The verses 116-117 from Surah Maidah, along with its Tafsir done by the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) himself, is the most evident proof that Isa (AS) has indeed passed away, just like our Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W).

Verse

وَ اِذۡ قَالَ اللّٰہُ یٰعِیۡسَی ابۡنَ مَرۡیَمَ ءَاَنۡتَ قُلۡتَ لِلنَّاسِ اتَّخِذُوۡنِیۡ وَ اُمِّیَ اِلٰہَیۡنِ مِنۡ دُوۡنِ اللّٰہِ ؕ قَالَ سُبۡحٰنَکَ مَا یَکُوۡنُ لِیۡۤ اَنۡ اَقُوۡلَ مَا لَیۡسَ لِیۡ ٭ بِحَقٍّ ؕ؃ اِنۡ کُنۡتُ قُلۡتُہٗ فَقَدۡ عَلِمۡتَہٗ ؕ تَعۡلَمُ مَا فِیۡ نَفۡسِیۡ وَ لَاۤ اَعۡلَمُ مَا فِیۡ نَفۡسِکَ ؕ اِنَّکَ اَنۡتَ عَلَّامُ الۡغُیُوۡبِ

مَا قُلۡتُ لَہُمۡ اِلَّا مَاۤ اَمَرۡتَنِیۡ بِہٖۤ اَنِ اعۡبُدُوا اللّٰہَ رَبِّیۡ وَ رَبَّکُمۡ ۚ وَ کُنۡتُ عَلَیۡہِمۡ شَہِیۡدًا مَّا دُمۡتُ فِیۡہِمۡ ۚ فَلَمَّا تَوَفَّیۡتَنِیۡ کُنۡتَ اَنۡتَ الرَّقِیۡبَ عَلَیۡہِمۡ ؕ وَ اَنۡتَ عَلٰی کُلِّ شَیۡءٍ شَہِیۡدٌ

And when Allah says, “O Jesus, son of Mary, didst thou say to men, ‘Take me and my mother for two gods beside Allah?’”, he will answer, “Holy art Thou. I could never say that to which I had no right. If I had said it, Thou wouldst have surely known it. Thou knowest what is in my mind, and I know not what is in Thy mind. It is only Thou Who art the Knower of hidden things.

“I said nothing to them except that which Thou didst command me—‘Worship Allah, my Lord, and your Lord.’ And I was a witness over them as long as I remained among them, but since Thou didst cause me to die, Thou hast been the Watcher over them; and Thou art Witness over all things.

Context

These two verses narrate a conversation between Allah and Isa (A.S) on the Day of Judgement where He asks him whether he told his people to worship others besides Allah. Isa (A.S) denies it and says that he only told them what Allah commanded him but since he died, only Allah was aware of the conditions of his people (i.e Christians).

Explanation

There are two proofs of his death in this verse. First, he uses the Arabic verb, Tawaffaitani (تَوَفَّيۡتَنِى) for himself which means “Taking of the soul”. Second, the verse also proves that Isa (A.S) of the Bani Israel won’t be the Messiah of the Latter-days as he denies knowing the conditions of Christians on the Day of Judgement.

Proof 1:

He clearly says Tawaffaitani, a derivative of the verb Tawaffa, which means “to die”. Muhammad (S.A.W) does Tafseer (commentary) of this verse where he explains that the word indeed means death! This is mentioned in the Kitabul Tafsir of Sahih Bukhari.

Narrated Ibn `Abbas:

Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) delivered a sermon and said, “O people! You will be gathered before Allah barefooted, naked, and not circumcised.” Then (quoting Qur’an) he said:– “As We began the first creation, We shall repeat it. A promise We have undertaken: Truly we shall do it..” (21.104) The Prophet (ﷺ) then said, “The first of the human beings to be dressed on the Day of Resurrection, will be Abraham. Lo! Some men from my followers will be brought, and then (the angels) will drive them to the left side (Hell-Fire). I will say. ‘O, my Lord! (They are) my companions!’ Then a reply will come (from Almighty), ‘You do not know what they did after you.’ I will say as the pious slave (the Prophet (ﷺ) Jesus) said: And I was a witness over them while I dwelt amongst them when You took me up. You were the Watcher over them, and You are a Witness to all things.’ (5.117) Then it will be said, “These people have continued to be apostates since you left them.“

Sahih Bukhari 4625, Chapter Prophetic Commentary on the Qur'an (Tafseer of the Prophet (PBUH))

1. The above narration is from Sahih Bukhari, the most authentic book after the Holy Quran.

2. It is under the chapter called “Tafsir of the Prophet (SAW)” which means Imam Bukhari (R.H) put it in this section for a particular reason.

