name used for Jesus in the Koran is Isa, which actually
corresponds more closely to Esau, the oldest son of Jacob,
than it does to Jesus. Also, while Jesus is called the Messiah
in the Koran, this word seems to function more like a proper
name (Al Masih) than a title. Indeed, no Jewish or Christian
understandings of the Messiah as ‘‘anointed one’’ are
present in the Koran. The classical Islamic commentators
interpret the name Masihas a derivation of the Arabic verb
Massaha, which means to rub, anoint or touch someone for
the sake of healing — clearly a derivation of the original
Hebrew. But Muslims turn the notion inside out: instead of
being the Anointed One of God, they say that Jesus was
called Masih because He was a healer, that is, He was the
one doing the anointing.
The fact that the Koran calls Jesus the Son of Mary
emphasizes His virgin birth. No one in those days would
have been called the son of anyone but his father — unless
his father were unknown.
The Koran agrees with the Bible about the miraculous
virgin birth of Jesus. However, it disagrees about the
implications of this event. In the Koran, the Virgin Birth
does not point to the divinity of Christ; rather, it is only
another sign of Allah’s supreme power and wisdom. The
fact that Jesus was sinless is like saying He had on a nice
suit Allah gave Him, but it says nothing about the nature of
Jesus Himself (see Suras 19:21 and 23:50).
The Koran also gives other supposed details of Jesus’
birth that are not found in the canonical Gospels. As He