Mirza Ghulam Ahmad

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Did Jesus die on the cross or did He only swoon? Who should we believe: Jesus or Mirza Ghulam Ahmad?

1. The biblical evidence demonstrates Jesus died on the cross.

Photo of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam.
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908)

Jesus taught He would die1

Matthew 16:21
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

The Gospels record Jesus’ death on the cross

John 19:32-35
The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other.
But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.
The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. 

The Apostle John was an eyewitness to Jesus’ death on the cross

John 19:16-30
Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.
Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).
Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek.
The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.”
Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.
“Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.” This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said, “They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.” So this is what the soldiers did.
Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,”
and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.
Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.”
A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips.
When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Pilate ascertained that Jesus was dead

Mark 15:42-45
It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached,
Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body.
Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died.
When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. 

2. The medical evidence demonstrates Jesus died on the cross.

After looking at crucifixion in the ancient world an article in one of the most prestigious medical journals in the world concluded:

Clearly, the weight of historical and medical evidence indicates that Jesus was dead before the wound to his side was inflicted and supports the traditional view that the spear, thrust between his right rib, probably perforated not only the right lung but also the pericardium and heart and thereby ensured his death. Accordingly, interpretations based on the assumption that Jesus did not die on the cross appear to be at odds with modern medical knowledge.2

3. The historical evidence demonstrates Jesus died on the cross

  • Josephus (Jewish historian born around 37 AD and died 100 AD) refers to Jesus’ death (Antiquities 18.3.3).
  • Tacitus (AD 55-120), a renowned historian of ancient Rome wrote around 115 A.D. that Christ was “executed” by Pilate (Annals 15.44).
  • The early enemies of Christianity (e.g., Celsus and Lucian), conceded that Jesus was put to death.

4. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad denied Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection from the dead

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad wrote,

I wonder what the Christians are so proud of! If they have a ‘God’, he is the one who died long ago and lies buried in Mohalla Khanyar, Srinagar, Kashmir. And if he has any miracles to his name, they are no greater than those of other Prophets, indeed Prophet Elijah showed greater miracles than he ever did. (p.14 “Fountain of Christianity“)

5. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad appealed to unreliable evidence when he dismissed the fact of Jesus’ death on the cross

Since the evidence of the gospels and history is on the side of Jesus’ death on the cross, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad looked for another source to support his belief that Jesus did not die on the cross. He mistakenly turned to the Gospel of Barnabas,

in the Gospel of Barnabas…it is written that he was not put on the cross, nor did he die thereupon. We could very well point out that though this book is not included in the Gospels and has been rejected summarily, but there is no doubt that it is an ancient book, and was written at the same time as the other Gospels. Can’t we, therefore, view this book as an ancient chronicle and make use of it as an historical document? And can’t we conclude from this book that at the time when the event of the cross took place, people were not unanimous as to Jesus having died on the cross? (Jesus in India, 22-23)

The simple and historical answer to Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s questions is, “No.” The Gospel of Barnabas was not written by the Barnabas who lived in the 1st century AD. Indeed, this work appears to have been written in the 16th century AD, “The Gospel [of Barnabas] is considered by the majority of academics (including Christians and some Muslims) to be late and pseudepigraphical…” (Wikipedia; see also Gospel of Barnabas).3

Conclusion

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is a false Messiah because he denied the historical fact of Jesus’ death on the cross. Jesus, the true Messiah, warned about men like Mirza Ghulam Ahmad,

Matthew 24:4-5
Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 

Matthew 24:23-26
…if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.
See, I have told you ahead of time. So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 

Friend, prayerfully consider these things. Mirza Ghulam Ahamd was wrong about the Gospel of Barnabas. Read the Christian gospels for yourself and learn about the real Jesus.

I invite you to embrace Christianity as the truth and only way of salvation. Jesus said, “I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins” (John 8:24).

Believe in Jesus and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and you can have certainty that you will inherit eternal life. This certainty is rooted in what God has done in the real world with respect to the death of Jesus on the cross, His burial, resurrection,4 and ascension into heaven.

You may also be interested to learn more about:

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad and The Gospel of Barnabas

The Christian Gospels ≠ The Qur’anic Injeel

Jesus’ Death on the Cross and the Qur’an

Does Quran 23:50 teach Jesus did not die on the cross but went to India?

Ahmadiyya

Learn how God changed Nabeel Qureshi’s heart to believe in Jesus.

Nabeel Qureshi was a convert to Christianity from Ahmadiyya Islam. Here is the story of his conversion.

 

What about the Gospel of Barnabas?

Watch Nabeel Qureshi, a convert to Christianity from Ahmadiyya Islam, discuss the Gospel of Barnabas.

 

References 

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Wikipedia

Ahmad, M. M. “The Lost Tribes of Israel: The Travels of Jesus”, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.

Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad – comprehensive list of books written by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad.

