THEOS prōtos

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What Does the Qur’an Say About Jesus

Jesus is a massive figure in the Qur’an. Interestingly, he is a greater figure than Muhammad in the Qur’an. We break down roughly 20 points of characteristics, traits, and beliefs about Jesus in the Qur’an and see how that compares to “the Book” of “the People of the Book.”

Key points to remember:

  1. Muhammad was born in 570AD and died in 632 AD.
    • 272 years after the Bible was canonized
    • 536 years after Jesus died (assuming a 34 AD crucifixion [Josephus, Jewish Historian, Non-Christian, Antiquities; the Talmud]).
  2. The Qur’an began being written around 630 AD and even after the death of Muhammad.

The Birth of Jesus

Surah 19:19-22 “He responded, “I am only a messenger from your Lord, ˹sent˺ to bless you with a pure son. She wondered, “How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me, nor am I unchaste?” He replied, “So will it be! Your Lord says, ‘It is easy for Me. And so will We make him a sign for humanity and a mercy from Us.’ It is a matter ˹already˺ decreed.” So she conceived him and withdrew with him to a remote place.“

Several important statements here about Jesus. First of all, we see this messenger from the Lord call Jesus “a pure son” (19:19). This is an important element to the identify of Jesus. He us pure, undefiled, uncorrupt, sinless.

Second, here we see Mary is a virgin (19:20) when she conceived Jesus.

Lastly, his birth is “a sign for humanity” (19:21) and not just a sign for Christians only, but for all humanity.

This is inline with orthodox Christian doctrine. Jesus was sinless, who was born of a virgin as a sign for all humanity. BUT the IMPLICATIONS of what these three elements of truth mean will pose a problem for the Qur’an and Islam.

Surah 21:91 “And ˹remember˺ the one who guarded her chastity, so We breathed into her through Our angel, ˹Gabriel,˺1 making her and her son a sign for all peoples.”

Footnote 1  “Gabriel breathed into the sleeves of Mary’s garment so she conceived Jesus.“

This is a detail not revealed in “the Book” and it’s an odd one. So we have the angel Gabriel breath in the sleeves of Mary. Odd detail but it reveals that God used Gabriel to miraculously conceive Jesus. Restated in 66:12 also.

Surah 3:59 “Indeed, the example of Jesus in the sight of Allah is like that of Adam. He created him from dust, then said to him, “Be!” And he was!“

Now, he can’t be talking about Jesus here because Jesus was made by God, through the breath of Gabriel, through the sleeves of Mary. No dirt involved. But, “the Book” does call Jesus the “second Adam” and Jesus was the prophesied “one like the son of man” in the book of Daniel.

Jesus Growing Up

Surah 3:45-49 “˹Remember˺ when the angels proclaimed, “O Mary! Allah gives you good news of a Word from Him, his name will be the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; honoured in this world and the Hereafter, and he will be one of those nearest ˹to Allah˺. (v.46) And he will speak to people in ˹his˺ infancy and adulthood and will be one of the righteous.” (v.47) Mary wondered, “My Lord! How can I have a child when no man has ever touched me?” An angel replied, “So will it be. Allah creates what He wills. When He decrees a matter, He simply tells it, ‘Be!’ And it is! (v.48) And Allah will teach him writing and wisdom, the Torah and the Gospel, (v.49) and ˹make him˺ a messenger to the Children of Israel ˹to proclaim,˺ ‘I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I will make for you a bird from clay, breathe into it, and it will become a ˹real˺ bird—by Allah’s Will. I will heal the blind and the leper and raise the dead to life—by Allah’s Will.“

This is an interesting summery of what who Jesus is from an outsider of orthodox Christianity.

Jesus is called “a Word” of God. This is how the Gospel of John opens up. But, unlike the Gospels, the concept is watered down and it’s meaning diluted. God spoke “Be” and Jesus came into being. Which is sort of true. At some point, God transferred Jesus in Mary with one word. Thus, in a Islamic understanding of “the Word,” Jesus was it. The funny thing is that no other as born like this, but only Jesus. This makes Jesus more unique then all the others.

Not only is Jesus, “the Word” but he is also “the Messiah.” Messiah (Masîḥ) means the “anointed one.” It is used in the Quran exclusively as a title for Jesus Christ. So, where did Muhammad get the idea for calling Jesus the “anointed one”? Isaiah 61:1, often cited in the New Testament, speaks of the Spirit of the Lord being upon an anointed one to bring good news, heal the brokenhearted, and liberate captives. In Luke 4:18-19, Jesus declares that this prophecy has been fulfilled in him.  Daniel 9:25-26 details the time of the coming of the Anointed One, the Messiah, and his subsequent suffering and death. Psalms like Psalm 2 and Psalm 110 refer to God’s Anointed One, the future king, who would rule over Israel and be given all dominion. This is where Muhammad got it from because he also validates Isaiah, Daniel, and the Psalms as being God’s Word (here). BUT that is where Muhammad and Christians begin to depart. If we study Isaiah, Daniel, and the Psalms, we find that this “anointed one” is more than Just a Prophet. THIS is a point of much needed further study for Muslims and “the Book.”

