Answering Questions Through The Holy Qur'an: All Jews believing in Jesus before his death?

All Jews believing in Jesus before his death?

4:157 And for their saying, "Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah." And they did not kill him nor did they crucify him; but it was made to appear so to them. And indeed, those who differ in it are surely in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And certainly they did not kill him. 4:158 Nay, Allah raised him towards Him. And Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise. 4:159 And there is none from the People of the Book but must believe in it/him before his death. And on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them.

(One interpretation is that People of the Book (who believe/d in Jesus), they think that they must believe that “Jesus was killed / crucified”, before their own death, in order to be saved, but the Verse says that he (Jesus) will be a witness against them (e.g. against Christians). So, Jesus will be a witness, that he was not crucified / killed, against the Christian belief that he was crucified / killed. So, the sentence “there is none from the People of the Book but must believe in it / him” might refer to a party’s belief of being saved through it, excluding those who could not have such belief (e.g. the Jews). On the other hand, a Jew or Jews were the first one/s having such a belief (e.g. Paul, a Jew, wrongly preached/invented salvation through crucifying Jesus (1 Corinthians 1:18, 1:23, 2:2)))(Another more likely interpretation, taking into account that Jesus was only sent to the Jews, is that all Jews were “required to believe in Jesus” (e.g. they must believe in God’s Message, conveyed by Jesus), before their own death, because those who die while they are disbelievers, they are to be punished (4:18, 2:161-162). So, according to the Verse, Jews must / are required to believe in Jesus, rather than stating that all Jews believe in Jesus)(Jesus came with clear proofs (43:63), so Jews do not have an excuse, but must believe in it, lest they become disbelievers)(According to Verse 4:157, the Jews thought that they had killed Jesus, so the purpose of making them think so was addressed to the Jews, not to the gentiles, because the Verse says “it was made to appear so “to them”” (Jews); and also Jesus was only sent to the Children of Israel. So, in regard to crucifixion, Jesus was the one to be saved, not mankind)(See the links below “Did Jesus die for the sins of mankind? Was Jesus crucified?” and “To whom was Jesus sent?”)(Allah knows best)