MUSLIM VILLA - QURAN ONLY

Category 5 => Commentary / Tafsir of specific Quranic Verses or Quran topics with detailed discussions => Topic started by: Zainab_M on January 25, 2010, 04:12:49 am



Title: Those who deny the ascendency of Essa bin Maryam
Post by: Zainab_M on January 25, 2010, 04:12:49 am
 
BismEm


Some "modernists" are denying the acendency of Essa bin Maryam on the basis of the following Quranic verse:
 
"Muhammad is but a messenger, messengers (the like of whom) have passed away before him. Will it be that, when he dies or is slain, you will turn back on your heels? He who turns back does no hurt to Allah, and Allah will reward the thankful."  3:144
 
By reading the above verse 3:144, these modernists claim the interpretation that Prophet Muhammad SAAW and all his precedessors had "passed away" (or died), and that includes Essa bin Maryam as well.  But this interpretation becomes discrepant because they ignore verses 4:158/159, quoted as follows:
 
"And because of their saying: We slew the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, Allah's messenger - they slew him not nor crucified him, but it appeared so unto them; and lo! those who disagree concerning it are in doubt thereof; they have no knowledge thereof save pursuit of a conjecture; they slew him not for certain.
But Allah took him up unto Himself. Allah was ever Mighty, Wise." (4:158)  An-Nisa

"There is not one of the People of the Scripture but will believe in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them - "  (4:159)  An-Nisa

 

These are Pickthall's translations which are the most accurate/literal.  You won't find any other translator being so close to the original in interpretations.
 
There is absolutely NO DOUBT from reading the above verses that -
 
Verse 4:158 tells us:

-  Essa bin Maryam did not die on the cross
-  obviously the vision of his persecutors were beguiled and thus Allah says "but it appeared so unto them"
-  and Allah raised Essa bin Maryam unto Himself (same as ascendency) which is clearly stated

Verse 4:159 tells us:

 And in V. 4:159, a great prophecy of the Glorious Quran, in which Allah is saying that no Christian nor Jew (People of the Scripture) in their lifetime will believe in Essa (apparently meaning Essa's ascendency), until death overtakes them and then on the Day of Resurrection, Essa bin Maryam will be a witness against their disbelief.

And now, let's look at Verse 3:144

"Muhammad is but a messenger, messengers (the like of whom) have passed away before him. Will it be that, when he dies or is slain, you will turn back on your heels? He who turns back does no hurt to Allah, and Allah will reward the thankful."  3:144
 
 
The terms "passed away" here do not refute the truth already mentioned in verses 4:158/159.    That's because, although in common English the most widely referred context of the words "passed away" is probably death, yet this expression can be used in scores of other contexts as well.  In the above verse "passed away"simply refers to exiting from this world which includes the manner in which Essa bin Maryam "passed away" as described by Allah Almighty in verses 158/159.  It expresses the fact that no messenger has resided in this earthly world forever even though they were the chosen people of Allah.
 
If we check the following link of the online Free Dictionary concerning interpretations of the expression "passed away" we will find well over a dozen meanings which it carries and 'death' is one of the last interpretations listed in the thesaurus section at bottom of the page.
 
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/pass+away  


Then again, there are some time wasters coming up with thoroughly unintelligent denials of Prophet Essa's ascendency on the basis of a very narrow-minded study of Verse 4:158 (please read the verse already quoted earlier in this post) that Essa bin Maryam was not substituted because the Quran does not say that in so many words.
 
Akbarally Meharally (http://www.mostmerciful.com/substitution.htm), a sunni convert from the Ismaili sect, is one of them and he writes:

Quote:
Interpretation of the Arabic text that reads:
"wa ma  qatala hu wa ma salabu hu wa lakin shubbiha lahum"
The variations appear in the translation/interpretation of the end portion of the verse which reads: "wa lakin shubbiha lahum"
wa means:  And, also, but, whilst.
lakin  means; But, still, nevertheless.  
shubbiha  means; To be made like; A likeness or similitude.  
(This could refer to: A likeness or similitude (of Jesus), or
A likeness or similitude (of Killing), or  
A likeness or similitude (of Crucifixion), or
A likeness or similitude (of Killing & Crucifixion)
lahum   means; Was made for them.
Unquote:

Thus, the Arabic word "shubbiha" would correspond to the English expression translated by Pickthall as "but it appeared so unto them" -  yes, this does not literally say that another man was put in place of Essa on the cross.  But the concept is clearly similar, the reference being, something appeared that deceived the persecutors of Essa into thinking that they had killed him .. and obviously the only aspect that could cause such a deception could be a mock vision of the death of Essa, the real Essa being taken away by Allah Almighty.
 
Such unnecessary confusions often arise in the minds of some readers when they try to downplay the miracles of Allah Almighty.  Allah has made is crystal clear in the Quran that nothing is impossible for Him, and when He intends a thing to happen, He only says "Be" and it is.  In fact, Essa was created in the same way by Allah's word "Be" (kun....in Arabic), and he was, just the way Allah Almighty created Adam.  

"Lo! the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, then He said unto him: Be! and he is."   3:59

Indeed, for Allah, The Most Exalted with Infinite Power, performing miracles is no difficult task.  

So what's the problem with these people that they cannot accept matters so clearly spelt out by the Divine Power?