Jesus in Islam

In Islam, Jesus is  one of the greatest of God‘s prophets and messengers to humankind. His mother “Mary” was a righteous woman. God said about her in the Quran in chapter [3: verses 42 and 43] (which is translated as): “And remember when the angels said, “O Mary! Surely Allah has selected you, purified you, and chosen you over all women of the world. O  Mary! Be devout to your Lord, prostrate yourself ˹in prayer˺ and bow along with those who bow down.”

There is a complete chapter in the Quran with the title “Mary” which is chapter 16. In this chapter Allah mentioned the story of Mary and Jesus in the versus (16) to (36) :

“And mention in the Book ‘O Prophet, the story of’ Mary when she withdrew from her family to a place in the east, screening herself off from them. Then We sent to her Our angel, ‘Gabriel,’ appearing before her as a man, perfectly formed. She appealed, ‘I truly seek refuge in the Most Compassionate from you! ‘So leave me alone’ if you are God-fearing.’ He responded, ‘I am only a messenger from your Lord, ˹sent˺ to bless you with a pure son.’ She wondered, ‘How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me, nor am I unchaste?’ He replied, ‘So will it be! Your Lord says, ‘It is easy for Me. And so will We make him a sign for humanity and a mercy from Us.’ It is a matter ˹already˺ decreed.’ So she conceived him and withdrew with him to a remote place. Then the pains of labour drove her to the trunk of a palm tree. She cried, ‘Alas! I wish I had died before this, and was a thing long forgotten!’ So a voice reassured her from below her, ‘Do not grieve! Your Lord has provided a stream at your feet. And shake the trunk of this palm tree towards you, it will drop fresh, ripe dates upon you. So eat and drink, and put your heart at ease. But if you see any of the people, say, ‘I have vowed silence to the Most Compassionate, so I am not talking to anyone today.’  So eat and drink, and put your heart at ease. But if you see any of the people, say, ‘I have vowed silence to the Most Compassionate, so I am not talking to anyone today.’ Then she returned to her people, carrying him. They said ˹in shock˺, ‘O Mary! You have certainly done a horrible thing! O  sister of Aaron! Your father was not an indecent man, nor was your mother unchaste.’ So she pointed to the baby. They exclaimed, ‘How can we talk to someone who is an infant in the cradle?’ Jesus said and declared, ‘I am truly a servant of Allah. He has destined me to be given the Scripture and to be a prophet. He has made me a blessing wherever I go, and bid me to establish prayer and give alms-tax as long as I live, and to be kind to my mother. He has not made me arrogant or defiant.  Peace be upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I will be raised back to life!’ That is Jesus, son of Mary. ˹And this is˺ a word of truth, about which they dispute. It is not for Allah to take a son! Glory be to Him. When He decrees a matter, He simply tells it, ‘Be!’ And it is! ˹Jesus also declared,˺ ‘Surely Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him ˹alone˺. This is the Straight Path.’

In another chapter in the Quran [61 :6] “And ˹remember˺ when Jesus, son of Mary, said, ‘O children of Israel! I am truly Allah’s messenger to you, confirming the Torah which came before me, and giving glad tidings of a messenger after me whose name will be Aḥmad.” Yet when the Prophet came to them with clear proofs, they said, ‘This is pure magic.’ ”   Ahmad is one of the names of prophet Muhammad peace of Allah be upon him, as he has the names Muhammad and Ahmad.

“Remember˺ when Allah said, “O Jesus! I will take you and raise you up to Myself. ” Quran [3:55]

Because Allah sent Jesus with proofs and guidance, the Jews envied him because of his prophethood and obvious miracles, yet the Jews defied and bellied him and tried their best to harm him. Jesus could not live in any one city for long and he had to travel often with his mother, peace be upon them. Even so, the Jews were not satisfied, and they went to the king of Damascus at that time, a Greek polytheist who worshipped the stars. They told him that there was a man in Jerusalem misguiding and dividing the people in Jerusalem and stirring unrest among the king’s subjects. The king became angry and wrote to his deputy in Jerusalem to arrest the rebel leader, stop him from causing unrest, crucify him and make him wear a crown of thorns. When the king’s deputy in Jerusalem received these orders, he went with some Jews to the house that Jesus was residing in, and he was then with twelve, thirteen or seventeen of his companions. That day was a Friday, in the evening. They surrounded Jesus in the house, and when he felt that they would soon enter the house or that he would sooner or later have to leave it, he said to his companions, “Who volunteers to be made to look like me, for which he will be my companion in Paradise” A young man volunteered, but Jesus thought that he was too young. He asked the question a second and third time, each time the young man volunteering, prompting Jesus to say, “Well then, you will be that man.” God made the young man look exactly like Jesus, and Jesus was made to sleep and ascended to heaven while asleep. When Jesus ascended, those who were in the house came out. When those surrounding the house saw the man who looked like Jesus, they thought that he was Jesus. So they took him at night, crucified him and placed a crown of thorns on his head. The Jews then boasted that they killed Jesus and some Christians accepted their false claim, due to their ignorance and lack of reason. As for those who were in the house with Jesus, they witnessed his ascension to heaven, while the rest thought that the Jews killed Jesus by crucifixion.

God said in the Quran  [4:156-157]” That they rejected faith: that they uttered against Mary a grave false charge. That they said (in boast) ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.’ But they neither killed nor crucified him—it was only made to appear so. Even those who argue for this ˹crucifixion˺ are in doubt. They have no knowledge whatsoever—only making assumptions. They certainly did not kill him.”

When God raised Jesus to heaven, his followers divided into sects and groups. Some of them believed in what God sent Jesus as, a servant of God, His Messenger, and the son of His female-servant (Mary).