Bible Stories

All Muslims acknowledge that Jesus (Isa) was a prophet and a messenger of God. He is also called Al-Masih (the Messiah) in the Qur‘an, although most Muslims would only mean by this that he was anointed to preach salvation to the people of Israel. His virgin birth, his miracles, especially his power to raise the dead and his purity are also generally accepted.

The Qur‘an sometimes uses words for Jesus which, to a Christian, sound very similar to titles he himself would use. Jesus is called ‘Word of God‘ and ‘a spirit from God‘. By ‘Word of God‘, the Qur‘an seems to mean that creative command of God which made the universe and which also created the man Jesus in Mary’s womb. Again, Ruh Allah (Spirit of God) is the typical Muslim title for Jesus. Traditionally Muslims have tried to minimize such titles and explain them away.

They would say, for example, that there is nothing unique about Jesus coming into existence as a result of the divine command – Adam came that way, and so did the universe itself. True, but then neither Adam nor the universe are ever called ‘Word of God‘ in the Qur‘an, whereas Jesus certainly is. Again, Muslims would say that to call Jesus a spirit from God is not to make him unique – are not all spirits from God? Here again, they would point to the similarities between the birth of Jesus and the creation of the first man. Just as God breathed his spirit into the clay to create Adam, so also he breathed his spirit into Mary at the conception of Jesus.

Did Jesus really die?

When we move on to Jesus‘ death, resurrection and ascension, the Qur‘an’s attitude is ambiguous. In some places the death of Jesus is clearly mentioned and it is even stated that it took place ‘according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God‘. However, there is one passage which has been interpreted to mean that Jesus was not crucified but that his enemies were somehow deceived into believing he had been. In fact God raised him up to himself. As far as resurrection and ascension are concerned, the Qur‘an usessome expressions which would, naturally speaking, point to a physical resurrection and others which would indicate an ascension into heaven.

The very reluctance of the Qur‘an and of Muslims to speak of Jesus‘ death is significant. The Qur‘an quite plainly accuses the Jews of slaying some of the prophets; it is also prepared to discuss the possibility that Muhammad died a natural death. Why then is there such reluctance to admit that Jesus too could have been killed? Does this point towards a special regard for Jesus in the Qur‘an?

Some scholars have suggested that it is possible to reconstruct the Qur‘an’s view of Jesus‘ crucifixion in such a way that it does not contradict Christianity. Such a reconstruction would look something like this: the Jews thought they had crucified Jesus, but they were wrong. God caused Jesus to die, using the Jews as his instrument. God then raised Jesus from the dead and exalted him in his presence as a reward for obedience.

Among the Sufis (Muslim mystics) Jesus‘ sufferings have often been seen as an example to follow if we want to draw near to God. Again, some sensitive modern Muslims have pointed out that the real centre of both the Bible’s and the Qur‘an’s accounts of the cross is Jesus‘ willingness to suffer rather than the actual suffering itself. If we imitate his willingness, God will accept us. This is a real attempt to treat the cross positively, but it is a long way from the Christian gospel of grace.

Many Muslims believe that Jesus will return to earth before the final judgment, subdue the forces of evil and usher in the reign of God. Jesus‘ return is not mentioned in the Qur‘an and the idea seems to have infiltrated Islam after the Muslim conquest of the Christian countries of the Middle East.

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