This Is the Same Revelation
After this, Hazrat Ja‘far رضي الله عنه said:
«“The Messenger of Allah has commanded us to offer prayer and to pay Zakah.”»
At that time, Hazrat ‘Amr ibn al-‘As رضي الله عنه, in order to provoke the Negus, said to him:
«“These people hold a belief about the son of Maryam, that is, ‘Isa عليهما السلام, which is different from yours. They do not believe that he is the son of Allah.”»
Upon this, the Negus asked:
«“What is your belief concerning ‘Isa ibn Maryam and Maryam عليهما السلام?”»
Hazrat Ja‘far رضي الله عنه said:
«“Regarding them, we say only what Allah Almighty says: that he is the Spirit of Allah and the Word of Allah, and that he was born from the womb of the virgin Maryam.”»
Then Hazrat Ja‘far ibn Abi Talib رضي الله عنه delivered the following speech in the king’s court:
«“O King! We were a misguided people. We used to worship stones, eat the meat of dead animals, commit immoral acts, and usurp the rights of our relatives. We treated our neighbors badly. Every powerful person among us would oppress the weak.
This was our condition. Then Allah Almighty sent a Messenger among us, just as Messengers had been sent among the people before us. This Messenger is from among us. We know his lineage, his truthfulness, and his chastity very well.
He called us toward Allah Almighty, teaching us to believe in Him as One, worship Him, and abandon the stones and idols that our forefathers had continued to worship besides Allah.
He commanded us to worship Allah Almighty alone, to offer prayer, pay Zakah, and fast. He commanded us to speak the truth, fulfill trusts, look after our relatives, treat our neighbors well, refrain from evil and bloodshed, and stay away from immorality.
Likewise, he forbade us from using filthy words, consuming the wealth of orphans, and falsely accusing chaste women who remain within their homes.
We affirmed his truthfulness, believed in him, and followed the teachings he brought. It was because of this that our people became our enemies, so that they could force us once again to worship stones.
These people inflicted great oppression upon us. They subjected us to one form of persecution after another and troubled us in every possible way.
Finally, when their oppression exceeded all limits and they became an obstacle in the path of our religion, we set out toward your land. We preferred you over others. We have come here with the hope that we will not be oppressed in your country.”»
After hearing Hazrat Ja‘far رضي الله عنه’s speech, the Negus said:
«“Do you have with you any portion of the revelation that came to your Prophet?”»
“Yes, we do,” Hazrat Ja‘far replied.
“Recite it to me,” said the Negus.
Upon this, he recited some of the opening verses of Surah Maryam from the Holy Qur’an. When the Negus and his courtiers heard the verses, tears came to their eyes.
The Negus said:
«“Recite some more verses to us.”»
Hazrat Ja‘far recited some more verses. Then the Negus said:
«“By Allah! This is indeed the same revelation that ‘Isa عليه السلام brought. By Allah, I will never hand these people over to you.”»
In this way, the Qurayshi delegation returned unsuccessful.
On the other hand, the Muslims in Makkah were still residing in the valley of Shi‘b Abi Talib. They remained there for three years. These three years were years of great hardship. Hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه was born in this very valley.
Seeing these circumstances, some soft-hearted people also became saddened. Such people would somehow manage to send some food and drink to these people.
During this time, Allah Almighty informed the Prophet ﷺ that the written agreement made by Quraysh had been eaten away by termites. Nothing remained of the words of the agreement except the name of Allah.
The Noble Prophet ﷺ told Abu Talib about this. Abu Talib immediately went and said to the people of Quraysh:
«“The termites have eaten away your agreement, and my nephew has informed me of this. Only the name of Allah remains on the agreement. If the matter is as my nephew has told me, then this matter comes to an end. But if you still do not desist, then listen carefully: By Allah, as long as even the last man among us remains alive, we will never hand Muhammad ﷺ over to you.”»
Hearing this, Quraysh said:
«“We accept what you have said. We will examine the agreement.”»
They brought the agreement, and indeed the termites had eaten it away. Only the name of Allah remained.
Thus, the polytheists withdrew from this agreement. The person who had written this agreement became paralyzed in his hand.
After seeing the condition of the agreement, the people of Quraysh came to Shi‘b Abi Talib. They said to the Noble Prophet ﷺ and his companions:
«“Return to your respective homes. The agreement has now come to an end.”»
Thus, after three years, the Noble Prophet ﷺ and his companions returned to their homes, and this chapter of oppression came to an end.
After this incident, a delegation from Najran came to the service of the Prophet ﷺ. These people were Christians. Najran was the name of their settlement. This settlement was situated between Yemen and Makkah and was approximately seven stages away from Makkah.
There were twenty people in this delegation. They had learned about the Noble Prophet ﷺ from those emigrants who had migrated from Makkah to Abyssinia.
The Noble Prophet ﷺ was in the Haram at that time. These people sat before him.
The Quraysh of Makkah were also sitting nearby. They turned their ears toward the conversation between the Prophet ﷺ and the delegation and began listening attentively.