Introduction
Possibly the greatest debate among Christians and Muslims is that of
the identity of Jesus Christ. Is
he God's son? Was he
really crucified? Is he
in essence, God? Did he
come to save his people? Or,
was he just another prophet?
For
Christians, all of the above questions can be answered with an
emphatic 'yes', with the exception of the last - the only one that
Muslims would affirm.
In
this paper, a critical look will be taken into the concept of Christ
the Messiah, a belief held by both Christians and Muslims.
Also, the Christian belief of Christ the Savior will be
considered. Finally,
Jesus Christ's relationship to God will be determined as understood by
Christianity and Islam. The
main sources for each topic will be the Qur'an as well as the Bible.
Jesus the Messiah
Jesus,
the son of Mary, is recognized as the Messiah in both Islam and
Christianity. Such a
common thread would seem sufficient to unify the two religions as to
the true nature of Jesus, but that is certainly not the case.
In fact, this tremendous commonality between the two has, for
the most part, been ignored by both sides.
Certainly, if Muslims and Christians fully understood what it
is that they agree upon, then many of the walls that divide these two
groups of people would come down.
History of the
Concept.
The
term "messiah" is derived from the Hebrew mashiach ("anoint") and denotes a person with a special
mission from God. The
word mashiach meant the
"Lord's Anointed" and referred to the ultimate redeemer, the
expected king of the Davidic line who would deliver Israel from
foreign bondage and restore the glories of its golden age.1
Furthermore,
the term Messiah has become descriptive of all the streams of prophecy
in the Old Testament of the Bible which speak of one who was to come
from God to fulfill the promises of deliverance and of a new state of
divine blessing.
The
concept of a coming Messiah was such a popular one that Messiahs of
several sorts with a variety of descriptive names were expected by
those who adhered to differing conceptions in both intertestamental
and New Testament times, as well as in the whole Christian era.
The
coming Messiah could be seen in other prophetic figures in the Old
Testament as well, such as Moses' Prophet "like unto me"
(Deuteronomy 18:18), Isaiah's suffering Servant (Isaiah 52:13-53:12),
Jeremiah's Branch (Jeremiah 23:5, 33:15), Daniel's Son of Man (Daniel
7:13), and other figures, including the coming of the Lord himself as
the deliverer of his people. 2
Finally,
it should be mentioned that the Jews reject Jesus as the Anointed of
God and still wait for the coming of the Messiah. He will be a hero
and heir to the greatest kings and prophets of old but greater than
they. He will put an end to all
evils on the earth and will initiate an era of joy.
This Messiah will rule in perfect justice and peace. 3
Thus
the true origins of the concept of Messiah reveal that this would be
no ordinary individual. Indeed, he would bring revolutionary change to
the entire world, not only for an era, but forever.
With this understanding as a foundation, the concept will be
further investigated as understood in the Qur'an and in the Bible.
In
the Qur'an. Though the Qur'an does not present a detailed life-story of Jesus, it highlights some significant aspects of his birth, his
mission, his ascension to heaven, and his passing judgment on the
Christian beliefs concerning him. 4
In
these accounts of the life of Jesus, in the English translations, he
is explicitly called Christ, which is the English derivative of the
Greek christos, meaning
"anointed one", coming from the Hebrew, messiah.
In the original Arabic the word used is Masih,
also coming from the Hebrew messiah.
In
Abdullah Yusuf Ali's English translation, the Qur'an states:
That they said (in
boast), "We killed Christ
Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah"; - but they did
not kill him, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them.
Sura An-Nisaa 4:157 [Italics mine],
and:
Christ
Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) a messenger of Allah, and His
Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him.
Sura An-Nisaa
4:171 [Italics mine]
Thus,
the Qur'an makes no objections whatsoever to the Christian belief in
Jesus Christ as the true Messiah of God.
Strangely enough, though, the concept seems foreign to most
Muslims. Jesus is
ascribed the name "Messiah" throughout the Qur'an, but it
seems that Mohammed understood it to be nothing more than his last
name.
The
Bible, on the other hand gives detailed information as to where the
Messiah would be born, how he would be born, from which line he would
come, what he would accomplish, and hundreds of prophecies that would
be fulfilled throughout his life on earth.
