One of the classic signs of a false prophet is that his revelations are self-serving.
The revelations give the prophet in question special moral privileges.
How does this affect our views of Paul and Muhammad?
Let's find out.
Am I the only one who gets suspicious when a guy who's supposedly receiving revelations
ends up getting all kinds of special moral privileges from God?
Let's consider three examples that should raise some eyebrows.
First, the Qur'an says in Surah 4, verse 3, that Muslim men can marry up to four women.
But according to Sahih al-Bukhari and numerous other Muslim sources, Muhammad had at least
nine wives at one time.
If Muslims are allowed to have no more than four wives, why did Muhammad get more?
Lucky him, Allah decided in Surah 33, verse 50, that Muhammad, and only Muhammad,
could have as many wives as he wanted.
How convenient.
Second, when Muhammad wanted to marry Aisha, who was six years old at the time,
he said that Allah had given him dreams about marrying her.
Sahih al-Bukhari 3895:
Narrated Aishah that the Prophet said to her, "You have been shown to me twice in my dream.
I saw you pictured on a piece of silk and someone said (to me), 'This is your wife.'
When I uncovered the picture, I saw that it was yours.
I said, 'If this is from Allah it will be accomplished.'"
I think I speak for most men when I say: If you have a dream about marrying your best
friend's six-year-old daughter, that dream didn't come from God.
You're a pervert, and you need to go see a psychiatrist.
Third, one day, after Muhammad got caught having sex with his slave-girl in his wife
Hafsah's bed, he swore to his wives that he would stop having sex with his slave-girl.
But a little later, in Surah 66, verses 1 and 2, Allah rebuked Muhammad for making that oath,
and he gave him permission to break it and to start having sex with his slave-girl again.
Since most people aren't familiar with this story, let's read about the historical background
of Surah 66, verse 1 of the Qur'an.
Sunan An-Nasa'i 3411:
It was narrated from Anas, that the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had
intercourse, but Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was
forbidden for him.
Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed: "O Prophet!
Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you"
[that's Surah 66, verse 1] until the end of the verse.
You can read more of the juicy details in Tafsir Jalalayn.
Muhammad eventually got the slave-girl pregnant.
Over the years, Aisha picked up on the fact that whenever Muhammad wanted something, he
got a special revelation from Allah saying that he could have it.
In Sahih al-Bukhari 4788, Muhammad receives one of his morally convenient revelations,
and Aisha says to him, "I feel that your Lord hastens in fulfilling your wishes and desires."
Indeed.
There are times when Allah seems like he has nothing better to do than to encourage and
justify Muhammad's sexual adventures.
What about Paul?
Well, there's not much to say about Paul's sex life, because he was apparently celibate
from his birth until his death.
Paul knew that his life would be painful and difficult and dangerous, and that he would
probably be killed for his preaching, and he just didn't want to get married and put
his wife through all of that.
Were there any special moral privileges for Apostles?
No, God called Apostles to a higher moral standard and a more difficult life,
not to a lower moral standard and an easier life.
Paul describes the life of an Apostle in 1 Corinthians 4:
"To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated,
we are homeless.
We work hard with our own hands.
When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered,
we answer kindly.
We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment."
Become an Apostle; it's a great life.
And Paul knew what he was getting into from the beginning of his Christian journey.
When Jesus sent Ananias to Paul shortly after his encounter on the road to Damascus,
Jesus said, "I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."
Now, suppose you meet two different men, both of whom claim to speak for God.
One of them says, "God told me to preach, and that I would be horribly treated for the
rest of my life, but that I must remain faithful anyway."
The other says, "God has spoken to me, and he says that he wants me to have lots of women
and girls and sex-slaves and that I get to rob people and subjugate them and break my oaths."
Obviously, there are many other factors to consider in evaluating their reliability,
but if you had to choose, based solely on the lives their revelations call them to,
which of these two men would you trust more?
Yeah, me too.
I'd trust a revelation from Muhammad about as much as I would have trusted a revelation
from Hugh Hefner.
Hi everyone.
Thanks for watching.
In case you stumbled upon this video while browsing or searching, I wanted to let you
know that it's part of a series comparing Paul and Muhammad.
So if you'd like to see the full series, be sure to click on the playlist.
If you're already in the playlist, you're about to see how Paul's revelations made
him a better person, and how Muhammad's revelations made him a worse person.
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