Gems of the Promised Messiah and Imam Mahdi (as) – The Death of the Messiah is Well-Established

The issue of the Messiah’s [Jesus’ (as)] death has become a matter that is no longer shrouded in any obscurity; rather, it has become clear in every respect. The Holy Qur’an establishes the death of the Messiah and the ahadith also lend support to this. Moreover, the incident of the Mi’raj[1] of the Holy Prophet (sa) also testifies to the Messiah’s death. The Holy Prophet (sa) gives eye-witness testimony as it were, because he saw Jesus (as) and John (as) together on the night of the Mi’raj. Likewise, there is the following verse:

قُلۡ سُبۡحَانَ رَبِّي هَلۡ كُنتُ إِلَّا بَشَرٗا رَّسُولٗا [2]

This also bars the Messiah from ascending to heaven alive. For, when the disbelievers demanded the Holy Prophet (sa) to show a miracle by ascending to heaven, Allah the Exalted gave him the answer:

قُلۡ سُبۡحَانَ رَبِّي هَلۡ كُنتُ إِلَّا بَشَرٗا رَّسُولٗا [3]

That is to say, my Lord is above and beyond going back on His promise. For He has already decreed that human beings are born in this very world and it is here that they shall die. God states: 

فِيهَا تَحۡيَوۡنَ وَفِيهَا تَمُوتُونَ [4]

I am not but a man sent as a messenger, i.e. I possess limitations of human nature, which keep me from ascending to heaven. In fact, the disbelievers had posed this question deliberately, for they had already heard that a human lives and dies on this earth. Therefore, they took their opportunity and posed this question. However, the answer given to them frustrated their design. Therefore, it is already a settled matter that the Messiah (as) has passed away. It is indeed a miraculous sign that the people were kept in ignorance to this fact and the wise were kept oblivious. 

Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), The Advent of the Promised Messiah (Tilford, Surrey: Islam International Publications Ltd., 2016), 17-19.

ENDNOTES

[1] A spiritual experience of the Holy Prophet (sa) where he ascended to the heavens.

[2] ‘Say, ‘Holy is my Lord! I am not but a man sent as a Messenger.’ – The Holy Qur’an, 17:94.

[3] Ibid.

[4] ‘Therein shall you live, and therein shall you die.’ – The Holy Qur’an, 7:26.