prophet to give them that this principle could be taken to be fulfilled and a whole series of prophets who Through many centuries guided the Israelites the later Jews thought it applied to the coming of the Messiah and it was taken in this sense by the early Christians and Applied to Jesus in Acts chapter 3 verse 22 on forward from this standpoint a Christian can admit That in a sense it also applies to Muhammad.

Now was the Prophet Muhammad like the Prophet Moses. The Collins gem dictionary of the Bible by Reverend James Dow states on pages 402 to 403 as a statesman and lawgiver Moses is the creator of the Jewish people.

He found a loose conglomeration of Semitic people. None of whom had been anything but a slave and whose ideas of religion were a complete confusion. He led them out and he hammered them into a nation with a law and a national pride and a compelling sense of being chosen by a particular God who was supreme.

The Only man in history who can be compared even remotely to him is Muhammad. I've tried to pronounce it the way he spelt it. So ladies and gentlemen, I submit to you that according to these Christian scholars It is easy to see that Muhammad was the Prophet like Moses that is spoken about in that passage in Deuteronomy.

Even if previously that passage was understood in some way as referring to Christ. Now was Muhammad from among the brethren of the Israelites? I would say yes. Now Abraham begat Ishmael and Isaac. Ishmael begat the Arabs and Isaac begat the Israelites now.

Let's look at a parallel case to see if the Israelites and Ishmaelites are brothers. Harper's Bible Dictionary Explains on page 246 that Isaac begat Esau and Jacob Israel. Esau begat the Edomites and Jacob Israel begat the Israelites.

So here you have the Edomites from Esau and the Israelites from Jacob. Israel now are these two brothers of each other. Yes, the Bible calls them the brothers of the Israelites that is the Edomites are the brothers of the Israelites.

According to Deuteronomy chapter 2 verse 4 and verse 8 moreover The Bible tells the Israelites do not abhor an Edomite for he is your brother. That is Deuteronomy chapter 23 verse 7. I put before you then ladies and gentlemen that this establishes the general principle that in the language of the Bible The descendants of two brothers are the brothers of each other.

Therefore the descendants of Ishmael are the brothers of the descendants of Isaac. Hence Muhammad being an Ishmaelite qualifies on this count. Dr. Shirosh in fact admits that Muhammad is from Ishmael on page 73 of his book Islam revealed.

He gives a family tree tracing Muhammad to the to his ancestor fair known as Quraish and he adds Fair is directly descended from Ishmael in the male line. My second point is that Muhammad Fulfills the promise that God made in the Bible to Abraham and his son Ishmael.

Specifically in Genesis chapter 17 verse 20. We read of God's promise to make Ishmael a great nation. Now in the Kovach a Jewish Bible commentary edited by edited by rabbi Nosson Sherman and rabbi mirror Zorowitz on page 78.

We find the following commentary on this verse. I quote we see from the prophecy in this verse that 2337 years elapsed before the Arabs Ishmael's descendants became a great nation with the rise of Islam in 624 CE.

Now dr. Shirosh wrote that the promises God made to the Arabs through Ishmael were fulfilled precisely. He wrote and I quote I will make him a great nation was fulfilled when the Muslim Empire Was a reality from the 7th to the 12th centuries.

That's in his book Islam revealed page 208 the implication of that is that since the rise of the Muslim Empire was precipitated by The Prophet hood of the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him his very prophet hood.

Then is the fulfillment of that promise that God had made to Abraham and his son Ishmael. My third point is that Muhammad is That Person who is being described in the song of Solomon and especially in verse in chapter 5 verse number 16 where it says He is altogether lovely.

Now on the surface, this is a love poem depicting sexual love between a man and a woman but Jewish commentators and the classical commentary known as song of songs rather have interpreted this poem as Meaning or depicting the love between God and his people in the Bible of Judaism library series.

Jacob Neusner in fact Contributes a volume entitled Israel's love affair with God Song of songs and the title of that book tells you what it deals with. Now Christian commentators Came along and they said that it is a depiction of the love between Christ and his church.

His people his followers and the church's Bible series. Richard a Norris jr Contributes his volume entitled the song of songs interpreted by early Christian and medieval commentators. These commentators agree that the love is between Christ and his church.