In
the Bible. In the Bible, God declared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that
their descendants would inherit a land of their own.
The Bible foretells of a future redemption that will be brought
about through an anointed agent of the Lord.
This figure would be a descendant of David, and his throne
would be secure forever. The
eighth century prophets such as Amos and Hosea predicted the
destruction of the nation of Israel because of its sin, yet in
accordance with the divine promise, there would also come an
ingathering of the exiles and the dominance of the Israelites over
surrounding nations. Such suffering was to serve as a means of moral reform:
Israel is to endure devastation before such redemption can take place.
This message of destruction and restoration continued in the
ministries of later pre-exilic prophets, such as Isaiah, Micah,
Zephaniah, and Jeremaih. They
proclaimed a new redemption, which would bring about a new spiritual
life. The theme of a
future redemption was echoed in the Psalms. There,
too, the promise of a future king became a predominant theme.
Finally, the Book of Daniel predicts the coming of a divinely
appointed deliverer - the Son of Man is to be given dominion over all
the earth. 5
In
Micah, the Bible tells of the birthplace of the Messiah:
"But
you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of
Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over
Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." Micah 5:2
In
Isaiah 7:14, the Bible states:
"The
Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and
will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."
Further
in Isaiah 9:6-7, it states:
"For to us a
child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his
shoulders. And he will be
called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of
Peace. Of the increase of
his government and peace there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that
time on and forever. The
zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this."
Daniel
also speaks of the Messiah with similar regard:
"Know and understand this: From the
issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the
Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens,' and
sixty-two 'sevens.'"
Daniel 9:25
The
above passages are widely recognized as Messianic prophecies by both
Christians and Jews, and they clearly identify the Messiah as having
divine characteristics and reigning on a throne that will endure
forever. In the passage from Daniel, the Messiah ('Anointed One') is
even referred to as a ruler. Furthermore,
the Messiah spoken of in these passages could not reasonably be
regarded as just another prophet.
Many
would claim that the Scriptures have been altered to fit Christian
doctrine about Jesus, but one may ask: Why would Jews, who reject
Jesus as the Messiah, alter their Scriptures in such a way as to point
to him as the Messiah?
Now
with this understanding of what the Qur'an and the Bible say about
Jesus the Messiah, another topic will be discussed.
Jesus
the Savior
On this topic, Muslims and Christians are not quite as
agreed. For Christians,
Jesus Christ is the central figure of faith.
Without him, there would be no Christianity.
Therefore the role of Jesus Christ as Savior must be discussed
in order to understand more fully the Christian belief in Jesus Christ
as more than just a prophet.
In
the Qur'an.
Mohammed no doubt came into contact with many individuals who
were quite familiar with Christianity.
From them, he received certain knowledge and suggestions about
the Faith. With this
knowledge the Qur'an was produced, and though the belief is not held
by followers of Islam, in the pages of the Qur'an exist certain hints
of Jesus Christ the Savior.
In
Sura Maryam the Virgin Mary is speaking with the angel of the Lord:
He said, "Nay, I am
only a messenger from your Lord, (to announce) to you the gift of a
holy son." She said:
"How shall I have a son, seeing that no man has touched me, and I
am not unchaste?" He
said: "So (it will be): your Lord says, 'That is easy for me: and
(We wish) to appoint him as a Sign to men and a Mercy from us': it is
a matter (so) decreed." Sura
19:19-21
Further,
Sura Al-'Imran states:
Behold! The angels said:
"O Mary! Allah gives you glad tidings of a Word from Him: his
name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honor in this
world and the hereafter and of (the company of ) those nearest to
Allah." Sura
Al-'Imran 3:45
The
Muslim commentator Al Jalalan observed:
Illustrious in the world by the ministry of prophecy and in the
hereafter by intercession and position and being one of those brought
near unto Allah. 6
Also in the Qur'an, miraculous powers are ascribed to
Jesus that are not possessed by any other
prophet, not even Mohammed himself:
I heal him who was
born blind, and the leper, and I raise the dead, by Allah's leave.
Sura 3:49.
