The original of the matter created in the brain: You must first read this to see the artistry of Allah!

A mighty waterfall tumbling down from on high, the boundless oceans
and the glorious, stunning mountains are all matchless works of
Allah. The stars, clouds, birds and fish are all His miracles. Most
people are in no doubt that a green forest that blossoms once
again, grows and flourishes in the spring is one of the beautiful
and glorious works of Allah.
Some people, however, regard skyscrapers, airplanes, laboratories
and computers rather differently. The fact that these are made and
built by human beings deceives them. They imagine that technology,
civilization, scientific and technical progress are independent of
Allah (Allah forbid) and forget that the human beings who are
instrumental in their coming into existence are also created by
Him. They fail to think that Allah, Who has made clouds the cause
of rain and the Sun the cause of light, has also made man the cause
of technology and civilization. They make the error of thinking
that human beings have a power independent of Allah (Allah forbid)
and that human beings invented the Internet, that human beings
cause planes to fly, that human beings invented the tea spoon or
biro, that human beings build space craft and that human beings
discovered the forces responsible for keeping planes aloft. They
imagine that plasma TVs, CD players, carpets, lampshades, cars and
the products of advanced technology all appeared as the result of
human intelligence and ability.
They make a terrible error in not regarding these as the artistry of
Allah, and forget that He created them out of His mercy.
The fact is, however, that all these things, just like the seas,
trees, flowers, fruits, the Sun and the boundless mountains, are
all works of Allah. Allah in His mercy makes human beings the cause
of all these things listed above. Allah has given human beings the
intelligence and ability for this. Our Lord inspired them to
discover these things. But it is certain that Allah has the power to
have created them with no direct cause.
And everything we see is in fact CREATED "SPECIALLY FOR US" AND
"INDEPENDENT OF NATURAL CAUSES" as Allah's sublime artistry.
In order to understand this, we need to know that the matter we see
and touch is an image created in our brains, that it is specially
created for us, specially and moment by moment, and that we can
never have direct experience of the originals on the outside.

The claim that 'the first cell formed in muddy water' is fraudulent

According to Darwin's theory of evolution, there is an imaginary
"first cell" which came into being from the chance combination of
inanimate substances. And according to Darwinism, everything began
with this "first cell." It is this imaginary "first cell" that,
according to Darwinism, is the origin of all life, butterflies, birds,
lions, eagles, whales, rabbits, deer and finally human beings who
produce technologies, found civilizations, train professors, travel
into space and study the cells they possess in the laboratory.
According to Darwinism, the origin of this imaginary first cell is;
some muddy water, time and chance! According to the religionof
Darwinism , these three magical (!) and intelligent (!) forces somehow
came togetherand produced a "CELL" that not even Nobel Prize-winning
scientists can manufacture in laboratories equipped with 21st-century
technology, the details of which human beings have researched for more
than half a centuryin order to understand, and that possesses highly
complex and perfect mechanisms, organelles and an irreducible
complexity! Moreover, these three glorious (!) forces combined to give
rise to all the glorious life we currently see on Earth. The religion
of Darwinism seeks to convince people of this nonsense.
But this claim is a horrendous fraud and lie.
The fantasy of the first cell that came into beingin muddy water,
which was proposed by Darwin, matched the level of science and
technology in the day of Darwin. Bearing in mind that Darwin thought
the cell was a simple blob of liquid, this childish tale is something
that might very well be expected from the knowledge andscientific
understanding of the time. Furthermore, since people did not know what
the cell was like, it was easy for them to be deceived with this lie.
But the findings of the science of genetics have once again revealed
thatDarwinism is a gigantic lie. In the light of currentknowledge and
data, just one of the countless proteins in the cell is enough to
refute the theory of evolution. Proteins are structures with a sublime
complexity, which cannot possibly come into being by chance. They
cannot even be manufactured using 21st-century technology in a
conscious and controlledlaboratory environment.To claim that such a
structure formed by chance in muddy water is laughable and irrational
in the face of science. The American academic philosopher ofscience
Stephen C. Meyerdescribes the impossibility of a single protein
forming by chance in these words:
Consider the probabilistic hurdles that must be overcome to construct
even one short protein molecule of about 100 amino acids in length.
First, all amino acids must form achemical bond known asa peptide bond
so as to join with other amino acids in the protein chain. Yet in
nature many other types of chemical bonds are possible between amino
acids.The probability of building a chain of 100 amino acids in which
all linkages involve peptide bonds is roughly 1 chance in 1030.
Second, in nature every amino acid has a distinctmirror image of
itself, one left-handed version or L-form and one right-handed version
or D-form. These mirror-image forms are called optical isomers.
Functioning proteins tolerate only left-handed amino acids,yet the
right-handed and left-handed isomers occur in nature with roughly
equal frequency. Taking this into consideration compounds the
improbability of attaining a biologically functioning protein.The
probability of attaining at random only L-amino acids in a
hypothetical peptide chain 100 aminoacids long is (1/2)100or again
roughly 1 chance in 1030.
