The concept of ‘The Descent of Jesus’ is an amalgamation of four ideas, one of which is the Ascension of Jesus (PBUH). Jesus’s ascension refers to the belief that when the Israelites decided to crucify Jesus (PBUH), God took him into His protection and lifted him up to the heavens. The common belief is that the concept originates from the Holy Qur’an. The basis for this argument is the words from Surah Aale Imran (3:55), innī mutawaffīka wa rāfi‘uka ilayya, meaning “Indeed, I will take you and raise you to Myself.” The exponents of this view hold that the words rāfi‘uka ilayya imply that God lifted up Jesus (PBUH) alive. The first expression in the verse, namely mutawaffīka is not interpreted to mean ‘give death.’ Instead, scholars interpret it to mean ‘to take up wholly.’
The second concept is that of the life of Jesus after ascension into heaven. This means that since his ascension, Jesus (PBUH) is still securely alive in heaven. To establish this concept, the exponents of this view argue on the basis of the above-mentioned verse from Surah Aale Imran and verses 157-159 of Surah An-Nisa. The Qur’anic expression used in Surah An-Nisa reads: Wa mā qatalū hu yaqānan, bal rafaa hu Allāhu ilayhi (they did not kill him at all, but Allah had taken him towards Him). The words Wa mā qatalū hu yaqānan, bal rafaa hu Allāhu ilayhi, are cited to corroborate the meaning given to the verse from Surah Aale Imran. This combination of the two verses is used to argue the continuous life of Jesus (PBUH). Some scholars deduce from the part-verse 159 reading, Wa in min ahli al-kitābi illā layu’minanna bihī qabla mawtihī (and there will be no one among the people of the Book who will not believe in him before his death), that Jesus (PBUH) has not died. Rather, he is alive in the company of God. These scholars take the two instances of the object pronoun ‘hī’, that is, ‘his/him’ in the expressions layu’minanna bi hī and qabla mawti hī as referring to Jesus (PBUH). It is as if the intended meaning of these expressions is implying that every person from the People of the Book will surely believe in Jesus before Jesus’s death.
The third concept is the ‘Second Coming of Jesus,’ which is based on the Hadiths. This idea can be summarized as follows. Jesus (PBUH) will descend directly from the heavens to earth near the Day of Judgment. He will descend with the company of angels on a minaret of a mosque in Damascus. At that time, Dajjal will have spread fitnah (tribulation) in the world, and a Muslim army will be ready to finish him off. Jesus (PBUH) will lead the Muslim army and kill Dajjal and the Jewish soldiers under his command. After that, Gog and Magog will emerge. Due to Jesus’s supplication to God, they too will also be destroyed. The world will become a cradle of peace and security, and no religion other than Islam will survive.
The fourth concept is the ‘Death of Jesus.’ According to this concept, Jesus (PBUH) will die approximately forty years after his second coming to earth. Muslims will bury his blessed body, and soon afterward, the Day of Judgment will commence, and the world will come to an end. This concept of the Death of Jesus is also derived from the hadiths.
Javed Ahmed Ghamidi acknowledges the Ascension of Jesus. However, he rejects the notion of Jesus being raised alive to the heavens as the idea goes against the teachings of the Holy Qur’an. According to him, the words innī mutawaffīka clearly and unambiguously mean giving death to Jesus. The expression cannot be interpreted in any other sense at this occasion. Javed Ahmed Ghamidi interprets the words rāfi‘uka ilayya to mean that Jesus’s body will be lifted to God. According to him, the objective of ‘the lifting up’ of the body was to protect it from being desecrated by the Jews. Hence, in his view, God caused Jesus to die and then raised his body towards Himself. As far as the concept of the second coming of Jesus is concerned, Javed Ahmed Ghamidi declares it as subject to critical investigation. He argues that the hadiths about the second coming of Jesus invite questions when they are put against the yardstick of the Qur’an. Moreover, certain questions arise as we critically analyze all the narratives on the subject according to the principles of understanding the Hadith. These questions and difficulties force us not to believe in the second coming of Jesus. This monograph is a statement of this position of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi.
The monograph has five chapters. The first chapter, titled ‘Statements from the Qur’an and Hadith,’ serves as a prelude, listing the Qur’anic verses and Hadiths from which the traditional scholars derive the concepts of Jesus’s ascension into the heavens, second coming, continuous life, and death. The objective is to lay the foundation for the discussion. The second chapter presents the views of the traditional scholars to highlight the context in which Javed Ahmed Ghamidi presented his position. The third chapter describes the intellectual and textual objections, identified by Javed Ahmed Ghamidi, that hinder us from accepting the general belief in the second coming of Jesus. These questions and problems relate to the traditional interpretation of both the Qur’an and the Hadiths. The fourth chapter is essentially a statement of the position of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi. It details his perspective on the texts in question and explains his reasoning. The fifth chapter is a comparative study which examines the arguments of the traditional scholars and explains the weakness of their stances in comparison to the position of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi.
The final section consists of an appendix, which cites the views of scholars who share the same viewpoint and do not believe in the Second Coming of Jesus. The purpose is to provide necessary guidance for readers seeking further research or comparative study.