Bahai Beliefs and their Biblical Refutation

In the Bahai pamphlet entitled, “Basic Facts of the Bahai Faith” published by the Bahai Publishing Trust, Wilmette, Illinois, it states, “God has revealed His Word, in each period of history through a chosen Individual Whom Bahais call ‘the Manifestation of God’. He restates in every age God’s purpose and will. His teachings are a revelation from God. Abraham, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Christ, and Muhammad were Manifestations of God. Each gave men divine teachings to live by.” “…Since there is one God, these Manifestations of God have each taught the same religious faith.” “…Bahaullah, the Founder of Bahai Faith, is the Manifesta­tion of God for our time.” “…Bahaullah reveals the will of God for men and women of the pre­sent age.” “…The Oneness of Mankind is like a pivot around which all the Teachings of Bahaullah revolve.” “…differences of nation, race, class, and religion can be removed by the unit­ing power of Bahaullah.”

Also in J. Esslemont’s Bahaullah and the New Era, Bahai Publishing Trust, page 287, it says that Bahaullah “declared the fundamental oneness of religions…”

In response to these Bahai assertions, it can be said that Abraham, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Muhammad, and Bahaullah were not Manifestations of God; they did not give divine teachings to live by (except those Moses recorded in the Bible, or that any of the others quoted/restated from the Bible); and they did not teach the same religious faith as Jesus Christ.

Why are these religious leaders not manifestations of God (except for Jesus Christ)? For two main reasons: the Bible, God’s Word, does not mention them as Manifestations of God, and they taught doctrines or sayings that are contrary to the Bible, God’s Word (except Abraham and Moses) – and God does not contradict Himself.

Some examples of where Bahaullah and the Bahai religion contradict Jesus’ teachings and the Bible are as follows:

1.  Bahaullah didn’t believe in the literal physical return of the same Jesus Christ to earth. In J. Esslemont’s Bahaullah and the New Era, p. 273, he quotes Bahaullah as explaining that, “the coming again of Christ was fulfilled in the advent of the Bab and in his own coming.” Esslemont’s further states that, “…the return of Christ will be accomplished by the appearance of another person, born of another mother, but showing forth the Spirit and Power of God, even as Christ did.”

But Jesus didn’t say that He would come again in the Spirit and power of another person, or that He would be born physically again; rather He said that He would return as He left (bodily, full-grown and into heaven – Acts 1:9-11). Jesus explains further in Revelation 19:11 – 20:15 that He would return as a King with an army to kill those against Him and set up His kingdom immediately.

Interestingly, Bahaullah redefines and allegorizes terms to suit his own fancy. Such as in Matthew 24:30, where he says that, “…they shall see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory…“ Bahaullah says, “…By the term ‘cloud’ is meant those things that are contrary to the ways and desires of men”; and “‘heaven’ denotes loftiness and exaltation…” – Bahaullah and the New Era, pp. 280, 281.

2.  Esslemont states on pages 261, 262 that, “According to Bahai interpretation, the prophecies which speak of ‘the time of the end’, ‘the last days’, ‘the coming of the Lord of Hosts’, ‘of the Everlasting Father’, refer especially not to the advent of Jesus Christ, but to that of Bahaullah. Take for instance, the well known prophecy in Isaiah 9:2-7 … … … a little explanation will show how much more fully and aptly it applies to Bahaullah.”

That Isaiah 9:2-7 cannot refer to Bahaullah but rather to Jesus Christ is evident because Jesus is the one who fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies of the child who was to be called ‘Mighty God’ (Isa. 9:6) in Rev. 1:8, 17, 18; 22:13, 16; Heb.1:8, 9. Bahaullah did not fulfill these prophecies. A few of which are:

In Isa. 7:14, it says that the sign God would give king Ahaz of Judah would be that, “a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel.” Jesus fulfilled this prophecy in Matt. 1:18-25. Also, Micah 5:2 tells where the future ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity, would be born – Bethlehem of Judah. Jesus fulfilled this also in Matthew 2:1. Another is that, this ruler would be from the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10; Micah 5:2), which Jesus was (Matt. 1:2; Lk. 3:23, 33). On the other hand, Bahaullah didn’t fulfill these prophecies since: he wasn’t born of a virgin, but rather “was the eldest son of Mirza Abbas of Nur. Bahaullah was born in Teheran, the capital of Iran.” – Bahaullah and the New Era, p. 30. And he wasn’t of the tribe of Judah (Hebrew), but of Per­sian descent.