Third and most important of all, functioning proteins must have amino
acids that link up in a specific sequential arrangement,just like the
letters in a meaningful sentence. Because there are 20 biologically
occurring amino acids, the probability of getting a specific amino
acid at a given site is 1/20. Even if we assume that some sites along
the chain willtolerate several amino acids (using the variances
determined bybiochemist Robert Sauer of MIT),we find that the
probability of achieving a functional sequence ofamino acids in
several functioning proteins at random is still "vanishingly small,"
roughly 1 chance in 1065—an astronomically large number—for a protein
only one hundred amino acids in length. (Actually the probability is
even lowerbecause there are many nonproteinous amino acids in nature
that we have not accounted for in this calculation.)
If one also factors in the probability of attaining proper bonding and
optical isomers, the probability of constructing a rather short,
functional protein at random becomes so small as to be effectively
zero (no more than 1 chance in 10125), even given our
multi-billion-year-old universe.Consider further that equally severe
probabilistic difficulties attend the random assembly of functional
DNA. Moreover, a minimally complex cell requires not 1, but at least
100 complex proteins (and many other biomolecular components such as
DNA and RNA) all functioning in close coordination. For this reason,
quantitative assessmentsof cellular complexity have simply reinforced
an opinion that has prevailed since the mid-1960s within
origin-of-life biology:chance is not an adequate explanation for the
origin of biological complexity and specificity.1
Even if we were to assume the impossible, that all these complex
structures did form by chance, Darwinists still have to explain the
formation of a million pages-worth of information in such a glorious
molecule as DNA. On this subject, as on every other regarding the cell
and the origin of life, Darwinists have no account to offer. According
to distorted Darwinist logic, the extraordinary information in a cell
thatemerged by chance in muddy water must also have come into being
bychance through various external agents. There is no doubt that such
a formation is impossible. The information in DNA is glorious
information, created together with that DNA.
The Darwinist claim that the cell formed by chance in muddy water is
an outdated belief left over from the time of Darwin, who thought the
cell was simply some blob. However, no doubtthat 19th-century
superstition no longer applies today, when science and technology are
so much more advanced. There are countless complex structures in the
body that all require explanation, yet Darwinism is unable to account
for the formation of even a single protein. But Darwinists behave as
if they were unaware of those impossibilities. Evolutionist
publications still describe this impossible emergence from muddy
water, just like the tales in a child's book of fairy stories. Theaim
is to deceive the mass of people with this account, which is
unscientific, illogical andincapable of proof. According to the
adherents of this false religion, the more people who believe in this
fairy tale, the more people will fall under the spell of Darwinism.
But people no longer believe in these fake tales of Darwinists.
Everything in creation exhibits the Sublime Might and Power of our
Almighty Lord, the Creator of the universe and everything within it.In
the Qur'an, Almighty Allah describes the sublime creation of the cell
and man:
We created man from the purest kind of clay; then made him a drop ina
secure receptacle; thenformed the drop into a clot and formed the clot
into a lump and formed the lump into bones andclothed the bones in
flesh; and then brought him into being as another creature. Blessed be
Allah, the Bestof Creators! (Surat al-Muminun, 12-14)
No matter how facile an account of the glory of life on Earth those
seeking explanations outside the Qur'an may offer, it is clear that
what has been created isvery great and majestic. And the theory of
evolution has no means of survival in the face of this sublime
creation. Almighty Allah describes the greatness of the works He has
created in another verse:
The creation of the heavens and earth is far greater than the creation
of mankind. But most of mankind do not know it. (Surah Ghafir, 57)
1 "Word Games: DNA, Design, and Intelligence" by StephenC. Meyer,
inSigns of Intelligence: Understanding Intelligent Design,ed. William
A. Dembski, James M. Kushiner, Brazos Press, 2001, pp.
109-110[emphasis added]

20 Bible & Quran - Evidence from the Qur'an for Jesus' Second Coming

JESUS' SECOND COMING
TO EARTH
The subject of Prophet Jesus' (pbuh) second coming is clearly
proclaimed in the Qur'an and our Prophet's (may God bless him and
grant him peace) sayings. There are certain statements pertaining to
this issue in many verses and hadiths.
Evidence from the Qur'an
"... I will place the people who follow youabove those who are
unbelievers until the Day of Resurrection..."
The first verse indicating Jesus' return is given below:
When God said: "Jesus, I will take you back and raise you up to Me,
and purify you of those who are unbelievers. And I will place the
people who follow you above those who are unbelievers until the Dayof
Resurrection. Then you will all return to Me, and I will judge
betweenyou regarding the thingsabout which you differed. (Surah Al
'Imran, 3:55)
God mentions that a group of Jesus' true followers will dominate the
unbelievers until the Day of Resurrection. Jesusdid not have many
followers during his tenure on Earth and, with his ascension, the
religion that he had brought degenerated rapidly. Over the next two
centuries, those whobelieved in Jesus were oppressed because they had
no political power. Therefore, we cannot saythat the early Christians
dominated the unbelievers in the sense indicated by the verse given
above.
At present, Christianity is so far removed from its original state
that it no longer resembles the religion taught by Jesus. Christians
have adopted the mistaken belief that Jesus is God's son (surely God
is beyond all that which they falsely ascribeto Him) and
incorporatedthe Trinity (viz., the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) into
their religion centuries ago. Given this, we cannot acknowledge
today's Christians as being true followers of Jesus. In the Qur'an,
God states more than once that those who believe inthe Trinity are, in
fact, unbelievers:
Those who say that the Messiah, son of Mary, is the third of three are
unbelievers. There is no god but the One God. (Surat al-Ma'ida, 5:73)
In this case, "And I will place the people who follow you above those
who are unbelievers until the Day of Resurrection" carries a clear
message: There has to be a group of Jesus' followers who will exist
until the Last Day. Such a group will emerge after his second coming,
and those who follow him at that time will dominate the unbelievers
until the Last Day.