Recently Roger Ellsworth President of the Illinois State Baptist Association published his book entitled. He is altogether lovely discovering Christ in the song of Solomon. Again, the title of the book is quite telling.

Now is it possible for Muslim commentators to see here a Description of the love between Muhammad and his ummah his people his followers. I would say yes. It turns out that Roger Ellsworth entitled his book with the words from a key passage in the song of songs in chapter 5 verse 8 The female charges that if the daughters of Jerusalem should find her beloved They should declare her love for him and verse 9 They asked what is so special about her beloved or how does he stood to stand out from the others in reply?

As she describes his virtues in the next six verses. Then she caps the description in verse 16 with these words. His mouth is sweetness itself. He is altogether lovely. Song of Solomon or song of songs chapter 5 verse 16 in the New International Version Bible both Jewish and Muslim.

Both Jewish and Christian commentators agree that his mouth is Sweetness itself is a reference to the nature of his words. Hence Jewish commentators have said that since this refers to God the sweetness of his mouth means the words of the Torah.

Is it possible for Muslims to say that this sweetness refers to the words of the Quran. I think so. It turns out that the words in Hebrew which is translated. He is altogether lovely contains an echo of Muhammad's name.

Translating the sentence as he is totally desirable. Temporal Longman the third writes in the New International commentary on the Old Testament on page 11 page 175 and I quote. Between quotes. I will not add any words of my own if you hear a Hebrew word sound that is because it's there in his Text quote again.

She concludes with a general comment this time with a statement of her intense desire for him. The word desirable Muhammadim derives from the root hum. All the derivatives of ham refer to outward appearance.

They also emphasize more the attractiveness of an object with some emphasis on the value of the object. Now what you heard there ladies and gentlemen is the name Muhammadim which in Hebrew contains the plural suffix I am and if that is dropped Which is a plural suffix here out of respect then we see that we have there an echo of the name Muhammad exactly and though in Hebrew it obviously means something slightly different than it means in Arabic.

We reflect that the Hebrew word system is based on the same Triliteral root system that the Arabic roots is based on and hence why the name Muhammad is based on the tri literal root HMD which might be pronounced Hamd which means praise in a similar way in the Hebrew here.

It is based on HMD. Longman continues the wasp or the description ends with a definite proclamation to the women the daughters of Jerusalem. To whom she has been speaking they asked in chapter 5 verse 9 for a description of her lover.

And she has given it to them ladies and gentlemen I put before you that this song then can be interpreted as meaning that this lover of Muhammad meaning the Ummah or the people of Muhammad are calling on the people of Jerusalem to recognize Muhammad and to believe in him to consider him desirable to want to have him and in that case then my third point holds that Muhammad peace be upon him is he that is described in the song of Solomon.

My fourth point. Turning now to the New Testament documents. We see that there is an expectation of Another prophet that prophet who was to be like Moses that we heard about at the beginning of my speech from the book of Deuteronomy.

But now we're reading the New Testament and the gospel according to John in chapter 1 verse 19. The Jews asked John the Baptist who he was and they offered three possibilities. They suggested are you the Christ?

Are you Elijah? Are you the prophet not just simply a prophet? But are you the prophet? Now he denied that he was any of these. And we know who the Christ was. But who was the prophet? Raymond Brown in his two-volume commentary on the gospel according to John Tells us that it was the prophet like Moses who we already heard about in Deuteronomy chapter 18 verses 15 to 18.

Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce Dr. Raymond Brown. He is one of the most he was the foremost in fact New Testament Scholar in our present time. He passed away a few years ago and he has left his mark on New Testament Scholarship.

His two-volume commentary on the gospel according to John is the most massive I have encountered and Most detailed in fact a couple of years ago when I debated my friend Joseph Smith in Leicester. He recommended that I read Raymond Brown and I took that recommendation seriously.

Now this expected prophet would be a temporal ruler. We can tell and therefore he was not Jesus because Jesus was not a temporal ruler. According to John chapter 6 verse 14 in the NIV after the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did they began to say?

Surely, this is the prophet who is to come into the world in verse number 15 the very next verse. It says that Jesus knowing that they what they intended. Knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force.

