'If thou wert in doubt as to what We have revealed unto thee, then ask those who have been
reading the Book from before thee....' (Surah,
10, Yunus, verse 94)
EASTER STORY FOUND IN THE QURAN ?!
Rev. Andrew Abraham
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1. INTRODUCTION
2. THE QURAN ON THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS
3. WHEN DID JESUS DIE ACCORDING TO THE QURAN?
4. WHY DID JESUS HAVE TO DIE?
5. CONCLUSION
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1. INTRODUCTION
In much of today's decadent
Western world Easter is mainly associated with a few more days off and tasty
chocolate eggs. However, for practising Christians it marks the biggest, most
breath-taking celebration of the year! The festival of Easter reminds them that
Jesus died on a cross to pay the punishment for the sins of the world and of
his subsequent resurrection. The purpose of this paper is to examine what the Quran has to say on the profound truth that has changed the
lives of countless millions of people.
2. QURAN ON THE DEATH
AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS
In Surah
19, Maryam, verse 33, Jesus allegedly said shortly
after birth:
'So Peace is on me the
day I was born, the day that I die, and the day that I shall be raised up to
life (again)'
A. Jusuf
Ali wrote in the footnote number 2485 of his translation of the Holy Quran (1975): '...those who believe that he (Jesus) never
died should ponder over this verse.' However, such revealing remarks made by
this highly respected Muslim scholar were quickly expunged and replaced with
the explanatory words 'Jesus was not crucified (4:157)' by the editorial board
of the new edition of 'The Meaning of the Holy Qur'an!'
(Amana Publications, Beltsville, U.S.A., 1989) Here is what A. Jusuf Ali was still allowed to say about such doubtful
practices in the introduction to the above mentioned version of the Quran: 'Even since the early Commentators wrote, the Arabic
language has further developed, and later Commentators often abandon the
interpretations of earlier Commentators without sufficient reason. In
exercising our selective judgement in such cases it would be a good rule to
prefer the earlier to the later interpretation, though, where a later writer
has reviewed the earlier interpretations and given good reasons for his own
view, he has an advantage which we must freely concede to him.' (Ibid., page XVI) Here now are the reasons which support A.Yusuf Ali, the earlier commentator's view:
Identical words as in Surah 19, Maryam, verse 33 are
used in verse 15 of the same Surah to describe the
live of the prophet Yahya who died another violent
death through
beheading (see Ibid. footnote 2468). Furthermore, Surah
4, Al Nisa', verse 159, also mentions the death of
Jesus where interpreters again are not agreed as to the exact meaning. There
are a number of other verses in the Quran that
confirm the death of Jesus:
Behold! Allah said: 'O
Jesus! I will take thee (Arabic: 'mutawaffika') and raise thee to Myself...' (Surah 3, Ali 'Imran, 55, also Surah 5, Al Ma'idah, verse 117)
The translation of 'mutawaffika' in this verse is disputed among Muslim
scholars. The word and its derivation are found over 25 times in the Quran. (see 2:234,240; 3:55,193; 4:15,97, 5:117; 6:61;
8:50; 10:46,104; 12:101; 13:40; 16:28,32,70; 22:5; 32:11; 40:67,77; 47:27) In
all but two places they imply death or are associated with it. In the two
exceptions (6:60, 39:42) the context reveals that 'mutawaffika'
figuratively means slumber. This is not the case in the two verses that speak
about the death of Jesus (
If Jesus did not die Surah 19, Maryam, verse 31 would
not make sense. There Jesus allegedly said, '...and hath enjoined on me
Prayer and Charity so long as I live:' According to the traditional Muslim
view, Jesus was taken up to heaven alive. But nobody can seriously believe
that he still gives alms up to this day!
