Section 4: Qur’anic proof that the notion that Jesus is God is false

Section 4: Qur’anic proof that the notion that Jesus is God is false
The Thirtieth Proof - Last
•    A useful summary of the real nature of the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, as explained in the Holy Book (the Qur’an)

After the true religion became lost to people, the teachings of the prophets were forgotten, and the people no longer worshipped God alone, instead they began worshipping others such as prophets, rocks, images and so on. In 570 CE, God sent his Prophet Muhammad to all people, to guide them to the true religion with which God had sent all His prophets. God sent him to all of humanity, Jews and non-Jews, Arabs and non-Arabs. He sent down to him His Book, which is protected from any change or alteration. That book is the Qur’an, in which God explained to people the true nature of Jesus, concerning which people had split into sects, factions and groups.

The Qur’an speaks the truth about him, teaching that he was human and one of the greatest of the Israelite prophets. It does not raise him to the status of divinity as the Christians had done, and it does not disparage him and say that he had been crucified and killed, and that people had spat in his face. Rather, God states in the Qur’an that He protected him from the schemes of the Jews when they wanted to kill him, and He took him up to Himself in heaven in a divine miracle. Jesus is still there, waiting to come back down to Earth at the end of time, to establish justice for forty years; then he will die as other prophets died, and he will be buried in the earth. Allah will raise him on the Day of Resurrection as He will raise other prophets and other human beings.

Allah says in the Qur’an:
{The Messiah, son of Mary, was no more than a Prophet, and [other] prophets passed away before him. His mother was a woman strong and true in faith, and they both ate food. See how We make Our signs clear to them, then see how they are diverted [from the truth]!}[al-Ma’idah 5:75]

What God says about Jesus in the Qur’an is the decisive word because He is the Lord of humanity and He knows best about their situations. What God says concerning this matter is in harmony with reason and reality. The fact that Jesus was protected from being killed and humiliated is in harmony with the fact that he was a prophet, and his being taken up to heaven is in harmony with his high status. Saying that he was human and not God or the son of God is in harmony with reason, because all the prophets were human too, and because God has no need of a son; He has no need of any of His creation. It is not befitting for Him to create people and then need them. This is clear – praise be to God – to all those who seek the truth and devote themselves to it, and who are sincere towards God in their search for the true religion.

•    Further comments
The Qur’an pays a great deal of attention to the issue of God’s Prophet Jesus, the son of Mary. It begins telling his story by mentioning the birth of his mother Mary and her upbringing, which was founded on purity, chastity, worship and devotion. Then it tells how God honoured her by blessing her with a baby boy without a father. God sent Gabriel, the greatest of His angels, to give her the glad tidings of this child and to breathe into her so that she conceived Jesus.

Then the Qur’an tells us how God took care of her during her pregnancy and during childbirth, how she spoke to the Children of Israel when they rebuked her for having a son when she was not married, and how Jesus spoke in the cradle, stating that he was the servant of God and a prophet sent by God.

Then the Qur’an tells us the story of Jesus after he grew up, when God sent him to the Children of Israel, supported with many miracles to prove that he was indeed a Prophet sent by God, so that the people would realize that no one could perform such miracles except a Prophet sent by God, as was also the case with other prophets. Then it tells how the Jews tried to kill him, and how God saved him from them by means of a divine miracle which had never happened to any prophet before him, in which God took him up to heaven with dignity and honour. This is in contrast to what the Christians and Jews believe, that the Jews spat in his face, placed a crown of thorns on his head, then crucified and killed him on a wooden cross– far be it from him to undergo such a thing.

As noted above, with regard to belief in the Messiah, Islam took a middle path between the approaches of the Jews and the Christians. The Christians venerated him and elevated him above the human realm to the realm of the divine. They pretty much all say that he is God, he is the son of God, and yet that he is one of three. With this belief, they contradicted the other belief that they hold concerning him, which is that the Jews killed him, spat in his face, and crucified him on a wooden cross. How could he be the Lord of this universe or a son of God, when he was subjected to all this grievous humiliation?

Why did God not defend His son, if he were really His son?
The Jews, on the other hand, held beliefs concerning the Messiah Jesus, the son of Mary, that were diametrically opposed to the Christian beliefs. They said that he was illegitimate (God forbid), out of envy that God had made him a prophet, for despite that, they did not believe in his prophethood.

But a few of the disciples of Jesus, son of Mary, continued to adhere to sound belief in him. They continued to adhere to his religion even after he had been taken up to heaven. They have nothing to do with the exaggeration of the Christians regarding him, and the scorn of the Jews towards him.

