3. Sura al-Imran

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

إِذْ قَالَتِ الْمَلآئِكَةُ يَا مَرْيَمُ إِنَّ اللّهَ يُبَشِّرُكِ بِكَلِمَةٍ مِّنْهُ...

3: 45. Behold! the angels said

"O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him:

...اسْمُهُ الْمَسِيحُ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ ...

his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary,

C386. Christ: Greek, Christos=anointed: kings and priests were anointed to symbolize consecration to their office.

The Hebrew and Arabic form is Masih.

... وَجِيهًا فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالآخِرَةِ وَمِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ ﴿٤٥﴾

held in honor in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to Allah.

C387. Nearest to Allah: Muqarrabin. Cf. 56:11.

وَيُكَلِّمُ النَّاسَ فِي الْمَهْدِ وَكَهْلاً ...

3: 46. "He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity,

C388. The ministry of Jesus lasted only about three years, from 30 to 33 years of his age, when in the eyes of his enemies he was crucified.

But the Gospel of Luke (2:46) describes him as disputing with the doctors in the Temple at the age of 12, and even earlier, as a child, he was "strong in spirit, filled with wisdom" (Luke 2:40).

Some apocryphal Gospels describe him as preaching from infancy.

... وَمِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ ﴿٤٦﴾

and he shall be (of the company) of the righteous."

Other versions:

3:45 Lo! The angels said: "O Mary! Behold, God sends thee the glad tiding, through a word from Him, [of a son] who shall become known as the Christ 32 Jesus, son of Mary, of great honour in this world and in the life to come, and [shall be] of those who are drawn near unto God.

(3:46) And he shall speak unto men in his cradle, 33 and as a grown man, and shall be of the righteous."

3: 45

Yusuf Ali Behold! the angels said "O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus the son of Mary held in honor in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to Allah.

Pickthall (And remember) when the angels said: O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from Him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

Transliteration Iz qa_latil mala_'ikatu ya_ maryamu innalla_ha yubasysyiruki bi kalimatim minh(u), ismuhul masihu'isabnu maryama wajihan fid dunya_ wal a_khirati wa minal muqarrabin(a).

3: 46

Yusuf Ali "He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity and he shall be (of the company) of the righteous."

Pickthall He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

Transliteration Wa yukallimun na_sa fil mahdi wa kahlaw wa minas sa_lihin(a).

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[[ Asad’s notes - 32 Lit., "whose name shall be 'the Anointed' (al-masih)". The designation al-masih is the Arabicized form of the Aramaic meshiha which, in turn, is derived from the Hebrew mahsiah, "the anointed" - a term frequently applied in the Bible to the Hebrew kings, whose accession to power used to be consecrated by a touch with holy oil taken from the Temple. This anointment appears to have been so important a rite among the Hebrews that the term "the anointed" became in the course of time more or less synonymous with "king". Its application to Jesus may have been due to the widespread conviction among his contemporaries (references to which are found in several places in the Synoptic Gospels) that he was descended in direct - and obviously legitimate - line from the royal House of David. (It is to be noted that this could not have related to his mother's side, because Mary belonged to the priestly class descending from Aaron, and thus to the tribe of Levi, while David descended from the tribe of Judah) Whatever may have been the historical circumstances, it is evident that the honorific "the Anointed" was applied to Jesus in his own lifetime. In the Greek version of the Gospels - which is undoubtedly based on a now-lost Aramaic original - this designation is correctly translated as Christos (a noun derived from the Greek verb chriein, "to anoint"): and since it is in this form - "the Christ" - that the designation al-masih has achieved

currency in all Western languages, I am using it throughout in my translation.

33 A metaphorical allusion to the prophetic wisdom which was to inspire Jesus from a very early age. As regards the expression min al-muqarrabin ("of those who are drawn near", i.e., unto God), see 56:1 1, where the most excellent among the inmates of paradise are thus described. ]]