This aside, the expression,"Then you will all return to Me"at the
verse's end is striking. After relating that those who follow Prophet
Jesus (pbuh) willbe superior to the unbelievers, God states that
everyone, including Prophet Jesus (pbuh), will return to Him. Here,
the expression is understood to mean their death. This may alsobe a
sign that Prophet Jesus (pbuh) will die at a time close to Doomsday,
after his second coming.
"There is not one of the People of the Book who will not believe inhim
before he dies..."
In the Qur'an, we read that:
There is not one of the People of the Book who will not believe in him
before he dies; and on the Day of Resurrection he [Jesus] will be a
witness against them. (Surat An-Nisa', 4:159)
The phrase "there is not one of the People of the Book who will not
believe in him before he dies" is very interesting. In Arabic, the
sentence reads as follows:Wa-in min ahli al-kitaabi illaa layu'minanna
bihi qabla mawtihi.
Some scholars believe that the "him/it" in this verse refers to the
Qur'aninstead of Jesus, and so understand it to mean that the People
of the Book will believe in the Qur'an before they die. However, it is
beyond dispute that the same word in the preceding two verses refers
to Jesus:
And [on account of] theirsaying: "We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of
Mary, Messenger of God." They did not kill him and they did not
crucify him, but it was made to seem so to them. Those who argue about
him are in doubt about it. They have no real knowledge of it,
justconjecture. But they certainly did not kill him.(Surat An-Nisa',
4:157)
God raised him [Jesus] up to Himself. God is Almighty, All-Wise.
(SuratAn-Nisa', 4:158)
The word "him," which isused in the verse straightafter the above two,
refers to Jesus, and there is no evidence to suggestotherwise.
There is not one of the People of the Book who will not believe in him
before he dies; and on the Day of Resurrection he [Jesus] will be a
witness against them. (Surat An-Nisa', 4:159)
The expression "and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness
against them" is important. The Qur'an reveals that on that Day,
people's tongues, hands, and feet (Surat An-Nur, 24:24, Surah Ya Sin,
36:65), as well as their eyes, ears, and skin (Surah Fussilat,
41:20-23),will testify against them. No verse indicates that the
Qur'an will be the witness during this event. If the first part of the
verse is taken to mean "the Qur'an" - eventhough there is no evidence
in the syntax or the succession of verses for this - "him" or "it" in
the second part also would refer to the Qur'an. To accept this,
however, there should be an explicit verse confirming this view.
However, the commentator Ibn Juzayy does not mention the possibility
of the Qur'an being the "him" referred to, and Ibn Juzayy transmitted
the views of all the major commentators in his work.
In addition, the words"… God raised him up to Himself"in the
precedingverse once again shows that it is not the Qur'an that is
being indicated in this verse. The Qur'an hasbeen a guidance for the
faithful for the last 1400 years, and has not been raised up to God.
It is Jesus (pbuh) who has been raised up to Him. This is yet another
proof that the witnessing referred to in the verse isthat of Jesus
(pbuh) for the People of the Book, and that the pronoun"he" in the
verse does notrefer to the Qur'an. (And God knows the truth.)
When we examine the Qur'an's verses, we see that when the same
personal pronoun refers to the Qur'an, there is generally mention of
the Qur'an before or after that specific verse as in the cases of
27:77 and 26:192-96. If the Qur'an isnot mentioned before, after, or
in the verse, saying that the pronoun refers to the Qur'an couldbe
mistaken. The verse clearly speaks of the belief in Jesus and that he
will be a witness for those who believe.
Another point we need to make here has to do with the interpretation
of "before he dies." Somebelieve that this stands for the People of
the Book "having faith in Jesus before their own death." According to
this view, everyone from the People of the Book will definitely
believe in Jesusbefore he or she dies. Arabic linguistics, however,
shows that this claim is not correct.
The plural suffixhumis used in all those verses ofthe Qur'an that
refer to the People of the Book (as in Surat al-Bayyina 1 and 6, Surat
al-Hadid 29, and Surat al-Hashr 2). Yet the singular suffixhuis
employed in this verse. This means that the versereports that the
People of the Book will believe in Jesus (pbuh) before hisdeath – in
other words, before his biological death at his second coming. (And
God knows the truth.)
Furthermore, at the time of Jesus, most of the Jews(who are members of
thePeople of the Book) not only refused to believe inhim, but also
plotted his death. Then, believing him to be dead, they continued to
deny him. In general, the same circumstances are true for the Jews of
our own time, as they do not recognize Jesus as a Prophet. As a
result, millions of the People of the Book have lived and died without
ever believing in Jesus. Therefore, the verse doesnot speak of the
death ofthis group, but rather of the death of Jesus. In the end, the
reality revealed by the Qur'an is this:"Before Jesus dies, all People
of the Book will believe in him."