Jesus will be honored in this world and in the next world AND is “one of those nearest to” God.

Mary, again, points out that she is just a virgin but the angel reinforces that it is God’s will and that it is going to happen because God is able.

Even from Jesus’ childhood, he was special, different, and smart already (v.46). This also collaborates Luke 2:41-52. And as he grew up, being that he was sinless (19:19), he was righteous (3:46), and “one of those nearest to” God (3:45).

Jesus was taught “the Book” by God himself (3:48). This also collaborates John 12:49-50: “I do not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it.”  John 5:19: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” John 14:10: “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.” 

The Qur’an then tells us that Jesus was sent to the “Children of Israel.” This collaborates Matthew 15:24: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But keep in mind, even the Qur’an says that Jesus was “a sign for humanity” (19:21) and not just the Jews. Romans 1:16 states that the gospel is “the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Greek“. 

What Jesus does, his miracles, are also detailed in the Qur’an. He healed the blind, healed the leapers, AND, this one is massive, raise the dead to life (3:49). Thus, the resurrection is possible, even in the Qur’an if this is something Jesus was able to do.

Jesus The Prophet and Apostle

Surah 4:171 “O People of the Book! Do not go to extremes regarding your faith; say nothing about Allah except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger of Allah and the fulfilment of His Word through Mary and a spirit ˹created by a command˺ from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers and do not say, “Trinity.” Stop!—for your own good. Allah is only One God. Glory be to Him! He is far above having a son! To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And Allah is sufficient as a Trustee of Affairs.“

The Qur’an presents Jesus as only “a messenger” of God, and nothing more. But, its hard not to miss the previous statements about him. That Jesus was sinless, born from a virgin, who could raise people from the dead (19:19; 3:47, 49). It is important to point out that there are no other “messengers” who could do that.

Hint of Jesus’ Divinity

Let us now focus on the phrase “The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger of Allah and the fulfilment of His Word through Mary and a spirit ˹created by a command˺ from Him.”

wa kalimatahu alqaha el a Mariam wa Ruhmminhu

alqaha = “delivered” or “cast”
Ruhmminhu = “a spirit from Him”

Properly translated in context:

“And His word cast to (towards) Mariam and a spirit from Him.“

When properly translated, we see Jesus’ pre-existence before his physical birth. Keep in mind, Surah 3:45 calls Jesus “a Word.” This literally tells us that Jesus, the Word, was cast down to Mary who was a spirit from God; before Jesus was born. Here we see Jesus pre-existed with God before being “cast” to Mary. He existed, and THEN was cast down to Mary.

False Assumption of Polytheism

The concept (and word “trinity”) is rejected here by the Qur’an but the assumption is that the “People of the Book” were teaching there was more than one God. This is false. The people of the Book only believed in one God. Believing that this Prophet, who was sinless, born of a virgin, who could raise people from the dead, who was taught by God himself, directly, really points to something greater than just another messenger of God.

The Quranic reasoning for God not having a divine Son is simply “He is far above having a son.” How? Why? The reasoning given here doesn’t answer the question; How is God above having a divine son? Why is a divine Son still beneath him? If both are divine, holy, pure, and righteous, able to do all the things that God can do, how is that beneath him?

The Holy Spirit

Another statement that Qur’an makes is that the spirit of Gabriel empowered Jesus to do divine works such as healings and raising the dead (footnote 2 on Qur’an.com states: “ i.e., Jesus was created by Allah’s Word “Be!” and he was, and life was breathed into Jesus by the holy spirit (the angel Gabriel) at the command of Allah.“). So, angels can do things God can do too? God isn’t the only one who has authority over life and death? Thus, we can see that the Holy Spirit in the Qur’an is merely the Angel Gabriel.

It is important to note that the Quran does not explicitly mention that the Holy Spirit (Ruh Qudus) is the same as angel Gabriel (Jibril), neither do the hadiths. It is just a majority Islamic opinion based on the fact that the Quran and Hadith say that that both ruh al qudus and angel Gabriel sent the revelation to prophet Muhammed and therefore they must/courld be the same. Not all Muslims agree on this opinion though even though the ones who do not agree with it are a minority.

Surah 5:75 “The Messiah, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger. ˹Many˺ messengers had ˹come and˺ gone before him. His mother was a woman of truth. They both ate food.1 See how We make the signs clear to them, yet see how they are deluded ˹from the truth˺!“

The footnote 1 on Quran.com adds this: “i.e., they were in need of food for nourishment. According to some scholars, this implies that Jesus and his mother had to relieve themselves after the food had been digested. Almighty Allah is far above depending on food or having to go to the restroom.“

What is interesting to note is how the Qur’an phrases it’s statements about Jesus. It seems to refute teachings it rejects, instead of just present truth. In both 4:171 and 5:75 it is phrased in the negative, “was no more than.” And the Qur’an’s proof was that they had to eat food and use the bathroom. That going to the bathroom was a clear sign that he wasn’t divine. Yet, it was God how MADE the human body to do it. Therefore Jesus couldn’t be divine because he had to eat and poop. Yet, Jesus was still declared in the Qur’an as sinless and pure…

Surah 19:30 “Jesus declared, “I am truly a servant of Allah. He has destined me to be given the Scripture and to be a prophet.“

Again, we see some collaborating details in John 12:49-50: “I do not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it.”  John 5:19: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” John 14:10: “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.”