As noted above, Islam came and clarified the matter approximately six centuries after Jesus was taken up to heaven. That is because God is most merciful towards His slaves, and He would not leave the Children of Israel to continue in their confusion without sending any guidance to them. He sent His Prophet Muhammad to all humanity, both Jews and non-Jews. He sent the Qur’an down to him and guaranteed to protect it from the distortion and alteration to which the Torah and the true revelation revealed to Jesus had been subjected, which had led to confusion in Christian doctrines about Christ himself and their differences concerning his nature. The Qur’an explained the truth about him; it did not leave any specious argument without dispelling it, and it did not leave any truth without clarifying it and explaining that he was a human being like any other, one of the great prophets of the Israelites, whom God sent to enjoin them to worship Him alone and to give up the worship of all else. God revealed the true revelation (Injeel) down to him, in which there was guidance and light, and he forbade them from worshipping anyone or anything other than God. The Qur’an states that God abrogated the laws of Jesus and of previous prophets, replacing it with the law of Islam, which He commanded to supersede the laws that came before it. He preserved the Qur’an, protected it from distortion and loss.

In the Qur’an, God denounces the belief that He has a son:
{They say: The Most Gracious has begotten a son.
Indeed, you have uttered something atrocious,
at which the heavens might almost be torn apart, the earth split asunder, and the mountains come tumbling down,
at their ascription of a son to the Most Gracious,
for it is not befitting for the Most Gracious to beget a son.} [Mary 19:88-92]

The name of Jesus is mentioned twenty-five times in the Qur’an, and he is mentioned as the Messiah nine times. The name of his mother, Mary, is mentioned thirty-one times. In all cases, they are mentioned in a context of respect and veneration, as is appropriate for humans like them, without believing that they have any divine attributes. They are human beings like us; they worshipped God as we worship Him, and they hoped to be admitted to Paradise and to be saved from Hell just as we hope for the same.

Not only that, but Jesus is also described as being one of the prophets of strong resolve, which refers to their patience and determination.

The prophets of strong resolve are the greatest of the prophets, and they are five: Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. Blessings and peace of God be upon them all.
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•    God describes Jesus as being the “word of God” and “a soul created by Him,” and what is meant by that
In several verses in the Qur’an, God describes Jesus as being the word of God and a soul created by Him:
{The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was [no more than] a Prophet of Allah, and His word, which He bestowed upon Mary, and a soul created by Him. So believe in Allah and His Prophets. Do not say: Three [trinity]; desist, for that will be better for you. Allah is indeed only one God. Glory be to Him, [far exalted is He] above having a son. To Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth, and sufficient is Allah as a disposer of affairs.}[an-Nisaa‘4:171]

{Remember [when] the angels said: O Mary! Allah gives you glad tidings of a word from Him, his name will be the Messiah Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honor in this world and the hereafter and one of those granted nearness [to Allah].}[Al ‘Imran 3:45]

{And [there is another example] in Mary, the daughter of ‘Imran, who guarded her chastity. We blew into her [garment] through Our angel [Gabriel].}[at-Tahreem 66:12]

Prophet Muhammad also described the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, as being the word of God and a soul created by Him.

It was narrated by ‘Ubadah ibn as-Samit that Prophet Muhammad said:
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According to another version:
<<… Allah will admit him through whichever of the eight gates of Paradise he wishes.>>
What is meant by Jesus being the word of God is that God created the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, by means of a word that He spoke, as a result of which Jesus came into being and was conceived in his mother’s womb without a father. It is the word “Kun (Be!)”, whereupon Jesus was in his mother’s womb. This is the word by means of which Jesus was created and came into being. This miraculous way of creation is similar to the creation of our father Adam, for God created our father Adam with a word (“Kun (Be!)”), and Adam came into being, with no mother and no father, as God says:
{The likeness of Jesus before Allah is as the likeness of Adam; He created him from dust, then said to him, ‘Be!’ and it is.}[Al ‘Imran 3:59].

What is meant by God describing Jesus as a soul created by Him is that the beginning of his soul was with God, for He created it, so it is one of the souls that God created, like the soul of any other human.

The one whose soul is created cannot possibly be God, because God is not created.

In the phrase “word of God”, which is used to describe Jesus, the word is attributed to God, just as the soul [and the creation thereof] is attributed to Him in the phrase “a soul created by Him”. This serves to highlight the honorable status of Jesus, as God connected the word and the soul to Himself.

This pregnancy occurred in Mary’s womb, and Jesus was born from a mother, without a father, as noted above. That is easy for God, and the wisdom behind his being created in this manner is so that this would be a sign and proof to people of two things.

Firstly: It is a sign of the perfect nature of the might of God, Who varies the ways in which humans are created. He created their father Adam from clay, from neither a male nor a female. He created Eve from a male without a female; and He created all of their progeny from both male and female ?except for Jesus, whom God created from a female without a male. This is indicative of God's perfect might and the greatness of His power. It is not difficult for God, for the creation of the heavens and earth is greater than the creation of people, but most people do not realize.