When the verse is regarded in the light of its true meaning, several
clear facts emerge. First, it becomes apparent thatthe verse refers to
the future, because it speaks of Jesus' death. As explained earlier,
he never died but was raised to God's presence. Jesus will return to
Earth, where he will live and die like all other people. Second, it
says that all People of the Book will believe in him. Obviously,this
has not yet happened. And so, given the context, "before he dies"
refers to Jesus. The People of the Book will see and recognize him,
and then become Muslim followers of Jesus, as will be explained
shortly. In turn, he will be their witness on the Last Day. (God knows
best.)
"He is a Sign of the Hour..."
In Surat az-Zukhruf, we are informed of Jesus' return and some other
facts, as follows:
When an example is made of the son of Mary [Jesus], your people laugh
uproariously. Theyretort: "Who is better then, our gods or him?" They
only say this to you for argument's sake. They are indeed a
disputatious people. He is only a servant on whom We bestowed
Ourblessing and whom We made an example for thetribe of Israel. If We
willed, We could appointangels in exchange for you to succeed you on
Earth. (Surat Az-Zukhruf, 43:57-60)
The next verse states thatJesus is a sign of the Day of Judgment:
He [Jesus] is a Sign of theHour. Have no doubt about it. But follow
me. This is a straight path. (Surat Az-Zukhruf, 43:61)
Ibn Juzayy says that the first meaning of this verse is that Jesus is
a sign or precondition of the Last Hour. We can confidently say that
this verse indicates his returnat the End Times, becausehe lived six
centuries before the Qur'an's revelation. Therefore we cannot consider
his first life as a sign of the Day ofJudgment. The verse says that
Jesus will return toward the end of time or, in other words, during
the last period of time before the Day of Judgment. In that context,
his return is a sign of the Hour's imminent arrival. (God knows best.)
In Arabic, the expression"He is a Sign of the Hour"isInnahu la `ilmun
li as-saa`ati.
Some say that the pronoun hu (he/it) in thisexpression refers to the
Qur'an. However if this pronoun is used to denote the Qur'an, we would
expect other words to be present, whether before, after, or in the
verse, that speak of the Qur'an. The wordhucannot denote the Qur'an
when the subject is altogether different. Furthermore, the preceding
verse clearly refers to Jesus with the word hu:
He [Jesus] is only a servant on whom We bestowed Our blessing and whom
We made an example for the tribe of Israel. (Surat Az-Zukhruf, 43:59)
Those who say thathurefers to the Qur'an rely on the expression "Have
no doubt about it. But follow me," which continues the verse. However,
since the preceding verses speak only of Jesus, it is far more
realistic to accept that hu refers to him, as in the preceding verses.
The great scholars of Islam interpret this pronoun as referring to
Jesus, an opinion that they base on other Qur'anic verses and hadiths.
In his commentary, Elmalili Muhammad Hamdi Yazir writes that:
No doubt he [Jesus] is a sign of the Hour, one thatdeclares that the
Hour will come, that the dead will be resurrected and stand up,
because the miracle of Jesus' second coming and his miracle of
resurrecting the dead, together with his revelation that the dead will
rise, prove that the Day of Judgment is real. According to the
hadiths, his arrival is a sign of the Last Day." 1
"He will teach him the Book and Wisdom, andthe Torah and the Gospel."
Other verses indicating Jesus' second coming is the following:
When the angels said:"Mary, your Lord gives you good news of a Word
from Him. His name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, of high esteem
in this world and the Hereafter,and one of those brought near [to
God]. He will speak to people in the cradle, and also when fully
grown, and will be one of the righteous." She asked:"My Lord! How can
I have a son when no man has ever touched me?" He said: "It will be
so. God creates whatever He wills. When He decides on something, He
just says to it: 'Be!' and it is. He will teach him the Book and
Wisdom, and the Torah and the Gospel." (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:45-48)
The last verse reveals thatGod will teach Jesus the"Book," the Torah,
and the Gospel. Obviously, this book in question is very important.
The sameexpression is also used inthe verse given below:
Remember when God said: "Jesus, son of Mary, remember My blessing
toyou and to your mother when I reinforced you with the Purest Spirit
so that you could speak to people in the cradle and when you were
fully grown; and when I taught you the Book andWisdom, and the Torah
and the Gospel." (Surat al-Ma'ida, 5:110)
When we examine how"Book" is used here, we see that it refers to the
Qur'an in both cases. The verses reveal that after the Torah, the
Psalms andthe Gospel, the Qur'an is the final divine book. Some other
verses use"Book" to denote the Qur'an, after mentioning the Torah and
the Gospel,such as the following:
God, there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining. He has
sent down the Book to you with truth, confirming what was there before
it. And He sent down the Torah and the Gospel previously. (Surah Al
'Imran, 3:2-4)
Other verses also call the Qur'an the "Book":
When a Book comes to them from God, confirming what is with them -
even though before that they were praying for victory over the
unbelievers - yet when what they recognize comes to them, they reject
it. God's curse is on the unbelievers. (Surat al-Baqara, 2:89)
For this We sent a Messenger to you from among you to recite Our Signs
to you, to purify you, to teach you the Book and Wisdom, and to teach
you things you did not know before. (Surat al-Baqara, 2:151)
In this case, the Qur'an is the third book that Jesus will be taught.
