Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya Part V — Page 464
B AR Ā H Ī N-E-A H M ADIY YA — PART F IV E 464 I, Peter the Fisherman, in the name of Jesus, and in the 90th year of my life, have decided to write these loving words, three Passovers (i. e. three years) after the demise of my lord and master, Jesus, son of Mary, near God’s Holy Temple, at a place called Bulier. The scholars have concluded that the manuscript dates back to Peter’s time. The London Bible Society holds the same view, and after thor- oughly scrutinizing the manuscripts has offered to pay 400,000 lira (237,500 rupees) to the owners in exchange for it. The prayer of Yas u ‘ ibn Maryam [Jesus son of Mary], may peace be upon both of them— He said: ‘O my God, I do not deem myself able to overcome that which I see as evil. Nor have I acquired the virtue that I had desired. But while others have their rewards in their hands, I do not, and my pride is in my work. None is worse than me. O God— who art the Most High—forgive my sins. O God, do not make me a target for my enemies’ criticism, nor make me such as is disgraced by my friends. And do not cause my righteousness to become a trial for me. Do not make this world the centre of my joy or my ultimate objective. And do not subjugate me under someone who does not have mercy on me. O God, who art Most Merciful, in the name of Your mercy, do as I ask. You do indeed have mercy on those who are in need of it. ’ His Statement— In the verse 1 َو اَم ُهْوُلَتَق اًۢنْيِقَي ْلَب ُهَعَفَّر ُهّٰللا ِهْيَلِا there remains the misgiving that the word بَل [ bal —i. e. ‘rather’] bestows a close affinity upon the two sets of words رفعہ الل ّٰ إلیہ [‘Allah exalted him to Himself ’] and the words ما قتلوہ یقینًا [‘They certainly did not kill him’]—which indicates proximity in time between the two events—this entails that the time of the ascent should be close to the time of the killing, and 1. And they did not convert this conjecture into a certainty; On the contrary Allah exalted him to Himself ( S u rah an-Nis a ’, 4:158–159). [Publisher]