God is able to create humans from males and females, as is the case for all people, but He may create without a male or female, as in the case of our father Adam, or He may create from a male without a female, as in the case of our mother Eve, whom God created from the rib of Adam. Or he may create from a female without a male, as in the case of Jesus son of Mary. He may create from an elderly man and a woman who had not been able to have children, as in the case of Prophet Abraham and the wife of Prophet Zachariah. He might not create anything from male and female, granting no children, whether sons or daughters, as in the case of those who are infertile. Or He may create from a male and female couple: males and no females, females with no males, or both males and females.

Allah is able to do all things, and when He wills something, as He says in the Qur’an:
{When We will something, We merely say to it, ‘Be!’ and it is.}[an-Nahl 16:40]
{They say: Allah has begotten a son. Glory be to Him! Nay, to Him belongs all that is in the heavens and on earth; everything is subservient unto Him.[He is] the Originator of the heavens and the earth: When He decrees a matter, He merely says to it, ‘Be!’ and it is.}[al-Baqarah 2:116-117]

These verses, in which God gives Mary glad tidings of the birth of Jesus, are an affirmation of the divine will that knows no limit. God tells us that Mary said:
{O my Lord! How will I have a son when no man has touched me? He said: Thus Allah creates what He wills.}[Al ‘Imran 3:47]

Whatever He wills, His might brings into being.

{When He has decreed something, He merely says to it, ‘Be!’ and it is.}[Al ‘Imran 3:47]

It is well-known that God created everything in the universe, whether the creation follows the natural order or differs from it (as in the cases of Adam, Eve and Jesus). This indicates the greatness of God, Who brought it into being from nothing.

God instructs us to reflect upon this important truth, saying:
{In the earth are signs for those whose faith is certain, and also in your own selves. Will you not then see?} [adh-Dhariyat 51:20-21]

In the creation of your own selves, there are signs of God’s might and lessons which point to the oneness of your Creator, and that you have no god deserving of worship except Him, even if you pay no attention to this fact and no longer see the wisdom of God and His purpose in creating what He created.

Secondly: The fact that the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was created born from a mother without a father is proof of his prophethood. God supported him with many miracles as proof of his prophethood, the first of which was his creation in this manner, after which he was given the Injeel (true revelation) and other miracles.

•    Note
In the Qur’an, God tells us that He created our father Adam and breathed into him the soul which He created for him. This is mentioned in two verses in the Qur’an, the first of which is:
{Then He fashioned him and breathed into him the soul which He created for him. He gave you hearing, sight and intellect; little it is that you give thanks.}[as-Sajdah 32:9]

In the second verse, this is mentioned in the context of the story of God commanding the angels to prostrate to Adam as a greeting and honour to him:
{So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him the soul which I created for him, fall down in prostration before him.} [al-Hijr 15:29]

•    Another note
In the Qur’an, the Prophet John the Baptist, son of Zachariah, is described as believing in or affirming the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary.

In this context, Jesus is referred to as a word from Allah, when Allah says of the Prophet Zachariah:
{While he was standing in prayer in the chamber, the angels called unto him: Allah gives you glad tidings of John, who will believe in a word from Allah. He will be a leader and abstinent [from women], a Prophet from among the righteous.}[Al ‘Imran 3:39]

What this verse means is that John the Baptist would believe in a word from God, namely Jesus; he was the first one to believe in him.
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Finally, believing in Jesus in this manner is the kind of belief that is acceptable. Whoever does not do that has gone against God’s command and has disobeyed Him and disbelieved in Him, and thus deserves to enter Hell, because he has rejected what the Qur’an says.
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The high esteem in which Jesus and his mother are held in Islam
In the Qur’an, the name of the Prophet Jesus is mentioned twenty-five times, and he is mentioned as the Messiah nine times, whereas the name of Prophet Muhammad is mentioned only four times.

Jesus is mentioned in the Qur’an by a number of titles and names: Jesus son of Mary, the son of Mary, the Messiah, the slave of Allah, and the Prophet of Allah.

The name of his mother, Mary, is mentioned thirty-one times in the Qur’an, whereas no mention at all is made in it of the names of any of the daughters or wives of the Prophet Muhammad.

It is also worth pointing out that one of the chapters of the Qur’an is named after Mary, while no chapter is named after any of the daughters or wives of Prophet Muhammad. This is an indication of the honorable status of the Virgin Mary in Islam; in contrast, no book or chapter of the New Testament is named after her.

Every time Jesus and his mother are mentioned in the Qur’an, it is in the context of respect, veneration, and honour, as befits them both, without implying that they have any attributes of divinity at all. They were human like us; they worshipped God as others worship Him, and they hoped to attain paradise and be saved from hell, just as others hope.

Islam teaches that Jesus was very knowledgeable about the religion revealed to him, although he never studied with the Jewish scholars. He was knowledgeable because Allah taught him through revelation. Jesus then taught his disciples and sent them out to people to teach them what they had learned from him.