The Case for the Virgin birth from the Qur’an.

“At that, Zechariah called upon his Lord, saying, “My Lord, grant me from Yourself a good offspring. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication.” So the angels called him while he was standing in prayer in the chamber, “Indeed, Allah gives you good tidings of John, confirming a word from Allah and [who will be] honorable, abstaining, and a prophet from among the righteous. He said, “My Lord, how will I have a boy when I have reached old age and my wife is barren?” The angel said, “Such is Allah ; He does what He wills.” He said, “My Lord, make for me a sign.” He Said, “Your sign is that you will not [be able to] speak to the people for three days except by gesture. And remember your Lord much and exalt [Him with praise] in the evening and the morning.” And [mention] when the angels said, “O Mary, indeed Allah has chosen you and purified you and chosen you above the women of the worlds. O Mary, be devoutly obedient to your Lord and prostrate and bow with those who bow [in prayer].” That is from the news of the unseen which We reveal to you, [O Muhammed]. And you were not with them when they cast their pens as to which of them should be responsible for Mary. Nor were you with them when they disputed. [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 ]. He will speak to the people in the cradle and in maturity and will be of the righteous.” She said, “My Lord, how will I have a child when no man has touched me?” The angel said, “Such is Allah; He creates what He wills. When He decrees a matter, He only says to it, ‘Be,’ and it is. And He will teach him writing and wisdom and the Torah and the Gospel. And [make him] a messenger to the Children of Israel, [who will say], ‘Indeed I have come to you with a sign from your Lord in that I design for you from clay like the form of a bird, then I breathe into it and it becomes a bird by permission of Allah. And I cure the blind and the leper, and I give life to the dead – by permission of Allah. And I inform you of what you eat and what you store in your houses. Indeed in that is a sign for you, if you are believers.” (Qur’an 3: 38-49)

The  Virgin Birth of Jesus

The virgin birth of Jesus

“Indeed, the example of Jesus to Allah is like that of Adam. He created Him from dust; then He said to him, “Be,” and he was.” (Qur’an 3:59)

“And remember her who guarded her farjaha (vagina): We breathed into her of Our Spirit, and We made her and her son a sign for all peoples.” (Qur’an 21:91

“And We made the son of Mary and his mother a sign and sheltered them within a high ground having level [areas] and flowing water.” (Qur’an 23:50)

“And Mary, the daughter of ‘Imran, who guarded her farhaja (vagina) chastity, so We blew into it of Our Spirit, and she believed in the words of her Lord and His scriptures and was of the devoutly obedient.” (Qur’an 66:12)

“And mention, in the Book the story of Mary, when she withdrew from her family to a place toward the east. And she took, in seclusion from them, a screen. Then We sent to her Our Angel, and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man. She said, “Indeed, I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you if you should be fearing of Allah. He said, “I am only the messenger of your Lord to give you news of a pure boy.” She said, “How can I have a boy while no man has touched me and I have not been unchaste? “He said, “Your Lord says, ‘It is easy for Me, and We will make him a sign to the people and a mercy from Us. And it is a matter [already] decreed.'”  (Qur’an 19:16-21)

“And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm tree. She said, “Oh, I wish I had died before this and was in oblivion, forgotten.” But he called her from below her, “Do not grieve; your Lord has provided beneath you a stream. And shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree; it will drop upon you ripe, fresh dates. So eat and drink and be contented. And if you see from among humanity anyone, say, ‘Indeed, I have vowed to the Most Merciful abstention, so I will not speak today to any man.’ “Then she brought him to her people,(tahmiluhu) carrying him. They said, “O Mary, you have certainly brought forth a fabricated lie. “O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.” So she pointed to him. They said, “How can we speak to one who is in the (l-mahdi) cradle?” Jesus said, “Indeed, I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet.”  (Qur’an 19:23-30)

“That is Jesus, the son of Mary – the word of truth about which they are in dispute. It is not for Allah to take a son; exalted is He! When He decrees an affair, He only says to it, “Be,” and it is.” (Qur’an 19:34-35)

“When Allah will say, “O Jesus, Son of Mary, remember My favor upon you and upon your mother when I supported you with the Pure Spirit and you spoke to the people in the cradle and in maturity… “(Qur’an 5:110)

So there are a number of issues for any Muslim who wants to deny the virgin birth of Jesus to contend with the following:

1. Any Muslim who wants to deny the virgin birth of Jesus should do so by using proofs and evidence-based upon the Qur’an.
2. Any Muslim who wants to deny the virgin birth of Jesus should not give us ‘should have‘, ‘could have‘ and ‘would have’ been scenarios. In other words, do not add your own narrative. Don’t just make things up as you go along but give us the text and make your case.
3. From the Qur’an tell us why the Qur’an addresses Jesus’ time and again as ‘Jesus the son of Mary’? Why not address Jesus by the name of his father….if any?
4. From the Qur’an tell us why would Allah (swt) need to repudiate people who claim he has a son, (in connection with Mary) if there were not miraculous circumstances surrounding her birth?
5. If Mary did not have a miraculous birth when the angel comes to her announcing that she will have a child Mary responds ‘that no man has touched her.’ Why does the angel give the very queer response of, ‘It’s easy for me’ and ‘Such is Allah he creates what he wills.’ It is such a very queer response to give to someone whom Allah (swt) simply intends to marry a man.
6. After childbirth how do you account for the statement, “But he called her from below her.” ?
7. If the person rejects the idea of Jesus speaking as an infant (which they obviously do as they reject miracles) ask them to explain what is meant by she brought him to her people,(tahmiluhu) carrying him. Are we to believe that Mary was carrying a full-grown child?
8. On the basis of the Qur’anic text, why would Mary need to be carrying Jesus anyway (if he was not an infant)?
9. If Jesus wasn’t an infant when he was speaking than how do you account for the following text: “How can we speak to one who is in the (l-mahdi) cradle?”
10. If you are going to say that Jesus wasn’t an infant when he spoke than why the objection to begin with? Why couldn’t they speak to a child/pre-teen/teenager?
11. If Mary was already married and it was widely known, then why this curious outburst from the people? “O Mary, you have certainly brought forth a fabricated lie. “O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.
12. If the answer to point 11 above is because they didn’t know she was married then why point to Jesus?
13. If the answer to point 11 above is because they didn’t know she was married and Jesus is a child/pre-teen/teenager why didn’t he simply respond, “Yeah my mom got married sorry we didn’t invite you to the walimah!”
14. Why did Mary point to Jesus at all? If a person believes that Jesus was a child/pre-teen/teenager it means there was a lapse of time after childbirth. Zechariah was commanded to refrain from speaking for 3 days are we to believe that Mary didn’t speak to anyone for 6-9 years?
15. Given that the Allah (swt) calls Jesus the son of Mary, and repudiates Christians who claim that Jesus is the ‘Son of Allah’ in the same context why not simply mention the father of Jesus?
16. Why is the birth of Jesus given such intimate attention if it was a normal birth like anyone else?
17. Why were early Muslim commentators like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir so bashful over the verses such as 21:91 and 66:12 above?
18. Why did Allah(swt) use such graphic terminology about blowing his spirit into Mary’s private parts if it was just a normal, run of the mill birth? Seems a bit much for an uneventful birth.

So these are the issues that Muslims who do not believe in the virgin birth of Jesus are going to have to address.

Conclusion.

The overwhelming evidence is that Jesus was born of a virgin. Those who deny this are going to have to deny the clear text of the Qur’an. They will have to add to the text or at worse manipulate the text to say what it does not say.

With Allah (swt) is success and the help of Allah (swt) is sought.