3. Muhammad (S.A.W) is using the same verse (i.e., 5:116-117), word for word, including the word تَوَفَّيۡتَنِى for himself, in the same time, same context and same place, i.e., the Day of Judgement.

4. Since Muhammad saw has died, then so has Isa a.s. If someone says Isa (A.S) has been taken alive to heaven, then Muhammad saw was also taken up alive with his body, just like Isa a.s.

We have just seen that the Tafsir of Prophet Muhammad saw clearly tells us that Isa (A.S) has indeed passed away. Who is a better mufassir of the Quran than the Prophet (S.A.W) himself, to whom this Quran was revealed? Can any Muslim still dare to give a meaning other than what he gave?

All prophets will say the same

Moreover, this is not a situation that only Muhammad (S.A.W) and Isa (A.S) will face but every single prophet will go through the same exact situation on the Day of Judgement and they will see their companions dragged to Hell and each will question Allah in the same manner.

[عن عبدالله بن مسعود:] فَكَيْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِيدٍ قال: قالَ رسولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ شَهيدٌ علَيهم ما دمتُ فيهِم، فإذا تَوفَّيتَني كنتَ أنتَ الرَّقيبَ علَيهم

أحمد شاكر، عمدة التفسير ١‏/٥٠٩ • إسناده صحيح

‘From Abdullah bin Mas’ood (RA): So how (will it be) when we bring a witness from every nation, he said: The Holy prophet (SAW) said, (I was) a witness over them as long as I remain among them but when you caused me to die You have been a watcher over them’

Umdatul Tafsir Volume 1, page 509 - Sahih Al Isnaad per Ahmad Shakir

Thousands of people are quoting the exact same verse, on the exact same place, exact same time, and in the exact same situation, one after the other. Can any Sunni still claim that it means death for thousands of these people but when it comes to Isa (A.S), the meaning of Tawaffa changes completely to something that does not even exist anywhere else in Quran, Ahadith, Arabic lexicons, and Arabic literature?

Non-Prophets/Khulafas will say the same

It is not just the thousands of prophets that will use the verse for himself on the Day of Judgment, at the same time, same context, and same place, but Ali (R.A) has also used it to describe his response in the afterlife.

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو خَيْثَمَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا جَرِيرٌ، عَنِ الْأَعْمَشِ، عَنْ سَلَمَةَ بْنِ كُهَيْلٍ، عَنْ سَالِمِ بْنِ أَبِي الْجَعْدِ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ سَبُعٍ، قَالَ: خَطَبَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ أَبِي طَالِبٍ، فَقَالَ: «§وَالَّذِي فَلَقَ الْحَبَّةَ وَبَرَأَ النَّسَمَةَ لَتُخَضَّبَنَّ هَذِهِ مِنْ هَذِهِ، يَعْنِي لِحْيَتَهُ مِنْ دَمِ رَأْسِهِ»، قَالَ: فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ: وَاللَّه لا يقول ذاك أحد إلا أبرنا عترته، فقال: «أذكر الله، أو أنشد الله، أن تقتل بي إلا قاتلي»، فقال رجل: ألا تستخلف يا أمير المؤمنين؟، قال: «لا، ولكن أترككم إلى ما ترككم إليه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم»، قالوا: فما تقول لله إذا لقيته؟، قال: أقول: «اللهم تركتني فيهم ما بدا لك، ثم توفيتني وتركتك فيهم، فإن شئت أصلحتهم، وإن شئت أفسدتهم» إسناده حسن

Hazrat Ali (RA) gave us a sermon and said: The one who tore the grain and created the soul, surely this beard and head will be dyed with blood. A man said: By Allah! No one will do that; we will explain it to our children. He (RA) said, “I remember Allah, or I swear by Allah that I will be killed.” One man asked: O Amir al-mu’minin! Won’t you appoint a caliph? You said: No! But I will leave you as the Prophet SAW has left you. He asked you: What will you say to Allah when you meet Him? You (RA) said: I will tell You have left me ( as an onlooker) in front of them, which is clear to you then you caused me to die, and then you were left (as an onlooker) over them and if you want to (guide them) then guide them and if you want to (destroy them) then destroy them.