In Psalm 22:16 it predicted that the Messiah will have his hands and feet pierced, which Jesus fulfilled (Jn. 19:18; 20:25-28). In Isa. 53:12 it’s predicted that the Messiah would be crucified with transgressors (thieves), which Jesus was (Matt. 27:38). In Psa. 16:10; Matt. 12:40; Jn. 2:19-22 it’s predicted that the Messiah would be resurrected in three days after dying, and Jesus did (Lk. 24:2-7; Acts 2:31, 32). On the other hand, Esslemont, on page 50, states that, “Simply and serenely did Bahaullah pass the evening of his life on earth until, after an at­tack of fever, he passed away on the 29th of May 1892, at the age of 75.”

In Luke 24:27, 44; John 1:45; and Acts 3:22; 7:37 it states that Jesus is the fulfillment of all the Old Testament prophecies regarding the coming of the Prophet.

3.  Esslemont on pages 270, 271 states that, “According to Bahai teaching the Resurrection has nothing to do with the gross physical body.” … “That body, once dead, is done with. The grave from which he arises is the grave of ignorance and negligence of God.” … “Bahaullah writes in the Book of Iqan…’ By the terms ‘life’ and ‘death’, spoken of in the Scriptures, is intended the life of faith and the death of unbelief.’“

But Jesus rose bodily (physically), not spiritually from the grave (Jn. 20:25-29; 24:2-43).

4.  Esslemont on page 269 states that the Bahais teach that, “The earth is not to be destroyed, but to be renewed and regenerated.”

But the Bible states in 2 Peter 3:10-13 that God will destroy the heavens and the earth by burning with intense heat, so that even the elements will melt, and that God will then create new heavens and a new earth – Rev. 21:1; Isa. 65:17; 66:22.

5.  Esslemont on pages 51-53 states that Bahaullah writes in the Book of Iqan (pp. 176-181), “Were any of the all-embracing Manifestations of God to declare a ‘I am God!’ He verily speaks the truth, and no doubt attaches thereto.” “And were they all to proclaim: ‘I am the Seal of the Prophets’, they verily utter but the truth, beyond the faintest shadow of doubt. For they (Abraham, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Jesus, and Muhammad) are all but one person, one soul, one spirit, one being, one revelation. They are all the manifestation of the ‘Beginning’ and the ‘End’, the ‘First’ and the ‘Last’, the ‘Seen’ and ‘Hidden’ – all of which pertain to Him Who is in the innermost Spirit of Spirits and the eternal Essence of Essences.”

On pages 38, 58, 154, Esslemont says that Bahaullah claims to be one of these Manifestations of God also. And on pages 87, 109, 154, 257, 312, Esslemont states that both he (Esslemont) and Abdul-Baha (Bahaullah’s son and successor-leader of the Bahais) believe that Bahaullah is the Supreme Manifestation of God. Esslemont further states on page 91 that, “The Bahai wor­ships … the Glory of God manifest through that (Bahaullah’s ) personality.”

The Bible, however, states that, we are to worship and serve God only (Deut.6:13; Lk. 4:8), and Bahaullah is not God or a Manifestation of God.

Esslemont on pages 265 and 269 states that Bahaullah is the Supreme Sun or Manifestation of God for the Last Day, and that Bahaullah is the perfect mirror of God (page 113).

The Bible, however, states that Jesus Christ is the only Manifestation of God in a human body for all time; Jesus is Supremely God – Deut. 6:4; 4:35, 39; Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:2, 3, 8; Jn. 1:1, 14; 10:30; 14:9.

6.  Esslemont states on pages 265, 266 that, “In the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Zechariah are several references to a man called the Branch. These have often been taken by Christians as applying to Christ, but are regarded by Bahais as referring especially to Abdul-­Baha.” The longest Bible prophecy about “the Branch” is in the 11th chapter of Isaiah. And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse and a Branch shall grow out of his roots and the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him … He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked…”

The “rod out of the stem of Jesse and a Branch…“ refers to Jesus Christ rather than Abdul because Jesus is a descendant of Jesse (Matt. 1:6-17, Hebrew descent), while Abdul-Baha is of Persian descent (Esslemont p. 30). Also the Spirit of the Lord rested (visibly) on Jesus (Matt. 3:16), and not on Abdul-Baha. And Jesus Christ is to “strike the earth with the rod of His mouth” and “to slay the wicked” (Rev. 19:13-15, 21). Abdul-Baha never fulfilled this nor will (Heb. 9:27).