Isaiah 53 explicitly states that a servant will come and suffer on behalf of God’s people. Deuteronomy 18:15 explicitly states that a prophet was coming, like Moses, and that they should listen. Jesus is like Moses in that he lead his people out of the slavery from sin and used symbolism such as the lambs blood on the door posts, the Passover feast, and the serpent on the rod to heal those in the wilderness.

Jesus’ Holiness

Sahih Bukhari, Book 54, Hadith 506, Narrated Abu Huraira states that: “The Prophet said, “When any human being is born. Satan touches him at both sides of the body with his two fingers, except Jesus, the son of mary, whom Satan tried to touch but failed, for he touched the placenta-cover instead.“

Surah 19:19 explicitly says that he was born “pure”

Though Jesus isn’t divine, yet, he was perfect, pure, sinless, and untouched by Satan. You know who else is perfect, pure, sinless, and untouched by Satan: God.

The Hint of Divine Sonship of Jesus

Surah 39:4 “Had it been Allah’s Will to have offspring, He could have chosen whatever He willed of His creation. Glory be to Him! He is Allah—the One, the Supreme.“

Here the Qur’an says that God could have a son. But didn’t choose any one from his creation. Why? Because his creation has to eat and use the bathroom (Surah 5:75+footnote). Yet, Jesus was pure and sinless (Surah 19:19; Sahih Bukhari, Book 54, Hadith 506) who pre-existed his physical birth (Surah 4:171), from the most blessed woman in history (Surah 3:42). He could raise the dead and heal (Surah 3:49) and had the authority to make new divine laws and must be obeyed (Surah 3:50); and ascended to Heaven like no other prophet did (Surah 3:54-55). What sort of relationship would it have to be for God to favor Jesus more than all other of His prophets? A very special and unique one.

Since God could have a Son who was not defiled by the things of the world, and Jesus was undefiled by the things of this world AND pre-existed with God before his physical birth in the world; what else would he be to God, if not a son from heaven? Why was Jesus treated better by God than Muhammad? As though God treated Jesus like a Son.

Surah 112:3-4 “He has never had offspring, nor was He born. And there is none comparable to Him.”

This is all correct and does not negate having a divine sonship. A divine Son who is part of God himself is not “offspring” nor is he “born.” This sort of divine Sonship would be part of God himself and thus couldn’t be compared to himself, being himself.

Surah 6:100-101 “Yet they associate the jinn1 with Allah ˹in worship˺, even though He created them, and they falsely attribute to Him sons2 and daughters3 out of ignorance. Glorified and Exalted is He above what they claim! ˹He is˺ the Originator of the heavens and earth. How could He have children when He has no mate? He created all things and has ˹perfect˺ knowledge of everything.“

The phrase “they falsely attribute to Him sons” is a reference to how Christians, “People of The Book” see Jesus. The Qur’an answers its own question when it asks here, “how could [God] have children when He has no mate?” Well, let’s just go back to Surah 39:4 and answer it. God could have just chosen whomever he pleased to adopt, make, or just have. How could he? He could just choose to, that’s how. So, that question is moot, he doesn’t need a mate. Why? Because if God had a Son, he wouldn’t have needed to be created either if God is eternal, so would his son.

The attribution of God having a son isn’t something that was just made up and taught later. The Gospels, validated and confirmed by the Qur’an, quote Jesus as calling himself the Son (Matt 16:15-17; Luk 22:70; Jh 10:36) that is spoken of in the Old Testament (Prov. 30:3-4;  Daniel 7:13-14), which was also validated and confirmed by the Qur’an as being God’s Word. Thus, it is “the Book” that makes this attribution and it is the Christians that are agreeing with what is said, and believing in what Scripture makes known.

Secondly, the qur’anic relationship shows something between Jesus and God that is a very special and unique. Jesus is the most favored prophet, and not just any sort of prophet. His mother is the most favored woman in all history. The interactions between Jesus and Allah are more personal and close. Allah proves his greater favoritism for Jesus in all the ways Jesus was blessed (sinlessness, authority, power, protections, ascension, second coming). Allah is male, and Jesus is a male. When a wise and elder/senior male teaches, raises, mentors, and favors a youthful male above all other males; that’s exactly what a father does for his son. The father-son relationship is clear in the Qur’an, without applying a title to it. It was Jesus in “the Gospel” that applied the relational name- the Son.

But, outside of the Qur’an, we have hadiths that continued to drive home a point not being made.

Sahih Muslim, (Book #001, Hadith #0352) “They would say: We worshipped Jesus, son of Allah. It would be said to them: You tell a lie; Allah did not take for Himself either a spouse or a son.”

Sahih Bukhari, Book #93, Hadith #532s) Then it will be said to the Christians, ‘What did you use to worship?’ They will reply, ‘We used to worship Messiah, the son of Allah.’ It will be said, ‘You are liars, for Allah has neither a wife nor a son.