But this will be possible only when he returns to Earth,for he lived
600 years before the Qur'an's revelation. As we will see in great
detail in the following chapters, the hadiths reveal that Jesus will
rule with the Qur'an, not the Gospel, on his second coming. This
corresponds with the verse's meaning.
"The likeness of Jesus in God's sight is the same as Adam."
The verse above (Surah Al'Imran, 3:59) could also indicate Jesus'
return. Muslim scholars who have written Qur'anic commentaries point
out that this verse indicates the fact that both Prophets did not have
a father, for God created both of them with the command "Be!"
However,the verse could also have another meaning: Just as Adam was
sent down to Earth from God's presence, Jesus will be sent down to
Earth from God's presence during the End Times.
As we have seen, the verses regarding Jesus' return are very clear. As
the Qur'an does not use such expressions for any other Prophet, its
meaning is fairly obvious.
"... The day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am raised up
again alive..."
Surah Maryam also mentions Jesus' death in the following verse:
[Jesus said,] "Peace be upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and
the day I am raised up again alive." (Surah Maryam, 19:33)
When this verse is considered in conjunction with Surah Al `Imran 55,
an important reality emerges: While Surah Al `Imran states that Jesus
was raised up to God's presence and does not mention that he died or
was killed, Surah Maryamspeaks of the day on which he will die. This
second death can only bepossible after he returns and lives on Earth
for a period of time. (Only God knows for certain.)
"... You could speak to people in the cradle and when you were fully grown…"
Another piece of evidence for Jesus' returnis the word kahlaan, used
Surat al-Ma'ida 110 and Surah Al `Imran 46. These verses say:
Remember when God said: "Jesus, son of Mary, remember My blessing
toyou and to your mother when I reinforced you with the Purest Spirit
so that you could speak to people in the cradle and when you were
fully grown [kahlaan]…" (Surat al-Ma'ida, 5:110)
He will speak to people in the cradle, and also when fully grown
[kahlaan], and will be one of the righteous. (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:46)
Kahlaan, which is used only in these two verses, only in reference to
Jesus, and to express Jesus' adulthood means"someone between the age
of 30 and 50, someone who is no longer young, someone who has reached
the perfect age." Islamic scholars agree that it denotes the age of 35
or above. They base their views on a hadith reported by Ibn 'Abbas
that Jesus was raised up to God's presence in his early 30s, and that
he willlive for 40 years when hecomes again. Therefore, they suggest
that this verse is evidence for Jesus' return, since his old age will
occur following his second coming. 2(Only God knows for certain.)
Close study of the relevant verses easily shows how right Islamic
scholars are on this question. For example, this expression is used
only with regard to Jesus.Although all of the Prophets spoke with
their people, invited them to religion, and communicated their message
at a mature age,the Qur'an does not use such expressions when talking
about them. Rather, they are used only to voice a miraculous
situation, because the expressions"in the cradle" and"when fully
grown," when used one after the other, refer to two miraculous events.
In The Commentary of at-Tabari, Imam at-Tabarigives the following
explanation of these verses:
These statements [Surat al-Ma'ida 110] indicate that in order to
completehis lifespan and speak to people when fully grown, Jesus will
come down from heaven. That is because he was raised to heaven when
still young. In this verse [Surah Al 'Imran 46], there is evidence
that Jesus is living, and the Ahl al-Sunnah share that view. That is
because in this verse it is stated that he will speak to people when
fully grown. He willbe able to grow fully onlywhen he returns to Earth
from heaven. 3
The meanings ofkahlaan, as well as the other information provided by
the Qur'an, indicate Jesus' second coming in the End Times and that he
will guide people to the true religion of Islam (only God knows for
certain). No doubt, this is good news and a grace and gift of God for
those who believe. The believers are responsible for supporting and
defending him in the most appropriate way, and for living
wholeheartedly the Qur'anic morality to which he calls them.
Comparable Events Mentioned in the Qur'an
The Qur'an mentions similar events, such as a person being
resurrectedafter being dead for a long time and sleeping for hundreds
of years that are comparable to Jesus' situation. Some of these are as
follows:
The man resurrected after one hundred years
One of these examples is that of a man who had been dead for one hundred years:
Or [consider such example as] the one who passed by a town that had
fallen into ruin. He asked: "How can God restore this to life when it
has died?" So God caused him to die for a hundred years, and
thenbrought him back to life.Then He asked: "How long have you been
here?" He replied: "I have been here a day or part of a day." He
said:"Not so! You have been here a hundred years. Look at your food
and drink-it has not gone bad-and look at your donkey, so We can
makeyou a Sign for all mankind. Look at the bones-how We raise them up
and clothe them in flesh." When it had become clear to him, he said:
"Now I know that God has power over all things."
(Qur'an, 2:259)
As we mentioned earlier, the Qur'an say that Jesus' soul was "taken
back." Inthe above verse, on the other hand, true death (mawt) is
revealed. Therefore, the Qur'an reveals that God willed the
resurrection of someone who had truly died.
