Is Muhammad in the Torah? (Song of Songs 5:16)

Many Muslims claim that Muhammad is alluded in the Torah/Taurat (תורה, توراة) in Song of Songs 5:16

Here is the reason:
Al A'raf 7:157"Those who follow the apostle, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in the Taurat and the Injil..."

Al Saff 61:6"...Jesus, the son of Mary said: 'O children of Israel! I am the apostle of Allah (sent) to you, confirming the Taurat (which came) before me and giving glad tidings of an apostle to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmad'

Muslims' desire to find any prophecy which will give credence to Muhammad is understandable, for without it Muhammad has no outside evidence to authenticate his prophethood. But there are some problems here, tho.


First, King Solomon's Song of Songs is not part of the Torah. The Torah consists of only the 5 books of Moses, so this verse wouldn't help at all to satisfy this demand of the Qur'an even if it were to speak about Muhammad.

But let's assume it did.

טז חִכּוֹ, מַמְתַקִּים, וְכֻלּוֹ, מַחֲמַדִּים; זֶה דוֹדִי וְזֶה רֵעִי, בְּנוֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם

Song of Solomon 5:16: "His mouth is sweetness itself; he is altogether lovely. This is my lover, this my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem."

Song of Solomon is a poetic love story between the Beloved and her Lover. It is a piece that explores the beauty of a marriage relationship between a king and his wife.
Muslims believe that the adjectival clause "altogether lovely" can be changed to a proper noun, "Muhammad." The text, they state, should then read, when translated into English:

"His mouth is sweetness itself; he is Muhammad. This is my lover, this my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem."

This rendering, however, begs a number of difficult questions according to the context of the entire book.

1. Who are the daughters of Jerusalem? Did Muhammad ever court one of his many wives in Jerusalem?
   
2. If this is Muhammad, which of his wives is speaking? Was Muhammad ever married to a dark woman he wooed from Lebanon?
   
3. Did Muhammad ever claim kingship? 

The stressed words in the text above are the English renderings of the Hebrew word, ma7mad. Strong's concordance defines ma7mad as: desire, desirable thing, a pleasant thing.

So, can ma7mad signify Muhammad? Wise men allow that when one verse is in doubt it is justified to explain one passage of the Bible by another. The word ma7mad appears another twelve times in the Torah. Since Muslims are so intent on finding the Arabic name of Muhammad in the Hebrew word ma7mad, it is important that they remain consistent. Therefore, here are verses where the same letters appear:

1. 1 Kings 20:6
   "Yet I will send my servants to thee tomorrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, [that] whatever is Muhammad in thy eyes, they shall take [it] in their hand, and carry [it] away."
   
2. Lamentations 1:11
   "All her people sigh, they seek bread; they have given their Muhammad things for food to relieve the soul: see, O LORD, and consider; for I am become vile."
   
3. Ezekiel 24:21
   "Speak to the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the excellence of your strength, the Muhammad of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left shall fall by the sword."

If this mutilation of Scripture seems to you ridiculous, it is meant to be as it shows the quality of the theory behind such an idea. There are nine other references which employ "ma7mad". See for yourself whether Muhammad would fit. They are: 2 Chronicles 36:19, Isaiah 64:11, Lamentations 1:10, Lamentations 2:4, Ezekiel 24:16, Ezekiel 24:25, Hosea 9:6, Hosea 9:16 and Joel 3:5.

When taken to its logical conclusion it makes a mockery of Hebrew grammar. Why should an adjectival clause be translated a proper noun? Ma7mad already has a proper noun counterpart, '7emdan' (or 'Hemdan', the eldest son of Dishon of Anah the Horite). If ma7mad should have been written as a proper noun the author would have written 7emdan.