🔊 Listen to this

𝐄𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬

Mohamad Mostafa Nassar
Twitter:@NassarMohamadMR

Quran claims Jesus was saved from his enemies and raised alive!

“And [for] their saying, “Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah .” And they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them. And indeed, those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain.” (Quran, 4:157)

“[Mention] when Allah said, “O Jesus, indeed I will take you and raise you to Myself and purify 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.” (Quran, 3:55)

Jesus prays to be saved from being crucified:

“Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground* and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”(Matthew 26:39)

* Jesus worshiped God by prostrating himself, as Muslims are taught to pray by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

And God answered his prayers, “So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me.” I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”(John 11:41-42)

“During his earthly life Christ offered both requests and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death and he was heard because of his devotion.” (Hebrews 5:7).

Raymond Brown in his book “Death of the Messiah, on page 228, says that the wording in Hebrews 5:7 is clearly based on Psalms 116. If you go there, you will realize that it is about someone who praises God for answering his prayers and delivering him from a close encounter with death.

 Also the name of the Messiah has been foreshadowed in the Hebrew text (i.e. Yeshua in Psalms 116 and multiple times in Psalms 91 – a text that Jesus affirmed was about him in the temptation). Please pay attention to the Hebrew idioms that sound like it is talking about someone dying and resurrecting when in reality every single time it is talking about somebody coming close to death but actually being saved from dying. 

Please remember that Jesus prayed to be saved from dying in the first place (note: Christians later superimposed their interpretation into the text, claiming that Jesus was asking to be saved from the dishonor alone).

Psalm 116:1-2, 6, 8, 16

[note: verse 13 has the word Yeshua in it; any Jewish-Christians who followed Jesus would see clear cut allusions with the name of the Messiah]

“I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.”

“I was in serious trouble and he delivered me.” [Yeshua in Hebrew]

“Yes, Lord! I am indeed your servant;I am your lowest slave. You saved me from death.”

“Yes, Lord, you rescued my life from death,and kept my feet from stumbling.”

Psalm 30:1-3,8-9

“I will praise you, O Lord, for you lifted me up, [this about the ascension] and did not allow my enemies to gloat over me.”

“O Lord my God, I cried out to you and you healed me.”

“O Lord, you pulled me up from Sheol; you rescued me from among those descending into the grave.”

“To you, O Lord, I cried out;I begged the Lord for mercy: “What profit is there in taking my life…“” [– this goes against the Pauline Christian idea of atonement for the sins of the world. This rhetorical question is implying there is no profit in the blood of Jesus.]

Psalm 86, 6-7, 14,16

“O Lord, hear my prayer! Pay attention to my plea for mercy!”

“In my time of trouble I cry out to you, for you will answer me.” [i.e. Garden of Gethsemane]

“O God, arrogant men attack me; a gang of ruthless men, who do not respect you, seek my life.”

“O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give thy strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid.” [an allusion to his righteous mother Mary, who was described in the Quran as serving God in the temple; a female priestess]

Psalm 31, 1-2, 4, 8

[confirmed by the New Testament as Messianic]

“In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness.”

“Listen to me, and deliver me quickly…”

“Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength.”

“And hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a large room.” [This is a Messianic psalm, confirmed by the New Testament, which makes it clear that JESUS WAS NOT DELIVERED INTO THE HAND OF THE ENEMY.]

These passages emphasize that God foretold again and again regarding the beloved Messiah to be saved, and how God will answer the prayers of Jesus and save him from the crucifixion!

Psalm 118: 5, 17-18

“I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large place.”

“I will not die, but live, and I will proclaim what the Lord has done.”

“The Lord severely punished me, but he did not hand me over to death.”

“I will give you thanks, for you answered me,and have become my deliverer.”

“The stone which the builders discarded has become the cornerstone.” [This is a Messianic psalm which makes it explicit in verse 18 that he will not be handed over to die]

Psalm 20, 6
[which can be translated in the future tense]

“Now I am sure that the Lord will deliver his chosen king; he will intervene for him from his holy heavenly temple, and display his mighty ability to deliver.”

[Answer what? What did the Messiah pray for? Please remember it was to be saved from the cross/stake in the first place.]

Psalm 91, 8-13

[also confirmed by Jesus in the New Testament, which confirms the substitution theory]

[You will] “Only observe it with your eyes, and you will see how the wicked are paid back. “Lord, you are my refuge!” Because you chose the Most High as your dwelling place, no evil will fall upon you,and no affliction will approach your tent, for he will command his angels to protect you in all your ways.

