Who is the Messiah in the Qur'an?

Messias

So far we have only spoken of the “Messiah” in very general terms, but have given some thought to the Jewish understanding. Now it is time to fill this term with its Qur'anic meaning: Who is the Messiah in the Qur'an?

We were astonished to discover in connection with Nisa 4:153-167 that:

- Muhammad defends his own mission in an argument with Jews by discussing the Messiahship of Jesus;

- In this argument the virgin birth of Jesus (v. 156), his departure from the earth (v. 157) and his exaltation to God (v. 158) come up. While the Jews see reasons against the Messiahship of Jesus in these topics, the Qur'an defends this claim precisely in these three areas.

- Both in Nisa 4:159 and in Al-i Imran 3:55; and 60-64, belief in Jesus is defined as a basic requirement for believers. According to 3:42-64, followers of Muhammad and Christians must believe in the virgin birth, the departure of Jesus from the earth and his exaltation to God; according to Nisa 4:156-159, Jews must believe in Jesus. Jesus will stand as a witness in the Last Judgement against the People of the Book regarding their belief in the Messiah (4:159) and God will judge humanity regarding their differences on the three Messiah-defining issues (3:55).

The question of what exactly the Qur'an understands by “Messiah” is therefore “necessary for salvation”, i.e. it will, among other things, provide the basis for what God will judge humanity by.

Who is the Messiah in the Qur'an?

The term “Messiah” was initially coined by the Jewish interpretation of the Torah and further developments in the literature of the Second Testament. The term was later reinterpreted and expanded by Christians in the Gospels as applying to Jesus.

In the Qur'an, too, “Messiah” is used exclusively for Jesus (Al-i Imran 3:45; Nisa 4:157; 171; 172; Maide 5:17; 72; 75; Tevbe 9:30; 31). No other prophet receives this title, only Jesus is honoured with it. The question now arises as to how this term is understood in the Qur'an and to what extent it differs from Jewish and Christian concepts.

What surprised me most in my research on this term was the fact that despite its obvious centrality in the Qur'an, its meaning is largely neglected by Muslim commentators1: From the Arabic word (مسيح) the meanings “(to rub with the hand)”, “to lay the hand on something to understand its greatness”, “to anoint (with oil or water)”, “to wipe”, “to clean”, “to level out”, “to lie” and “to travel a lot” are derived. According to the traditions of Islamic sources, Hz. Jesus was given this name because he travelled a lot, healed the sick by touch, was born anointed with oil, Gabriel touched him with his wing at birth to protect him from demonic possession, or because he had a beautiful face.’2 Some scholars point to a possible Aramaic, Hebrew origin of the word. This is why the Jewish and Christian meaning of the term is often discussed in detail in Muslim commentaries. However, when it comes to the Quranic meaning, some interpreters content themselves with the unsatisfactory comment that Messiah must be understood differently in the Quran than by Christians and Jews - but the term itself remains unexplained.3 Many expositors are of the opinion that it is not an expected saviour, as is the case with Jews and Christians, but that Messiah is merely used in the Koran as an (insignificant) epithet for Jesus.4 In general, it can be said that there is great disagreement among Muslim commentators as to what Messiah means in connection with Jesus.5 Finally, there are also some Islamic scholars who interpret the term “Messiah” in the Qur'an in a similar way to Christianity.6

This uncertainty among scholars indicates that the term is taken for granted in the Qur'an and therefore nowhere in the text is a clear definition given. Due to the fact that the Qur'an so decisively rejects Jewish criticism of the Messiahship of Jesus and defends the Christian identification of Jesus as the Messiah with arguments very similar to those in the Gospel (virgin birth instead of illegitimate conception (Nisa 4:157), even the death on the cross does not call into question the Messiahship of Jesus because God raises him to himself (Nisa 4:157f.)), it can be assumed that the Qur'anic understanding is very much orientated towards the Christian and probably also the Jewish understanding. Nevertheless, it would be helpful to find clearer statements in the Qur'an to support this thesis.

