By Shaykh Omar Subedar
Question:
What does the Islamic source text say about the return of Jesus/ʿĪsā?
Answer:
Regarding the return of ʿĪsā (peace and blessings upon him), the Messenger, Muḥammad (peace and blessings upon him) once explained to his Companions while describing Dajjāl (the Anti- Christ),
Dajjāl (the Anti- Christ)
“The Dajjāl is a young man with curly hair. [One] eye of his is blind. I can liken him to ‘Abdul ‘Uzzā ibn Qatān. Whoever comes across him from amongst you, he should recite the opening verses of Sūrah al Kahf upon him. He will emerge from a place between Shām and Iraq and will spread mischief right and left. O Slaves of Allāh! Remain firm [against him].”
The Companions inquired,
“O Allāh’s Messenger (peace and blessings upon him), How long will he (Dajjāl-the Anti- Christ) stay on earth?”
The Prophet (peace and blessings upon him) replied,
“40 days; a day like a year, a day like a month, a day like a week and the remaining days will be like your [normal] days.”
The Companions asked,
“O Messenger of Allāh (peace and blessings upon him), [on] that day that will be like a year; will the prayers of one day be sufficient for us?”
He answered,
“No, [rather] at that time make calculations [for the timings of the prayers]”
The Companions then asked,
“How quick will be his (Dajjāl-the Anti- Christ) pace on earth?”
He replied,
“Like rain that is driven by wind. He will approach a community and invite them [to accept his divinity] and they will believe in him and respond to his call. He will then order the sky [to rain] and consequently it will rain. He will give an order to the earth and subsequently it will bring forth produce. Their herds will return to them in the evening with their humps as high as ever, their udders full and their flanks stretched.
He will then go to [another] community and invite them however they will reject his claim [to divinity]. He will then leave them and they will [end up] being afflicted with drought. All of their wealth will be gone from their hands.
He (Dajjāl-the Anti- Christ) will pass by a [land in] ruins and say to it, “Bring forth your treasures.” As a result its treasures will [come out and] follow him like a swarm of bees. Then he will call a man brimming with youth and strike him with a sword. He will cut him in two pieces and place [each piece] as far [from each other] as a target from an archer. He will then summon him and he will come forth with his face gleaming and laughing.
The Return of Jesus / ʿĪsā
While he (Dajjāl-the Anti- Christ) will be engaged in all of this, Allāh will send the Messiah, the son of Mary (peace and blessings upon him). He will descend by the white minaret in the east side of Damascus, wearing two garments dyed in saffron placing his hands on the wings of two angels. When he will lower his head [water] will drip [from it] and when he will raise it, drops like pearls will scatter from it. Every disbeliever who will come in contact with his breath will die and his breath will reach as far as he can see. (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)
The Pursuit
He (Jesus/ ʿĪsā) will then pursue the Dajjāl until he catches him at the gate of Lod [a city located on the Sharon Plain 15 kilometers southeast of Tel Aviv in the Center District of Israel] and will then execute him. Thereafter some people, whom Allāh had protected from the Dajjāl, will come to ʿĪsā ibn Maryam. He will wipe their faces and inform them of their ranks in Paradise. While he will be busy doing this Allāh will suddenly reveal to him, “I have released some slaves of mine, whom no one has the power to fight with. Quickly take my slaves to At-Ṭūr [an Arab neighborhood on the Mount of Olives approximately 1 km east of the Old City of Jerusalem].”
The Gog Magog (Ya’jūj and Ma’jūj)
Allāh will then send [the two communities of] Ya’jūj and Ma’jūj (i.e. Gog and Magog) who will descend from every slope. The first of them will pass by the Sea of Tiberius [located in the Jordan Great Rift Valley] and drink all its water. [When] the last of them will pass [by it] they will say, “There was once water here.”
Allāh’s Prophet, ʿĪsā (peace and blessings upon him) and his companions will be put under siege to the extent that a bull’s head to one of them will be better than one hundred dinārs to you today. Allāh’s Prophet, ʿĪsā (peace and blessings upon him) and his companions will then beseech Allāh. Consequently, Allāh will send worms in the necks [of Ya’juj and Ma’juj] and as a result they will die all at the same time. The Prophet of Allāh, ʿĪsā (peace and blessings upon him) and his companions will then descend to the ground and will not find even the space of a hand span that will not be filled with their decayed [bodies] and stench. Allāh’s Prophet, ʿĪsā (peace and blessings upon him) and his companions will then beseech Allāh and Allāh will send birds that will resemble the necks of Bactrian Camels. The birds will carry [their bodies] away and throw them wherever Allāh wills. Thereafter Allāh will send such rain that no mud house or hut will be sheltered from it. It will cleanse the earth until it leaves it like a mirror. The earth will then be told, “Bring forth your fruits and restore your blessings.”
On that day a group of people will eat a portion of a pomegranate and [then] sit in its skins shadow. Milk will be blessed to the extent that [the milk of a] milch camel will suffice a [large] crowd of people, [the milk of a] milch cow will suffice a tribe of people, [the milk of a] milch sheep will suffice a family of people. (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 7373)
Other Reference on the Return of Jesus, the Messiah (ʿĪsā)
In another narration the Prophet (peace and blessings upon him) said,
“Jesus/ ʿĪsā ibn Maryam (peace and blessings upon him) will surely descend as a just judge and a fair leader. He will travel through the mountain passes [of Arabia] as a pilgrim for Ḥajj or `Umra and will definitely come to my grave and greet me [with salām] and I shall respond to him.” (Hākim: 4162)
Ibn Al Jawzī has written in his book, Al Wafā: ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Amr reported, “Allāh’s Messenger (peace and blessings upon him) mentioned,
“ʿĪsā ibn Maryam (peace and blessings upon him) will descend to the earth. He will get married and have children. He will remain in the world for 45 years. Thereafter he will pass away and will be buried with me in my grave.” (Al Wafā)
And Allāh Knows Best