Awakening the"Companions of the Cave" after many years
Another example is the narrative of the"Companions of the Cave." God
relates the story of a group of youngpeople who sought refuge in the
cave from their anti-religious ruler's despotism. Their awakening is
described in the following terms:
When the young men took refuge in the cave and said: "Our Lord, give
us mercy directly from You and open the way for us to right guidance
in our situation." So We sealed their ears with sleep in the cave for
a number of years. … You would have supposed them to be awake, whereas
in fact they were asleep. We moved them to the right and to the left,
and at the entrance, their dog stretched out its paws. If you had
looked down and seen them, you would have turned from them and run and
have been filled with terror atthe sight of them. That was the
situation when we woke them up so they could question one another. One
of them asked: "How long have you been here?" They replied: "We have
been here for a day or part of a day." They said: "Your Lord knows
best how long have you been here. Send one of your number into the
city with this silver you have,so he can see which food is purest and
bring you some of it to eat. Buthe should go about withcaution, so
that no one is aware of you." (Qur'an, 18:10-11, 18-19)
The Qur'an does not reveal how long they remained in the cave.
Instead, the duration of this period is implied by the words "for a
number of years." People guessedthat they stayed there for309 years,
for:
They stayed in their cavefor three hundred years and added nine.
Say:"God knows best how long they stayed. The Unseen of the heavens
and Earth belongs to Him. How perfectly He sees, how well He hears!
They have no protector apart from Him. Nor does He share His rule with
anyone." (Qur'an, 18:25-26)
Obviously, the duration of their stay is not the point here. What this
narrative reveals is that God took some people back from this life,
eitherby making them sleep or by taking their lives, and then restored
them to life, just as people wake up from sleep. Jesus is one such
person. When the appointed time comes, he will live on Earth once
again, fulfill the honorable responsibility given to him by God, and
then dieonEarth in the normal manner, for
He said: "On it you will live and on it you will die, and from it you
will be brought forth."
(Qur'an, 7:25)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Elmalili Muhammad Hamdi Yazir, Kuran-i Kerim Tefsiri (Qur'an
Tafsir); www.kuranikerim.com/t elmalili/zuhruf.htm.
2. Muhammed Khalil Herras, Fasl al-Maqal fi raf`i `Isa hayyan wa
nuzulihi wa qatlihi ad-Dajjal,
(Cairo: Makatabat as-Sunnah, 1990), 20.
3. Imam at-Tabari, The Commentary of at-Tabari,(Istanbul:Umit
Yayincilik),2:528; 1:247.

19 Bible & Quran - The Qur'anic Account of Jesus' Ascent to God's Presence

GOD'S PROMISE:
PROPHET JESUS (Pbuh)
WILL RETURN
The lives of God's chosen Messengers contain manymessages and lessons
for all people, especially when we study their encounters, their
troubles, and their great struggles. The Qur'an cites Jesus as an
example for people to follow, because of how he conducted his life and
hisstruggle, and because of his great virtue.
Jesus' birth, life, and ascension to God's presence are all miracles
that the Qur'an reveals in some detail. Although God reveals the
narratives of many Prophets, Jesus, whom God supported with superior
wisdom, is set apart from the others in several aspects, among them
that he spoke even in the cradle, and that hewas the vehicle for
countless miracles while he was in this world. That his status is
different also can be deduced from the fact that he was raised to
God's presence and that the Qur'an indicates strongly his second
coming.
The Qur'an reveals that the unbelievers devised aplot to take Jesus'
life. According to some sources, a group of bigoted Jewish scribes and
priests bribed Judas Iscariot, one of the disciples, to betray him,
after which they would arrest Jesus and hand him over to the Romans.
According to the same sources, the priests did not have the power to
sentence someone to death and so had to make another plan to agitate
the Roman regime. Thus, they portrayed Jesus as being hostile to the
Roman leadership, for the Romans were highly sensitive and ruthless
when confronted with dissidents. But these priests failed, for the
Qur'an relates:
They [unbelievers] planned and God planned. But God is the best of
planners. (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:54)
As the verses reveal, they plotted and moved to killJesus. However,
their plotfailed and they ended upkilling a look-alike. During this
event, God raised Jesus up to His presence:
And [on account of] theirsaying: "We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of
Mary, Messenger of God." They did not kill him and they did not
crucify him, but it was made to seem so to them. Those who argue about
him are in doubt about it. They have no real knowledge of it,
justconjecture. But they certainly did not kill him.God raised him to
Himself. God is Almighty, All-Wise. (Surat An-Nisa', 4:157-158)
Many people believe in the widespread assumption that the Romans
crucified Jesus. The Roman soldiers and Jewish priests who arrested
Jesus are said to have killed him on the cross. Although some
historical Christian sects such as Docetism have denied this, today,
the world of Christianity completely believes it, as well as that he
was resurrected three days later and, after several brief meetings
with his disciples and others, ascended into the heavens.
The Qur'an, however, says otherwise. The reality revealed in the
verses is clear. The Romans, abetted by someJews' agitation, attempted
to kill Jesus but did not succeed. The expression "but it was made to
seem so to them" reveals this fact. God showed them a look-alike and
raised Jesus up to His presence. Our Lord also reveals thatthose who
made that claim had no knowledge of the truth.
In the early years of Christianity, several viewson Jesus' fate
emerged. In the subsequent centuries and until the articles of faith
were fullyformulated at the Councilof Nicea (325), these ideological
differences continued to persist, and movements that claimed that
Jesus had not been crucified were accused ofheresy and its members
were persecuted.