Messiah on the Last Judgment

The Qu'ran warns the Jews: ‚And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in him  [accept him as the Messiah (see v. 157)] before his death; and on the Day of Judgment he will be a witness against them;-' (Nisa 4:159). It is clear from this verse that the Jews must accept Jesus as the Messiah during their lifetime and that it will be revealed at the Last Judgement whether they believed correctly in this respect or not. Al-i Imran 3:55 also points out that God will only resolve the different opinions of Christians, Muslims and all other people about the Messiah Jesus at the Last Judgement: On the day of resurrection '... shall ye all [i.e. the followers of Jesus (ttebe’ûke) and the unbelievers (keferû)])] return unto me, and I will judge between you of the matters wherein ye dispute'. It would therefore be extremely exciting to gain an insight into the Last Judgement in order to find out what exactly must be believed in relation to Jesus as the Messiah.

Messiah in Maide 5:109-120

We are fortunate to find just such an insight in the Qur'an: In Sura 5:109-120 we read how God will present Jesus at the Last Judgement7 before the assembled crowd of prophets:

109. One day will Allah gather the messengers together, and ask: "What was the response ye received (from men to your teaching)?" They will say: "We have no knowledge: it is Thou Who knowest in full all that is hidden."

110. Then will Allah say: "O Jesus the son of Mary! Recount My favour to thee and to thy mother. Behold! I strengthened thee with the holy spirit, so that thou didst speak to the people in childhood and in maturity. Behold! I taught thee the Book and Wisdom, the Law and the Gospel and behold! thou makest out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, by My leave, and thou breathest into it and it becometh a bird by My leave, and thou healest those born blind, and the lepers, by My leave. And behold! thou bringest forth the dead by My leave. And behold! I did restrain the Children of Israel from (violence to) thee when thou didst show them the clear Signs, and the unbelievers among them said: ´This is nothing but evident magic.´

111. "And behold! I inspired the disciples to have faith in Me and Mine Messenger: they said, ´We have faith, and do thou bear witness that we bow to Allah as Muslims´".

112. Behold! the disciples, said: "O Jesus the son of Mary! can thy Lord send down to us a table set (with viands) from heaven?" Said Jesus: "Fear Allah, if ye have faith."

113. They said: "We only wish to eat thereof and satisfy our hearts, and to know that thou hast indeed told us the truth; and that we ourselves may be witnesses to the miracle."

114. Said Jesus the son of Mary: "O Allah our Lord! Send us from heaven a table set (with viands), that there may be for us - for the first and the last of us - a solemn festival and a sign from thee; and provide for our sustenance, for thou art the best Sustainer (of our needs)."

115. Allah said: "I will send it down unto you: But if any of you after that resisteth faith, I will punish him with a penalty such as I have not inflicted on any one among all the peoples."

116. And behold! Allah will say: "O Jesus the son of Mary! Didst thou say unto men, worship me and my mother as gods in derogation of Allah´?" He will say: "Glory to Thee! never could I say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, thou wouldst indeed have known it. Thou knowest what is in my heart, Thou I know not what is in Thine. For Thou knowest in full all that is hidden.

117. "Never said I to them aught except what Thou didst command me to say, to wit, ´worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord´; and I was a witness over them whilst I dwelt amongst them; when Thou didst take me up Thou wast the Watcher over them, and Thou art a witness to all things.

118. "If Thou dost punish them, they are Thy servant: If Thou dost forgive them, Thou art the Exalted in power, the Wise."

119. Allah will say: "This is a day on which the truthful will profit from their truth: theirs are gardens, with rivers flowing beneath,- their eternal Home: Allah well-pleased with them, and they with Allah: That is the great salvation, (the fulfilment of all desires).

120. To Allah doth belong the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, and it is He Who hath power over all things.'