Correct, no one is saying that God took a wife and created a son (we’re not talking about heretical gnostic sects and cults). That is NOT what “the Book” makes known about Jesus. All Christians are doing is agreeing with “the Gospel” which came from Jesus himself and the specific revelations in the Bible. If a Christian did say “God went and got a wife who gave birth to a earthly son” that would be a lie, that would be deemed heresy, which, it was. Valentinian Gnosticism taught this. This concept is called Adoptionism and was declared heresy at the end of the 3rd century and was rejected by the Synods of Antioch in the mid 3rd century, over 400 years before Muhammad was born. Thus, Christians and Muslims both reject adoptionism.

Surah 9:30 “The Jews say, “Ezra is the son of Allah,” while the Christians say, “The Messiah is the son of Allah.” Such are their baseless assertions, only parroting the words of earlier disbelievers. May Allah condemn them! How can they be deluded ˹from the truth˺?“

What exposes the Hadiths here to an error of their own is that the Jews as a whole, orthodox Judaism of the 1st century and of the 7th century, did NOT believe that Ezra was the son of God. Maybe only a fringe isolated group called Mizrahi Yemenite Jews that also believed in Jewish beliefs and customs. That’s like saying “all of Islam believes in pedophilia and suicide bombing innocent Muslims” to which not all Muslims believe this. So it is misleading to mischaracterize an entire group based on what a fringe cult or unorthodox sect teaches.

Christians did and do believe that “the Messiah is the son of [God].” Again, it is misleading to call this claim “baseless assertion” considering it is painted all over “the Book” in the earliest of its writings, half a millennia before Muhammad was born. Interestingly, it is this “Book” that the Qur’an calls true, that reveals this teaching. The assertion of this belief is based in “the Book.”

This surah logically fails as well. Christians can’t be “parroting the words of earlier disbelievers” who may have been the Mizrahi Yemenite Jews; Christians believed what is stated in “the Book” while the Mizrahi Yemenite Jews may have believed in something not explicitly stated in “the Book.” Even that statement in that surah of what they believe doesn’t appear to be true as a whole.  A very early legend, millennia before Muhammad, stated that Ezra commanded the Jews to return to Jerusalem they disobeyed, whereupon he pronounced a ban upon them. According to this legend, as a punishment for this hasty action, Ezra was denied burial in Israel. As a result of this local tradition, it is said that no Jew of Yemen gives the name of Ezra to a child (this is what the author of this Surah could have misunderstood). The Yemenite Jews claim that Ezra cursed them to be a poor people for not heeding his call. The Shorter Jewish Encyclopedia says that the saying of Uzair son of God, may be only an oral tradition of the Jews of Yemen and linked to the Book of Second Esdras, which is not considered the word of God and is apocryphal. To say that all the Jews, or imply that the Jews as a whole, believed this is a gross mischaracterization and factually incorrect.

Four Major Elements of God, Also Found in Jesus

Surah 10:64 (Translated by Abdullah Yusuf Ali): “For them are glad tidings, in the life of the present and in the Hereafter; no change can there be in the words of Allah. This is indeed the supreme felicity.“

Surah 3:45 “˹Remember˺ when the angels proclaimed, “O Mary! Allah gives you good news of a Word from Him, his name will be the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; honoured in this world and the Hereafter, and he will be one of those nearest ˹to Allah˺.

  1. Jesus is the “Word” from God and the Word of God is eternal (supported by his pre-existence in Surah 4:171).

Sahih Bukhari, Book 54, Hadith 506, Narrated Abu Huraira states that: “The Prophet said, “When any human being is born. Satan touches him at both sides of the body with his two fingers, except Jesus, the son of mary, whom Satan tried to touch but failed, for he touched the placenta-cover instead.“

2. Jesus is the only being untouched by Satan; and God cannot be touched by Satan (supported by his sinless purity in Surah 19:19).

Surah 67:2 “˹He is the One˺ Who created death and life in order to test which of you is best in deeds. And He is the Almighty, All-Forgiving.”

Surah 3:49 “and ˹make him˺ a messenger to the Children of Israel ˹to proclaim,˺ ‘I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I will make for you a bird from clay, breathe into it, and it will become a ˹real˺ bird—by Allah’s Will. I will heal the blind and the leper and raise the dead to life—by Allah’s Will. And I will prophesize what you eat and store in your houses. Surely in this is a sign for you if you ˹truly˺ believe.“

3. Jesus creates life from clay and raises the dead; and God creates life.

Surah 7:87 “If some of you do believe in what I have been sent with while others do not, then be patient until Allah judges between us. He is the Best of Judges.”“

Surah 43:61, Yusuf Ali: “And (Jesus) shall be a Sign (for the coming of) the Hour (of Judgment): therefore have no doubt about the (Hour), but follow ye Me: this is a Straight Way.“

4. Jesus will judge on judgement day; and God is the judge.

It is very striking all that Jesus can do and is extremely similar to God in the Qur’an; almost like, he’s related to God, and is more close to God than all the other prophets, even Muhammad.