In
the Qur'an, Mohammed even makes references to the death of Christ,
though Muslims do not believe this ever could have happened:
(And remember) when Allah said: O Jesus! Lo! I
am gathering thee and causing thee to ascend unto me, and am
cleansing thee of those who disbelieve.
Sura 3:55.
Jesus
is recorded as saying:
And (hath made me) dutiful toward her who bore
me, and hath not made me arrogant, unblest. Peace
on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the I shall be
raised alive! Such was Jesus, son of Mary, (this is) a statement of the
truth concerning which they doubt. Sura 19:32-33.
Additionally,
almost all Muslim scholars are agreed that Jesus will return to the
earth and defeat the anti-Christ. 7
After
this victory, Muslims believe that Islam will pass into the hands of
Jesus, who will reign on earth for forty years, bringing peace to all
the lands. At the end of
this period Jesus will die a natural death and be buried in Medina
between the tombs of Mohammed and Abu Bakr. 8
Therefore,
Islam explicitly teaches that Jesus Christ was of a miraculous birth,
had the power to give sight to the blind, cleanse lepers, raise the
dead, and perform various miracles, was gathered unto God (where not
even the best of Muslims may go), and will return to defeat the
Anti-Christ and bring freedom and restoration to the entire world.
Even through the eyes of Islam, this man was much more than
just a prophet.
With
this understanding of how the Qur'an depicts Jesus in regard to his
soteriological purposes, the belief will be observed as recorded in
its original source, the Bible.
In
the Bible.
Though Jesus is not fully
revealed in the Bible until the New Testament, the prophecies
concerning him as the Messiah in the Old Testament clearly present him
as a Savior.
A
prime example of this can be found in the prophecy of Isaiah, which
states:
"The Lord has made proclamation to the
ends of the earth: "Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your
Savior comes! See, his
reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.'" Isaiah
62:11
The
Hebrew word for Savior is yeshua,
and it literally means, "he will save". 9 The Greek translation of this word is iesous, which, in English becomes "Jesus".
Therefore, the literal meaning of the name Jesus Christ is
"Anointed Savior".
The
salvation that was to come through the Messiah would come through
hardships, according to the prophet Isaiah.
In fact, the entire chapter 53 of the book of Isaiah portrays
the Messiah as a suffering servant.
It is clear from 52:13 that he will eventually be highly
exalted, but in order to achieve this position, he must first be
disfigured beyond recognition (52:14).
He would encounter many sorrows and would be despised (53:3).
He would carry the sicknesses, sins and wounds of the entire
world (53:4-6). And he
would finally be killed and would not even open his mouth in objection
(53:7). He would be
buried among the wicked of the world, though he had committed no sin
(53:9). But, he would
live again to justify many and would receive a portion among the great
(53:10-12).
The
prophecy of Jeremiah also speaks of this Savior:
"The days are coming," declares
the Lord, "when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a
King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.
In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our
Righteousness." Jeremiah
23:5-6
From
this passage, it is evident that the Messiah would bring salvation to
his people in the sense that he would deliver them from their enemies,
but also in a spiritual sense in his being called "The Lord Our
Righteousness". This
fact will serve as a tie between the Old Testament record of the
Anointed One and that of the New Testament.
Many
of the contemporaries of Jesus in the New Testament were expecting a
savior who would overthrow the Romans and establish a new earthly
government. Indeed, as
was mentioned before, this expectation of a great leader made way for
the notion of many different Messiahs.
Not until Jesus of Nazareth led these different streams of
ideas into one could anyone find it possible to link all the messianic
prophecies of the Old Testament to one Messiah.
He
occasionally made statements that served to unite what were to the
people of his time-scattered concepts of the Messiah, such as in the
Gospel of Matthew:
"For the Son of man came not to be
served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Matthew 20:28
In
this passage, Jesus ties the prophet Daniel's concept of the son of
man with the prophecy of Isaiah, mentioned above, concerning the
suffering servant.10
During
his lifetime, Jesus fulfilled hundreds of prophecies concerning the
Messiah. In Zechariah,
the Bible states:
"Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See,
your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt,
the foal of a donkey.'" Zechariah 9:9
In
the Gospel of Mark, we find Jesus fulfilling this prophecy:
"They went and
found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway.
