Islam - The Summit of Religious Evolution — Page 49
49 And he said, the Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them, he shined forth from mount Paran and he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them. In this verse Moses is promised three manifestations of the glory of God. The first of these appeared from Sinai, to which a reference is made in Exodus: 30 And the Lord came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the Lord called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. This manifestation of Divine glory appeared in the time of Moses. The world witnessed the blessings that came with it. The second manifestation promised in the prophecy was to take place from Seir. Seir is that part of the world where the miracles of Jesus took place. Rising up from Seir , therefore, points to the advent of Jesus. Christian exponents of the Gospels identify Seir with Sinai but this is not correct. Seir is a part of Palestine. The name has many corrupt forms. One of them serves as the name of a people who are descendants of the Prophet Jacob and are known as Banu Asher. Another serves as a name for the northwestern part of Palestine. Seir, therefore, stands for the second manifestation of Divine glory, the one especially associated with Palestine. To identify Seir with Sinai and to attribute both manifestations to Moses, is wrong because Moses never crossed into Canaan. He died at a spot from where he could only see its borders. After Moses and before Jesus, no manifestation of Divine glory took place that could rank with that of Sinai. Rising up from Seir , therefore, means the advent of Jesus, which occured in Canaan, and through which, as it were, God showed His face for a second time. The third manifestation of Divine glory was to take its rise from Paran. It is worth mentioning here that according to the Old Testament, Ishmael lived in Pharan, which is also the name of the hills that lie between Mecca and Medina. Arab geographers have always referred to this territory as Faran. THE PROPHECY IN HABAKKUK Habakkuk also prophesied the advent of another Prophet almost six hundred and twenty-seven years before Jesus’ birth: 31 God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hands: and there was the hiding of his power. Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet. He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld, and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are everlasting. I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; and the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble. The evolutionary trend becomes evident even in the earlier books of the Old Testament. While Deuteronomy mentioned three manifestations of Divine glory at Sanai, Seir, and Pharan as described above. The Habakkuk prophecy however mentions only two manifestations at Teman and Pharan respectively. Teman is located near Jerusalem, the area where Jesus preached. Since Habakkuk was written after Moses’ death, its prophecies relate to events after his demise. Moses himself fulfilled the first manifestation of the prophecy in Deuteronomy.