Muhammad in the Bible, Jesus in the Quran: One God, One Message

The name of Prophet Muhammad appears in the Hebrew text of Song of Solomon 5:16. The word Muhammadim contains the name Muhammad, meaning “the praised one.” Yet English translations render the passage “altogether lovely,” obscuring the connection highlighted in this interpretation.

But the connection between Islam and Christianity goes much deeper than a name.

Mary and Jesus in the Quran

Mary holds a unique position in Islam. She is the only woman mentioned by name in the Quran, which devotes an entire chapter to her. The Quran describes her ancestry, birth, devotion, and miraculous role as the mother of Jesus.

Like the Bible, the Quran describes an angel announcing Mary's miraculous pregnancy. But the Quran adds details absent from the biblical narrative, including Jesus speaking as a newborn child. Islamic tradition also preserves numerous sayings attributed to Jesus beyond those recorded in the canonical Gospels.

The Quran recognizes Jesus as the Messiah, the son of Mary, and a messenger of God. It also acknowledges earlier revelations, including the Torah given to Moses and the Gospel associated with Jesus.

The Crucifixion: Christianity and Islam Disagree

Christianity places Jesus' divinity, crucifixion, and resurrection at the center of salvation. Islam honors Jesus as a mighty prophet but rejects his divinity and challenges the crucifixion narrative.

Quran 4:157 states that Jesus' enemies neither killed nor crucified him, though it appeared so to them.

For Christians, the cross represents God's sacrifice to redeem humanity. For Muslims, salvation centers on submission to the one God. These are fundamentally different theological explanations, and understanding them requires examining each tradition on its own terms.

Can the Creator Become Part of Creation?

If God created time, space, matter, and the laws governing the universe, can the Creator be understood as bound by those same laws?

Islam emphasizes that God is absolute, eternal, and distinct from creation. Christian theology answers that Jesus assumed human nature without God ceasing to sustain the universe.

Other questions naturally follow: If Jesus is God, whom was he praying to? How should we understand the relationship between the Father and the Son? Can God experience human suffering without compromising His divinity?

These questions reach into the heart of the disagreement between the two faiths.

Four Examples of Divine Creation

Consider four distinct examples:

1. Adam — created without a father or mother.

2. Eve — created from Adam, according to the biblical account.

3. Jesus — born to Mary without a human father.

4. The rest of humanity — born through ordinary human reproduction.

These examples illustrate different ways creation is described in scripture. They invite reflection on God's power and the distinction between the Creator and the created