As they untied it, some people standing there asked, "What
are you doing, untying that colt?"
They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let
them go. When they
brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on
it." Mark ll:4-7
Also,
in the Psalms, we read:
"They
divided my garments among themselves and cast lots for my clothing." Psalm 22:18
And
the Jesus also fulfilled this prophecy:
"When the soldiers crucified Jesus,
they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each
of them, with the undergarment remaining.
"Let's not tear it," they said to one another. "Let's decide by lot who will get it."
John 19:23-24
Also,
the Old Testament states:
"Not one of his bones will be broken."
Exodus 12:46
"They will look on the one they have
pierced." Zechariah
12:10.
Both
of these prophecies were fulfilled at the crucifixion of Jesus
recorded in the Gospel of John:
"But when they came to Jesus and found
that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead,
one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a
sudden flow of blood and water."
John 19:33-34
The
purpose of the death of the Messiah is very clearly outlined in the
Gospels:
"For God so loved the world that he gave
his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not
perish, but have everlasting life."
John 3:16
Thus,
from a brief overview of the prophecies of the Old Testament and each
subsequent fulfillment, it is clear that the Messiah was sent from God
to save not only the nation of Israel, but also the entire world.
With
a general understanding of the ways in which the Qur'an and the Bible
present Jesus regarding his being the Messiah and Savior, one final
topic will be discussed which will serve to shed additional light on
the inquiry of whether or not Jesus was nothing more than just a
prophet.
Jesus' Relationship to
God
At
this point, it is obvious that Christians and Muslims have two
extremely different views concerning the nature of Jesus. The Qur'an and the Bible portray him in ways that are similar
in many aspects, but entirely different in others. One such aspect is that of Jesus' relationship to God.
More specifically, Muslims believe Jesus to be no more than a
prophet, while Christians claim that he is the Son of God.
This topic will be discussed further as it is taught in the
Qur'an and in the Bible.
In the Qur'an.
Concerning the divinity of
Jesus, the opinion of the Qur'an is that this is blasphemy and
unbelief. This idea is
spoken against in many verses of the Qur'an, such as the following: 11
They have disbelieved who say 'Lo! Allah is the
Messiah, son of Mary'. Who
can do anything against Allah, if he had willed to destroy the
Messiah, Son of Mary, and his mother, and everyone on earth?"
Sura 5:17
However,
also in the Qur'an can be found a strikingly unique relationship
between Jesus and God. For
instance, concerning titles, no one in the entire Qur'an was spoken of
quite as highly as Jesus. It
records that he was the Word of God and his Spirit:
The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary was only the
Messenger of God, and His Word that he committed to Mary, and a
Spirit from Him. Sura
4:171
It
should be noted that in the Qur'an, no other individual is recognized
as both the Word of God and a Spirit from Him.
Some Muslim commentators have observed that Jesus was called
the "Word of God" because he was called into being by a word
without a father; therefore, he is referred to as the Word. However, according to Islam, Adam was called into being in
exactly the same way as Jesus, but is never called the Word of God or
of his Spirit.
Also,
Jesus was given quite a unique capability while on earth, according to
the Qur'an: the ability to create.
This is recorded in The House of Imran:
I will create for you out of clay as the
likeness of a bird; then I will breathe into it, and it will be a
bird, by the leave of God. Sura
3:49
According
to Islam, God has allowed certain individuals to share in several of
his attributes and has even given to some the ability to perform
miracles. However, he has
reserved for himself certain things, which he will not share with
anyone. One of these
things is the ability to create and bring a soul into being.
No other prophet in the Qur'an has ever been given the ability
to create a living thing, even by the permission of God.
Another
verse in the Qur'an which serves to further illustrate the unique
relationship between Jesus and God can be found in House of Imran:
Mary, God gives thee good tidings of a Word
from him whose name is Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; high honored
shall he be in this world and the next, near stationed to God. Sura 3:45
Thus,
Jesus has been given eminence in this world and the next.
Al-Kashaf has stated that eminence in this world means prophecy
and precedence over men and in the next intercession and exaltation of
position in paradise. Again,
from a study of the Qur'an, no one has ever been described as being
eminent in this world and the next other than Jesus. 12
This
is what the Qur'an says and what Muslims believe about Jesus.