Withdrew again into the hills by himself. Now, why would they intend to make Jesus King after recognizing him as the Prophet? Obviously because they expected that he is to be the Prophet like Moses who would be a king and Jesus was not to be that King.

Therefore. He was not to be the Prophet like Moses. Raymond Brown, right? The common comrade Essenes are Essene's Seem to have expected three eschatological figures a prophet a priestly Messiah and a royal Messiah is on page 46 of his to volume commentary volume 2 volume 1 rather and further we find in first Maccabees chapter 4 verses 41 to 50 and other references the expectation of the coming of a Prophet who could solve legal problems on the pattern of Moses at Qumran.

The Essene's are told to cling to the Torah and the ancient laws of the community until a prophet comes Presumably the Prophet like Moses. This is on his page 49 now. This expected prophet would not come from Galilee.

We learn also in the gospel according to John and since Jesus came from Galilee Jesus is not that expected prophet. John chapter 7 verses 40 to 41 reads That some of the crowd who heard these words began to say this is undoubtedly the Prophet.

They're thinking of Jesus. Others were claiming. This is the Messiah. So opinion is divided and an argument ensues is he the Prophet is in the Messiah could he fulfill the qualifications of each. The objection was raised that the Messiah had to be born in Bethlehem and Everyone knew that he was from Galilee.

So, how could that be now a Christian would obviously answer by saying look at Matthew and Luke's Gospels Jesus was born at Bethlehem. So he fulfills the requirement to be the Messiah. But what about being that Prophet.

John chapter 7 verse 52 says look it up and you won't find the Prophet arising in Galilee. The essential point here then is that the Prophet Will not come from Galilee and since Jesus does come from Galilee, he obviously does not qualify.

So in the case of the Messiah, the essential point was that regardless where his hometown is he should be born in Bethlehem. The essential point about the Prophet is that regardless where he's born. He must not be from Galilee and So I put before you ladies and gentlemen that Jesus did not fulfill that prophecy.

Now Acts of the Apostles in chapter 3 verses 22 on forward. Has Peter saying that Jesus must remain in heaven until that time of restoration occurs? When God will give you that prophet that he promised.

Now does he mean that Jesus in his second coming will fulfill the requirements of being the Prophet like Moses? That's a possibility. But even if that is a possibility It means then that Jesus in his first coming did not fulfill the requirement of being the Prophet like Moses.

What seems more obvious from the reading of Acts chapter 3 from Peter's words? Jesus must remain in heaven until that time of restoration comes when God actually sends that prophet like Moses and then Eventually Jesus will make his second coming.

So altogether I conclude from my fourth point that Jesus Was not the fulfillment of that prophet like Moses and even if he was seen as a partial fulfillment. For the time it must be held now that Muhammad more so fulfills that Prediction than Jesus did now my fifth and last point is That Muhammad peace be upon him is the paraclete that is spoken about in the gospel according to John in chapters 15 and 16 if these two chapters are read as an earlier form of Jesus is saying than chapter 14.

Now instead of mouthful there, and I'd like to break that apart and tell you what it means. But first what is this term paraclete? How many words are there in the Bible which require such a retention of the original Greek term?

Paracletus in Greek now is given an anglicized version paraclete. Even the word Christ is easily translated as anointed and no one will complain that the meaning is incorrect or incomplete. Anointed in English means Christ.

But what about the word paraclete various? Translations have been proposed comforter counselor advocate, but none of these Translations prove adequate to biblical scholars and many prefer to just retain the term Paraclete.

In fact if you look at the biblical commentaries on the gospel according to John you will often find that a separate Treatment is given just to this term usually the narrative goes verse by verse and suddenly the narrative breaks off to give you some sort of an appendix an Insertion of a long article just explaining what the paraclete is.

It obviously has proved the puzzling term. Why is this. So I think we will find the answer to this tonight first. What does the term paraclete mean and can it mean a prophet when we put two and two together?

Here is what we find according to Harper's Bible Dictionary 1985 edition on page 749 the word means one called to the side of. One called to the side of now, you know the term Having a call or receiving call.