The Qur'anic Account of Jesus' Ascent to God's Presence
Examining the words used in the narratives relating how the Prophets
died and the verses dealing with Jesus'ascent to God's presence
reveals an important fact:Jesus did not die like the other prophets
did, nor was he murdered by the unbelievers. Rather, our Lord took him
up to His presence. In this chapter, we will examine the Arabic words
used to express how the Prophets died and how Jesus was raised up to
God's presence, and investigate how the Qur'an uses them.
As we will see in greater detail later on, the Qur'anusesqataloohu(to
kill),maata(to die),halaka(to perish),salaboohu(they crucified him),
or some other special expressions to describe the death or murder of
the Prophets. In the case of Jesus, the Qur'an clearly states that he
was not killed in any of those ways, for:"They did not kill him[wa ma
qataloohu]and did not crucify him [wa ma salaboohu]."God reveals that
people were shown a look-alike and that Jesus was raised up to
Hispresence, as follows:
When God said: "Jesus, I will take you back [mutawaffeeka]and raiseyou
up [wa raafi`uka] to Me and purify you of those who are unbelievers.
And I will place the people who follow you above those who are
unbelievers until the Day of Rising..." (Surah Al 'Imran, 3: 55)
The following are the ways in which the words referring to death in
the Qur'an and the word waffaa in Surah Al `Imranare used:
(1)
Waffaa: To Cause To Die, To Take in One's Sleep, or To Take Back
The word used in Surah Al `Imran 3 and translated as "taking back"
here and "causing to die" in some Qur'an translations, has various
connotations. Examining the Arabic verses clearly reveals that these
connotations of the wordshould be considered while applying it to
Jesus' situation. The Qur'an describes his being taken back to God in
the words that Jesus will say on the Day of Judgment:
[Jesus said], "I said to them nothing but what You ordered me to say:
'Worship God, my Lord and your Lord.' I was a witness against them as
long as I remained among them, but when You took me back to
You[tawaffaytanee], You were the One watching over them. You are the
Witness of all things." (Surat al-Ma'ida, 5:117)
In Arabic the word that istranslated in some translations of this
verse as "You have caused me to die" comes from the rootwaffaa– to
fulfil. It does not actually mean"death" but the act of"taking the
self back." In fact, in Arabic commentaries it is not used in the
sense of death. The commentary of Imam al-Qurtubi is oneexample of
this; he used the expression "the taking away of the selves" for the
word in question. From the Qur'an again, we understand that "taking
the self back" does not necessarily mean death. For instance, it can
mean"taking back the self while one is asleep," as indicated in the
following verse:
It is He Who takes you back to Himself[yatawaffaakum] at night, while
knowing the things you perpetrate by day, and then wakes you up again,
so that a specifiedterm may be fulfilled. (Surat al-An'am, 6:60)
The word used for "take back" in this verse is the same as the one
used in Surah Al 'Imran 55. In other words, in the verse above, the
wordwaffaais used and it is obvious that one does not die in one's
sleep. Therefore, what is meant here is, again, "taking the self
back." In the following verse, the same word is used like this:
God takes back people's selves[yatawaffaa]whentheir death [mawtihaa]
arrives and those who have not yet died, while they are asleep[lam
tamut]. He keeps hold ofthose whose death [mawt] has been decreedand
sends the others back for a specified term. (Surat Az-Zumar, 39:42)
As this verse clarifies, Godtakes back the self of the one who is
asleep, yet Hesends back the selves of those whose deaths haveyet not
been decreed. In this context, in one's sleep one does not die, inthe
sense in which we perceive death. Only for atemporary period, the self
leaves the body and remains in another dimension. When we wake up, the
self returns to the body. 1
Another instance in which sleep is regarded as a kind of death, but
which does not refer to biological death, is the following du'a, which
the Prophet Muhammad (may God bless him and grant him peace) often
used to recite when he woke up: "All praise is forGod, Who has made us
alive after He made us die [sleep].(Al-hamdu li Allah illadhi ahyana
ba'da maa amatana; wa ilayhi al-nushoo)" (Narrated by Abu Hudhayfa;
Sahih Bukhari). 2No doubt, he used these wise words not to refer to
biological death when one is asleep, but rather to a sleeping person's
soul being "taken." Ibn Kathir,the famous Islamic scholar and
commentator, used this hadith, along with many other proofs in his
commentary on Surah Al 'Imran, to explain thatwaffaarefers to sleep.
In addition, he indicated the word's meaning in other verses where it
appears. He then gave hisopinion using a hadith handed down by Ibn Abi
Hatim:Ibn Abi Hatim says that:"My father told us … from Hassan that
the meaning of the verse 'I will take you back...' is this: Here
itmeans that 'I shall kill you with the death of sleep; in other
words, I shall cause you to sleep.' So God raised Jesus (pbuh) to the
heavens while he was asleep … As an incontrovertible truth,God caused
Jesus (pbuh) to die the death of sleep and then raised him to the sky,
rescuing him from the Jews, who wereinflicting suffering upon him at
the time." 3
(2)
Qatala: To Kill
The Qur'an uses qatala to mean "to kill," as in the following verse:
Pharaoh said: "Let me kill [aqtulu] Moses and let him call upon his
Lord! I am afraid that he may change your religion and bring
aboutcorruption in the land." (Surah Ghafir, 40:26)
In Arabic, "let me kill Moses" isaqtulu Musa, a phrase that is derived
from the verbqatala.In another verse, the same word is used in the
following way:
... [That was because they] killed [yaqtuloona]the Prophets without
any right to do so. (Suratal-Baqara, 2:61)
The expressionyaqtuloona(they killed) is also derived from qatala. The
translation is clearly "to kill."