_________, “Fountain of Christianity.” — Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad makes false claims in this work about the Gospel of Barnabas and an ancient work he believes Jesus (Yuz Asaf) wrote in India (pp.9-11).

Ahmadiyya commentary on Quran 23:51 (traditional Islam follows a different system of versification and numbers this verse as 50, not 51), which they believe teaches Jesus went to Kashmir, India, The Holy Qur’an: With English Translation and Commentary, Volume 5 (Tilford, UK: Islam International Publications Limited, 1988), 1804.

F.P. Cotterell, “The Gospel of Barnabas,” Vox Evangelica 10 (1977): 43-47.

William D. Edwards, MD; Wesley J. Gabel, MDiv; Floyd E. Hosmer, MS, AMI; “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ”; Journal of the American Medical Association 21 March 1986; Volume 255, 1455-1463.

Yohanan Friedmann, Prophecy Continuous – Aspects of Ahmadi Religious Thought and Its Medieval Background; Oxford University Press (2003).

John Gilchrist, Muhammad and the Religion of Islam, chapter 9: A Study of the Ahmadiyya Movement.

Gospel of Barnabas, Wikipedia Entry

Günter Grönbold, Jesus In Indien, München: Kösel 1985.

The Official Website of the ‘Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement for the Propagation of Islam‘ 

Philip Johnson, Did Jesus go to India?

Norbert Klatt, Lebte Jesus in Indien?, Göttingen: Wallstein 1988.

Matthew W. Maslen, Piers D. Mitchell, “Medical Theories on the Cause of Death in Crucifixion”; Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine; 2006:185-188.

Steven Masood, Jesus and the Indian Messiah.

Norbert Klatt, Lebte Jesus in Indien?, Göttingen: Wallstein 1988.

Matthew W. Maslen, Piers D. Mitchell, “Medical Theories on the Cause of Death in Crucifixion”; Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine; 2006:185-188.

Christine Schirrmacher, “Has the True Gospel of Barnabas Been Found?“; Institute for Islamic Studies of the Evangelical Alliance in Germany, Austria, Switzerland.

Nicolai Notovitch, Unknown life of Saint Issa 1894.

Jay Slomp, The Gospel of Barnabas in recent research

Wilfred Cantwell Smith, “Ahmadiyya” in the Encyclopaedia of Islam

Lee Strobel, “The Medical Evidence: Was Jesus’ Death a Sham and His Resurrection a Hoax? in The Case for Easter.

Frederick T. Zugibe, The Crucifixion of Jesus, A Forensic Inquiry

Official Website of the Qudian Party of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community

The Persecution of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community

Footnotes

  1. The Christian gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) should not be confused with the Quranic Injeel (cf. Qur’an 5:46; 57:27). The Quran speaks of the Injeel as a holy book sent from heaven to Jesus which He gave to His followers. No such book was ever given to Jesus or His followers. The Qur’anic Injeel (book given to Jesus from heaven…) does not exist and has never existed. Christians have four gospels but they should not to be confused with the Qur’anic Injeel. To learn more see, “What every Muslim should know about the Bible.”
  2. William D. Edwards, MD; Wesley J. Gabel, MDiv; Floyd E. Hosmer, MS, AMI; “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ”; Journal of the American Medical Association 21 March 1986; Volume 255, 1463.
  3. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad can also be found guilty of trying to corrupt the Christian gospels when he wrote,

    “Another incredible fact is that the ancient book of Yuz Asaf (which most English scholars believe to have been published before the birth of Jesus), and which has been translated in all European countries, is so similar to the Gospels that many of their passages are identical. The parables used by the Gospels are also found word for word in this book. Even if the person reading it were so ignorant as to be practically blind, he would still be convinced that the Gospels have been borrowed from the same book. Some people, including some English scholars, believe that this book belongs to Gautama Buddha, and that it was originally in Sanskrit and was later translated into other languages. If this is true, the Gospels would lose all their credibility and Jesus would be considered a plagiarist in all his teachings—God forbid. The book is available for everyone to see. My own opinion, however, is that this book is Jesus’ own Gospel which was written during his journey to India. I have proved with many arguments that it is indeed the Gospel of Jesus, and is purer and holier than the other Gospels” (pp.9-10 “Fountain of Christianity.”)

    Yuz Asaf is the name Mirza Ghulam Ahmad gave to Jesus after he supposedly migrated to India. The “ancient book” Mirza Ghulam Ahmad referred to is not a book written by Jesus of Nazareth. Scholars believe he is referring to a Christianized version of the life of Siddhartha Gautama (Jesus in India). This is a clear sign that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was a false prophet.

  4. Jesus’ resurrection refers to the supernatural (miraculous) event of death being undone. It refers to the continuation of Jesus’ same physical body and soul in the process of life, death, and a new glorified life after death. ‘Resurrection’ will happen to all people on the Final Day of Judgment, but only those who have been saved from their sin through the blood of Jesus will be glorified and live in the New Heavens and New Earth (Revelation 20:11-22:21.)