- This article is about the concept of a Messiah (savior) in religion, notably in the Christian, Islamic and Jewish
traditions. For other uses, see Messiah (disambiguation).
In Judaism, the Messiah (Hebrew: מָשִׁיחַ, Standard Mašíaḥ Tiberian Māšîªḥ; Aramaic:
משיחא, Məšîḥā; Arabic: المسيح, al-Masīḥ; "the Anointed One") at first meant any person who was anointed
with oil on rising to a certain position among the ancient Israelites, at first that of
High priest, later that of King and also that of a
prophet. In English today, it is used in three main
contexts: in a Jewish context, it refers to the anticipated
king of the Davidic line prophesied by Isaiah, who will rule the Jewish people during the Messianic Age; in a general sense, it means any such
saviour or liberator of the world; and among Christians, it refers to Jesus of Nazareth identified as the Christ (Greek: Χριστος, the Anointed One).
In the 1st century, Jews interpreted the prophecies of the Tanakh to refer more specifically to someone appointed by God to lead the Jewish people in the face of their
tribulations with the Romans. Christians believe that these prophecies actually referred
to a spiritual savior, and consider Jesus to be that messiah. The word Christ (Greek Χριστός, Christos, "the anointed one") is a
literal translation of "mashiah" used in the Greek Septuagint version of the Bible, and derived from the Greek verb χριω "rub, anoint with scented unguents or
oil, as was done after bathing," "anoint in token of consecration." [1]
In Islam, Jesus (Isa) is also called the
Masih.[2]
The Septuagint, an ancient Jewish translation of the Torah
into Greek and later other books by anonymous people, translates all thirty-nine
instances of the word messiah as Christos. The New Testament records the
Greek transliteration Μεσσίας, Messias, only twice, in John 1:41 and 4:25.
In the Hebrew Bible (The Tanakh)
-
The concept of the messiah is neither common nor unified in the Tanakh. In the Tanakh,
Israelite priests, prophets, and kings were anointed with
oil in consecration to their respective offices.
The Tanakh contains a number (the number is debated) of prophecies concerning a future descendant of King David who will be anointed as the Jewish people's new leader (moshiach).
Christians believe that Daniel was a prophet and gave an indication of when the Messiah, the
king “mashiyach nagiyd,” would come .(Daniel 9:25-26) Daniel's prophecies refer to him as a descendant of King David who will
rebuild the nation of Israel, destroy the wicked, and ultimately judge the whole world.
The mainstream Jewish understanding of mashiach (the messiah) has little, if anything, in common with the Christian
understanding of Jesus as Christ (Messiah). This subject is covered in more detail in the article
on Jewish eschatology.
Traditional and contemporary Judaism
The Hebrew word for messiah translates to anointed one. Thus to Jews there have been many messiahs — all the anointed kings
and priests including David, Solomon and Aaron. When speaking of "the" messiah of the future Jews speak of two potential
messiahs. Moshiach ben Yossef (Messiah son of Joseph) and Moshiach ben David (Messiah son of David)[3] The Hebrew ben can mean either son or descendant. In
this sense it can also mean "in the manner of," i.e., there will be a "suffering servant" messiah in the manner of
Joseph son of Israel/Jacob and a different
messiah in the manner of King David.
A common rabbinic interpretation is that there is a potential messiah in
every generation. The Talmud which often uses stories to make a moral point (aggadah) tells the tale of a highly respected
rabbi who found the Messiah at the gates of Rome and asked him "When
will you finally come?" He was quite surprised when he was told, "Today." Overjoyed and full of anticipation, the man waited all
day. The next day he returned, disappointed and puzzled, and asked, "You said messiah would come 'today' but he didn't come! What
happened?" The Messiah replied, "Scripture says, 'Today, if you will but hearken to His voice.' " (Psalm 95:7)
Orthodox Judaism and Conservative
Judaism believe in a future physical messiah who will usher in the messianic age of war before peace to the world and the
return 144,000 to Mount Zion.