Musnad Abu Yaʽla, pg 443 - Hassan by Husain Saleem Assad

[Urdu Translation here]

Meaning of Tawaffa

Tawaffaitani can never mean to “Take up” when Allah does the action of Tawaffa on a human. It goes against any usage in the Quran, Ahadith, or the Arabic lexicons.

1. Tawaffa is used 25 times in the Quran. It means “Taking of the soul” every single time. Check here.

2. Tawaffa is used many times in ahadith. It means “Taking of the soul” every single time. Check here.

3. Arabic lexicons agree. Check here.

4. The most famous Muslim website that shows Tawaffaitani is Verb Form 5, which means to “pass away” or “die”. Check here

5. Non-Ahmadi (Sunni and Shias) agree that it means “Taking of the soul”. Check here.

6. Challenge of the Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (A.S) to show an example that says “Take me”. Check here.

Proof 2:

The second proof that these verses show that Isa (A.S) has died is the conversation between Isa (A.S) and Allah. Isa (A.S) denies knowing the condition of his people (i.e. Christians) on the Day of Judgement as seen from these words, “And I was a witness over them as long as I remained among them, but since Thou didst cause me to die, Thou hast been the Watcher over them; and Thou art Witness over all things”. If he returns for his “2nd coming” as non-Ahmadis believe, then he will see the conditions of Christians worshiping him. Moreover, he will be killing those non-Muslims if they fail to convert to Islam as the Sunnis believe. Then how can Isa (A.S) deny on the Day of Judgement that he did not know whether his followers worshiped him?

Thus, the only reason Isa (A.S) will be unaware of the condition of his followers (i.e Christians) on the Day of Judgement is that he will not be coming back to earth for a second time. This verse clearly proves that the Latter-Day Messiah will not be Isa (A.S) of the Bani Israel but someone from among the Muslims as explained by the Hadith in Sahih Bukhari that the Messiah will be from among the Muslims.

Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said “How will you be when the son of Mary descends amongst you and is your imam among you.”

Sahih al-Bukhari 3449

Non-Ahmadi Argument

Argument 1:

The word Tawaffaitani does not mean death but means to “take me” meaning that Allah took Isa (a.s) to heaven physically.

Refutation:

This is already explained extensively above using Quran, Ahadith, Lexicons, and Sunni/Shia translations. Moreover, there can be no disagreement on this word’s meaning as Muhammad (S.A.W) has used the same verse, word for word on himself, in the same time, context and place. If it means to take Isa (A.S) to heaven physically, then logic states that Muhammad (S.A.W) is also physically alive in the heavens just like Isa (A.S). Or Isa (A.S) has died just like Muhammad saw has. There is no other option.

Argument 2:

When the non-Ahmadis cannot prove Tawaffaitani means to “take me”, they claim that it means death, but it will happen on the 2nd coming.

Refutation:

This actually proves our main point that Tawaffaitani or Tawaffa indeed means death! If they accept this, then they have to concede that Isa (A.S) has indeed died as per the Quran 3:55 where Tawaffa is also used for Isa (A.S).

Regarding their claim that it talks about death in the second coming, it can be easily refuted. The whole point of the verse is to allude that the Christians started worshiping Isa (A.S) and his mother, Mary (A.S) after he died. But if he is supposed to come for his second coming, he will see the conditions of Christians. He will know that he is being worshipped, thus, he cannot deny knowing the condition of his people on the Day of Judgement and in front of Allah. Thus, this proves Isa (A.S) won’t be sent a second time as it would mean he will lie to Allah on the Day of Judgement regarding knowing whether Christians became polytheist.

Secondly, according to Sunnis and Shias, every People of the Book will believe in him when he arrives on his second coming. If the event in the verses refers to his second coming, then apparently, people are continuing on their old ways (i.e worshiping Isa a.s) which is what he came to fix. Thus, this would mean that not only did he fail his mission on his first coming but rather his second coming also did not prove to be of any use and people continued to worship him and Mary (A.S). The only difference is that now even the Muslims have joined their Christian brothers and sisters in worshiping gods beside Allah. Nauthubillah!

