# What does it mean that Jesus spoke to people in the cradle and in old age?

*Speaking to people in the cradle and in old age, and the infancy gospels*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/2axjjfrnd20/s/2/
- Date: 2019-02-23 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Did Jesus (a.s.) Speak in the Cradle? -Mufti Abu Layth (13:57–17:34)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AxJjFrnD20&t=837s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/2axjjfrnd20/

**Topics:** Jesus in the Quran; Contested verses; The ancient Near East and scripture

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Mufti Abu Layth says the verse means Jesus would relate to people of every age when he preached, not that he spoke as a baby; that story likely came from apocryphal infancy gospels.

**Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says the verse means that Jesus, when he preached, would have such wisdom that he could relate to people of every age, from the very young to the old.

**Evidence, his words at 14:31:** “what that means is that Jesus when he will preach that he will have such wisdom” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AxJjFrnD20&t=871s)

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth turns to the other verse, that Jesus will speak to people in the cradle and in old age, and says it is misread because of the misunderstood Maryam story. Mufti says it means Jesus would preach with such wisdom that he could relate to everyone around him, the very young and the very old, and does not categorically say Jesus himself spoke as a baby. Mufti accepts that the popular story follows from that interpretation but says it rests on apocryphal Christian transmissions such as the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which even Christians did not accept, and suggests early Muslims may have read the verses to match them. Mufti concludes that the story is fine as a nice story when zoomed out but falls apart when zoomed in: Mary was never accused of adultery, the accusers would have killed her, and a speaking infant would have been accepted as the Messiah.

## Sources and names cited

- Quran 3:46 (he will speak to people in the cradle and in maturity): https://quran.com/3/46
- Isa (Jesus)
- Maryam (Mary)
- Infancy Gospel of Thomas
- Gospel of Thomas

## Transcript (machine tier, 13:57–17:34)

[13:18] say how should you want us to speak to somebody who was only a child yesterday because he's 12 and they're belittling him who was just a boy you want us to speak to this boy who was in the Cradle only yesterday this is like when we say to people that you were only born yesterday and and you're trying to teach me this doesn't mean you're literally born yesterday but what it's trying to say is like you have no experience like who are you that is what this verse is mentioning so that's one verse that

[13:57] people misunderstand and they think that oh this is speaking about Jesus was a baby talking to he wasn't doing that the other thing is that they use a verse elsewhere that Jesus and his message that and they think this is referring to Jesus because of the first story that they've misunderstood but it isn't that he will speak to people

[14:31] whether they he will speak to all people that are around him those in the cradle and those of old age too so what that means is that Jesus when he will preach that he will have such wisdom that he will have an expression that it doesn't matter whether they're so young he will be able to relate to them if they're so old he will be able to relate to them if they are amongst the pious he will be able to relate to them that this is not to do with the the subject

[15:11] is to do with the he will speak to people so this is the the the difference so it doesn't categorically say anyway that Jesus himself spoke but I except that that is the popular story going by that interpretation and I think that interpretation is based on the apocryphal kind of um Christian Transmissions that are not reliable but there are some Christian uh like so for example Jesus has some infancy there are some infancy gospels like the infancy

[15:51] Gospel of Thomas uh that's to differentiate from the Gospel of Thomas so he has the Gospel of Thomas Thomas but the infancy gospel of Thomas and things like this where they speak about uh Jesus as a child doing some of these things like he speaks as a baby and does these kind of things but the these were not authentic even the Christians did not accept them now it may have been that in Early Times some Muslims assumed them to be correct and therefore interpreted these verses to match the APO apocryphal gospels that they were finding the infancy Gospels so they may

[16:29] have said ah maybe that's what Allah's trying to say and then they've Twisted it that way but the verses didn't actually say that explicitly and I would say once you zoom in with that story it falls apart so it's okay if you zoom out and it's just a nice story uh and then you could you could believe it it doesn't really make a difference it's just a nice story but when you zoom in it's a problem because nothing adds up because first of all Mary was never accused of adulter at all in her whole lifetime and you know none of these things actually happened so it doesn't add up like what uh and if it

[17:08] had happened they would have just killed her and if this had happened if Jesus spoke as a baby they would have believed him as the Messiah but we never get in there's no such thing as them accepting him as the Messiah and you know he's never considered even special as a boy he just goes back and so none of these things add up when you zoom in so I hope that um makes some sense

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment 2AxJjFrnD20/s/2. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/2axjjfrnd20/s/2/

Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.