Reform Judaism teaches both the belief in a messiah or that there will be a time of
peace, etc., but that it will be the result of tikkun olam ("repair of the world") through
human efforts toward social justice, not the actions of one man.
- "Choice is the underlying reason the Reform Movement gave up the need for and belief in a messiah who would one day bring
judgment, and perhaps salvation, to the world. The fact that God imbues us with free choice mitigates the need for a messianic
figure."[4]
The prophetical prince and messiah appears in the last days and he trigger global war after he is "cut off" for a period of 62
weeks. There is another people who develop a prince to arise and he make war on the sanctuary and city. The city will be the
birth place of Abraham. (Daniel :25:26)
Christian view
-
Christianity emerged in the 1st century A.D. as a movement among Jews (and their Gentile associates and converts) who believed Jesus of Nazareth to be the Messiah; the very name of
"Christian" refers to the Greek word for 'Messiah' (χριστος Khristos). Although Christians commonly refer to Jesus as the
"Christ" instead of "Messiah," in Christian theology the two words are
synonymous.
Christianity claims that Jesus is the Messiah that Jews were expecting (John
1:41-42). The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
However, the Christian concept of the Christ/Messiah is fundamentally different from the Jewish and Muslim (Shafaat, 2003) concepts because a majority of
Christians believe Jesus claimed to be God (cf. John
10:37-38; 14:7-11; 17:5; 17:11 and the following):
- John
10:30 (NIV) I and the Father are one.
- John
10:33 (NIV) ."..you, a mere man, claim to be God..."
- John
14:9b (NIV) "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father."
In Christian theology, the Christ/Messiah serves four main functions:[5]
- He suffers and dies to make atonement before God for the sins of all humanity, because God's justice requires that sins be punished, according to
Penal substitution theology. See for examples Isaiah
52:13-53:12 and Psalm 22, which Christianity interprets as referring to Jesus.
- He serves as a living example of how God expects people to act.
- He will establish peace and rule the world for a long time. See Nicene Creeds of 325
and 381 A.D.; Revelation 20:4-6: "… They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 6 … they will be
priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years." (see Millennialism).
- He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and
he came to earth as a human. John 1:1-2,14a: 1. In the beginning was the Word and the
Word was with God and the Word was God. 2. He was with God in the beginning. 14a The Word became flesh and made his
dwelling among us.
In the New Testament, Jesus often referred to himself as 'Son of Man' (Mark 14:61-62; Luke
22:66-70), which Christianity interprets as a reference to Daniel
7:13-14 (NIV):
- In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He
approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples,
nations and men of every language worshipped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his
kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Because Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah, and that he claimed to be the Son of Man referred to by Daniel,
Christianity interprets Daniel 7:13-14 as a statement of the Messiah's authority and that the Messiah will have an
everlasting kingdom. Jesus' use of this title is seen as a direct claim to be the Messiah.
Some identified Jesus as the Messiah (Mark 8:29) his opponents accused him of such a claim (Luke 23:2),
and he is recorded at least twice as asserting it himself directly (Mark
14:60-62, John 4:25-26).
Christianity interprets a wide range of biblical passages in the Old Testament (Hebrew scripture) as predicting the coming of
the Messiah (see Christianity and Biblical prophecy for examples), and believes that they
are following Jesus' own explicit teaching:
- He said to them..."Did not the Christ/Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?" And beginning with Moses
and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself." (Luke 24: 25-27,
NIV)
- Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will
suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all
nations, beginning at Jerusalem. (Luke 24:45-47, NIV).
- The book of Matthew repeatedly says, "This was to fulfill the prophecy…."
Christianity believes many of the Messianic prophecies were fulfilled in the mission, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and
seeks to spread throughout the world its interpretation that the Messiah is the only Saviour, and that Jesus will
return to fulfill the rest of Messianic prophecy.
Section references: Ankerberg & Weldon, 1997; McDowell, 1999
Mormon view
Mormons believe in the Atonement of the Messiah for the sins of the world parallels that of
other Christian religions. They believe that King David referred to this waiting period in the following quote from Psalms:
| “ |
THE LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make
thine enemies thy footstool. The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of
thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning:
thou hast the dew of thy youth. The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the
order of Melchizedek. The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of
his wrath. He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many
countries. He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head.