The following Hadith about the day of judgement, collected by Al-Bukhari is further proof that Jesus died:
On the authority of Ibn Abbas: The Prophet of Allah
said, '...Then I will say as the pious slave Jesus, son of Mary, said: 'And I
was a witness over them while I dwelt amongst them. When you caused me to
die ('tawaffaytani') you were the watcher over
them, and you are a witness to all things...'(see, Bukhari,
Nuhammad Ibn Ismail. Sahih of al-Buhari, trans. Muhammad Muhsin
Khan,
Since Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) referred to himself with the same phrase ('tawaffaytani') Jesus is said to have used in Surah 5, Al Ma'idah, verse 117 it becomes clear that the prophet of Islam, who
died, confirms that Jesus also died! A further confirmation is found in Surahs 10, Yunus, verse 46, 13,
Al Ra'd, verse 40, and 40, Ghafir,
verse 77 where basically the same term that is used for Jesus' last moments, 'natawaffayannaka' meaning, 'we indeed cause you to die' is
applied to Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) From our study so far
we can say with certainty that the death and resurrection of Jesus is a
fact, even in the Quran. Now we need to ask another
important question:
3. WHEN DID JESUS DIE
ACCORDING TO THE QURAN?
Islamic scholars are in
disagreement about it. The Quran which professes to
be a clear guidance that contains no doubts (Surah 2,
Al Baqarah, verse 2; Surah
5, Al Ma'idah, verse 16) is apparently silent
regarding this question which, according to the Torah and the Injil is of the utmost importance for mankind! (Isaiah 53,
Matthew 26:26-28, John 3:16) Muslims are left only with the Hadith
in trying to answer this crucial question. How reliable are many of these
traditions reporting the sayings and doings of Muhammad (p.b.u.h.)
and his companions in the light of the following facts?
From about 1465 collections
of Hadith, Muslim scholars have singled out six as
being the correct ones. They are here listed in the order of importance:
Al-Bukhari, he put his collection together 246
years after the prophet's death. From 6000,000 Hadith
he selected 7200 (1.2%!). The choices were made according
to the judgement of one individual! Muslim, he put his choices
together 251 years after the prophet's death. Al Tirmize,
he chose them 269 years after the prophet's death. Abu Daud
selected his version 265 years after the prophet's death. Abu Abdir Rahman presented his
collection 293 years after the prophet's death. ('Dictionary of Islam' by T.P.
Hughes, Asia Publishing House,
Here are some examples
without any further comments. They cast considerable doubt on the reliability
of the Hadith collections:
In the
light of these somewhat embarrassing notes that contradict medical science it
is understandable if the attentive reader tries to get an answer to the
question, 'When did Jesus die' only from what is commonly known as the holy
Books themselves. There is only one reference in the Quran
that appears to say when Jesus did not die. It is found in Surah
4, Al Nisa, 157-159:
That they said (in
boast) 'We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah'- But
they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them,
and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge,
but only conjecture to follow, for a surety they killed him not- Nay, Allah raised him up unto
Himself; and Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise- And there is none of the People
of the Book but must believe in him before his death; and on the Day of
Judgement he will be a witness against them.'
This passage, like all the
others concerning the end of Jesus' life on earth in the Quran,
is unclear. It is not surprising therefore, to find a number of interpretations
concerning it. However, to say that the crucified one 'was somehow or other
taken for Christ' ('The Meaning of the Quran' by Maududi, Islamic Publications,
Muslims like Ahmad Deedat (see, 'Crucifixion or Crucifixion?',
H.M Bageel (see, 'Christian Muslim Dialogue') and the
Ahmadiyyas give new meanings to a number of verses
from the Biblical account on the death and the resurrection. According to
them Jesus was crucified but he did not die on the cross, he only swooned. By
coming up with these unsubstantiated theories they actually contradict
Surah 4, Al Nisa', verse
157 which is traditionally interpreted to mean that he was not crucified:
...But they killed him
not, nor crucified him...
To justify their position
they say that the words in the Quran '...nor
crucified him...' mean that Jesus did not die as a result of the crucifixion
(See the Ahmadiyya version of the Quran
with footnotes, Volume 2, page 583). They think that to be crucified means to
be killed and since Jesus only swooned he was not crucified in the sense that
he did not die from it. Verses like the one in Acts 2,23
proves them wrong. There we read that the words 'to crucify' (=to nail on a
cross) do not necessarily mean 'to kill.' If it was not so why would Peter have
been inspired by God to say:
'This man was handed
over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of
wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.'