Jesus’ Teachings

Surah 5:46 “Then in the footsteps of the prophets, We sent Jesus, son of Mary, confirming the Torah revealed before him. And We gave him the Gospel containing guidance and light and confirming what was revealed in the Torah—a guide and a lesson to the God-fearing.“

Here we see that Jesus not only confirmed that the Torah, or the Old Testament was the divine word of God but that God also gave him “the Gospel” which is the New Testament. The Qur’an makes it clear that the Bible know in the time of Muhammad, called “the Book,” was the divine word of God. So, we can know exactly what Jesus taught by reading the Bible. We know our current Bible is of Jesus because we literally have 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th century manuscripts, today, all written before Muhammad was born, which would be the very manuscripts that Muhammad could only have known about when he calls those manuscripts of the Torah and the Gospel, confirmed and given from God.

Surah 57:27 “Then in the footsteps of these ˹prophets˺, We sent Our messengers, and ˹after them˺ We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and granted him the Gospel, and instilled compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they made it up—We never ordained it for them—only seeking to please Allah, yet they did not ˹even˺ observe it strictly. So We rewarded those of them who were faithful. But most of them are rebellious.“

Again, here is “the Gospel” coming from God through Jesus. Christians agree with this too.

The funny note about monasticism condemned in the Qur’an, Monks did hide away and avoid the world, which does go against the Gospel Jesus proclaimed. Nonetheless, the Gospel is from God through Jesus, and we have those very manuscript copies of that very same message today.

Jesus’ Miracles and Divine Power

Surah 3:49 “and ˹make him˺ a messenger to the Children of Israel ˹to proclaim,˺ ‘I have come to you with a sign from your Lord: I will make for you a bird from clay, breathe into it, and it will become a ˹real˺ bird—by Allah’s Will. I will heal the blind and the leper and raise the dead to life—by Allah’s Will. And I will prophesize what you eat and store in your houses. Surely in this is a sign for you if you ˹truly˺ believe.“

Not only did Jesus teach the Gospel, which is the Word of God according to the Qur’an, but he did signs to prove that he as the “anointed one.” What he did though, are things that only God can do. He literally made a living bird from clay (like how God made Adam) according to the Qur’an. He healed the blind and the lepers, exactly how it is described in the Bible. He even raised the dead to life.

Making life from wet dirt and bringing life into the dead are all the things that only God can do, so, of course it’s “by Allah’s Will” but if Jesus is doing it, isn’t he also doing God’s Will? And if he is doing only that which God can do and its doing exactly what God wills to do… then… Jesus may be something more than just a mere prophet of God.

Surah 5:110 “And ˹on Judgment Day˺ Allah will say, “O Jesus, son of Mary! Remember My favour upon you and your mother: how I supported you with the holy spirit1 so you spoke to people in ˹your˺ infancy and adulthood. How I taught you writing, wisdom, the Torah, and the Gospel. How you moulded a bird from clay—by My Will—and breathed into it and it became a ˹real˺ bird—by My Will. How you healed the blind and the lepers—by My Will. How you brought the dead to life—by My Will. How I prevented the Children of Israel from harming you when you came to them with clear proofs and the disbelievers among them said, “This is nothing but pure magic.”“

It is interesting to note that all the times the “holy spirit” is stated, it never includes “Gabriel” That idea is only a later footnote and was not originally stated. Why didn’t the author simply state the footnote if that’s what is actually being said?

Again, the same three types of miracles are stated, making a living creature from wet dirt, healing, and raising the dead. A fourth miracle is God preventing “children of Israel from harming” him. Why would they want to harm him? What idea does this writer have in his mind as to why the jews would want to harm Jesus? They believed in miracles and healings so they wouldn’t’ just assume Jesus is practicing magic and sorcery especially that he was a respected Jew. So, again, WHY would they want to harm Jesus?

Actually, the Bible does record the Jews accusing Jesus of being possessed by demons (John 8:48-51) and the Talmud states that they think he practice sorcery. And all throughout the gospels we see the Jews getting highly offended by what Jesus was doing and teaching and they did, several times, try to arrest him but by the divine prevention of God, Jesus slipped away able to preach and teach another day (John 7:30-32; Luke 4:29).

Jesus’ Authority and Superiority

Surah 3:50 “And I [Jesus] will confirm the Torah revealed before me and legalize some of what had been forbidden to you. I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, so be mindful of Allah and obey me.“

Because Jesus is the “anointed one” and speaks the Words of God, he is to be obeyed. Pretty simple. But the phrasing here is interesting. It states to be mindful of God AND obey JESUS. Obeying Jesus is putting our minds on God.

Surah 3:55 “˹Remember˺ when Allah said, “O Jesus! I will take you and raise you up to Myself. I will deliver you from those who disbelieve, and elevate your followers above the disbelievers until the Day of Judgment. Then to Me you will ˹all˺ return, and I will settle all your disputes.“

Not only does Jesus have the power and authority to permit what was forbidden, AND demands obedience, he is also elevated above and superior to others. But this also gets applied to “your followers,” and who are the followers of Jesus?

