Appearance
The Testimony of Jesus in the Resurrection
Based on the verse “So how shall it be, when We bring from every nation a witness and We bring you as a witness to them” (4:41)
On the Day of Resurrection, every prophet bears witness to the deeds of his community, just as it says regarding Jesus: “and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them.”
On the other hand, in the dialogue between God and that personage on the Day of Resurrection, it has come that I was a witness and guardian over my community as long as I was alive, and after my death you were the guardian and witness over them: “And when God will say, ‘O Jesus son of Mary! Was it you who said to the people,’‘Take me and my mother for gods besides God’‘?’ He will say, ‘Immaculate are You! It does not behoove me to say what I have no right to [say]. Had I said it, You would certainly have known it: You know whatever is in my self, and I do not know what is in Your Self. Indeed You are knower of all that is Unseen. I did not say to them [anything] except what You had commanded me [to say]:’‘Worship God, my Lord and your Lord.’’ And I was a witness to them so long as I was among them. But when You had taken me away, You Yourself were watchful over them, and You are witness to all things” (5:116-117).(67)
Question: Does this verse contradict the verse under discussion?
Answer: These verses are apparently consistent with the verse under discussion, and each has its own specific point, because these two testimonies (shahāda) differ from each other. The testimony of Jesus (a.s.) during his lifetime, by virtue of the contrast, means his legislative supervision and guardianship (niẓāra wa wilāya tashrīʿī) which is mixed with responsibility. However, his witnessing on the Day of Resurrection, which is the time for giving testimony, requires that personage to be a witness to the deeds of Christians in this world. Indeed, that personage is well aware of their worldly behaviors and words, and in the Hereafter he will also testify to them.
In other words, of the four points that appear in these two verses, three of them are consistent with each other, and the fourth point (the testimony of Jesus) finds its meaning in the shadow of those three points:
That personage says to God: You have knowledge of all our knowledge, but what You know, we certainly do not know. Therefore, the Most Sacred Divine Essence is watchful in all circumstances.
God is aware of all Unseen matters.
God is witness to all things, so divine supervision, knowledge, and testimony are not specific to Egypt, an era, or a generation.
Jesus Christ (a.s.) says to God that during his lifetime he was a witness to the deeds of his community, and after his death, this responsibility is upon You.
Indeed, God, the All-Knowing, is watchful in all circumstances. The use of the separating pronoun and the definite article in the predicate in “You Yourself were watchful”(68) indicates exclusivity; that is, You are the true supervisor (raqīb), and I was entrusted by You with supervising people’s behavior. Thus Jesus Christ is a manifestation of His witnessing and testimony (shahāda), and from this perspective he is a witness and gives testimony, just as he is a manifestation of God’s knowledge of the Unseen, and from this aspect he informs that “I will tell you what you have eaten and what you have stored in your houses.”(69)