Truth About The Crucifixion — Page 111
(twelve) places, invariably meaning "to be like or similar" to something or someone. But as it is here used in the passive, it can only refer, according to Arabic grammar, to a wellknown (implied) subject, i. e. in the context it can only refer to Jesus and not to some one else who is neither mentioned here nor elsewhere in the Quran. . To sum up: the Jews plotted to disprove the Messiahship of Jesus by killing him on the cross, but God counter-acted their plot on their own plane by saving him from the shameful death on the cross, so that he only appeared to them as dead. In fact he survived and lived to a ripe old age as promised in the word Mutawaffika which has a double meaning: not only to cause to die (a natural death), but also as interprets ibn. Khatib Mustawwaff ajalaka: I intend to complete your lifeterm. . I have so far kept strictly within the boundaries of the evidence furnished by the Quran. But the attentive listener will have noticed that I made a passing reference to Sahih al-Bukhari who quoted Ibn 'Abbas for the interpretation of. Mutawaffika as meaning Mumituka (I shall cause you to die). . But this is not a saying of the Holy Prophet; it is only an interpretation of an expression used in the Quran. . In order not to leave Hadith (sayings of the Holy Prophet) totally untouched I would like to quote the three which are brought forward to show that Tradition also regards Jesus as dead. But first I would like to explain why there are only three traditions affirming the death of Jesus. The answer is simple because the Quran is so clear and unambiguous, that there was no need of great elaboration of this self-evident point. These three are: 1) If Moses and Jesus had been alive, they would have had no choice but to follow me. (Kathir Vol. II, p. 245 & al-Yawaqit wal-Jawahir 2nd Part, p. 24) 2) Verily, Jesus son of Mary, lived for 120 years, and I (Muhammad) see myself as only entering upon the beginnings of the sixties. (Kanz al-'Ummal, Part 6, p. 120) 3) During his spiritual ascent to heaven (Mi'raj), the Prophet saw Jesus together with John in the second heaven. (Bukhari, Part 2, Chapter on al-Isra: the Night Journey). The first two are very clear in their evidence, while the third may need some explanation. The point to be deduced 115