MACHMAD in Song of Sol. 5:16 is not Muhammad!

In this episode we have as a guest Joe, who has been studying early Islam for over 20 years. He introduces his views on 'Proto-Islam' which was a belief that existed in the 7th century, out of which Islam grew. He asked questions concerning why the later Muslims chose the name 'Isa' instead of 'Yesuah', which was the legitimate name for Jesus in Arabic, or the name 'Yaxya' instead of 'Yohanna' for John the Baptist? He also asked what the word 'Machmad' mean, and where did it come from? Joe then moved to the name 'Ilyas ibn Qabisa', which later was also known as 'Mahmet', as a sort of nickname? Joe mentioned that the Qur'an says that it came to "confirm" the Bible, not abrogate it, so he wanted to go back to the Bible and see whether these names like 'Machmad' did refer to Muhammad. Song of Solomon 5:16 is a verse Muslims commonly claim speaks about Muhammad. Joe point out that they had better be careful with that claim, because the word in Hebrew is 'Muhamaddim', which is a reference to the 'Bridegroom' of Israel. What's more, it is in a plural form, intimating 'three or more', and thus could be referring to a trinity, as Christians have suggested. Ezekiel 24:16 also used the word 'Machmad', where it means "desires of your eyes", which is the temple of God; or as we say in the New Testament, "the Bridegroom", inferring Jesus Christ himself (see Matthew 9:15 and Mark 2:19-20). Thus, the reference in Song of Solomon 5:16 would be a reference to Jesus Christ, according to Christians. Joe then went to Gnostic Christianity and Manichaism, which were both found in Iraq. Manichaism was founded by Mani (considered by adherents also as the 'seal of the prophets' and also visited by Gabriel). They considered the tri-partheid view of Christ, that he was 1) the Luminous Spirit, 2) the Messiah, and 3) the Patibilus, the Suffering One. It was the 'Luminous Spirit' who was on the cross, so God never died on the cross. That's the reason, Joe believes, that Surah 7:154, borrowing from this tradition, refers to Isa on the cross as one who "appeared to be crucified", referring to the Gnostic's 'Luminous Spirit'. His body, the Messiah, was given to the church the night before in the upper room, which continues the work of the Messiah even today. His conclusion: 'Mahmad' of Song of Solomon is the same Muhammad found in the Qur'an, which is simply a Gnostic understanding of referring to one of Jesus Christ's 3 identities, so that the Lord, the Christian God is the person referred to in Song of Solomon 5:16. Thus, Muhamaddim is these 3 aspects of God, the Lord being the 'Bridegroom of Israel', and are made up of the Rasul (Messiah), the Word (Suffering Servant), and the Spirit (the Luminous Spirit guide). © Pfander Centre for Apologetics - US, 2020 (41,140) (Music: "small adventure", by Rafael Krux, from filmmusic-io - License CC BY)