Jesus’ Deity

Surah 9:31 “They have taken their rabbis and monks as well as the Messiah, son of Mary, as lords besides Allah,1 even though they were commanded to worship none but One God. There is no god ˹worthy of worship˺ except Him. Glorified is He above what they associate ˹with Him˺!“

Footnote 1: “When ’Adi ibn Ḥâtim, a companion of the Prophet (ﷺ), heard this verse, he said, “But the Jews and Christians do not worship their rabbis and monks!” The Prophet (ﷺ) replied, “Do the rabbis and monks not forbid the permissible and permit the forbidden, and they obey them?” ’Adi answered, “Yes, they do.” The Prophet (ﷺ) concluded, “This is how they worship them.” Collected by At-Tirmiⱬi.“

It’s odd here that the Qur’an states the Rabbis (Jews) and Monks (Christians) as well as the Messiah (Jesus) worship them as gods along with God. That’s an interesting thought. The middle part of the verse assumes something other than polytheism. The Jews and Christians even in this time were Monotheistic (belief in one supreme being). So, this footnote tries to help explain this verse to avoid the false assumptions about their beliefs.

Yet, Jesus IS TO BE OBEYED and he PERMITTED WHAT WAS FORBIDDEN (Surah 3:50). Now, as one who is NOT the “anointed one” the Rabbis and Monks can’t do this… but… Jesus DID, AND commanded to BE OBEYED. Thus, Jesus is LITERALLY commanding worship, according to the footnote logic of 3:50 and 9:31. That is a logical problem in the Qur’an if the footnotes are accurate and true.

Surah 4:171 “O People of the Book! Do not go to extremes regarding your faith; say nothing about Allah except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger of Allah and the fulfilment of His Word through Mary and a spirit ˹created by a command˺ from Him.2 So believe in Allah and His messengers and do not say, “Trinity.” Stop!—for your own good. Allah is only One God. Glory be to Him! He is far above having a son! To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And Allah is sufficient as a Trustee of Affairs.“

Again, we come back to 4:171 which goes out of it’s way to remind us that Jesus was “no more than a Messager” and addressing the idea of the doctrine of the Trinity in Christianity. Not only are they rejecting the notion of Jesus being God, but also rejecting the notion that Jesus is God’s Son. In the Qur’an the closest thing to a divine nature in Jesus was Gabriel helping him do miracles.

Surah 5:116 “And ˹on Judgment Day˺ Allah will say, “O Jesus, son of Mary! Did you ever ask the people to worship you and your mother as gods besides Allah?” He will answer, “Glory be to You! How could I ever say what I had no right to say? If I had said such a thing, you would have certainly known it. You know what is ˹hidden˺ within me, but I do not know what is within You. Indeed, You ˹alone˺ are the Knower of all unseen.“

This is odd. Where did the author/Muhammad get this idea from? It is VERY important to distinguish between the 1st and 2nd Century Church and the systems that were growing and developing within the later Church in Muhammad’s time. At this point, Mary was beginning to be highly “venerated” and the Catholic dogmas and Mariology was starting to take shape. This is where Muhammad got this idea from. But, to be clear, “the Book,” which is the Bible, does NOT state this or teach this. The worship (veneration) of Mary is a later invention by the proto-Catholic Church.

No, Christian’s never said that Jesus said to worship his mother. THAT was never been a teaching within orthodox Christianity. This quranic verse is basically irrelevant due to it stating something that no orthodox Christian was teaching. It is a blatant mischaracterization; except for the worship of Jesus, that WAS taught since day one in the Christian faith.

Now let us consider all the above. Jesus’ pre-existence before is miraculous birth from the most favored woman in History (this explains why Mary is so favored). Then, Jesus is better favored by God than Muhammad. Jesus was pure, sinless, holy, and righteous. He could raise people from the dead, heal, and make legal what was declared forbidden by God previously. He is to be obeyed. He even ascended to Heaven and is to return again (see below). And this Jesus is just a mere messenger? If that’s true, why weren’t ALL THE OTHER messengers like this?

Jesus’ Death

Surah 3:55 “˹Remember˺ when Allah said, “O Jesus! I will take you1 and raise you up to Myself. I will deliver you from those who disbelieve, and elevate your followers above the disbelievers until the Day of Judgment. Then to Me you will ˹all˺ return, and I will settle all your disputes.“

Footnote 1 states: “ ‘Mutawaffîka’ means literally: “I will make you reach the end of your worldly term.” The popular Muslim belief is that a conspiracy was made to kill Jesus. Allah made the main culprit who betrayed Jesus look exactly like Jesus, while the culprit was crucified. Similar to Christians, Muslims believe in the second coming of Jesus (ﷺ).“

This verse doesn’t state anything specific about the crucifixion or Jesus’ bodily death. It is assumed here that Jesus didn’t die on the cross but at some later point was just raised up to Heaven.

Surah 4:157 “and for boasting, “We killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.” But they neither killed nor crucified him—it was only made to appear so.1 Even those who argue for this ˹crucifixion˺ are in doubt. They have no knowledge whatsoever—only making assumptions. They certainly did not kill him.“

Footnote 1 “The popular belief among Muslims is that a conspiracy was made to kill Jesus, Allah made the main culprit who betrayed Jesus look exactly like Jesus, then he was crucified in Jesus’ place. Jesus was raised safe and sound to the heavens. Muslims also believe in the second coming of Jesus (ﷺ).“

Problems with this interpretation and understanding is that it doesn’t fit historical facts in reality. This “conspiracy” was first notated outside of scripture in later gnostic writings. But this Footnote in Surah 3:55 and in 4:157 does validate that someone was crucified and everyone thought it was Jesus.