The verses below speak of the deaths of the Prophets, and the usage of
the verbqatalais marked. All words in brackets are derivatives of this
verb.
We will write down what they said and their killing [wa qatlahum]
ofthe Prophets without any right to do so. (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:181)
Say: "Why, then, if you are believers, did you previously
kill[taqtuloona]the Prophets of God?" (Suratal-Baqara, 2:91)
As for those who reject God's Signs, and kill[yaqtuloona]the Prophets
without any right to do so, and kill[yaqtuloona]those who command
justice... (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:21)
"Kill [uqtuloo] Joseph orexpel him to some land."(Surah Yusuf, 12:9)
..."Moses, the Council is conspiring to kill you[li yaqtulooka]."
(Surat al-Qasas, 28:20)
The only answer of his [Abraham's] people was to say: "Kill[uqtuloohu]
him or burn him!" (Suratal-'Ankabut, 29:24)
(3)
Halaka: To Perish
Another word used to denote the act of killing is halaka. It also is
used to mean "to perish, to be destroyed, or to die," as in the verse
given below:
... when he [Joseph] died[halaka], you said: "God will never send
another Messenger after him."(Surah Ghafir, 40:34)
The phraseidha halakais translated as "when he died." meaning "to die."
(4)
Mawt: Death
Another word used to relate a Prophet's death ismawt,a noun derived
from the verbmaata(to die), as follows:
Then when We decreed that he [Prophet Solomon] should die [mawt],
nothing divulged his death [mawtihi] to them except the worm that ate
his staff. (Surah Saba', 34:14)
In the following verse, another form of the verb is used:
Peace be upon him [Prophet John] the day he was born, the day he dies
[yamootu], and the day he is raised up againalive. (Surah Maryam,
19:15)
The wordyamootuis translated here as "they day he dies," and the same
word is used (in theform of a noun) to relate Jacob's death:
Or were you present when death [mawt] came to Jacob? (Surat al-Baqara, 2:133)
In another verse, the verbsqatala(in the passive form qutila)
andmaataare used together:
Mohammed is only a Messenger, and he has been preceded by other
Messengers. If he were to die [maata] or be killed [qutila], would you
turn on your heels? (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:144)
Other forms of the verb are used in other verses to denote the death
of Prophets:
She exclaimed: "Oh if only I had died [mittu] before this time and
wassomething discarded and forgotten!" (Surah Maryam, 19:23)
We did not give any human being before youimmortality [khuld]. Andif
you die [mitta], will they then be immortal? (Surat al-Anbiya', 21:
34)
"He Who will cause my death [yumeetunee], then give me life."
(Suratash-Shu'ara', 26: 81)
(5)
Khalid: Immortal
The word khalid means immortality, permanence, and continued
existence, as in the following verse:
We did not give them bodies that did not eat food, nor were they
immortal[khalideena].(Surat al-Anbiya', 21:8)
(6)
Salaba: To Crucify
Another word used in theQur'an to relate death issalaba(to crucify).
This verb has various meanings (e.g., to hang, to crucify, to execute)
and is used in the following ways:
They did not kill him andthey did not crucify him [maa salaboohu].
(Surat An-Nisa', 4:157)
[Joseph said:] "One of you will serve his lord with wine, the other of
you will be crucified [yuslabu]." (Surah Yusuf, 12:41)
They should be killed or crucified [yusallaboo]. (Surat al-Ma'ida, 5:33)
[Pharaoh said:] "I will cut off your alternate hands and feet, and
thenI will crucify [la usallibannakum]every one of you." (Surat
al-A'raf, 7:124)
As the verses show, the words used to express Jesus' situation are
altogether different to those used to describe the deaths of the other
Prophets. God states that Jesus was neither killed nor crucified, that
a look-alike was killed in his place, and that he was taken back (in
other words that his soul was taken) and raised up to His presence.
When talking of Jesus', the Qur'an useswaffaa(to take the soul)
whereas when talking of the other Prophets, it uses qataloohu or maata
(and its derivatives) to mean"death" in the conventional sense. This
information shows us yetagain that Jesus' situation was extraordinary.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Yuce Kuran'in Cagdas Tefsiri (The Contemporary Tafsir of the Holy
Qur'an) by Professor Suleyman Ates, Head of Department of Basic
Islamic Sciences at Istanbul University's Faculty of Divinity, Vol. 2,
49-50.
2. Narrated by Abu Hudhayfa; Sahih Bukhari;;Being the Tradition of
Saying and Doings of the Prophet Muhammad as Narrated by His
Companions, New Delhi, Islamic Book Service, 2002, hadith no. 6324,
239; Tafsir Ibn Kathir, abridged by Sheikh Muhammad Nasibar-Rafa'i,
London, Al-Firdous Ltd., 1999, 176
3.Ibn Kathir,Tafsir al-Qur'an al-'Azim, 1:573-576, Cairo, 1996