With their hands they will lift you up [allusion to the ascension; see Quran’s claim above in 3:55] so you will not trip over a stone.

You will stomp on lions and snakes;you will trample young lions and serpents.”

Early Christians & Substitution Theory

We know in history there were Christians who maintained I was actually Simon of Cyrene who died on a cross and not Jesus. This view originates two the first Christian century and even predates the Gospel of John we tried to respond to those Christians who believed in such a thing they claimed that Jesus was not on the cross is endorsed by the prophecies in the Psalms, especially Psalm 91, which says he was he shall only see the punishment of the wicked.

Another fact to support the claim that was actually Simon who was on the cross and not Jesus is found in a synoptic Gospels themselves. Please read the following passages very carefully and pay special attention to the pronouns. 

“A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. They brought him to the place called Golgotha. Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.” (Mark, Chapter 15)

Who is the pronoun ‘him’ referring to in these passages? It is clearly referring to Simon of Cyrene. In fact this has not escaped the attention of Bible scholars which is why in many English translations of the Bible they add the name Jesus in the place of the pronoun him into the text.

The question is why? It is because they know that people may read it in a way that seems like it was Simon of Cyrene who was actually crucified. This is even confirmed by the Revised Standard Version of the Bible which in the text says Jesus, but in a footnote clarifies that the Greek says him.

Unfulfilled Prophesies Regarding Jesus’ Death

Consider, “Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your MIND.’” (Matthew 22:37)]. As well as, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32).

Here Jesus warns us to about failing to utilize our intellect. Our faith has to be in line with our rational faculty! We shouldn’t shun the signs God presents us as no one knows when the curtains of death will be parted, leaving us unable to change our ways! We have to be sure we have the truth since our eternity is on the line!

Notice Jesus said NO SIGN SHALL BE GIVEN TO YOU EXCEPT THE SIGN OF JONAH [Matthew 16:4], implying this is the greatest of signs! Not only that, he emphasized the importance of the duration by mentioning “3 days and 3 nights” twice: “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:40). The prayer of the Messiah was not to die and then resurrect after 2 nights and 1 day.

Day 1 = Friday before Sunset
night 1 = Friday sunset – Saturday sunrise
Day 2 = Saturday sunrise – Saturday sunset
Night 2 = Saturday sunset – Sunday sunrise
Day 3 = Sunday sunrise –  doesn’t count since resurrection

Please explain how the time Jesus was allegedly in the tomb adds up to three days and three nights. Jesus was supposedly killed on Friday evening (Mark 15:42-43), was put in the tomb on Saturday, and went missing Sunday morning!

It is interesting that Christians simply brush this off as if Jesus has not warned us against false prophesies (sign of a true Prophet is that his prophesies will come true!) The only thing worse than being lost is to be lost and NOT CARE that you’re lost.

Did Jesus [falsely] prophesize he will not drink wine?

In Luke chapter 22 Jesus made a prophecy that he would not drink wine again until he is in the father’s kingdom yet the person on the cross drank wine as from firmed in John chapter 19 verse 29. So Christians have a dilemma: either Jesus was on the cross and drank wine which would make Luke 22 a false prophecy, and thus would mean a false prophet died for the sins of the Christians or the person on the cross who drank the wine was not Jesus.

Did Jesus [falsely] prophesize he will die in the City?

In Luke chapter 13:33, Jesus makes it clear that it was impossible for him to die outside Jerusalem yet the person who died on the cross died outside Jerusalem. The Gospels make it clear that Calvary was outside the city. So once again, Christians have a choice: either Jesus made a false prophecy when he said that it is impossible for him to die outside Jerusalem, or the person who died on the cross was not Jesus.

Historical references in which Christians did not believe Christ was crucified!

We shall see that there were early Christians who believed someone else was crucified (e.g. Simon the Cerene). This belief was so prevalent that the Church fathers ended up writing volumes against these “heretical” Christians.

“Wherefore he did not himself suffer death, but Simon, a certain man of Cyrene, being compelled, bore the cross in his stead; so that this latter being transfigured by him, that he might be thought to be Jesus, was crucified, through ignorance and error, while Jesus himself received the form of Simon, and, standing by, laughed at them. For since he was an incorporeal power, and the Nous (mind) of the unborn father, he transfigured himself as he pleased, and thus ascended to him who had sent him, deriding them, inasmuch as he could not be laid hold of, and was invisible to all. 

