Deuteronomy 34:10—Does this verse support the Muslim claim that Jesus could not be the predicted prophet (of Deut. 18:18)?

Problem: This verse claims that “there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses.” (kjv) Muslims argue that this proves that the predicted prophet could not be an Israelite, but was Mohammed instead.

Solution: In response, several things should be noted. First, the “since” means since Moses’ death to the time this last chapter was written, probably by Joshua (see comments on Deut. 34:1ff). Even if Deuteronomy was written much later, as some critics believe, it still was composed many centuries before the time of Christ and, therefore, would not eliminate Him. Second, Jesus was the perfect fulfillment of this prediction of the prophet to come, not Mohammed (see comments on Deut. 18:15–18). Third, this could not refer to Mohammed, since the prophet to come was like Moses who did “all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent” (Deut. 34:11). Mohammed by his own confession did not perform signs and wonders like Moses and Jesus did (see Surah 17:90–93). Finally, the prophet to come was like Moses who spoke to God “face to face” (Deut. 34:10). Mohammed never even claimed to speak to God directly, but got his revelations through angels (cf. Surah 2:97). Jesus, on the other hand, like Moses, was a direct mediator (1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 9:15) who communicated directly with God (cf. John 1:18; 12:49).

This excerpt is from When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1992). © 2014 Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe. All rights reserved. Used by permission. Click here to purchase this book.