For someone to BE a Christian, the crucifixion is a fundamental essential belief of reality. If that is NOT believed, then they are NOT Christian. If a Christian doubts the crucifixion, all they have to do is study early century history and look at historical facts in ancient non-Christian writings and archeology.

The comment “they have no knowledge whatsoever- only making assumptions” is one of the poorest thought-out statements in all religious history. What “knowledge” did the author of this verse not have, lets find out:

Historical Evidences (from NON-Christians) of the Crucifixion:

  1. 1st Century: The Jewish historian Josephus (non-Christian) wrote about Jesus in his “Antiquities of the Jews”. While some scholars debate the authenticity of certain passages, most academic non-Christian scholars agree that the core passage about Jesus’ crucifixion is genuine.
  2. 1st Century, 73AD: Mara bar Serapion was a Stoic philosopher from the Roman province of Syria. He is noted for a letter he wrote in Aramaic to his son, who was named Serapion talking about all the various great wisemen in various cultures that were executed, including “What advantage did the Jews gain from executing their wise king?” To get Jesus crucified, the Jews claimed Jesus was claiming to be King to get Rome to execute him. The sign “King of the Jews” was also nailed above his head. This why Mara called this Jewish figure, their “wise king” and could only be talking about Jesus because the last king of Israel was 587BC and was not executed by the Jews.
  3. 2nd Century, 116AD: The Roman historian and senator Tacitus referred to Jesus and his execution by Pontius Pilate in his final work, Annals, book 15, chapter 44 as historical fact in Roman history.
  4. 2nd Century: Lucian of Samosata was a Hellenized Syrian satirist, rhetorician and pamphleteer frequently religion. He mocked the crucifixion of Jesus, validating that it happened and made fun of Christians for believing in a man that was crucified.
  5. 3rd to 6th centuries: The Talmud, a collection of Jewish rabbinic discussions and teachings contains a passage in Tractate Sanhedrin (43a) that describes Jesus’ execution as a fact of history.

The 5 non-Christian sources above prove (there are others too) that there exists “knowledge” of a historic fact that Jesus literally was crucified. And the statement of “making assumptions” is flat out untrue. Notice, all 5 of these aren’t using “the Book” to have knowledge of what happened to someone named Jesus in the 1st century. The only other historic fact we see here is that the author of this Quranic verse had no knowledge of Josephus, Mara bar Serapion, Tacitus, Lucian of Samosata, and never read the Jewish Talmud.

The source of “knowledge” that Jesus wasn’t physically and actually crucified prior to Muhammad comes from gnostic Christianized pagan cults. Hence why John of Damascus thought Muhammad spoke to an Arian monk about Christianity because Arianism has similar beliefs about Jesus. Arianism is not Christianity.

Surah 19:15 “Peace be upon him the day he was born, and the day of his death, and the day he will be raised back to life!“

This is just a general statement, he was born, then he died. But HOW he did is where the details matter. The last part of this verse reveals that he is still dead somewhere, that his body is in the ground waiting to be raised back to life. So, where’s Jesus’ body? But something confusing is, if Jesus ascended to heaven, did he “die”? And if he did ascend to heaven, how will he be “raised back to life”? There exists some logical inconsistencies with these two competing qur’anic ideas.

Jesus’ Ascension

Surah 3:55 “˹Remember˺ when Allah said, “O Jesus! I will take you1 and raise you up to Myself. I will deliver you from those who disbelieve, and elevate your followers above the disbelievers until the Day of Judgment. Then to Me you will ˹all˺ return, and I will settle all your disputes.“

Footnote 1 states: “ ‘Mutawaffîka’ means literally: “I will make you reach the end of your worldly term.” The popular Muslim belief is that a conspiracy was made to kill Jesus. Allah made the main culprit who betrayed Jesus look exactly like Jesus, while the culprit was crucified. Similar to Christians, Muslims believe in the second coming of Jesus (ﷺ).“

Aside from all the non-quranic commentary such as footnote 1, if we just consider The Qur’an’s words, “I will take you (I will make you reach the end of your worldly term) and raise you up Myself” we see that there is agreement with the Gospels (“the Book”) about Jesus’ ascension. So, after Jesus did all that God sent him to do, he raised him up to himself and Jesus ascended to Heaven. Not even Muhammad got this special treatment from God.

Surah 5:117 “I never told them anything except what You ordered me to say: “Worship Allah—my Lord and your Lord!” And I was witness over them as long as I remained among them. But when You took me,1 You were the Witness over them—and You are a Witness over all things.”

Footnote 1:  This refers to the ascension of Jesus Christ. See footnote for 3:54.

Even the footnotes confirm the Qur’anic doctrine of Jesus’ ascension.

Jesus’ Second Coming

Al-Isra 17:104 (Tafsir Al-Qurtubî,): “And We said to the Children of Israel after him: “Dwell in the land, then, when the final and the last promise comes near [i.e. the Day of Resurrection or the descent of Christ [‘Îsâ (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary) عليهما السلام on the earth], We shall bring you altogether as mixed crowd (gathered out of various nations).