Those, then, who know these things have been freed from the principalities who formed the world; so that it is not incumbent on us to confess him who was crucified, but him who came in the form of a man, and was thought to be crucified, and was called Jesus, and was sent by the father, that by this dispensation he might destroy the works of the makers of the world.

If any one, therefore, he declares, confesses the crucified, that man is still a slave, and under the power of those who formed our bodies; but he who denies him has been freed from these beings, and is acquainted with the dispensation of the unborn father.”

Source: Against Heresies (St. Irenaeus): Book I, Chapter 24

---

“For Adonaios knows me because of hope. And I was in the mouths of lions. And the plan which they devised about me to release their Error and their senselessness – I did not succumb to them as they had planned. But I was not afflicted at all. Those who were there punished me. And I did not die in reality but in appearance, lest I be put to shame by them because these are my kinsfolk. I removed the shame from me and I did not become fainthearted in the face of what happened to me at their hands.

I was about to succumb to fear, and I <suffered> according to their sight and thought, in order that they may never find any word to speak about them. For my death, which they think happened, (happened) to them in their error and blindness, since they nailed their man unto their death. For their Ennoias did not see me, for they were deaf and blind. But in doing these things, they condemn themselves. Yes, they saw me; they punished me. 

It was another, their father, who drank the gall and the vinegar; it was not I. They struck me with the reed; it was another, Simon, who bore the cross on his shoulder. I was another upon Whom they placed the crown of thorns. But I was rejoicing in the height over all the wealth of the archons and the offspring of their error, of their empty glory. And I was laughing at their ignorance.”

“And I subjected all their powers. For as I came downward, no one saw me. For I was altering my shapes, changing from form to form. And therefore, when I was at their gates, I assumed their likeness. For I passed them by quietly, and I was viewing the places, and I was not afraid nor ashamed, for I was undefiled.

And I was speaking with them, mingling with them through those who are mine, and trampling on those who are harsh to them with zeal, and quenching the flame. And I was doing all these things because of my desire to accomplish what I desired by the will of the Father above.”

Source: The Second Treatise of the Great

Conclusion

It is interesting how many early Christians believe that Jesus was watching somebody else being punished on the cross as verse 8 of Psalm 91 alludes to, and Luke mentions how angels came to strengthen Jesus straight after his prayer to be saved. It is clear according to the Psalms that the enemies of the Messiah will hatch a plot to kill him and that he will pray to be saved and although he will come close to dying, God will save him. Since this is what the prophecies foretell then this had to be what happened to Jesus and this is what happened to Jesus then this had to be while his disciples were preaching. 

So if the disciples were saying that Jesus rose from the dead, then it was clear that in an Israelite context they were using metaphorical language regarding him coming close to death and being saved by God just like Isaac. Even prophet Jonah metaphorically referred to himself in a way as if he was dead when he was actually alive in the belly of the fish.

Jesus had foretold that he would be just like Jonah was in the belly of the whale. This saying is finding an early source of Jesus sayings which some scholars date back to the very decade of Jesus’s ascension as even a Sunday school child knows that Jonah was alive and not dead when everybody may have thought he was dead in the same way Jesus was clearly saying that he would be in the same state as Jonah which means Jesus was also alive when everyone thought he was dead! Matthew added the time factor of three days and three nights to the word of Jesus as it is a clear false prophecy, attributed to Jesus.

Jesus could not possibly have died for other people’s sins because God had promised to answer his prayers in the Old Testament and Jesus had prayed to be saved. Furthermore, Jesus was not the one on the cross since he prophesied that he would not drink wine nor die in except in the City but the person on the cross drank wine and was killed in outside of the City. 

And Jesus knew his people would not understand and follow him therefore he prophesied the coming of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)to show people the correct Path until the Day of Judgement, when he will return to Earth to make this fact clear to Christians with his own words (since most Christians will only believe it if Jesus himself says so). However, the scary reality is that perhaps that will be too late for us as we won’t be given a second chance when the Hour arrives!

How Do we Know the Qur’an Is from God?

Qur’anic Accuracy Vs. Biblical Error: The Kings & Pharaohs Of Egypt

Evidence from the Bible – Prophet Muhammed is the Paracelete Comforting advocate

The Problem of the Bible: Inaccuracies, contradictions, fallacies, scientific issues and more.