Is there an authentic report that indicates the duration of Prophet Jesus's stay among his people?
The scholars differed regarding the duration of Jesus' (peace be upon him) stay among his people before he was raised, due to the absence of an explicit and authentic hadith specifying this. Four opinions have been reported concerning this duration:
1. Thirty-three years: This is the well-known opinion, and they based their evidence on what is narrated in the Sunnah, that the people of Paradise will be at the age of Jesus, thirty-three years old. However, this deduction is not sound in terms of its chain of narration. 2. Forty years: They based their evidence on weak and mursal hadiths, which do not establish this duration. 3. One hundred and twenty years: They based their evidence on a weak hadith that is not sound. 4. Eighty years: This is based on the premise that he will stay on Earth for forty years after his descent, and his total age will be one hundred and twenty years. This interpretation would be valid if the hadith of one hundred and twenty years were authentic, but it is not.
Accordingly, no authentic hadith has specified the duration of Jesus' (peace be upon him) stay among his people before he was raised. However, it has been authentically reported that he will remain on Earth for forty years after his descent.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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