Psalms
110:1-7
|
” |
They further believe that in the last days, all the nations of the world will gather against the Jews, and that the Messiah
will return and stand on the Mount of Olives, causing it to split and allowing the
residue of the Jews to flee out of Jerusalem:
| “ |
Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in
the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled,
and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off
from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of
battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of
Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of
the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains;
for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days
of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee. And it shall come to pass
in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the
LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.
Zechariah
14:1-7
|
” |
It is there, after their flight from the city, that Christ will present himself to the Jews so that they may see the wounds of
his crucifixion, and they will realize that he was their Messiah:
| “ |
And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall
answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
Zechariah
13:6
|
” |
Islamic view: Jesus to return
-
Muslims believe that Jesus is alive in Heaven, and will return as the Messiah to Earth to defeat the Antichrist.
A hadith in Abu Dawud (Sunnan Abu Dawud 37:4310) says:
- "Narrated Abu Hurayrah: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: There is no prophet
between me and him, that is, Jesus (peace be upon him). He will descend (to the earth). When you see him, recognise him: a man of
medium height, reddish fair, wearing two light yellow garments, looking as if drops were falling down from his head though it
will not be wet. He will fight for the cause of Islam. He will break the cross, kill swine, and abolish jizyah. God will perish all religions except Islam. He will destroy the Antichrist and will live on the earth for
forty years and then he will die. The Muslims will pray behind him."
Muslims believe that al-Mahdi will arrive first, and after him, Jesus. Jesus will proclaim that the true leader is al-Mahdi. A
war, literally Jihad (Jihade Asghar) will be fought - the Dajjal (evil) against al-Mahdi and Jesus (good). This war will mark the
approach of the coming of the Last Day. After Jesus slays al-Masīh al-Dajjāl (literally "the
Deceiving Messiah," loosely the Antichrist; often referred to simply as "Dajjāl") at the Gate
of Lud, Muslims believe he will marry, die, and be buried in the Masjid al Nabawi. During his life, he will have revealed that Islam is the last word of God.
A hadith in Sahih Bukhari (4:55:658) says:
- "How will you be when the son of Mary descends amongst you and he will judge people by the Law of the Qur'an and not by the
law of the Man."
A very few scholars outside of Orthodox Islam reject all the quotes attributed to Muhammad (Hadith) that mention the second
return of Jesus, the Dajjal and Imam Mahdi, believing that they have no Qur'anic basis. These
scholars believe that the verb “mutawwafika” in verse [Qur'an 3:55] implies that God
caused the bodily death of Jesus, thus (3:55) should read as “O Jesus, I terminate your life, raise you to Me.” Others disagree
with the implication of termination of Jesus’ life (for example Yusuf Ali’s translation reads: “O Jesus! I will take thee and
raise thee to Myself”). Verses [Qur'an 4:157] imply that Jesus
was not killed; Verse [Qur'an 19:33] implies that Jesus
will die someday. The vast majority of Muslims, and the unified opinion of Orthodox Islam since Islam's coming, maintain that the
bodily death of Jesus will happen after his second coming.
Many classical commentators such as Ibn Kathir, At-Tabari, al-Qurtubi, Suyuti, al-Undlusi (Bahr al-Muhit), Abu al-Fadl
al-Alusi (Ruh al-Maani) and many others clearly mention that verse [Qur'an 43:61] of the Qur'an
refers to the descent of Jesus before the Day of Resurrection, indicating that Jesus would be the Sign that the Hour is
close.
- "And (Jesus) shall be a Sign (for the coming of) the Hour (of Judgment): therefore have no doubt about the (Hour)..."
