The Status of Mubāhala

God commands His noble Prophet (s.a.w.) that with whoever argues with you about this truth regarding Jesus (a.s.): “whoever disputes with you concerning him” should proceed with mutual imprecation (mubāhala), for further argumentation would be futile and the problem can only be resolved through a miracle.

The phrase “after the knowledge that has come to you” sets the stage for the call to mutual imprecation, as mutual imprecation comes after exhausting the paths of calling to truth through wisdom, good counsel, and the best form of debate. That is, after intellectual methods have reached their limit and the opponent withdraws, through “good counsel” He stated that the believers would receive divine grace and reward while the disbelievers would face divine punishment,(676) and through “proof” the argument was completed with the Christians,(677) and the path of “best debate” was the comparison of Jesus’s (a.s.) creation to Adam’s (a.s.) creation.(678) Now only the path of miracle remains, which takes the form of mutual imprecation.

Mutual imprecation (mubāhala) is a general principle and an enduring miracle that is not limited to the story of Jesus (a.s.), but can be used for any established truth that is denied. Therefore, the pronoun “concerning him” refers to the “truth” in the previous verse, not specifically to Jesus (a.s.), whose story is one instance of truth.(679)

Note: The Prophet (s.a.w.), alongside calling for the acceptance of God’s oneness and Jesus’s (a.s.) status as a creation, also had a claim (daʿwā), namely the claim of prophethood. If without claim and invitation, he had only said “To you your religion, and to me my religion”,(680) the Christian delegation would not have traveled to Hijaz, would not have argued with the Prophet, would not have prepared for mutual imprecation, and would not have subsequently agreed to pay the poll tax (jizya).