Subsequent Miracles of Jesus (Peace be upon him)

Prophet Jesus (Peace be upon him) was blessed with the ability to perform many miracles. This supported his claim that he was a prophet sent by Allah. Allah Almighty has said in the Qur’an:

“…And We gave Jesus, the son of Mary, clear proofs and supported him with the pure spirit…” (Qur’an, Surah Al-Baqarah, 2: 87)

Muslims do not hesitate to accept the fact that Jesus (Peace be upon him) performed miracles. At the same time, Muslims do not elevate Jesus (Peace be upon him) to the position of Allah or describe him as the ‘son of God’. They do not consider him to be anything more than a divinely-inspired man: a messenger and prophet of Allah.

The same applies to all the other prophets, since many of them were blessed with different miracles as well.

The first miracle associated with Jesus (Peace be upon him) was that he was born from a mother without any human intervention (father). Allah gave the divine command ‘Be’ and he was created.

The Qur’an has mentioned the miraculous creation of both Adam and Jesus in the following verse:

“Indeed, the example of Jesus to Allah is like that of Adam. He created Him from dust; then He said to him: Be, and he was.” (Qur’an, Surah Al-‘Imran, 3: 59)

The Qur’an has mentioned that Jesus’ miraculous birth did not change his status as a human; that is, he did not evolve from a human being to become Allah or a son of Allah. This is because, rationally, if that had been the case, then Adam would have had a greater right to such an honour, since he was born without a human father or mother.

Another miracle was that Allah gave Jesus (Peace be upon him) the ability to talk in his infancy, a blessing which helped save his mother from the harsh slander of her own community.

He is one of only three people whom Allah chose for this. This remarkable story has been narrated in the Qur’an:

“Then she brought him to her people, carrying him. They said: O Mary, you have certainly done a thing unprecedented. O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste. So she pointed to him. They said: How can we speak to one who is in the cradle a child? [Jesus] said: Indeed, I am the slave of Allah. He has given me the scripture and made me a prophet. And He has made me blessed wherever I am and has enjoined upon me prayer and zakah[1] as long as I remain alive, and [made me] dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me a wretched tyrant. And peace is on me the day I was born and the day I will die and the day I am raised alive.” (Qur’an, Surah Maryam, 19: 27-33)

Other subsequent miracles performed by Jesus (Peace be upon him) have also been mentioned in the Qur’an:

“[The day] when Allah will say: O Jesus, son of Mary, remember My favour upon you and upon your mother when I supported you with the pure spirit and you spoke to the people in the cradle and in maturity;[2] and [remember] when I taught you writing and wisdom,[3] the Torah and the Gospel, [4] and when you designed from clay [what was] like the form of a bird with My permission, then you breathed into it, and it became a bird with My permission; and you healed the blind and the leper with My permission; and when you brought forth the dead with My permission; and when I restrained the children of Israel from [killing] you when you came to them with clear proofs and those who disbelieved among them said: This is not but obvious magic.” (Qur’an, Surah Al-Ma’idah, 5: 110)

Indeed, the Islamic account of the miracles bestowed on Jesus (Peace be upon him) describe more miracles than those known to Christians. Also, facts 10 and 11 below (in this book) are two more miracles associated with Jesus (Peace be upon him) and his role as the Messiah.

An important note

As shown in the previous verse, it was emphasized after mentioning each miracle that whenever Jesus (Peace be upon him) performed a miracle, he informed people that it was by Allah’s permission. He made it clear to his followers that he was not performing the miracle by himself. As Dr. Philips points out:

There are texts in the New Testament which confirm that Jesus did not act on his own. Jesus is quoted in John 5:30 saying: I can of mine own self do nothing...In acts 2:22, Paul writes: Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know...[5]