The birth of Prophet Isa (peace be upon him) was a great divine miracle that defied the usual natural laws. However, understanding this miracle requires examining its broader context. The divine tradition in the Children of Israel had been the succession of prophecies, and prophethood was inherited, at the time, as Allah said, “And We placed in their descendants prophethood and scripture.” (Al-Hadid: 26)

The Children of Israel never imagined that prophethood could be removed from them until they reached a turning point in their history when the situation appeared different. Prophet Zakariya (peace be upon him) had reached an advanced old age, and his wife—the daughter of Imran—was barren and could not conceive. At that time, there was no prophet besides Zakariya. This situation led the Israelites, for the first time, to face the possibility of the end of prophethood.

However, the threat of discontinuity did not only concern prophethood. Imran, the last of the great rabbis, was gravely ill and had only one daughter, the wife of Zakariya. This meant that this position was also under threat of ending! 

In this tense atmosphere, Imran’s elderly wife was shocked to feel something moving in her womb. Gradually, the picture became clearer—she was pregnant! Pregnant, despite being an elderly woman, and her husband being a sick old man.

During her pregnancy, Imran’s wife vowed what was in her womb to Allah, dedicating it to His service. She and many Israelites expected that the miracle of her pregnancy would culminate in the birth of the prophet they had been waiting for.

The pregnancy was completed, and she gave birth to a female, contrary to her expectations. Hopes wavered, and Imran’s wife sought Allah’s protection for her daughter and her offspring from Shaitan, perhaps hoping that prophethood would be granted to the descendants of this unexpectedly born girl.

This was not the only sign that preceded the birth of Jesus. Allah permitted Maryam to reside in the sanctuary at the temple, a place reserved for the great rabbis. After Imran’s death, Prophet Zakariya took responsibility for her care. He would bring her food, and every time he found with her provisions that were unlike any in Jerusalem. Whenever he asked her about it, she said, “It is from Allah. Indeed, Allah provides for whom He wills without account.” (Aal Imran: 37)!

Prophet Zakariya undoubtedly relayed these recurring signs to the Children of Israel. One day, as he stood in Maryam's sanctuary, seeing the provisions Allah had given her, his heart opened, and his tongue flowed with supplication. From the depths of his being, he called out: “My Lord, grant me from Yourself a good offspring. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication.” (Aal Imran: 38) Allah answered his prayer, and the angels brought him glad tidings of Yahya, and his barren wife conceived—a new sign witnessed by the Children of Israel.

Yahya (peace be upon him) was born, and the angels informed Zakariya that Yahya’s role would be to confirm the Word of Allah, meaning the prophet who would be created by Allah’s command “Be,” and he would be. Yahya would be a leader, revered and respected among the Children of Israel, chaste and celibate, and a prophet from among the righteous. It became clear that Yahya represented the last generation of “Israeli” prophecies.

Not long afterward, the greatest sign occurred—Maryam, the pure and chaste virgin, conceived without marriage or union. Allah sent Jibreel, who, by Allah’s power and command, breathed into her a blessed and pure soul. Thus, Isa ibn Maryam became the final prophet and the last chance for the Children of Israel.

Allah willed for this final prophecy to be accompanied by a series of signs, starting with the birth of Maryam, followed by the miraculous provision of food for her, then the birth of Yahya, and culminating in the greatest miracle—the birth of Jesus. These successive signs were intended to awaken the Children of Israel from their heedlessness. When Maryam brought her newborn to her people, carrying him, the Children of Israel were shocked and accused her of adultery. Then Isa (peace be upon him) spoke while still in the cradle, saying, “Indeed, I am the servant 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 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.” (Maryam: 30-33)

Allah supported Isa with numerous miraculous signs. He healed the blind and the leper by Allah’s permission, brought the dead back to life by Allah’s permission, and created birds from clay, which became living creatures by Allah’s permission. He informed the Children of Israel of what they ate and what they stored in their homes—all by Allah’s permission.

These signs preceding and following the birth of Jesus were, in reality, a severe test for the Children of Israel. They resembled an intensive treatment dose—the last hope to save a dying patient. Either the body responds and recovers, or the opportunity is lost forever!

The miraculous signs in Allah’s divine methodology have wisdom behind them, establishing proof against His servants. Whoever accepts and submits to them, and whose faith increases, is saved. But those who reject them doom themselves to severe punishment, turning the signs from blessings into curses and from gifts into punishments.

This is precisely what happened with the Children of Israel. Prophet Isa was raised up, and the final opportunity slipped from their grasp. Allah decreed that there would be no prophet after Jesus and no scripture after the Bible. The divine law of substitution took effect upon the Israelites, leaving them wandering in misguidance to this very day. Such is the nature of divine miraculous signs—they elevate some and abase others: “Allah said, ‘Indeed, I will send it down to you, but whoever disbelieves afterwards from among you — then indeed will I punish him with a punishment by which I have not punished anyone among the worlds.’” (Al-Ma'idah: 115)

May Allah's blessings and peace be upon Prophet Isa, and may Allah protect us from those who went astray regarding him twice—those who falsely claimed he was the son of Allah and those who committed every abomination and sin in his name!

Indeed, the people of faith are more deserving of Jesus than both the misguided and the corrupt.

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