If the words "nailing
him to the cross" would be equal to "death" there would be no
need for one or the other! (See also Acts
How then should we
interpret Surah 4, Al Nisa',
verses 157-159 in the light of what has been said so far? In Muhammad's (p.b.u.h.) time Muslims were commanded to seek advice in a
particular question from those who possess the previous Scriptures, the Jews
and the Christians. (Surah 16, Al Nahl,
verse 43; Surah 21, Al Anbiya,
7) Therefore, it is surely right to do it in this case as well.
The Jews were boasting THEY
had crucified and killed Jesus because they were convinced he was a false
prophet. Against their arrogance verse 157 says, 'THEY slew him not nor
crucified him, but it appeared so unto them.' The Biblical accounts tell us
that Jesus was not killed by the Jews in the last instance, but because
God brought about his deliberate and well-thought out plan. In Acts
'This man (Jesus) was
handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with
the help of wicked man, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.'
It only appeared to the
Jews that they successfully killed Jesus whereas in reality God, in his
sovereignty, even used those wicked people in order to bring about his
purposes. The emphasis is not that the Jews killed Jesus but that God
allowed them to do so! Verse 157 seems to speak out against this wrong,
boastful emphasis only not against the fact that Jesus was killed.
Verse 158 speaks about the
ascension of Jesus, when he was taken up to be with God which is well
documented in the Injil (Luke 24:50-51, John 6:62,
Acts 1:9-11, 1 Timothy 3:16) and undisputed by both Muslims and Christians.
However, Muslims who believe that Jesus was just a messenger,
will have to answer the following question: 'Mere men may only be able to go
to
Verse 159 seems to say that
none of the Jews will believe in Jesus before they die and on the day of
resurrection it will be too late for them to change their minds. The Torah, Zabur, and the Injil agree
unanimously that Jesus died for our sins on a cross nearly 2000 years ago and
that he was raised up to life again! (Isaiah 53, Psalm 22, Matthew 26:26-28;
27:50) Secular history too confirms the bedrock of Christianity, the death and
resurrection of Jesus. The names of the historians are Pliny, Cornelius Tacitus, Thallus and particularly
Josephus, a Jewish general who defected to the Romans and wrote the Jewish
history for them. (Antiquitates indaicae,
Vol. 18, III: 3)
4. WHY DID JESUS HAVE TO
DIE?
Why does God not simply
forgive man when he committed sin? This is probably the most important question
of all. If we can understand why Jesus had to die, it will be easier for us to
believe that He did so. There are two main reasons for his death on the cross:
A) To restore God's
honour
The Old Testament, known as
the Torah by Muslims, tells the wonderful story of how God created Adam and Eve
and later the Israelites to be his people. We learn how he loved them like a
father loves his children. Time and time again, however, we read with great
sadness how his chosen ones break his commandments, how they become guilty of
lawlessness. Even more disturbing is the fact that their rebellion is only a
fruit of a conscious rejection of the Almighty God. His own people spit in his
face and bring shame upon him before the very nations they were supposed
to be witnessing of his honour and glory. To make matters even worse, they
were not ashamed of themselves:
'Therefore the showers have
been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of
a prostitute; you refuse to blush with shame. Have you not just called
to me (God): 'My Father, my friend from my youth, will you always be angry? Will your wrath continue for ever?' This is how
you talk, but you do all the evil you can.' (Jeremiah 3:3-5)
The people of old did as
they pleased because they had lost a sense of shame. While their
mechanical, outward ritual acts may still have been in place they were not
concerned about God's honour at all. Repentance, the turning round from
one's evil ways, was later expressed in terms of recognition of shame and
disgrace. (Jer. 31:19) Likewise, our disloyalty
to God, our resistance against his work among us is known and is
exceedingly shameful. We too deserve to be punished ever so severely. Since
God is pure, completely removed from all evil, man's sin has cut off,
effectively killed, the relationship between the two. The warning given to Adam
and Eve became a frightening reality:
And the LORD God commanded
the man, 'You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat
from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you
will surely die.' (Gen 2:16-17)
'For the wages of sin is
death,...'(Rom
Only through death God's
honour will be restored. Consequently God introduced an elaborate sacrificial system to the
Israelites through Moses. Shame could be removed by getting forgiveness for
sins, but only if an animal would die in their place.