Someone says I received a call to the ministry. Means that somehow God called him summoned him to the job. He received the calling so the paraclete is one called to the side of now. The same dictionary tells us that the Hebrew word for prophet Nabi Means one who calls or one who is called.

That's on page 826 this seems to mean that paraclete is Nabi. A paraclete is a prophet. Now this meaning in fact is supported by a number of other points. The Old Testament scholar Bernard Anderson in his book understanding the Old Testament says That it is uncertain whether the word Nabi means one who calls or one who is called.

In other words Is it active one who is calling or is it passive one who is called to service? He adds that the word means a prophet. He explains that Prophet is an intermediary a spokesperson. One who acts and speaks on behalf of another.

That's in his fourth edition page 248. So now a prophet is an intermediary a spokesperson. If you reflect on the story of Moses You can understand the meaning of this word prophets if you've seen the Ten Commandments.

Well, then there is Charlton Heston starring as Moses and Moses gets this command from God. He's to go preach the message to the Pharaoh. But Moses complained about complains about his own speech impediment and he asks for an assistant.

Someone to speak for him. So God says to him in Exodus chapter 7 verse 1 see I'm appointing you as God to the Pharaoh and Moses as your prophet. In other words just as God would have spoken to Pharaoh Moses goes instead he plays God and Just as Moses should have been the prophet for God speaking on God's behalf now Aaron speaks on behalf of Moses.

So Aaron is the prophet of Moses. One who speaks for another is called a prophet and a prophet of God is one Who speaks on behalf of God in other words a spokesperson for God. Now among the meanings assigned by Raymond Brown? to the term paraclete are an Intercessor a mediator a spokesperson.

That's in his volume 2 page 1136. Ladies and gentlemen I conclude from this that a paraclete and a Nabi a prophet means almost the same thing and Sensing this meaning Stephen Byington in his translation of the Bible the Bible in living English translates the term paraclete as spokesman and so whereas you might be familiar with some Bible translations that say that God will send the comforter.

Here you have it in Stephen Byington's translation that God will send another Spokesman and from that we know that this obviously refers to another prophet. Now I did say That I will read the gospel according to John chapters 15 and 16 as being distinct from chapter 14.

Let me explain. Today it is widely Accepted in biblical scholarship that the gospel according to John was composed towards the close of the first century AD. Roughly around the year 100 this would mean about 70 years after Jesus had left the scene and in the meantime the gospel according to John went through several stages of Development to reach its final form.

Now you will notice that chapter 21 for example in the gospel according to John is marked off in some Bibles as an epilogue. Why is that? Because chapter 20 seems to have marked originally the end of this gospel.

Where John says I could write much more. But I wrote this much and this is sufficient basically because if I were to write everything the world would not hold the books. It seems that he intended to end his gospel right there.

And then suddenly we find chapter 21 most biblical scholars today would agree that chapter 21 though present in all of the manuscripts of John's gospel available to us. Nevertheless came to be tacked on during the last stage of editing of this gospel, but it's not only chapter 21.

More to our point now is chapters 15 to 17. Scholars have noted the chapters 15 to 17 has been inserted as a block between chapters 14 and 18. There are several reasons that led to this conclusion at the end of chapter 14 Jesus says.

Jesus anticipates that that those who are about to Arrest him are drawing close. So Jesus brings his speech to a close by saying I shall no longer speak much with you. For the Prince of the world is coming and then he says get up.

Let us leave. Let us leave here and be on our way. That's John chapter 14 verses number 30 to 31. Now this continues smoothly if we read on where it says after this discourse Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron Valley to where there was a garden.

Flow of the narrative is smooth. Jesus said he will not speak much more and he doesn't. He said get up and let's leave and he left. He said let us be on our way and he's on our way. He's on his way across the Kidron Valley.

The problem is that in order to achieve this neat a continuation we had to skip three chapters. We jump from the end of chapter 14 to the beginning of chapter 18. This indicates that the chapters between chapters 14 and 18 have been squeezed in pushing these two apart.

The three inserted chapters are filled with the speech of Jesus making it the longest speech anywhere in the Gospels. And it now sits right after Jesus's declaration. I shall no longer speak much with you.