SEGMENT 1

Isa in the Qur’an

The Qur’an – A Hidden Book?

 For a long time, the Qur’an had been something of a hidden book.  It was written in Arabic and most Muslims do not read and understand Arabic.  In fact many Muslim men who are Hafiz, which means they have memorized the Qur’an in Arabic, do not understand what it says!  On many occasions, I have talked with those who knew the Qur’an from memory, but they had no idea what it said, because they did not understand Arabic. 

 Because of this, most Muslims look to those they call “scholars of the Qur’an” for their understanding of what Allah requires of them.  This is very sad and very puzzling.  Every Muslim believes that he will stand alone in judgment before Allah and that no one can help him then.  Why then would you look to others to tell you what Allah requires of you when He has told you in His holy books?  And Allah tells us that we can easily understand what He has told us.

 In the Qur’an we read this in Sura Al Qamar (Sura 54) ayyat 17,22,32.  Notice it is repeated three times!

 We have made the Qur’an easy to understand and remember: then is there any that will receive admonition (instruction and correction)?

We read the same thing in what the Qur’an calls “the Scriptures that were before”.  The Qur’an tells us that these Before Scriptures are the Tawrat, the Zaboor and the Injiil.  They are found in the Proverbs of Sulieman, in chapter 1 ayyat 22 through 23. 

How long you simple ones will you love your ignorance?  For scorners delight in their scorning and fools hate knowledge.  Turn at my rebuke!  Surely I will pour out my Spirit on you and I will make my words known unto you.

And in the Before Scriptures, the prophet Yerimya wrote:

You will seek Me and find Me when you seek for Me with all your heart.  I will be found by you says the Lord.[1]

 We can be very thankful that, when he was alive, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, spent millions and millions of dollars to have the Qur’an translated into most of the languages that Muslims speak.  Now you can read for yourself what is written there.  You must take responsibility for yourself to prepare for the Day of Judgment.  On that day every person shall be raised up to stand before Allah and give an account of himself.   Do you want to simply accept what you have been told, or do you want to hear for yourself what Allah has said to us.  I think you are reading this because you want to search out the truth of Allah for yourself.

Amazing Things in Sura Al Imran!

 As we read in the Qur’an we find some amazing things about Hazrat Isa in Sura Al Imran!   The ayyat about Isa are ayyat 42 through 55.  First, look at Al Imran ayyat 42 through 47.   The translation quoted here is by Abdullah Yusuf Ali, a scholar well known and respected by Muslims around the world.

 Sura Al Imran

42    Behold!  The angels said: “Oh Maryam! Allah has chosen you and purified you – chosen you above all the women of mankind.
43    O Maryam!  Worship the Lord devoutly: Prostrate yourself, and bow down with those who bow down”
44    This is part of the tidings of things unseen, which We reveal unto you by inspiration: you were not with them when they cast lots with arrows, as to which of them should be charged with the care of Maryam; nor were you with them when they disputed (the point).
45    Behold!  The angels said, “O Maryam!  Allah gives you glad tidings of a word from Him: His name shall be Isa Masih (Messiah), the son of Maryam, held in honor in this world and also in the Hereafter and of the righteous.
46    He shall speak to the people in his childhood and in maturity. And shall be of the righteous.
47    She said, “O My Lord! How shall I have a son when no man has touched me?”  He said: “Even so: Allah creates what He will:  when He has decreed a plan, He but says to it, “Be”, and it is!

The first thing we notice is that there is a lot of excitement in heaven.  Allah is about to do something very special on earth.  We read that it is something hidden, or “unseen” that had to be revealed.   The word used is “ghaib” which means “something hidden”.  As we will see later in ayya 54, Allah had a plan for Isa that no one knew about or would have ever guessed and He was about to show His plan.

Then in ayya 45 we see what the angels were so excited about.   Jabreel told Maryam that he was bringing glad tidings of a “word from Him (Allah) whose name shall be Masih Isa.”  Have you ever thought about that?   What does it mean that a word, a “kalam”, of Allah becomes a person? 

With every other prophet, Allah would tell them what to say and they would say it.  They spoke the words of Allah.  But here we see something very different.  This word from Allah had a body; it had a name – Isa Masih!   All of the other prophets spoke the words of Allah, but Isa himself was a word from Allah!

Have you ever heard the term “Ruhallah”?  I am sure you have.  Most Muslims know that Isa is called Ruhallah.  And he is called Ruhallah for a reason.  We can see why in Sura Al Anbiya (Sura 21) ayya 91:

And remember her who guarded her chastity (purity): We breathed into her of Our Spirit, and WE made her and her son a Sign for all peoples.

We see how Isa came into this world.  Allah breathed His Spirit into Maryam and she conceived and Isa was born into this world.  

