The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 1

III. Moslem Belief in Christ and the Judgment

In addition to the Christian and Jewish interpretations, we find in the seventh century that the idea of the return of Christ, preceded by Antichrist, also found entrance into Mohammedan thinking. Baydawi’s commentary on the Koran sums it up that ‘Isa (Jesus) will descend on a mountain in the Holy Land carrying a spear wherewith he will kill al dajjal (the great deceiver, the Antichrist). Then he will enter the holy mosque and worship. ‘Isa will then reign for forty years, and finally die and be buried near Mohammed and Abu Bakr in Medina. And the expectation of the coming judgment day also played a prominent role in Mohammed’s message to the Arabs. For many years it was his main topic. ¹⁴ PFF1 573.1