Non-Ahmadi Quran translations agree

Introduction

Non-Ahmadis often claim that we are making up new translations of the Holy Quran regarding the verses that prove the death of Isa (A.S). Although these allegations do not matter since we have proved our case from the Quran, Ahadith, ijmah (consensus) of sahaba (R.A), statements of Salaf-us-Saliheen, and Arabic lexicons, it is a good exercise to shut the critics on all fronts.

The belief that Isa (A.S) has died is not a new one within Islam. It was not only the belief of Muhammad (S.A.W) and the Salaf-us-Saliheen but this view remained among the Muslims throughout the centuries and many Sunni Muslims still hold it now, along with a majority of Shia Muslims.

In this article, we will present just a few of such non-Ahmadi translations that prove the death of Isa (A.S). The scans for each translation are lined on the verse number.

Yusuf Ali* (Sunni)

Behold! God said: “O Jesus! I will take thy soul and raise thee to Myself and clear thee (of the falsehoods) of those who blaspheme; I will make those who follow thee superior to those who reject faith, to the Day of Resurrection: Then shall ye all return unto me, and I will judge between you of the matters wherein ye dispute

[Quran 3:55]

*Note: Yusuf Ali’s translation in the First Edition (1934). Unfortunately, it has now gone through so many modifications numerous passages are completely unrecognizable. But it is still the most popular Sunni translation of the Holy Quran.

Muhammad Asad (Sunni)

Lo! God said: “O Jesus! Verily, I shall cause thee to die, and shall exalt thee unto Me, and cleanse thee of [the presence of] those who are bent on denying the truth; and I shall place those who follow thee [far] above those who are bent on denying the truth, unto the Day of Resurrection. In the end, unto Me you all must return, and I shall judge between you with regard to all on which you were wont to differ.

[Quran 3:55]

Abdul Majid Daryabadi (Deobandi Sunni)

Recall what time Allah said: O ‘Isa! verily I shall make thee die, and am lifting thee to myself and am purifying thee from those who disbelieve, and shall place those who follow thee above those who disbelieve until the Day of Resurrection; thereafter unto Me shall be the return of you all, then I shall judge between you of that wherein ye were wont to differ

[Quran 3:55]

Dr. Mustafa Khattab

˹Remember˺ when Allah said, “O Jesus! I will take you* and raise you up to Myself. I will deliver you from those who disbelieve, and elevate your followers above the disbelievers until the Day of Judgment. Then to Me you will ˹all˺ return, and I will settle all your disputes.

[Quran 3:55]

* Footnote: ‘Mutawaffîka’ means literally: “I will make you reach the end of your worldly term.” The popular Muslim belief is that a conspiracy was made to kill Jesus. Allah made the main culprit who betrayed Jesus look exactly like Jesus, while the culprit was crucified. Similar to Christians, Muslims believe in the second coming of Jesus (ﷺ).

Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelwi Sunni)

Remember, when Allah said; O Isa! I shall cause you thee to die and I shall raise you towards Myself.

[Quran 3:55]

Muhammad Hussain Battalvi (Ahle Hadith Sunni)

Remember, when Allah said; O Isa! I shall cause you to reach to your full life and I shall raise you towards Myself and I shall purify you from the infidels, and shall give your followers superiority over the rejecters until the Day of Resurrection then you all shall come returning to Me: then I shall decide between you concerning that wherein you dispute’.

[Quran 3:55]

Wahiduddin Khan (Sunni)

God said, O Jesus, I shall cause you to die and will raise you up to Me and shall clear you [of the calumnies] of the disbelievers, and shall place those who follow you above those who deny the truth, until the Day of Judgement; then to Me shall all return and I will judge between you regarding your disputes

[Quran 3:55]

Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri (Sunni)

When Allah said: ‘O ‘Isa (Jesus), I will surely bring your term of life to completion; and I am about to lift you towards Myself (in the heavens), and deliver you from the disbelievers, and exalt your followers above (these) disbelievers till the Day of Resurrection. Then to Me you all have to return. So I shall judge between you in the matters about which you used to dispute.