We see also that Isa had a title.  He is called Masih, which is translated as Messiah.  “Messiah” means “the anointed one”.  This title comes from the Tawrat and the Zaboor.  Each king of Israel was anointed with oil.  Oil was poured or rubbed on his head.  This was a symbolic ceremony.   The oil was a symbol of the Holy Spirit of Allah resting upon the King so that he would make wise decisions and lead Israel in the ways of Allah. 

Dawood was the greatest king of Israel.   Allah loved Dawood and he loved Allah.  Allah told Dawood that one day one of his descendants would come as King.  But this King would be very different from any of the kings Israel ever had.  He would not be like the other kings who lived and died and passed his kingdom on to someone else.  This King would have a kingdom that would never end.  This promised one was the “Messiah” or “the anointed one”.  He would be the chosen deliverer of all the people of Allah.  Both the Qur’an and the Injiil agree that this Messiah is Isa!

Of course Isa also had a name.  Our names have meaning.  I am sure you know what your name means.   Do you know what Isa means?  It means the “salvation of Allah” or “Allah saves”.    Indeed, the Injiil tells us that Jabreel told Maryam to name her son Isa.  He said, “You will call his name Isa for he will save the people from their sins.”

In ayya 46 we are told that Isa was righteous.  Do you think that Isa ever sinned?  Of course not!  But some say that none of the prophets ever sinned.  I have heard that many times, but what does the Qur’an say about that?  Listen to these ayyat from these Suras.

Adam  20:120-121  But Shatan whispered evil to him (Adam): he said, “O Adam!  Shall I lead you to the Tree of Eternity and to a kingdom that never decays?  In the result, they both ate of the tree, and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey his Lord, and allow himself to be seduced. 
 

Nue  71:28  O my Lord, forgive me (Nue – see ayya 26) , my parents all who enter my house in faith.

Musa  28:16  Now the man of his own religion appealed to him against his foe, and Moses struck him with his fist and made an end to him….   He (Musa) prayed: “O my Lord!   I have indeed wronged my soul!  Do then forgive me! 

Dawood  38:24  And Dawood gathered (understood) that we had tried him: he asked forgiveness of His Lord, fell down, bowing and turned (to God in repentance).

Sulieman  38:35  He (Sulieman see ayya 34) said “O my Lord!  Forgive me and grant me a kingdom that suits not another after me.

And you can read for yourself what Allah said to Hazrat Muhammed in Sura Al Fath (Sura 48) ayyat 1-2. 

Some say that prophets made “mistakes” but that they did not sin.  When someone disobeys Allah it is sin, whether he meant to do it or not. These prophets asked forgiveness from [2]Allah.  You don’t ask forgiveness if you have done nothing wrong.   Certainly these prophets were holy men, used by Allah to give us His word, but they were not perfect men.  The Qur’an tells us this, just like the Tawrat, Zaboor and Injiil do.

But, we see something very unique about Isa.  With all the other prophets mentioned in the Tawrat, Zaboor, Injil and Qur’an we see something.  For These Books say either that each prophet sinned, or tells us of a time when he disobeyed Allah in some way, or says that he asked forgiveness.  But with Isa this is not the case.  The Qur’an says only that Isa is righteous.  The Injil tells us that Isa was tempted in every way that we are yet he did not sin!  As we read plainly in the Injiil – “In him (Isa) is no sin.”2

Then in ayya 47 we see that Isa was born in a very special way.  Maryam was a virgin when Isa was conceived and born.  Isa had no earthly father!  Billions and billions of people have come into this world, but all were the same.  Each one had a father and a mother.  Many of these were holy prophets, but still it was the same.  Each one had a father and a mother.  Of course you know this.  But, have you ever thought about why Allah did this?  Why was only Isa born with no earthly father?

Some say that this was just Allah’s sign that Isa was a prophet.  Allah had a unique sign for each prophet and this was Isa’s sign.  But this cannot be, because there was another prophet who had no earthly father.  You know who this was.  It was Adam.  Adam, of course had no earthly father.  Allah created him from the dust and breathed life into him.  Then he made Howa from one of Adam’s ribs.

Allah placed Adam and Howa in the Garden.  Their life was perfect there in every way.  The Tawrat tells us that they were with Allah and talked with Allah there.  Adam and Howa could be in the Garden with Allah because they were righteous.  They had never sinned or disobeyed Allah in any way.  But ou know what happened.  You just read about it in Sura Ta Ha (Sura 20) ayya 121.   Satan tempted Howa and she ate of the fruit that Allah had forbidden.  Suddenly everything changed.  They felt shame.  They knew they were naked.  They tried to cover their shame with leaves from the garden, but they still felt shame.   Then they tried to hide from Allah, but no one can hide from Allah. 

