Jesus on Ethics: Forty Ahadith

Guidance from God Revealed to Jesus, the son of Mary

O Jesus! I am your Lord and the Lord of your father. My name is One and I am the One, the Unique in having created everything. All things have been made by Me and all return to Me.

O Jesus! You are the Messiah by My command, and you create from clay what has a shape like a bird by My permission, and you revive the dead by My word. So be one who beseeches Me and one who fears Me, and apart from Me seek no sanctuary except toward Me.

O Jesus! I showed you tenderness through mercy until you became worthy of My friendship because you sought My pleasure. Thus, you were blessed when old and you were blessed when young wherever you were. I bear witness that you are My servant, son of my handmaid. Let Me into your soul as your foremost regard, and make the remembrance of Me the means to your return. Draw near to Me through the supererogatory deeds, and trust in Me that I may suffice for you, and do not trust in any other than Me, so that I abandon you.

O Jesus! Be patient with calamities and be content with the decree. Be in such a way that I will be happy with you, because what pleases Me is obedience without sin.

O Jesus! Enliven the remembrance of Me by your tongue, and let there be love for Me in your heart.

O Jesus! Wake up at the hours of neglecting and give your decisions for my sake with subtle wisdom.

O Jesus! Be one who beseeches and fears Me, and let your heart die in awe of Me.

O Jesus! Be vigilant through the night seeking My pleasure, and thirst through your day for the day when you are in need of Me.

O Jesus! Compete with others by doing good as hard as you can so that you will be well known for good wherever you go.

O Jesus! Judge among my servants though My counsel and establish My justice for I have given you a cure for hearts against satanic disease.

O Jesus! Do not associate with anyone infatuated [with the world].

O Jesus! Indeed I say, no creature believed in Me without becoming humble to Me, and no creature became humble to Me without seeking My requital; so bear witness that such a one is secure from My punishment unless he changes or alters My norm.

O Jesus, son of the Virgin Lady! Weep for yourself with the weeping of one who bade goodbye to his home, deserted this world, and left it to the worldly so that he became one beseeching what is with his God.

O Jesus! In addition, be someone who speaks mildly, who offers greetings vigorously, and who keeps awake while the eyes of the pious sleep. Do this in order to beware of the Day of the Return and severe earthquakes and the terrors of the Resurrection Day when neither household nor wealth nor offspring shall profit one.

O Jesus! Adorn your eyes with a touch of sadness when the vain (i.e., foolish) laugh.

O Jesus! Be one of those who humble themselves and are patient, for if you attain that of which the patient have been promised, you are most fortunate.

O Jesus! Day by day abandon this world and taste that which has lost its taste, for truly I tell you: you live to an appointed hour and an appointed day, so pass through this world by what is sufficient for your survival, and be content with coarse food and rough dress. After you have seen what your destiny is to be, know that what you have spent and wasted is recorded.

O Jesus! You are responsible, so be merciful toward the weak, just as I am merciful toward you, and do not be cruel to the orphan.

O Jesus! Weep over yourself in seclusion; let your feet regularly make for the places where prayers are performed, and let Me hear the sweetest melody of the words you say in remembrance of Me. Verily, what I have done for you is good.

O Jesus! I have preserved you for the sins of many nations that I have caused to perish.

O Jesus! Minister to the weak and turn your weary eyes toward the sky and ask your needs from Me, for I am near to you, and do not call upon Me except as one who pleads with Me, and whose concern is a single concern. Then, when you call on Me in this way, I will answer you.

O Jesus! I am not content that the world should be the reward of those who were near you, nor as a chastisement for those you would punish.

O Jesus! You perish and I remain, and your provision is from Me. The term appointed for you is with Me, to Me is your return, and with Me is your reckoning. So ask from Me and do not ask from any other, so that your supplication may be suitable, and I will answer it.

O Jesus! How numerous are people and how few is the number of the patient? The trees are numerous, but those that are good among them are few. Do not be deceived by the beauty of a tree until you taste its fruit.

