“and His word which He cast to Mary” (4:171).

The word is His pronouncement to him—“Be!”—so Jesus came into existence by the command “Be.” Jesus himself is not the “Be”; rather, he was by means of the “Be.”

It was also reported that Layth narrated from Mujāhid concerning “a spirit from Him” that it means “a messenger from Him.” Mujāhid is referring to the verse, “So We sent to her Our spirit, and it appeared to her as a well-proportioned man” (Maryam 19:17) (17), “She said, ‘Indeed, I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you, if you are God-fearing’” (19:18) (18), “He said, ‘I am only a messenger of your Lord’” (19:19).