Transcription
The 84th chapter of the book of Psalms has Prophet David lamenting the lack of a temple to worship God in. My soul yearns, even faints for the courts of the Lord. Even the sparrow has found a home. This all indicates that David is longing for something that he does not possess or does not yet exist.
The psalm goes on to describe David's prayer for a house of God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house. They are ever praising you. Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. As they pass through the valley of Bakar, the autumn rains cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength till each appears before God in Zion. Oh Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer. The psalm is clearly a prophecy as David is looking to the future and praying for the time when pilgrimage can be made to the house of God.
Let's now analyze the key details of the prophecy. It mentions the valley of Bakar. Now there are a number of ways to interpret the Hebrew word Baka. If we take it as the name of a location, then Bakar just happens to be another name for Mecca, an Arabian city and the birthplace of Muhammad, upon whom be peace. The Quran confirms this is the case as it uses Mecca and Baka interchangeably. This was not at all unusual for Semitic languages in the ancient world. Professor of Middle Eastern history Philip Hitti gives the example of demon versus dyon and cites the historian Jerome who said that the letters M and B were used interchangeably.
Now there are other possible interpretations for the word baka. Some Bible translators render it as balsam trees, and some render it as weeping. However, even if we go with the first alternative translation of balsam trees for Bakar, the prophecy is still connected to Mecca because the city is famous for its balsam trees. As Barn's notes on the Bible commentary confirms, the Baka tree is found abundantly near Mecca. Some think the valley of Bakar was so-called from this plant growing there. The Cambridge Bible for schools and colleges commentary likewise confirms. Balsam trees grow plentifully in the arid valley of Mecca. This is clearly the point of the reference. Moreover, the book of Genesis informs us that Ishmaelite Arabs are associated with Balsam. Likewise, the book of Kings informs us that Queen Sheba, who is identified with southern Arabia, gives a gift of balsam to King Solomon. We can see that Arabia, particularly Mecca, has been famous for balsam trees since ancient times.
Now, what about the second alternative translation of Baka, weeping? Even with this translation, the prophecy is still connected to Mecca. In the book of Genesis, we are informed that Ishmael and his mother Hagar famously wept while they were stranded in a desert. Here, the Hebrew verb used to describe Ishmael's mother's weeping, baka, just happens to be the root word of the noun baka from the prophecy in the psalm. We can also see here that Ishmael is associated with Pan. The link between Ishmael, Pan, and Mecca has already been covered in detail in my previous video, Muhammad and the companions in the Bible.
In summary, regardless of whether one chooses to interpret Baka as the literal name of a place, balsam trees, or even weeping, we can see that all possible interpretations are directly connected to the city of Mecca. Let's now see if the rest of the details provided in the psalm match the context of Mecca.
The prophecy goes on to associate Bakar with pilgrimage, stating that worshippers will be ever praising God. Since the time of Prophet Muhammad, Muslims have visited Mecca as part of the annual ritual of Hajj. Today, millions of Muslims from around the world travel to Mecca by land, air, and sea. Hajj is a major pillar of Islam that every able-bodied Muslim must carry out once in their lifetime. As part of the pilgrimage, they visit the Kaaba, a sacred place of worship within Mecca and Islam's holiest site on earth. We can see that the prophecy's mention of pilgrimage fits Mecca perfectly.
Regarding the prophecy's mention of pilgrims ever praising God, the Hebrew word used here for praise is halal, which carries the meaning of celebrating God publicly. Again, this fits Mecca perfectly because during Hajj, millions of Muslims loudly chant God's praises and glorification. [Applause]
The prophecy even goes on to provide details that point to the emergence of a new prophet and divine law at Bakar. Note the prophecy's mention of Bakar being covered with pools of rain. At face value, this may not seem to have any relation to a new prophet or divine law. However, translations often mask important details. The Hebrew word translated as rain is ma, which carries the meaning of teacher. According to Jinius's Hebrew Chaldi lexicon, it can even take on the meaning of prophet. The Hebrew word translated as pools, baraka, can also be read as blessings. This is according to Strong's lexicon. Taking all of these points into consideration, the prophecy can actually be interpreted as the teacher is filled with blessings. The Adam Clark commentary confirms exactly this point. There are in fact versions of the Old Testament that even carry the explicit meaning of the coming of a lawgiver. The Brenton Septuagint translates the prophecy as for there the lawgiver will grant blessings. This is also the case with Aramaic versions of the Old Testament. The Aramaic Bible in plain English translates the prophecy as blessings will cover the lawgiver. This is likewise the case with Syriac versions of the Old Testament. The Peshitta translates the prophecy as the lawgiver will cover it with blessings. We can see that the prophecy associates Baka with the emergence of a new lawgiver, which perfectly fits Mecca as this is the location where Muhammad was given the revelation of the Quran.
The prophecy even goes on to provide details of what the coming lawgiver and his followers are going to achieve. It refers to God as Lord of hosts and states that the pilgrims will go from strength to strength until they appear in Zion. The Hebrew word used for hosts is sabah, which carries the meaning of war. Strong's lexicon defines it as people organized as an army. Likewise, Jinius's Hebrew Chaldi lexicon defines it as an army going forth to war. So here the prophecy is referring to God as Lord of armies, which provides a military context. The Christian Standard Bible translates it in exactly this way. Historically, Islam did indeed experience a militaristic rise to power. At the start of Muhammad's prophethood, he had only a handful of followers, with the Muslims being in a position of weakness compared to their pagan Arab enemies. Yet within just a few decades, the Muslims underwent a miraculous transformation from persecuted minority to a regional player that militarily conquered Rome and Persia, who were the superpowers of the world at the time. The early Muslims literally went from military strength to strength as foretold by the prophecy.
What about the Psalms' mention of appearing in Zion? Zion is another name for Jerusalem, which is indicated by the fact that the Bible often uses the words synonymously. Historically, the early Muslim armies did indeed march on the Holy Land, liberating Jerusalem from the occupation of the Roman Empire, thus literally appearing in Zion. On this point, the Septuagint version of the Old Testament provides an interesting additional detail. The Brenton Septuagint translates it as the God of gods shall be seen in Zion. This implies that Almighty God's worship will be absent from Jerusalem, having been replaced with that of false gods, and that this army will make Almighty God seen again by restoring monotheism in Jerusalem. Historically, this was indeed the case while the city was under the occupation of the Christian Roman Empire who had persecuted its Jewish population and expelled them from the Holy Land. The absence of Jews meant that Almighty God was no longer worshipped there. Christianity's worship of the Trinity is considered to be pagan from a traditional Jewish monotheistic and Old Testament perspective. Hence, false gods dominated the landscape. The arrival of the Muslim armies and liberation of Jerusalem allowed the return of its Jewish population who were finally able to worship Almighty God again under the peace and security of Muslim rule. We can see that the early Muslim military campaigns are a perfect fulfillment of the prophecy's mention of restoring the worship of Almighty God at Jerusalem.
In conclusion, we have seen that the book of Psalms foretold the city of Mecca and its historic events in great detail. There is only one human being in the entire history of mankind who came as a lawgiver, established pilgrimage, and grew his followers from strength to strength until they reached Jerusalem and reestablished the worship of Almighty God in the Holy Land. And that is the prophet Muhammad, upon whom be peace. For more information on biblical prophecies about the coming of Muhammad, upon whom be peace, please download your free copy of the book Abraham Fulfilled at the link below.