This points to a heart of unblemished purity: he accepted the man’s oath, supposing that no one would dare swear by the majesty of God while lying, and he gave that oath precedence over what his own eyes had witnessed. He therefore excused the man, reproached himself, and said:

“I believe in God,”

that is, “I accept your word and reject my own sight because of your oath.”

Al-Bukhārī (1) reported: Muḥammad ibn Yūsuf narrated to us; Sufyān narrated to us, from al-Mughīrah ibn al-Nuʿmān, from Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: The Messenger of God ﷺ said:

“You will be gathered barefoot, naked, and uncircumcised.”

He then recited, “Just as We originated the first creation, We shall repeat it. That is a promise binding upon Us; We shall certainly do it” (Q 21:104).

“The first of creation to be clothed will be Abraham. Then some men from among my Companions will be led off to the right and to the left. I shall say, ‘My Companions!’ but it will be said to me, ‘They continued to turn back on their heels after you left them.’ I shall then say what the righteous servant, Jesus son of Mary, said: ‘For as long as I remained among them I was a witness over them, but when You took me to Yourself, You were the Watcher over them. You are Witness over all things. If You punish them, they are Your servants; and if You forgive them, surely You alone are the Mighty, the Wise’ (Q 5:117–118).”

Al-Bukhārī alone recorded this version; Muslim did not transmit it through this chain.

He (2) also said: ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Zubayr al-Humaydī narrated to us; Sufyān narrated to us. I heard al-Zuhrī say: ʿUbayd Allāh ibn ʿAbd Allāh informed me, from Ibn ʿAbbās, who heard ʿUmar say from the pulpit: I heard the Messenger of God ﷺ say:

“Do not extol me as the Christians extolled Jesus son of Mary. I am only a servant, so say: ‘The servant of God and His Messenger.’”

Al-Bukhārī (3) also said: Muslim ibn Ibrāhīm narrated to us; Jarīr ibn Ḥāzim narrated to us, from Muḥammad ibn Sīrīn, from Abū Hurayrah, from the Prophet ﷺ, who said:

“Only three spoke while still in the cradle: Jesus; and among the Children of Israel there was a man named Jurayj. He was praying in his hermitage when his mother came and called him. He wondered, ‘Shall I respond to her or continue my prayer?’ She then prayed, ‘O God, do not let him die until You show him the faces of the prostitutes.’

“Jurayj lived in a cell. A woman tried to seduce him but he refused, so she went to a shepherd, offered herself to him, and bore a child. When she was asked, ‘Whose child is this?’ she replied, ‘Jurayj’s.’ They came to him, demolished his hermitage, dragged him down, and reviled him. He performed ablution and prayed, then approached the infant and said, ‘Little one, who is your father?’ The baby answered, ‘So-and-so, the shepherd.’ They said, ‘Shall we rebuild your hermitage of gold?’ He replied, ‘No—only of clay.’

“There was also a woman nursing her son among the Children of Israel, and a man passed by her …”