[Quran 3:55]

Ali Quli Qara’l (Shia)

When Allah said, ‘O Jesus, I shall take you[r soul], and I shall raise you up toward Myself, and I shall clear you of [the calumnies of] the faithless, and I shall set those who follow you above the faithless until the Day of Resurrection. Then to Me will be your return, whereat I will judge between you concerning that about which you used to differ

[Quran 3:55]

Shabbir Ahmad

“O Jesus! I will cause you to die of natural causes and I will exalt you in honor in My Court and I will clear you of the slander of the disbelievers. I will cause those who truly follow you to dominate the rejecters until the Day of Resurrection. Eventually, all of you will return to Me, then I will judge among you about what you used to differ.”

[Quran 3:55]

Safi Kaskas (Sunni)

God said, “Jesus, I will cause you to die and raise you up to me, and purify you from those who denied the truth, and I will exalt your followers over those who deny you until the Resurrection Day. Then you all will return to me, and I will judge between you in matters about which you disagree.

[Quran 3:55]

Mohammad Shafi

When Allah said: “O Jesus! I am indeed going to make you die and raise you up to Me. And I will cleanse you of what those who suppress the Truth say about you. And I will make those who follow you surpass those who suppress the Truth, towards the Day of Resurrection.And then to Me shall be the return of you all. Then I shall judge between you on matters which you have been disputing.”

[Quran 3:55]

Talal Itani

God said, ‘O Jesus, I am terminating your life, and raising you to Me, and clearing you of those who disbelieve. And I will make those who follow you superior to those who disbelieve, until the Day of Resurrection. Then to Me is your return; then I will judge between you regarding what you were disputing

[Quran 3:55]

Ahmed Hulusi

And recall when Allah had said, “I’m going to cause you to die (that is, they will not be able to assassinate you through their secret schemes, I will cause you to die when your time comes)… I’m going to raise you to myself (enable you to experience the supremacy of your essence); I’m going to purify you by removing you from among the deniers of the reality (disbelievers) and until Doomsday I’m going to place those who follow you above those who deny the reality. In the end, your return is to Me. I will judge on matters over which you differed between each other.”

[Quran 3:55]

Faridul Haque

3:55 Remember when Allah said, “O Eisa! I will keep you alive till your full age, and raise you towards Me, and cleanse you of the disbelievers and give your followers dominance over the disbelievers until the Day of Resurrection; then you will all return to Me, so I shall judge between you concerning the matter in which you dispute.”

[Quran 3:55]

The Monotheist Group

God said: “O Jesus, I will let you die, and raise you to Me, and cleanse you of those who have rejected, and make those who have followed you above those who rejected until the Day of Resurrection; then to Me is your return so I will judge between all of you in what it was that you disputed.”

[Quran 3:55]

Ali Bakhtiari Nejad

(Remember) when God said: Jesus, I make you die, and bring you up to Me, and cleanse you from those who disbelieved, and make those who follow you above those who disbelieved until the resurrection day. Then, your return is to Me, and I judge between you in what you disagreed about it

[Quran 3:55]

George Sale

When God said, O Jesus, verily I will cause thee to die, and I will take thee up unto me, and I will deliver thee from the unbelievers; and I will place those who follow thee, above the unbelievers, until the day of resurrection: Then unto me shall ye return, and I will judge between you of that concerning which ye disagree

[Quran 3:55]

Edward Henry Palmer

3:55 When God said, ‘O Jesus! I will make Thee die and take Thee up again to me and will clear thee of those who misbelieve, and will make those who follow thee above those who misbelieve, at the day of judgment, then to me is your return. I will decide between you concerning that wherein ye disagree

[Quran 3:55]

John Medows Rodwell

Remember when God said, “O Jesus! verily I will cause thee to die, and will take thee up to myself and deliver thee from those who believe not; and I will place those who follow thee above those who believe not, until the day of resurrection. Then, to me is your return, and wherein ye differ will I decide between you

[Quran 3:55]