Al-Masih Isa - "the
Messiah Jesus". We read that when the angels first appeared to Mary they
said of the holy child they had been sent to announce: Ismuhul Masihu Isabnu
Maryam - "his name shall be the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary" (Chapter
3.45). Even before the conception of Jesus, therefore, the angels gave him the
one title that is applied to him on no less than eleven occasions in the
Qur'an, namely Al-Masih - "the Messiah".
Jesus alone is called the Messiah in the
Qur’an. No other prophet, patriarch or priest is given this title. In Arabic it
is simply al-Masih. The Qur'an's acknowledgement that Jesus was indeed the
Messiah comes, therefore, as something of a surprise. He is not only called
Al-Masih Isa but on some occasions the title Al-Masih appears by itself
(Chapter 4.172), and on others he is called Al-Masihubnu Maryam - "the
Messiah, son of Mary" (Chapter 9.31). What is most significant is that the
title is applied solely to Jesus in the Qur'an and that its definitive quality
is carefully defined by the use of the article - Al-Masih, namely, the Messiah.
Indeed the title is never used in the Qur'an without the definite article. This
rules out any possibility that the title can be applied to anyone else. No one
else in the Qur'an is, or accordingly possibly could be, the Messiah. Jesus is
not a messiah or one of the messiahs, he is Al-Masih - the Messiah. This leads
to the third feature that must occupy the attention of all who seriously
consider the use of this title in the Qur'an, namely that it is obviously used
in a particular sense.
Over 300 Old Testament prophecies speak of
the coming Messiah (Christ) and describe him as a man that stands above all
other men, including the other messengers of God, and that he would have a
regality, majesty, splendor and excellence above all other men. Indeed, he
would have divine attributes. Jewish believers in Jesus used the term Messiah
and Son of God interchangeably. For example, Peter, one of the first Jewish
followers of Jesus said, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God
(Matthew 16:16)." Nathaniel (John 1:49), Mark (Mark 1:1), and Martha (John
11:27) are examples of others who used the terms Messiah and Son of God
interchangeably. Caiaphas, the Jewish High Priest also used the terms Messiah
and Son of God together. When Jesus was on trial, Caiaphas asked Jesus, "I
adjure you, by the living God, tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God
(Matthew 26:63)."
Thus, by saying that Jesus is the Messiah,
the Qur’an has duly given Jesus a title -the Son of God.
“The Qur'an again and again speaks of Jesus
as the 'Messiah', and thus tacitly admits his superiority over all other
prophets. It gives him the title, but fails to give any reason for the honour
thus put upon Jesus; but in the Bible we learn more fully who this great one
was who was thus honored by God”. (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 12).
In the Qur'an that Jesus was indeed the
Messiah; People of the Book have a golden opportunity to witness meaningfully
to Muslims. The Qur'an attempts no explanation of the title, yet its very
inclusion in the book and we read at least in 15 verses that the Qur’an
confirming the Bible. Such as in 3:3 “He hath revealed unto thee
(Muhammad) the Scripture with truth, CONFIRMING that which was (revealed)
before it, even as He revealed the Torah and the Gospel” and 5:48
“To thee We sent the Scripture in truth, CONFIRMING the scripture that came
before it, and GUARDING it in safety: …” (See also 2:41, 6:92, 10:37,
35:31 etc.)
If the Qur’an CONFIRMING the
scripture that came before it, and GUARDING it in safetythen it means the
Qur’an confirming the Old Testament prophecies speak of the coming Messiah and
also it conform the New Testament which is all about Jesus Christ, Isa
Al-Masih.
The sacred Scripture of Islam opens a wide door
for effective witness. The common testimony of both the Christian and the
Muslim Scriptures to Jesus as the long awaited Supremely Anointed One provides
a platform on which Christians can build the message of the Gospel and show
Muslims the real meaning and implications of the title.
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