This verse below proves that Isa (A.S) wont have the knowledge of who worshiped him, just like any deity that people used to worship other than Allah.

And remember the day when We shall gather them all together, then shall We say to those who ascribed partners to God, “Stand back in your places, you and your ‘partners’”. Then We shall separate them widely, one from another, and their ‘partners’ will say: ‘It was not us that you worshiped. ‘So Allah is now sufficient as a Witness between us and you. We were certainly unaware of your worship.’ (Chapter 10, Verses 29-30)

Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmood Ahmad(ra) states:

“The verse speaks of those alleged “partners” whom people set up as equals to God without their knowledge or desire or sanction , e.g the angels or prophets or saints such as Rama, Jesus, etc. The next verse supports this inference in which it is clearly stated that these “partners” will call God to witness that they were utterly ignorant of the fact that they had been set up as equals to, or co-partners with him. The verse further points out that idolaters possessed no evidence for the allegation that the Prophets and saints of the past favoured their deification” (Five Volume Commentary, Chapter 10 Verses 29-30)

Argument 3:

“And I was a witness over them as long as I remained among them” refers specifically to those followers of Isa (A.S) who were alive at the time of his first coming. If he is denying what Christians did after him, it does not apply to future Christians or those during the time of his 2nd coming. Thus, he will not be aware of the condition of those people when he comes back as he will see latter-day Christians, not his direct followers.

Refutation:

If they agree the verse refers to his followers on the first coming, then our job is done! Once they agree it refers to his 1st coming, then Tawaffaitani also means death on his 1st coming. Thus, their disagreement regarding the meaning of the word becomes invalid, which proves Isa (A.S) has indeed died just like Muhammad (S.A.W).

Moreover, it is an extremely absurd argument to say that he won’t know the condition of earlier Christians as they had died before him. It is not a requirement to meet the Christians before him to know that they started worshiping other deities besides Allah. It is evident and clear-cut from history and the Christian practices of today.

Argument 4:

The last argument that they will use it is not necessary that Tawaffa should mean the same for both Muhammad (S.A.W) and Isa (A.S). The general principle and event should be looked at and everything in that example must not be applied to both contexts. They will give a few examples to prove this point that the parallels are not all exactly the same in both scenarios.

Refutation:

This is a very weak argument again. There can be no difference in the meaning of the Tawaffa word as Muhammad (S.A.W) and Isa (A.S) will say the same exact sentence as quoted in verse 5:117 in the exact same place, exact same time, and exact same context i.e the Day of Judgement. There is no difference in our examples which will give hint to an exception.

Actually, the parallels are so similar that every single prophet will face the exact same scenario at the Day of Judgement and we have already explained it above. Thousands of people are quoting the exact same verse, on the exact same place, exact same time, and in the exact same situation, one after the other. Can any Sunni still claim that it means death for thousands of these people but when it comes to Isa (A.S), the meaning of Tawaffa changes completely to something that does not even exist anywhere else in Quran, Ahadith, Arabic lexicons, and Arabic literature?

Those who bring these random claims must re-evaluate whether they are disagreeing for the sake of opposing or they really believe in such conjectures that are no where proven by the Holy Quran or Ahadith from any angle.

Conclusion

Firstly, verses 5:116-117 prove that Isa (A.S) has died due to the usage of the word Tawaffaitani by Isa (A.S) himself. This verse is used by Muhammad (S.A.W) and Ali (R.A) to describe their own death. Not only that, but each prophet will be using this verse to describe their death on the Day of Judgement. There is no way that the Isa (A.S) is the exception to it. Thousands of people are quoting the exact same verse, on the exact same place, exact same time, and in the exact same situation, one after the other. Can any Sunni still claim that it means death for thousands of these people but when it comes to Isa (A.S), the meaning of Tawaffa changes completely?

Secondly, it also proves his death and that the latter-day Messiah won’t be the same person as Isa (A.S) himself because of his unawareness of the fact that his followers started worshiping him and Mary (A.S) after he was not among them. If he is to be sent for a second time, then him denying the condition of his people after his death will amount to lying in front of Allah as he will see his people worshiping him on the second coming.