Still, they hold tenaciously to the belief that he was no more
than a prophet. The
Bible, on the other hand, takes quite a different stand concerning
Jesus' relationship to God, as will be seen in the following
discussion.
In the Bible.
According to Islam, the New Testament of the Bible has
been thoroughly corrupted. However,
Muslims generally put more confidence in the Old Testament, and many
of their own understandings stem from its teachings.
This being the case, Jesus' relationship to God as taught in
the Bible will be based strictly on the prophecies of the coming
Messiah in the Old Testament.
In
Isaiah 9:6 (quoted above), the Messiah is called "Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace".
Also in Isaiah 7:14, he is to be given the name
"Immanuel", which, in Hebrew means "God with us". 13
From
these two passages, it is quite clear that the Messiah to come would
be none other than God himself. In
light of the failure of men to reconcile the world back to God, as
recorded throughout the entire Old Testament, it should come as no
surprise that the only solution was for God to come and be His own
Mediator. This is
precisely what the Messianic prophecies teach.
Further
in the Old Testament, Daniel also speaks of the Messiah in a way that
clearly displays his divinity:
"In my vision at
night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming
with the clouds of heaven. He
approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence.
He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples,
nations and men of every language worshipped him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass
away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."
Daniel 7:13-14
Here
the Messiah is called a son of man, yet at the same time, is
worshipped by all peoples and nations.
The primary command given by God, both in the Bible and the
Qur'an is that no other god is to be worshipped.
Hence, the "Son of Man" spoken of here must be none
other than God incarnate, Immanuel.
The
evidence presented from the Bible thus far will suffice to support the
claim that the Messiah spoken of in the Old Testament was not just an
ordinary man, but was divine and, indeed, God Himself.
Conclusion
The
Qur'an, as well as the Bible, have much to say
about the person of Jesus, far more than was presented in this paper.
However, the key passages have been quoted in an attempt to
shed light on the topic of whether or not Jesus was just another
prophet. Based on the
evidence given from both sources, one would have to conclude that
Jesus Christ was much more than just another prophet.
If he was truly more than a prophet, then one would be forced
to take a further step and deduce that he was divine, and if at all
divine, then God.
Bibliography
1
Gruenwald, et al., pg. 1, 1992.
2 Pfeiffer
et al., pg. 1109, 1998.
3 Ellwood, pp.
279-291, 1999.
4 "Jesus in
the Qur'an"
5 Cohn-Sherbok,
pp.1-2, 1997.
6 Shorrosh,
pg. 93, 1988.
7 Ibid. pp. 95-100, 1988.
8 Walker, pg.
202, 1998.
9 Strong, pg.
69, 1890.
10 Pfeiffer et al., pg. 1110, 1998.
11 Al-Fadi, pg. 31, 1970.
12 Ghabril,
pg. 100-105, 1980.
13 Strong, pg. 118,
1890.
Extended Bibliography
Al-Fadi,
Abd. The Person of Christ: In the Gospel and the Koran.
Switzerland: The Good Way, 1970.
Cohn-Sherbock,
Dan. The Jewish Messiah. Edinburgh:
T&T Clark, 1997.
Ellwood,
Robert S. and Barbara A. McGraw.
Many Peoples, Many Faiths,
6th ed.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1999.
Ghabril,
Nicola Y. Themes for the Diligent. Switzerland:
The Good Way, 1980.
Gruenwald,
Ithamar, et al. Messiah and Christos. Tubingen:
J.C.B.Mohr (Paul Siebeck), 1992.
"Jesus
in the Qur'an". J.D.C.
Series on Islam, No. 4. Jeddah
D'Awah Center: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Pfeiffer,
Charles F. Wycliffe Bible Dictionary. Peabody,
Mass: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1998.
Shorrosh,
Anis A. Islam Revealed. Nashville:
Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1988.
Strong,
James. A Concise Dictionary of the Words in the Hebrew Bible.
Madison, NJ: James Strong, 1890.
Walker, Benjamin. Foundations of Islam:
The Making of a World Faith.
London: Peter Owen, 1998.