This text is an extremely exciting insight into a scene at the Last Judgement (see v. 109 and vv. 118-120). God himself is the speaker and the subject is Jesus. Allah deals in detail with various aspects of Jesus' life and work. The listeners of this speech are all of God's messengers, presumably together with their religious followers8. Apparently, this is the divine correction announced in Al-i Imran 3:55 of the different views of followers and unbelievers about Jesus and the threatened condemnation of the Jews who reject the Messiah (Nisa 4:159; Maide 5:110). It will be our task to find out what Allah defines as the correct belief in Jesus as the Messiah on this occasion and what correct behaviour towards Jesus the Messiah already involves during the time on earth.

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1 e.g. on the well-known Turkish Qur'an website, https://www.kuranmeali.com/, no link is given to the entry m-s-h in the reference work Word Explanations of the Qur'an, Râgıb el-İsfehânî'nin el-Müfredât fî Garîbi'l Kur'ân, although this entry exists. The meaning of the term is simply left open without any explanation.

2 JACQUES WAARDENBURG, "MESÎH", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/mesih (15.03.2023).

3 z.B. 'In the Qur'an, masih is not a title given to Jesus Christ upon his resurrection after his death, as in Christianity, but is used for him from his birth. The concept is not used in the Qur'an in the Christian sense, and it is emphasised that Jesus was a prophet like those who came before him.' JACQUES WAARDENBURG, "MESÎH", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/mesih (15.03.2023).

4 'Bir kısım İslam âlimleri tarafından Kur'an'daki mesih deyiminin beklenen bir kurtarıcıyı değil, İsa'nın bir lakabını tanımladığına inanılmaktadır' (Wikipedia katılımcıları. Mesih [Internet]. Vikipedi, Özgür Ansiklopedi; 2022 Ağu 13, 16.34 UTC [cited 2023 Mar 15]. Alındığı yer: https://tr.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mesih&oldid=28304210).

'Müslüman dilcilerin çoğu, Kur’an’da on bir yerde ve sadece Hz. Îsâ’nın adı veya lakabı şeklinde geçen mesîhin Arapça bir kökten geldiğini kabul etmekle birlikte kelimenin aslının İbrânîce, Ârâmîce veya Süryânîce olduğunu ileri sürenler de vardır (Zemahşerî, I, 430; Fahreddin er-Râzî, VIII, 49).' (JACQUES WAARDENBURG, "MESÎH", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/mesih (15.03.2023)).

5 İslam âlimleri arasında, Mesih kavramı konusunda tam bir fikir birliği yoktur (Wikipedia katılımcıları. Mesih [Internet]. Vikipedi, Özgür Ansiklopedi; 2022 Ağu 13, 16.34 UTC [cited 2023 Mar 15]. Alındığı yer: https://tr.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mesih&oldid=28304210).

6 Wikipedia katılımcıları. Mesih [Internet]. Vikipedi, Özgür Ansiklopedi; 2022 Ağu 13, 16.34 UTC [cited 2023 Mar 15]. Alındığı yer: https://tr.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mesih&oldid=28304210.

7 Although the past tense is used, “there God spoke”, it is clear from the context that it is a scene at the Last Judgement ('... the 'scene [is] taken from the Day of Judgement ...' (Sayyid Qutb, In the Shade of the Quran, Vol. 4 p. 241). God gathers all the prophets and gives them the opportunity to stand up for their successors. This clearly points to the Last Judgement.

8 See Sayyid Qutb: 'This is an awesome interrogation, on the day when all creatures are gathered, the Supreme Company is present and all humanity is looking on. This is a confrontation, when all humanity is put face to face with the Messengers, and especially the unbelievers who are now arrayed before those Messengers to whom they used to lie. Then the declaration is made that those noble messengers simply preached the Divine faith’ (In the Shadow of the Quran, zu Maide 5:109, s. 1336).