Jesus — Isa in Arabic — holds a place of deep honor in Islam. He is one of the greatest prophets, and both he and his mother, Mary (Maryam), are revered. At the same time, Islam's understanding of who Jesus is differs in important ways from Christian belief.91011
The Messiah, born of the Virgin Mary
The Quran affirms the virgin birth of Jesus and calls him the Messiah (al-Masih):
"[Mention] when the angels said, 'O Mary, indeed Allah gives you good tidings of a word from Him, whose name will be the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary.'"
— Quran 3:45 (Saheeh International)1
"She said, 'My Lord, how will I have a child when no man has touched me?' [The angel] said, 'Such is Allah; He creates what He wills.'"
— Quran 3:47 (Saheeh International)2
A prophet and servant of God
In the Quran, Jesus describes himself first and foremost as God's servant and prophet:
"[Jesus] said, 'Indeed, I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet.'"
— Quran 19:30 (Saheeh International)3
He performed great miracles — but always by God's permission, never by his own divine power:
"…I heal the blind and the leper, and I give life to the dead — by permission of Allah."
— Quran 3:49 (Saheeh International)4
Honored, but not divine
Here Islam draws a clear line. Muslims love and revere Jesus, but believe he is a human messenger, not God and not the son of God:
"The Messiah, son of Mary, was not but a messenger; [other] messengers have passed on before him."
— Quran 5:75 (Saheeh International)5
"O People of the Scripture, do not commit excess in your religion … do not say, 'Three.' … Allah is but one God. Exalted is He above having a son."
— Quran 4:171 (Saheeh International)6
This is the central difference from mainstream Christianity, which holds Jesus to be divine. Islam honors him profoundly as a prophet while maintaining the absolute oneness of God (Tawhid).
The crucifixion
Islam also differs on the end of Jesus's earthly life. The Quran teaches that he was not killed or crucified, but was raised by God:
"And [for] their saying, 'Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus … ' — and they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them. … Rather, Allah raised him to Himself."
— Quran 4:157-158 (Saheeh International)7
The return of Jesus
Islamic tradition also holds that Jesus will return before the end of times. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:
"The son of Mary will soon descend among you and will judge mankind justly."
— Sahih al-Bukhari 34488
In short
Muslims hold Jesus in the highest honor — as the Messiah, born miraculously of the Virgin Mary, a mighty prophet and worker of miracles by God's leave, who will return at the end of times. Yet in Islam he remains a human messenger of the one God, not divine — a respectful but real point of difference with Christianity.