Commentary

ذَٰلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْ‌يَمَ

"This is ` Isa, the son of Maryam." - 19:34.

The beliefs of the Jews and the Christians about Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) were on such opposite extremes that the Christians exalted him to such a level of reverence that they regarded him as the son of Allah. The Jews on the other hand, denigrated him maliciously and called him (God forbid) the illegitimate son of Yusuf (Joseph) the carpenter. Allah Ta` ala has pointed out the error of both the views in these verses and clarified the correct position.

The phrase قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ (translated in the text as 'the word of truth' in the normal reading is with fathah on the letter Lam (لَ ). In this case the sentence along with its understood words will run like اَقُولُ قَولَ الحَقِّ that is, 'I say the word of truth'. However, in some readings the letter 'Lam' in 'Qawl' is rendered with Dammah i.e. قَوْلُ الْحَقِّ. In this case the sentence will mean that Sayyidna 'Isa (علیہا السلام) himself was a word of truth. It is, then, analogous to the title of کَلِمَۃُ اللہِ (the word of Allah) which is given to him to denote that he was born directly by the word of Allah, having no connection with an apparent cause in this world. (Qurtubi)