The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 4) — Page 46
CH. 19 MARYAM persons have also been called or addressed as sons of God. Jesus enjoys no special prerogative in this respect and is therefore no more a son of God than those persons who have also been addressed as such. The Bible says: (a) "Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God" (Luke 20:36); (b) "For I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn" (Jer. 31:9); (c) "Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name" (Matt. 6:9); (d) "For if you forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father will also forgive you" (Matt. 6:14); (e) "That your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses" (Mark 11:25); (f) "Your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things" (Luke 12:30); (g) "We have one Father, even God" (John 8:41); (h) "One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Ephes. 4:6); (i) "Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn" (Exod. 4:22). The Bible rather supports the Quranic statement, viz. it does not befit the Majesty of Allah to take unto Himself a son. He is the One Lord, God, Who has, or needs, no son. It says: PT. 16 (a) "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord" (Deut. 6:4); (b) "I am the Lord, that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images" (Isa. 42:8); (c) "Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord" (Mark 12:29); (d) "To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty" (Jude 1:25); (e) "Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory forever and ever" (I Timothy 1:17). The verse under comment gives three reasons why God does not stand in need of a son:(1) if God were supposed to have a son, He must be subject to carnal desires and must have a wife to satisfy them; (2) He must be subject to decay and death because the procreation of species which the attribution of a son to God implies, is the characteristic of mortals; and (3) He must require a helper to assist Him in His work or to continue his work after His death. But God as represented by Islam is completely free from all these defects and therefore needs no son. In fact, the Christian dogma of sonship of Jesus is an insoluble riddle and beyond human comprehension. If Jesus is God's son, then God will have to be admitted as incapable of carrying on the affairs of the universe alone and unaided, and therefore will have to be accepted as imperfect and 1960