That very day, Allah came to them and sent them out of the Garden.  They could no longer stay there in the presence of Allah.  Why?  It was because they were no longer righteous and pure.  Allah is perfectly righteous and pure and holy and no one can stay in his presence.  If a beggar dressed in filthy rags and smelling terribly stepped into a king’s presence, the guards of the king would quickly take him away.  So Adam and Howa who were no longer righteous and pure had to be removed from the presence of Allah.

And something had changed on the inside of Adam.  Before, he disobeyed and ate the fruit, Adam had been innocent.  It had been easy to obey Allah and to spend time with Allah.  But now sin had come into the world.  Before, his heart had been bent toward Allah; now his heart was bent away from Allah.  We know this is true, because we are descendants of Adam.  We come from his line and we have received his nature.  

We easily know this in two ways.  When we have children we do not have to teach them to do wrong and to disobey, do we?  It is there in their nature, in their heart.  Indeed we have to work very hard to try to teach them to do right and obey.  Each of us also knows this from inside our own heart.  We know that it is hard to seek Allah and obey Him, but it is easy to turn away and disobey. 

We are from Adam’s bloodline and we have received his nature.  We are like Adam because we come from Adam.

So it has been, generation

after generation

after generation. 

UNTIL we come to Isa!

Isa did not come from Adam’s bloodline.   Where did Isa come from?  He came from Allah.  Allah breathed His Spirit into flesh through Maryam and Isa was conceived.  The Qur’an and Injiil both say this:

Qur’an - Sura Anbiya 21:91  We breathed into her (Maryam) of our Spirit and made her and her son a sign for all peoples.

Injiil – Then the angel (Jabreel) said to her, “Do not be afraid Maryam, for you have found favor with Allah.   Behold, you will conceive in you womb and bring forth a son and you shall call his name Isa.   Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man.?”   And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and overshadow you.”[3]

Allah spoke and Maryam conceived: Allah breathed His Spirit into Maryam and she conceived and bore a son – Isa Masih! 

 Is there any other prophet like this?  Is there another prophet as holy as Isa?

 Now let’s continue in Sura Al Imran and look at ayyat 48-53.

48    And Allah will teach him (Isa) the Book and Wisdom, the Tawrat and the Injiil,
49    And (appoint him) a messenger to the Children of Israel (saying): “I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, in that I make for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by Allah’s leave: and I heal those born blind, and lepers, and I give life to the dead, by Allah’s leave; and I declare unto you what you eat and what you store in your houses.  Surely therein is a Sign for you if you did believe.
50    (I have come to you) to attest the Tawrat which was before me.  And I make lawful to you part of what was forbidden unto you.  I have come to you with a Sign from your Lord.  So fear Allah and obey me.
51    It is Allah Who is my Lord and your Lord; then worship Him.  This is the straight path.
52    When Isa found unbelief on their part he said:  “Who will be my helpers to (the work of) God?”  Said the disciples:  “We are Allah’s helpers; we believe in Allah, and you bear witness that we are muslims (submitted to Allah).
53    Our Lord, we believe what You have revealed and we follow the Messenger; then write us down among those who bear witness.

Isa was not only very holy; he was also very powerful!  Look at the miracles that Isa did.

He touched lepers and they were healed.  The Injiil tells us that once Isa healed ten lepers at one time!   Leprosy is a very terrible disease that actually eats away part of the body.  But Isa would touch lepers and they were healed.   Isa healed those born blind.  He would touch eyes of the blind and they would see.  In the Injiil we read of many more miracles that Isa did.  He was very powerful.   He healed many who were sick.  He could even command the storms to cease and they would obey!

But what is our greatest enemy?  It is not leprosy or blindness.  Our greatest enemy is death.  No one overcomes death.  But Isa had the power over death!  Some will say, “But this was by Allah’s leave.”  Of course that is true!  Nothing happens apart from Allah.  But notice that Isa did not have to pray and ask Allah to do these things.  He would simply touch the leper and the blind man and they were healed.   He would command the winds and rain of the storm to cease and they would stop.  He would touch the dead or command them to come forth from the tomb and they would be alive again. 

Who was this that had power over disease and the forces of nature and even death itself?

Notice also what Isa said in the last part of ayya 50.  Right here in the Qur’an we are commanded to obey Isa!  And you know this.  All Muslims say, “Yes, we should obey Isa!”

The problem is this – what did Isa command us to do?  I have searched all through the Qur’an and this is the only command of Isa that I find.  He says “Obey me!” 

