reynolds-the-quran-in-its-historical-context-2

354 Suleiman A. MouradJesus. The only way that the rest of this part of verse 4:157 can be understoodas an added emphasis, namely that what appeared to them (those who claimedhave killed/crucified Jesus or those who believe that Jesus was killed/crucified)a matter of false perception. This is all the more clear given what comes"Assuredly (yaqTnan) they killed him not, but God raised him up to Him; andis Almighty, All-Wise." The Qur'an is questioning the certainty (yaqfnan)Jesus's death; there is no denial of the act of crucifixion here. This certaintyargued for on the basis of Jesus's resurrection: "God raised him up to Him."other words, the import is that one might think Jesus was killed, but he wasbecause he was resurrected from death, and he is alive with God. That is, forsomeone to be considered killed he must remain dead! Thus those who asserted·that Jesus was killed by crucifixion, on the basis of what they saw, are indeec!mistaken.So I suggest the following translation for verses 4:157-58:For their saying: "It is we who killed the Messiah Jesus son of Mary,messenger of God." Nay, they did not kill him by crucifYing him. They •.thought they did, and those who affirm that are uncertain; they have no .knowledge about it except by speculation. In certainty they did not kill hin{because God raised him from death up to Him. ·Further supporting this interpretation is the fact that the contrast of perceptioncertainty regarding someone being dead or alive is a theme that is raisedtimes in the Qur'an. In addition to verses 4:157-58, it can be found in verse 3:169: ..•Do not imagine those killed in the path of God to be dead. Rather, they arealive with their Lord, enjoying his bounty.It cannot be argued that the Qur'an is saying that those who were killed fighting·,.,.in the path of God did not die; the same case is also raised in verse 2:154. They·,.·did indeed die. But once they have been resurrected, it is no longer proper to refer :to them as dead. Clearly the Qur'an is cautioning against judging on the basis ofapparent perceptions, which can be completely misleading; the misleading percep-"tion in this case is that someone is dead when he or she is alive in Paradise. It isevident, therefore, that verses 4:157-58 refute issues of apparent perception thatare in reality false: those who think Jesus was killed by crucifixion are wrong, ,~,because he is alive in Paradise.It is worth noting that the Qur' anic expression shubbiha !a-hum in relation to "the crucifixion of Jesus cannot be a reference to the Docetic theology, as has beenargued by some scholars. 18 Docetism holds that Jesus was made to appear to his18 See, for example, Michaud, Jesus se/on le Coran, 68-71; Rizzardi, II problema della cristo/ogiacoranica, 143; and C. Schedl, Muhammad und Jesus: die christologisch re/evanten Texte des : ·Korans, Vienna: Herder, 1978, 435-36. See also the discussion in Parrinder, Jesus in the Qur 'an,118-19; and Reynolds, "The Muslim Jesus," 252-53.The Qur 'an and Jesus's cntcifixion and death 355":follow·ers in a human form but in reality was an illusion; the Qur'anic Jesus isin every form, however. References in Qur'anic exegesis to explanations'.itJ.,ntiifui'ina the person who was crucified in place of Jesus are nothing more thanby Muslim scholars to explain verse 4:157 by drawing on Christian~ources that were known to them. They do not reflect the Qur'an's adoption ofPocetic or Gnostic theology regarding the nature of Jesus.The issue of Jesus's death is raised in two other verses in the Qur'an. Besides5:117, quoted earlier, it is referred to in verse 19:33, which reads,Peace be upon me the day I was born, the day I die (amiitu), and the day I amresurrected, alive\the earlier verses, 19:33 does not draw the attention of Muslim exegetes,though it raises the issue of Jesus's death; most do not make the connection,u.,Lw