'...without the
shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.' (Heb 9:22)
This all important truth is
also reflected in 'Qisas' the Islamic law of
retaliation. (Surah 2, Al Baqarah,
verses 178-179) It consists in doing to the person who has committed a crime
the very same thing they have done. The life of someone who is wilfully killed
demands the murderer's life in retaliation. However, the next of kin can accept
a financial compensation instead. According to Surah
5, Al Maida, verse 45, retaliation for inflicted wounds is also necessary. A nose for a nose and so on. If a member of the body which
is to be cut off in revenge is defective, a compensation
will be accepted.
From God's perfect
perspective animal and all other sacrifices are defective. They can not take
away sins but were only serving as a cover and a shadow of Jesus, the
Messiah, the perfect sacrifice to come (Heb 10:1-18). He, being without
sin, by taking our shame upon himself through his death on the cross, restored
the honour of God in a most profound and just way:
'Moreover, the Father
judges no-one, but has entrusted all judgement to the Son, that all may
honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not honour
the Son does not honour the Father, who sent him. I (Jesus) tell you the
truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life
and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.' (John
5:22-24)
'Your attitude should be
the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not
consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself
nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became
obedient to death - even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him
to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at
the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the
earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
God the Father.' (Phil 2:5-11)
God raised Jesus from the
dead confirming his authority, loyalty blessedness and blamelessness. Those
who deny the cross refuse to accept God's generosity, his blessing. They
dishonour the giver.
B) To meet the
demands of God's justice and love
The Bible (Leviticus
That is why God revealed
Himself in Jesus and died on the cross for our sins. In Jesus God met the
requirements of His justice and of His love! Jesus died on the cross on our
behalf, for our sin. In Deuteronomy
There was once a king who
possessed a huge kingdom over which he also ruled as a just judge. He wrote
down laws which had to be kept by everyone so that order and justice would be
maintained. One day his very own son, whom he loved so dearly, committed a
terrible crime. The law made it very clear that a perpetrator, such as his
child had become would have to face a fine of £ 100,000,000,000. The
king's son was not able to pay that large amount of money. However, the just
judge could not change the law simply because the sinner was his own son, otherwise he would not have been impartial anymore. He
decided that his child too was guilty, but when he pronounced the judgement,
out of love, he offered to pay the fine on behalf of his son. In that way he
could meet the demands of his justice but also of his love for the disobedient
child. The son sorrowfully repented of his crime and humbly accepted his
father's offer. This incident changed him so completely that he decided to love
and serve his father forever. By doing this he could certainly never pay back
the £100,000,000,000. No, he changed his way of life to express his great
thankfulness towards his just and loving father.
The king in the
illustration symbolises God, the kingdom is the world. The laws are the Holy
Scriptures, the king's son is all mankind and the terrible crime committed by
him is sin. The sum of £100,000,000,000 stands for the punishment of sin,
which is a invincible separation from the Holy God.
The king who took his son's place and paid the fine on behalf of him
illustrates what God has done for all mankind in Jesus. He paid the punishment
for sin by dying on our behalf at the cross. Finally, the complete change that
took place in the life of the son is a picture of the new life of a Christian.
By faith, through a prayer of forgiveness he accepts what Jesus Christ had done
for him. He believes that Jesus took upon him the punishment for men's sin.
Only out of thankfulness he starts to love and serve God, not because he thinks
he could ever earn a place in heaven by doing good. Whatever the newly born Christian now does will be motivated by
love for the One who saved him from a terrible punishment.
Some Muslims might object
to the illustration above by saying that God's attributes of Justice and Mercy
can not be understood. They are completely different from our human concept. It
is true that God's attributes are different from ours, but only in regard to
their perfection rather than their definition. If the meaning of God's
characteristics were so completely different from our understanding then his
ninety-nine names, which allegedly describe them, would be unnecessary! Besides
that, God Himself used illustrations in the Quran: In
Surah 13, Ar-Ra'd, verses 16-17 we read that '...Thus doth Allah set forth
parables.' (See also Surah 16, Al Nahl,
verses 75-76)
A Muslim enquirer recently
asked: 'The Bible states that God sacrificed his Son, but yet we also read that
Jesus was resurrected back to life and is sitting on the right hand of God.
