The Exoneration of Mary and Confirmation of Jesus

The Qur’an’s insistence on mentioning the name of the Messiah as “Jesus son of Mary, the messenger of God”(4) is both for confirming and establishing his prophethood and for purifying Mary’s reputation and Jesus’s purity, so that in addition to preserving Mary’s greatness, his attribution to this mother would also remain protected. For the fanatical Children of Israel neither believed in his prophethood nor considered him Mary’s legitimate son, although outwardly they called him Jesus son of Mary. Therefore, the expression “son of Mary” (ibn Maryam) in the Qur’an differs from their expression and conveys that Jesus is Mary’s legitimate son who came into the world without a father.

The expression “messenger of God” (rasūl Allāh) in their speech is mockery, similar to the polytheists’ words about the Prophet: “They said, ‘O you, to whom the Reminder has been sent down, you are indeed crazy.”(5) Since they did not accept his prophethood, they said this expression mockingly.

It is possible that calling Jesus “messenger of God” was based on the Messiah’s own claim and the Christians’ acceptance, just as it is possible that God used the eloquent and acceptable expression in place of their improper expression.