7.  Esslemont states on page 303 that, “Abdul-Baha’s Tablets make it clear that the last two ver­ses of the Book of Daniel refer to the 100th anniversary of the Declaration of Bahaullah in Baghdad, or the year 1963. Asked what will be manifest after the 1335 days, He (Abdul-Baha) replied: ‘Universal peace will be firmly established, a Universal language promoted. Misun­derstanding will pass away. The Bahai Cause will be promulgated in all parts and the oneness of mankind established. It will be most glorious.’”

But this prediction obviously did not come to pass. Not only that, but Jesus said it would not be (Matt. 10:34,35, 21-23; Jn. 15:18-20) until Jesus Christ returns (Rev. 21:1 — 22:7).

8.  Esslemont states on page 27 that, “An important part of the Bab’s teaching is His explana­tion of the terms Resurrection, Day of Judgment, Paradise, and hell. By the Resurrection is meant, He said, the appearance of a new Manifestation of the Sun of Truth. The raising of the dead means the spiritual awakening of those who are asleep in the graves of ignorance, heed­lessness, and lust. The Day of Judgment is the Day of the new Manifestation, by acceptance or rejection of whose Revelation the sheep are separated from the goats, for the sheep know the voice of the Good Shepherd and follow Him, Paradise is the joy of knowing and loving God, as revealed through His Manifestation, thereby attaining to the utmost perfection of which one is capable, and, after death, obtaining entrance to the kingdom of God and the life everlasting. Hell is simply deprivation of that knowledge of God with consequent failure to attain divine perfection, and loss of the Eternal Favor. He definitely declared these terms have no real meaning apart from this; and that the prevalent ideas regarding the resurrection of the material body, ‘a material heaven and hell, and the like, are mere figments of the imagination. He taught that man has an after-life after death, and that in the after-life, progress toward perfection is limitless.”

Then on page 109 it says, “Realization of the spiritual self in ourselves means realization of the sublime truth that we are from God and to Him we shall return. This return to God is the glorious goal of the Bahai, but to attain this goal the only path is that of obedience to His chosen Messengers, and especially to His Messenger for the time in which we live, Bahaullah, the prophet of the New Era.”

The Bible, however, defines these same terms (mentioned above) in a literal, physical sense and not an allegorical sense – Lk. 24:39; Jn. 20:25-28; Rev. 20:11-15; Heb. 9:24, 27; Jn. 14:2, 3; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Cor. 15:35-55; Matt. 5:29, 30; 13:41, 42.

9.  Esslemont on page 95 states that, “So until we have seen the Glory of God revealed in the Manifestation (the Perfect Man, such as Bahaullah – p. 94), we can have no idea of the spiritual beauty latent in our own nature and in that of our fellows. By knowing and loving the Man­ifestation of God and following His teachings we are enabled, little by little, to realize the potential perfections within ourselves…“ Then on page 108, Esslemont states that, “Bahaullah urges men to realize and give full expression to the perfections latent within them…”

The Bible, however, states that man is basically sinful or evil within rather than latently perfect – Mk. 7:21-23; Rom. 3:10, 12; 8:5-8; 7:18; Jer. 17:9; Mk. 10:18.

10.  Esslemont states on page 248 that, “Highest of all the great Prophets and Saviors, ‘the Di­vine Manifestations (Abraham, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Christ, Muhammad, and Bahaullah) – those perfect men who were each, in their day, without peer or companion, and bore the bur­den of the whole world, supported by God alone.”

The Bible, however, states that there is only one Savior and that is the Lord God (Jesus Christ) – Hosea 13:4; Titus 3:4-6. And none of the world religious leaders (except Jesus) called “Prophets and Saviors” were perfect – Heb. 4:15; Rom. 3:10, 12, 23. In Norman Anderson’s The World Religions, page 60, it states that Muhammad “could stoop to assassination; he was un­deniably sensual.”

Esslemont states on page 249 that, ‘Bahaullah confirms … … … millions and billions of years for the history of the earth’s creation.” Bahaullah calls the creation account in the Hebrew Scriptures, “crude and bald,” Bahaullah believes in theistic evolution.

The Bible, however, teaches that God created the heavens and the earth in six days by the word of His mouth (Gen. 1:31 – 2:2; Psa. 33:6, 9) and not in billions of years through evolution.

In conclusion, it becomes apparent that Bahaullah, Abdul-Baha, and the Bahai religion are false and not from God (Deut. 18:21, 22; Gal. 1:6-9; Rev. 22:18, 19).