O Jesus! Do not be deceived by he who rebels against Me by sin. He eats what I have provided for him but he serves another. Then he calls on Me in his sorrow, and I answer him. Then he returns to what he had been doing. Does he rebel against Me or does he seek My wrath? By Me, I have sworn I will take him with a taking from which he cannot be delivered, and from where other than Me he can find no shelter. Where will he escape from My heaven and earth?

O Jesus! Say to the unjust from the children of Israel, do not call upon Me while you are involved in unlawful dealings and there are idols in your houses, for I have resolved that I will respond to them who call upon Me, and my response to their calls will be curses upon them lasting until they disperse.

O Jesus! How long must I wait and hope for good from people while they are heedless and reluctant to return? The words that emit from their mouths do not do not correspond to what is in their hearts, they subject themselves to my loathing, while seeking the love of the believers by [feigning] drawing near to Me.

O Jesus! Let your tongue say the same in secret and in the open, and let your heart and your vision be in accord with that. Turn your heart and your tongue entirely away from the forbidden, and withhold your eyes from anything in which there is no good. How many a beholder has there been whose look planted in their hearts a lust and threw them into the pit of destruction.

O Jesus! Be merciful with great mercy, behave in such a way that you wish others to treat you, increase your remembrance of death and departing from your household, avoid wasting your time, for wasting time corrupts one, and do not be heedless, for he who is heedless of Me is far away from Me. And remember Me by doing righteous acts so that I will remember you.

O Jesus! Turn toward Me after sinning, and remind those who are penitent of Me. Believe in Me and seek nearness to the believers by Me, bid them to call upon Me with you, and beware of the call of the wronged one, for I have resolved to open a gate in the heavens to accept it and to answer him, even if later.

O Jesus! Know that evil ones infect others and the companions of evil cause others to perish, and know those to whom you are near, and choose for yourselves brothers from the believers.

O Jesus! Turn toward Me, for no sin is too great for Me to forgive, as I am the most Merciful of the Merciful. Work for yourself in the period before your death for your heirs may fail to do it for you. Worship Me for a day that is equal to a thousand years of what you reckon in which I repay for the good many times over, and evil deeds will corrupt one who performs them; so prepare the way for yourself throughout the period appointed for you, and compete with others to do whatever is righteous. For how many an assembly there have been from which people rose and were then granted sanctuary from the Fire.

O Jesus! Restrain yourself from being involved in this mortal life which comes to an end and follow in the footsteps of those who have lived before you. Call them and speak to them in confidence. Do you feel their presence? Take your advice from them, and know that soon you will join them.

O Jesus! Tell him who rebels against Me by offense and who would compromise [his religion], that he should await My punishment and expect My destruction of him, soon he will be cut off with the destroyed ones. O son of Mary! Blessed are you, that you take your manners from your God, who shows tenderness toward you mercifully, who first bestowed blessings from Himself generously, and He aids you in difficulties. Do not offend, O Jesus! For offenses are not lawful for you. I have made a covenant with you as I made a covenant with those who were before you, and I am a witness of that.

O Jesus! I have honored no creature as I have My religion, and I have not blessed [any creature] with the like of My mercy [for My religion].

O Jesus! Wash your exterior by water and your interior by good deeds, for verily you are returning to Me. Get ready, for that which is coming is near; and let me hear from you a sad sound.

O Jesus! I have blessed you by grace without pollution, and I sought from you a loan for your soul, then you were stingy, so you will be of those who are destroyed.

O Jesus! Adorn yourself with religion and love of the needy, and walk through the earth modestly. And perform the prayers at any place, for all of them are [ritually] clean.

O Jesus! Be prepared for whatever is coming is near, and recite My book while you are [ritually] clean, and make Me hear from you a sad voice.

O Jesus! There is no good in pleasure that does not continue, and in a life for the one who lives it, that fades away.

