The Name Messiah.

Christians keep asking the same question repeatedly, like as if they are deficient in understanding. Either they are conniving, with the sole agenda of deceiving their followers, or they are idiots, which by definition means 'a person affected with extreme intellectual disability.' Regardless of their mental condition, let us address one of the many unintelligent questions posed by these imbeciles.

 

Christians tend to use their Bible against Muslims, as if it is some sort of authority over us that we must submit to it, when in reality, the Qur'an is the authority over all scriptures.

 

“And We have revealed to you, [O Muhammed], the Book [i.e., the Quran] in truth, confirming that which preceded it of the Scripture and as a criterion over it.” (Surah 5:48)

 

Now that we have established the Qur'an as the ultimate authority over their scriptures, let us turn to their question: Why is the word 'Messiah' used when referring to Isa (AS) in the Qur'an?

 

What is fascinating is that the answer is found within the Qur’an. Let us start by asking how many times is the word “Messiah” mentioned in the Qur’an?  Let’s navigate through a few verses to answer this query. Below is the list of the numbers of times the word “Messiah” is mentioned, alongside the chapter and verse.

Surah 3:45 x 1

Surah 4:157 x 1

Surah 4:171 x 1

Surah 4:172 x 1

Surah 5:17 x 2

Surah 5:72 x 2

Surah 5:75 x 1

Surah 9:30 x 1

Surah 9:31 x 1

Messiah in the Qur’an is mentioned a total of 11 times.

 

This is where is gets interesting. Let us start by reading the verse which mentioned Messiah for the first time in the Qur’an.

 

[And mention] when the angels said, "O Mary, indeed Allah gives you good tidings of a word from Him, whose name will be the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary – distinguished in this world and the Hereafter and among those brought near [to Allah]. (Surah 3:45)

 

"The above verse recalls the annunciation of Isa (AS) to his mother, Mary (PBUH), where Angel Gabriel (PBUH) informs her of the good news of having a son, and his name will be 'Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary' ٱسْمُهُ ٱلْمَسِيحُ عِيسَى ٱبْنُ مَرْيَمَ."        

"Note that the verse reads ٱسْمُهُ, 'his name'—a noun, specifically a proper noun. Thus, مَسِيحُ (Messiah) is his name. Generally, a name refers to a specific, distinctive thing, while a title refers to something that fulfills a requirement or role a descriptive name. In this case, his name, مَسِيحُ (Messiah), could also reflect the miracles granted to him, such as Isa (AS), who, with the permission of Allah (Swt), was able to heal the sick. It is understood that he would wipe over them, thus taking the word مَسِيحُ (Messiah) as a descriptive name. We must also be clear: for Jews and Christians, this is a patronymic name, but for Muslims, it is not."

 

"We must also note that the Qur’an does not mention any foretold prophecies about a figure or title of 'Messiah' from the scriptures of the previous Prophets, as claimed by Christians and Jews. No such 'Messianic' prophecies from the previous Prophets are recorded in the Qur’an. However, the Qur’an does mention the role of Isa (AS) for his people and what their expectations will be when he arrives for the second coming, as well as in the Ahadith."

 

[Mention] when Allah said, "O Jesus, indeed I will take you and raise you to Myself and purify [i.e., free] you from those who disbelieve and make those who follow you [in submission to Allah alone] superior to those who disbelieve until the Day of Resurrection. Then to Me is your return, and I will judge between you concerning that in which you used to differ. (Surah 3:55)

 

 

Narrated Abu Huraira:

 

Allah's Apostle said "How will you be when the son of Mary (i.e. Jesus) descends amongst you and he will judge people by the Law of the Quran and not by the law of Gospel (Fateh-ul Bari page 304 and 305 Vol 7) (Bukhari :Book 4 :Volume 55 :: Hadith 658)

 

Another point to add is, every time you read the name Messiah son of Mary is connected to it thus, making it a distinctive name given in Surah 3:45.

 

Go ahead and read for yourself: Surah 3:45, Surah 4:157, Surah 4:171, Surah 4:172, Surah 5:17, Surah 5:72, Surah 5:75, Surah 9:30, and Surah 9:31. Notice how the 'Son of Mary' is connected with the name 'Messiah.'         

 

"We conclude that the name مَسِيحُ (Messiah) is an 'aptronym,' a descriptive name suited to a person for what they do. In the case of Isa (AS), he would heal people with the permission of Allah (Swt); thus, the name مَسِيحُ (Messiah) perfectly fits." Though linguistically speaking the etymology of the name Messiah could be broken down and understood in great details, the fact it’s a given distinctive name.

 

Allah Swt Knows best.