Jesus ascended to Heaven and will descend again.

Surah 4:157: “and for boasting, “We killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.” But they neither killed nor crucified him—it was only made to appear so.1 Even those who argue for this ˹crucifixion˺ are in doubt. They have no knowledge whatsoever—only making assumptions. They certainly did not kill him.”

Footnote 1 “The popular belief among Muslims is that a conspiracy was made to kill Jesus, Allah made the main culprit who betrayed Jesus look exactly like Jesus, then he was crucified in Jesus’ place. Jesus was raised safe and sound to the heavens. Muslims also believe in the second coming of Jesus (ﷺ).“

As stated by the footnote, “Muslims also believe in the second coming of Jesus (ﷺ).“

The Mother of Jesus

Surah 3:42; “And ˹remember˺ when the angels said, “O Mary! Surely Allah has selected you, purified you, and chosen you over all women of the world.“

This is some serious respect. Also note she is the only woman mentioned by name in the Qur’an, not even Muhammad’s mother is mentioned. Interestingly, it is Mary who is put, by God, “over ALL women” including the mother of Muhammad.

Oddly, the mother of Muhammad wasn’t even a “believer.” So, if Muhammad is over all men, why wasn’t his mother favored by God, at all? This then begs the question, why was the mother of Jesus the most favored? What was special about Mary and her situation?

SUMMERY

  1. Jesus pre-existed with God before his physical birth on earth
  2. Mary was a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus
    • Agrees with Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38; Isaiah 7:14
  3. Jesus was born without sin, perfect, holy, pure.
    • Agrees with Hebrews 4:15; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 3:5
  4. Jesus’ birth was a sign for all people
    • Agrees with Isaiah 7:14, 9:6; John 3:16
  5. Jesus was a physical male, “like Adam”
    • Agrees with Daniel 7:13-14; Matthew 26:64; Mark 16:26; 1 Corinthians 15:45
  6. Jesus was righteous and nearest to God
    • Agrees with 1 John 2:1, 29; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 3:21-26
  7. Jesus was a Prophet of God
    • Agrees with Deuteronomy 18:15; Mark 6:3-4; Luke 13:33; Hebrews 1:1-2
  8. Jesus was called the Messiah, “anointed one”
    • Zechariah 9:9; Psalm 23:5; Luke 4:18; Matthew 1:1, 16:16; John 4:25-26, 11:27; 1 John 2:20
  9. Jesus taught the Torah (Old Testament) and the Gospels (New Testament)
    • Deut. 30:15-20; Mat. 5:17; Gen. 1:27; 2:24; Mk. 10:6-8; Ex. 16:15; Jn. 6:31; 1 Sam. 21:6; Mt. 12:3-4; 1 Kings 17:1, 9; Lk. 4:25-26; 2 Chron. 24:20-21; Lk. 11:51; Dan. 9:27; 11:31; 12:11; Mt. 24:15; Jon. 3:4-10; Lk. 11:30; Mt. 12:41
  10. Jesus was aided by Gabriel, who is the Holy Spirit
    • This is not taught in “the Book,” not in the Old Testament or in the New Testament, nor taught by later early orthodox Christian writers.
    • There are no verses in “the Book” that supports this
    • Disagrees with Surah 4:171 (see #1).
      • Not all Muslims believe this.
    • Agrees with the unorthodox gnostic heresy of Valentinianism
  11. Jesus made life from clay, healed, and raised people from the dead.
    • Healings: Mat. 8:14-16, 12:13; John 9:1-41; Luke 17:11-19
    • Raising the dead: Luke 7:11-17; John 11:1-44; Mark 5:21–43
    • There are not references in “the Book” for making a bird from clay.
      • This is found in the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which is not part of “the Book” but is an unorthodox gnostic heretical cult writing of the late 2nd century. This false story made its way into the Qur’an.
  12. Jesus had the authority to legalize what God forbidden and commands to be obeyed directly.
    • Agrees with Matthew 5:17; John 13:34-35, 14:15
  13. Jesus ascended into Heaven
    • Agrees with Luke 24:50-51; Acts 1:9-11
  14. Jesus will return, a second coming.
    • Agrees with Matt 24:27; Rev 19:11; 1 Cor 15:22-28; 1 Thess 4:16-17; Jam 5:7-8; Heb 9:28
  15. Rejects Jesus being the Son of God
  16. Rejects Jesus being God incarnate
  17. Rejects The Holy Spirit being also God.
    • Disagrees with “the Book” in  Genesis 1:2; Nehemiah 9:20, 30; Ezekiel 2:2; Joel 2:28-32; John 14:26; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13-14
    • But not all Muslims believe it to be the angel Gabriel.
  18. Rejects Jesus being killed
  19. Rejects Jesus being crucified
  20. Rejects Jesus being resurrected
    • Disagrees with “the Book” in Psalm 16:8-11; Isaiah 26:19; Dan 12:2; Jonah 1:17+Matthew 12:40, 28:1-10; 1 Thess 4:14; Rom 8:11; John 11:25-26

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