Among our dwellings there was a Jew. One morning he came out to the gathering place of his people, the Banu ʿAbd al-Ashhal, and began to speak about the resurrection, the Day of Judgment, Paradise and Hell, the Reckoning, and the Balance. He said all this to a people devoted to an idol, who did not believe that any resurrection would occur after death—and this was before Allah’s Messenger was sent.

They said, “Woe to you, so-and-so—or: shame on you! Is it really true that people will be raised after they die and taken to an abode in which there is Paradise and Hell, where they will be requited for their deeds?”

He replied, “Yes, by the One by whom oaths are sworn! I would wish that my share of that Fire were only that you light the largest oven in your house, heat it fiercely, then hurl me into it and seal it over me, and that I should thereby escape from that Fire tomorrow.”

So they asked, “O so-and-so, what will be the sign of this?”

He said, “A Prophet who will be sent from the direction of these lands,” and he pointed with his hand toward Mecca and Yemen.

They asked, “When do you think he will appear?” He cast his glance around and saw me, while I was