When you sacrifice something, you do not take it back 3 days latter, is this
not a contradiction?'
The reason why Jesus the
perfect sacrifice was raised to live again on the third day is found in the
word 'perfect.' Animal sacrifices were imperfect, they just pointed to the
perfect one. That is the reason why they had to be offered again and again.
That is also the reason why they were not raised to life again. However, Christ
being the perfect, sinless sacrifice only had to die once. Since he paid the
punishment for sin, namely death by his own death, the latter no longer became
a reality! That is precisely why God raised Jesus to live again. This profound
truth is expressed in 1 Corinthians 15:54-57:
'When the perishable has
been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the
saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in
victory.' 'Where, O death, is your victory? Where,
O death, is your sting?' The sting of death is sin,
and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God!
He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.'
Jesus defeats the death that
came as a result of sin! He as the firstfruit has
been raised to life therefore. Those who believe in his perfect sacrifice
will follow his example once they die physically. The following verses,
again quoted from 1 Corinthians 15 confirm this good news:
'But Christ has indeed
been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those
who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man,
the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam
all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.' (Verses 20-22)
Here are some more verses
that speak about the same truth:
'Jesus was delivered
over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.' (Romans
4:25)
'For we know that since
Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has
mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the
life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count
yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let
sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer
the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer
yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer
the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall
not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. What
then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!
Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves,
you are slaves to the one whom you obey - whether you are slaves to sin, which
leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? (Romans
6:9-16)
Wow! What a message! That
Christ was raised to life again after he died sacrificially for us is not a
contradiction. Since death for him was no more, there is nothing that could be
a contradiction to his being raised to life!
The destiny for us who are
living in the time of the New Testament is dependent on our relationship to
Jesus. The New Testament makes it clear that salvation is by faith through
Christ alone:
'That in the time to
come he might make clear the full wealth of his grace in his mercy to us in
Christ Jesus: Because by grace you have salvation through faith; and that not
of yourselves: it is given by God: Not by works, so that no man may take glory
to himself. For by his act we were given existence in Christ Jesus to do
those good works which God before made ready for us so that we might do them.'
(Ephesians 2:7-10)
'Being conscious that a
man does not get righteousness by the works of the law, but through faith in
Jesus Christ, we had faith in Christ Jesus, so that we might get
righteousness (right standing
before God) by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law: because
by the works of the law will no flesh get righteousness.' (Galatians 2:16)
Salvation by faith in
Jesus is believing with the intellect
that the Bible is right about our sinful condition, about who Jesus is and
about what he did on the cross for us. Passages that speak about judgement
according to works have to be read in the light of what true faith means. This
is confirmed when their immediate context is considered. (e.g.
Joh 5:28-29, compare with verses 23-24, Mat
1.
Out of thankfulness followers of Jesus do what he
tells them: To love God and man. This is the essence and test of true
obedience. They desire to follow the moral law set out in the Old Testament
and summarized in what is known as ‘the 10 commandments.’ (Exo 20:1-17)
2.
Genuine faith in Jesus produces a desire to become
more like him, to do what is right and just.
3.
Saving faith creates the awareness that this
new obedience can only come through faith in Christ. It does not come
from focusing on the law, the desperate attempt to meet its demands. Instead it
comes from continually fixing one’s eyes on Jesus and his work, by
remaining connected to him through being in his presence with one’s
thoughts.
4.
Lastly, Biblical faith generates a constant
abiding in and reliance on Jesus by faith. In this way only the Holy
Spirit of God supplies the power for a changed life and lasting fruit. (Rom
5. CONCLUSION
Throughout this study it
has become clear that the Quran agrees for certain
with the Bible and with secular history that Jesus dies at some stage and is
definitely alive today! Furthermore we found possible evidence in the Quran that Jesus indeed died on the cross and rose again
which confirms the clear accounts of the Bible (Torah, Zabur,
Injil) and of secular history. We therefore have
four reliable witnesses in favour of the Easter story and one that is at least
partially certain (Quran). It is now left to the
reader to come to a decision regarding this crucial matter. Please pray for
God's guidance as to who Jesus really is!
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