As we know from our daily experience, metaphors persuade us to stop and think. It is this deeper reflection that brings forth desired wisdom. In addition to better comprehension, the acceptance of this latent wisdom results in bigger and better rewards, while rejection of accepting the metaphoric light may result in misguidance. For example, the Jews were waiting for the advent of Messiah; when Jesus (peace be upon him) presented himself as the awaited Messiah, they objected saying that the prophet Elijah had to physically descend from heaven before the advent of Messiah; as Elijah had not physically descended from heaven, they refused to accept him.
In Kings II, 2:11 the ascension of Elijah has been mentioned thus:
“And it came to pass, as they still went on and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder: and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven”.
In Malachi 4:5, we read the return of Elijah thus:
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse”.
The above two verses figuratively describe the physical ascension of the prophet Elijah by way of a whirlwind on a chariot and the prophecy of his return before the coming of Jesus.
In light of these verses, the Jews were waiting for the descending of Elijah on a chariot and the advent of the Messiah to follow Elijah. Both the sequence and the mode of the advents were registered in the minds of the Jews exactly as they were foretold. But in the face of this understanding, Jesus claimed to be the Messiah; the Jews of his time did not accept him as the true Messiah because the words of Scripture were never fulfilled in the manner and sequence they were told. Having heard this argument, Jesus presents the ultimate wisdom, the metaphoric light explaining the metaphors thus:
“And his disciples asked him saying then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first? Then Jesus answered and said: Elijah is truly coming first and will restore all things. But I say unto you that Elijah has come already and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished: Then the disciples understood that he speak unto them of John the Baptist” (Matthew 17:10-13).
From this passage it is clear that John the Baptist is Elijah; John the Baptist was born of a mother and did not descend physically from heaven on a chariot; and Jesus is the true Messiah who was prophesied by Prophet Malachi (Malachi, 4:5). Jesus explains to us through metaphor that there is no physical ascension of any prophet; such ascension refers only to a spiritual exaltation, and the prediction of the second advent of a prophet does not refer to the coming of the same prophet, but rather a person with the same attributes of the one who came earlier.
Having understood the concept of metaphors and their literal expressions, I must point out that the problem of competing meanings is not specific to Christians only. Muslims, too, confuse literal and metaphoric meanings in spite of the unequivocal teachings of the Holy Quran and the sayings of the prophet of Islam, Muhammad (peace be upon him). A great majority of Muslims have grossly misunderstood the Qur’anic metaphors regarding Jesus and also the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) regarding the Second Advent. They believe that Jesus did not die on the cross, but someone who looked like him was put in his place instead, and Jesus was ascended to heaven with the physical body and is still alive. Jesus will come again with the same physical body and, along with the Mahdi or reformer, he will establish peace on earth.
The errors the majority of Muslims commit stem from the same ignorance of metaphoric understandings of scriptures. Interestingly, the prophet of Islam predicted this predicament of Christian and Muslims as a sign for the need for a Divine reformer. The task of this reformer would be to present the pristine truth behind the prophecies so beautifully related by past prophets.
By the Grace and Mercy of God, this awaited reformer has appeared; his name is Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908). He founded the community of Muslims known worldwide today as the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. He has clarified all the concepts that led to misunderstandings regarding the life and death of Jesus. In this regard, he wrote his masterpiece book, Jesus in India. He writes:
“I have written this book, so that, by adducing proofs from established facts, from conclusive historical evidence of proved value and from ancient documents of non-Muslims, I might remove the serious misconceptions which are current among Muslims and among most Christian sects regarding the earlier and later life of Jesus, on whom be peace, misconceptions, the dangerous implications of which has for long been noticed in the morals of the Muslims in this country”.
The theme of the book is the escape of Jesus from death on the cross, and his journey to India in search of the lost tribes of Israel. Christian as well as Muslim scriptures, and old medical and historical books including ancient Buddhist records, provide evidence about this journey. Jesus is shown to have reached Afghanistan, and to have met the Jews who had settled there after deliverance from the bondage of Nebuchadnezzar. From Afghanistan Jesus went on to Kashmir, where other Israelite tribes had settled. There he made his home, and there in time he died; his tomb has been found in Srinagar.
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