Islamic scholars, however, are aware that Christians do not accept the
Qu’ran to be the word of God and hence give no credence to any quotes
from it. Consequently, to further their claims, Islamic apologists turn to the
Gospels and attempt to highlight alleged contradictions and inconsistencies
in order to discredit the crucifixion accounts as fabrications. The following
collection of objections taken from Islamic sources is an example of such
an attempt:
Objection (i): “The Bible testifies to the fact that Jesus was known
among the Jews; he used to preach and deliver sermons in the Temple of
Solomon in Jerusalem. It was therefore unnecessary to hire a Jew for
thirty pieces of silver to direct them as related in Matthew.”
The betrayal of Jesus by Judas was neither unnecessary nor fictional; it was
a tragic fulfilment of centuries-old prophecies made by Jeremiah and
Zechariah (Jer. 32:7-9; Zech. 11:12-13). Jesus certainly was well known
among the Jews for his public preaching, but it was not simply the ordinary
Jews or Scribes and Pharisees who sought and ordered his arrest. This came
at the counsel of the High Priest Caiaphas (St. John 11:49; 18:14). Caiaphas
had not seen Jesus in the flesh; this came only after his arrest (St. Matt.
26:3; St. John 18:28). Consequently, he needed to employ the services of a
one-time intimate associate of Jesus to secure his capture. In any case,
Caiaphas did not seek Judas’ help. Judas offered himself to the Jews to
betray Jesus (St. Matt. 26:14-15). Judas’ offer was an unexpected boost to
the Jewish leadership who were perplexed as to how best to arrest Jesus
and kill him without causing a tumult among the people (St. Matt. 26:5).
Judas knew of the secluded garden across the Kidron Valley where Jesus
often met with his disciples––the Garden of Gethsemane ––a meeting place
unknown to any outside the Twelve (St. John 18:2). It was only here at
night and through the help of Judas that the Jewish leaders could achieve
their objective of arresting Jesus quietly.
Objection (ii): “There are numerous contradictions in the Gospel
accounts of Jesus’ arrest, trial and crucifixion. If Jesus wanted to die for
the redemption of humanity then why did He ask that His Father turn
away the cup of affliction from Him? Furthermore, how could the
Disciples of Jesus be asleep when Jesus was suffering in Garden of
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