Page 60 - The Glad Tidings of the Messiah

58 The Glad Tidings of the Messiah (pbuh)

The Prophet John (pbuh) was a righteous servant of Allah who
feared Him and a guide to enlightenment for his people. Allah
praises him in the Qur'an, as follows:
[We said:] "John, take hold of the Book with vigor." We gave
him judgment while still a child, and tenderness and purity
from Us. He guarded [himself] against evil, was devoted to
his parents, and was not insolent or disobedient. Peace be
upon him the day he was born, and the day he dies, and the
day he is raised up again alive. (Surah Maryam, 12-15)
The Prophet John (pbuh), whom the Gospel also calls a loyal
servant of Allah who had fear for Him warned some Jews who dis-
tanced from the morality of religion about their conceit, and invited
them to abide by Allah's law and to abstain from sin. The Gospel of
Luke relates a conversation between the Prophet John (pbuh) and
some Jews who came to hear him:
John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him: "You brood
of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce
fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to your-
selves: 'We have Abraham as our father,' for I tell you that out of
these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already
at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit
will be cut down and thrown into the fire." "What should we do
then?" the crowd asked. John answered: "The man with two tunics
should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should
do the same." Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teacher," they
asked, "what should we do?" "Don't collect any more than you are
required to," he told them. Then some soldiers asked him: "And what
should we do?" He replied: "Don't extort money, don't accuse people
falsely, and be content with your pay." (Luke 3:7-14)