"When it comes to the crucifixion of Jesus, the Quran and the gospels offer dramatically different accounts. While the Quran claims that Jesus wasn't crucified, early Islamic scholars have proposed that somebody else took his place on the cross. But if this is true, then why did the disciples believe and preach that Jesus was crucified and resurrected? This discrepancy raises a serious question about the very foundation of Islam itself.
When we read Surah 4:157, it says: “But they neither killed nor crucified him; it was only made to appear so. Even those who argue for this crucifixion are in doubt; they have no knowledge whatsoever, only making assumptions. They certainly did not kill him.” Muslims obviously take this at face value to mean that Jesus wasn't actually crucified. The traditional view is that somebody else was made to look like Jesus and took his place on the cross. This interpretation is backed by early Islamic sources like Ibn Abbas, a companion of the Prophet Muhammad. According to one account, it reads: just before God took Jesus up to heaven, Jesus went to his twelve disciples—his hair was dripping with water as if he had just bathed—and he said, “One of you will disbelieve in me twelve times after having believed.” Then he asked, “Who among you will volunteer to be transformed to look like me and be killed in my place? Whoever volunteers will be with me in heaven.” A young disciple offered three times, and on the third, Jesus accepted. The resemblance of Jesus was cast over him while Jesus ascended to Heaven through a hole in the roof. When the authorities came, they found the young man and crucified him, thinking he was Jesus.
Some Muslims will go ahead and argue that if this is true, then how could anyone really tell the difference between the real Jesus being crucified or someone who just looked like him? To most people watching, it would all be the same whether it was the actual Jesus, a lookalike, or even an illusion. From a distance, it would have all been recorded the same way. Therefore, “Checkmate, Christians! Our perfect book is right, and your corrupt book is wrong.”
But here's the twist: if we go with the story from Ibn Abbas, the disciples knew that somebody else had taken Jesus's place on the cross. Yet all of the available historical data shows that the disciples believed Jesus himself was crucified. This is puzzling because, according to the Quran, the disciples were Muslims. If they believed Jesus was crucified, does that mean they were deceived by Allah or Jesus?
How do we know the disciples believed that Jesus was crucified? The gospels, which are based on their testimonies, indicate that Jesus died on the cross. For instance, Mark’s gospel, historically linked to the Apostle Peter, and John’s gospel, linked to the beloved disciple who was also present at the cross, both recount Jesus’s crucifixion. The speeches in the book of Acts and the letters from the apostles, like Paul, also focus on Jesus’s death and resurrection. For example, in 1 Corinthians 15:3-7, Paul emphasizes the crucifixion and resurrection—a belief shared by the early Christian community. We talked about the problem that Paul poses for Muslims in the previous video.
A further problem with the idea of substitution is why it was necessary for someone to take Jesus's place. Why not just have Jesus escape? Why put somebody, especially a loyal disciple, through such a painful and humiliating death if it wasn’t even essential? It seems like this view is just a weak apologetic attempt to counter the very strong evidence that Jesus did, in fact, die by crucifixion—a fact acknowledged by the vast majority of biblical scholars and historians.
And here is a tricky catch-22 for Muslims: if Jesus wasn’t crucified, then either he was wrong about predicting his death, which would undermine his role as a prophet in Islam, or he actually was crucified, which would contradict the Quran’s account. Think about it: if Jesus didn’t die on the cross, it makes him a false prophet, meaning Islam is false, since they regard Jesus as a prophet. But if he did die, it goes against the Quran, which also means that Islam is false. There is no easy way around this dilemma for Muslims.
I think most Muslims would argue that Jesus didn’t actually predict his own death, as the gospels claim, and that these are just supposed Bible corruptions. But let's dive into some of the evidence that shows he really did make these predictions.
During Jesus’s trial, false witnesses claimed that he would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days. Later, they mocked him on the cross, saying, “Who would destroy this temple and rebuild it in three days? Save yourself!” This sounds really weird because neither Mark nor Matthew give any context for why people would say this. However, if we turn over to John’s gospel, we get the backstory. In John 2:18-19, when Jesus was asked for a sign, he said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days, I will raise it up.” Here, Jesus was referring to his own body and his resurrection, not the literal temple. So John provides the pretext for the accusation that’s hinted at in Mark and Matthew’s accounts. This kind of fit between different accounts, where one explains details that the others leave hanging, is known as an “undesigned coincidence.” It suggests that these accounts are independent and based on real events, lending credibility to the story.
Another example is when Jesus predicted his death and resurrection in Mark 8:31-33, saying he would be killed and rise after three days. Peter, not understanding, rebuked Jesus, but Jesus firmly corrected him, saying, “Get behind me, Satan.” This sharp rebuke would be embarrassing and therefore an unlikely detail for the early Christians to invent, especially given Peter’s prominence, suggesting that this was based in real events.
The numerous predictions and detailed accounts of Jesus’s impending death and resurrection are just too compelling to be dismissed as mere inventions. Therefore, there’s no escaping this dilemma: either Jesus didn’t die by crucifixion, which would invalidate his prophecy and make him a false prophet—making Islam false—or he did die by crucifixion, directly contradicting the Quran and making Islam false. Either way, Islam is false."
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