Suppose you met with a good friend and he said to you:  “I am leaving on a trip after we meet, and I need you to do something for me here in town tomorrow.  Would you do it for me?”  Of course you would agree because he is your friend.  But then he left and never told you what he wanted you to do for him.  When tomorrow comes could you do what he needed you to do?

The answer is simple isn’t it?  Of course you cannot do what he needed you to do.  You do not know what it is!  

How can you obey Isa?  You do not know what he has commanded you to do!  His commands are not in the Qur’an – they are in the Injiil. 

The Injiil tells us the things that Isa did, what he taught us and what he commanded us to do.  How can you ever do your duty to Allah and obey Isa if you don’t know what he said.  The only way you can ever hope to obey Isa is to find out what he has commanded you to do.  You must go to the Injiil and find out what he has said!  You should be reading and learning the Injiil.

Now I know what you have been told.  “The Tawrat, the Zaboor, and the Injiil, they have been corrupted – they have been changed!”  Have these books, which the Qur’an calls the “Scriptures that were before” been changed.  You will find another link on this website titled – “Have the Before Scriptures Been Changed”. 

You can search the Qur’an and you will not find another prophet as powerful as Isa.  You can search the Before Scriptures as well and you will not find a prophet as powerful as Isa.   

Do you know of another prophet as powerful as Isa?

 Now let us look at the last three ayyat in this passage from Al Imran.

54    And they (the unbelievers, the kafir) plotted and planned, and Allah too planned, and the best of planners is Allah.
55    Behold!  Allah said: “O Isa I will take you and raise you to Myself and clear you of those who blaspheme; I will make those who follow you superior to those who reject faith, to the Day of Resurrection: then shall you all return unto me, and I will judge between you of the matters wherein you dispute.
56    As to those who reject faith, I will punish them with terrible agony in this world and in the Hereafter, nor will they have anyone to help.
57    As to those who believe and do righteousness, Allah will pay them their reward; but Allah does not love them who do wrong.

We saw in ayya 50 that to fear Allah, we must obey Isa.  Here in ayya 55 we see that Allah has made great promises to those who follow Isa.  He said that He would make those who follow Isa superior to those who reject faith in him.  He said He would reward those who believe Isa and do righteousness.   

But notice something very important in ayya 55.  According to the Qur’an, where is Isa right now!  I know that you may have been taught that Isa is in a lower level of heaven, but that is not what the Qur’an teaches.  The Qur’an says very plainly that Isa has been raised to Allah.  Allah says, “I will raise you to myself!  Where is Allah?  Is He in some lower level of heaven?  Of course not!  He is Allah!  He is in the highest heaven.  And Isa is right where Allah is, according to the Qur’an.

The Injil teaches the same thing.  It says:

He (Allah) raised him (Isa) …. and seated him at His own right hand in the heavenly places.[4]

You can search the Tawrat, Zaboor, Injil and Qur’an and this is what you will find – we are told of no other person, not even another prophet, who is in heaven with Allah!  Only of Isa are we told that he is in heaven with Allah!

Suppose you wanted to come to my house.  Of course you have no idea how to get to my house.  None of your friends have any idea how to get to my house.  So, if you had to get to my house, who would you want to show you the way.  Would you ask one of your friends, or would you want me to show you the way.

The answer is simple, isn’t it?  Of course, you would want me to show you the way.  I live in my house and I know the way to get here. 

I want to go to heaven.  You want to go to heaven.  If you were not interested in going to heaven you would not be reading this.  Isa came from Allah.  He is in heaven right now according to the Qur’an and the Injiil.  Isa obviously knows the way to heaven.

So think about this. 

Which prophet is the one best able to show you and I the way to heaven?

I hope this has given you something to think deeply about.  But there is much more here in Al Imran. 

A Great Mystery Lies Ahead

 Let me ask you this - Do you like a mystery?  Do you like to dig in and find the answer to something hidden and unknown?  We saw in ayya that here is just such a mystery here in Al Imran in ayya 44:

 This is a part of the tidings of the things unseen (things hidden – “ghaibi”)

In the Injiil we see this mystery also:

I Paul …. (tell you) how that by revelation He (Allah) made known to me the mystery …. which in other ages was not known but now has been revealed to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit (of Allah) to His holy apostles and prophets.[5]

In Segment 3, titled, “The Mystery of the Ages”, we explore this great mystery. 

I hope you will read it. 

But, in order to really understand Allah’s great plan, we must go to the Before Scriptures.  In the Qur’an, we see only a few ayyat about Allah’s great plan in Isa; but in the Tawrat, Zaboor and Injil, we see Allah’s plan fully revealed and explained.

But can those Scriptures be trusted.  Haven’t they been changed?   In the next segment, we will discuss that.  We will look to see if that is what the Qur’an says.