([Qur'an 43:61]){Daniel 9:25-26)
Those that reject the second coming of Jesus argue that the knowledge of the Hour is only with God, and that the Hour will
come suddenly. They maintain that if the second coming of Jesus were true, whenever it happens, billions of people would then be
certain the Hour is about to come. The response given to this is that signs that the Last Hour is near have been foretold and
given, including that of the second coming of Jesus, as signs indicating the Last Hour is near. They will not clarify when it is
to come in any specific sense, and hence do not reveal it.
Another relevant verse from the Qur'an:
- "And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in him before his death" ([Qur'an 4:159])
As an example of a Qur'anic verse that is considered to refer to the end time events:
- "Before this We wrote in the Psalms, after the Message (given to Moses): My servants the righteous, shall inherit the earth."
([Qur'an 21:105])
Bahá'í Faith
Bahá'ís believe in the essential unity of all the Prophets, as Manifestations of the
same God. As such each Prophet is a return of the last prophet, the same spirit and message, and the only difference is in the
non-essential teachings related to the exigencies of the day and age.
"Bahá'ís believe that in the past literal interpretations of the signs related to the Messiah, the Second Coming, or the Mahdi have blinded people's eyes towards the message
of God: (Daniel 9:25-26)
- Consider the past. How many, both high and low, have, at all times, yearningly awaited the advent of the Manifestations of
God in the sanctified persons of His chosen Ones. How often have they expected His coming, how frequently have they prayed that
the breeze of Divine mercy might blow, and the promised Beauty step forth from behind the veil of concealment, and be made
manifest to all the world. And whensoever the portals of grace did open, and the clouds of divine bounty did rain upon mankind,
and the light of the Unseen did shine above the horizon of celestial might, they all denied Him, and turned away from His face —
the face of God Himself…." Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh
Other Messiahs
See Jewish Messiah claimants for an overview of such claimants and links to
more detailed articles.
In Stregheria, Jesus of Nazareth is believed to have been a sort of "evil messiah" or
false messiah, while Aradia de
Toscano is seen as the true saviour who came to free the poor and the oppressed from the bondages of
Christianity.[citation needed]
Adherents to the Unification Movement consider Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon to be the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
The Shakers believed that Jesus was the male Messiah and Mother Ann
Lee, the female Messiah.
For the Rastafari movement, Haile
Selassie of Ethiopia is the messiah.
The Ahmadi/Ahmadiyya community, considered deviated by mainstream Islam, believes that the
Messiah and Mahdi have come in the form of Mirza Ghulam
Ahmad of Qadian, India (1835-1908).
Messianic figure
A messianic figure is a person who is viewed as having a number of the characteristics of the Messiah in the eyes of a
particular group. These usually include that the person is charismatic, influential, develops a
power base, is appealing to a large group that views itself as oppressed in some way, and appears to offer a way to overthrow
that oppression. Examples of messianic figures include St. Joan of Arc, said to have visions
to deliver France from English domination near the
end of the Hundred Years' War, and Adolf
Hitler, who claimed he would deliver post-World War I Germany from economic oppression caused by reparations and protect Germany from Communists.
Notes
- ^ Liddell & Scott's Greek-English Lexicon
- ^ Arabic for Messiah
- ^ [1]
- ^ Schwartzman, 2004
- ^ Ankerberg & Weldon, pp. 218-223
References
Books
- Evangelical Christian:
- Ankerberg, John; Weldon, John [1997]. "Chap. 11. Biblical Prophecy-Part One", Ready With an Answer for the Tough Questions
About God (paperback) (in English), Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers. ISBN 1-56507-618-4.
- McDowell, Josh [October 22, 1999]. New
Evidence that Demands a Verdict — Fully Updated to Answer the Questions Challenging Christians Today, The (hardcover), 1st
Ed. (in English), Nelson Reference. ISBN 0-7852-4363-1.
On-line
Judaism
Christianity Islam Non-specific
religious
- Kinkaid, Julian (1992). The Messianic Hope. BiblicalStudies.org.uk. Retrieved on 2006-04-06.
General
See also
External links
Non-specific religious
Jewish
Christian
Islam
Ahmadiyya Community
bpy:মেসসইয়াস
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