O son of Mary! If only your eyes could see that which is furnished as a reward for My righteous friends, your heart would melt and your soul would depart longing for it, for there is no abode like that of the other world, where the good live as neighbors, and the cherubim enter it among them, and they are safe from the fear of the day of resurrection. It is an abode in which blessings do not change and are not lost.

O son of Mary! Vie with others for [that abode], for it is the hope of the hopeful, being such a good sight. Blessed are you, O son of Mary, if you work for it, and you are with your fathers, Adam and Abraham in the Garden of bliss, you seek no alternative to it and no change in it. I do this for the God-wary.

O Jesus! Flee toward Me with those who flee from a fire having a dreadful blaze, having chains and shackles into which no gentle wind enters, from which no gloom ever goes, with sectors like those of the dark night, he who is delivered from it will have attained a great achievement, and those who perish will never be delivered from it. It is the abode of tyrants, the wrongdoing oppressors all who are rudely obstinate, and all who are proud boasters.

O Jesus! It is an evil abode for those who rely on it, and evil place to stay, the abode of the oppressors. I warn you of yourself. So, be aware of Me.

O Jesus! Wherever you are, be observant of Me, and bear witness that it is I who created you, that you are My servant, that I formed you, and conveyed you to the earth.

O Jesus! It is not proper for there to be two tongues in one mouth nor two hearts in one breast, and likewise for minds.

O Jesus! Do not be awake while sinning and do not be aware while wasting time. Wean yourself from destructive lusts and put away every lust that puts you far from Me. Know that to Me you are a trusted apostle, so be careful of Me. Know that your world will give you back to Me, and I will knowingly take you, so abase yourself when you remember Me. Humble your heart when you remember Me. Be awake during the sleep of the negligent.

O Jesus! This is My advice to you and My admonition to you, so take it from Me and I am the Lord of the worlds.

O Jesus! When My servant is patient for My sake, the reward for his work is from Me, and I am beside him when he calls on Me, and I am sufficient in avenging those who disobey Me. Where will the oppressors go to escape from Me?

O Jesus! Make your speech wholesome, and wherever you are, be both learned and a learner.

O Jesus! Send good deeds to Me, so that they will be remembered by Me for you, and grasp My advice. Verily, in it there is a cure for hearts.

O Jesus! Do not feel safe when you devise your plans from My plans, and do not forget, when alone in the world, the remembrance of Me.

O Jesus! By returning to Me, take account of yourself, so the reward may be deserved of those who work. They are given their compensation and I am the best of the givers.

O Jesus! You were created by My word. Mary gave birth to you at My command that I sent to her by My spirit, the trusted Gabriel of My angels, until you grew up as one alive and walking; all of this was in My foreknowledge.

O Jesus! Zachariah is in the position of a father to you and as a guardian to your mother. When he went to her in the prayer niche he found with her provisions. John is like you among My creatures. I granted him to his mother when she was old when she did not have the strength for it. By this, I wanted My sovereignty to appear to her and My power to appear in you. The most beloved of you by Me is the most obedient to Me and the most intense of you in fear of Me.

O Jesus! Wake up and do not despair of My mercy and glorify Me with those who glorify Me, and with wholesome speech hallow Me.

O Jesus! How can the servants disbelieve in Me when their forelocks are in My fist and their changes take place on My earth? They are ignorant of My blessings and they are supporters of My enemy, and so the disbelievers are perishing.

O Jesus! Indeed, this world is a foul prison, and the fair seeming in it is, as you see, that over which the tyrants slaughter one another. Beware, the world and all of its blessings will come to an end, and it has but few blessings.

O Jesus! Seek Me when you go to bed, and you will find Me; call upon me while you love Me, and I am the most hearing of the hearers; I answer the callers when they call upon Me.

O Jesus! Fear Me and make My servants fear Me. Happily the sinners may abstain from what they do because of it, so they do not perish unless they knowingly [do it].

O Jesus! Be afraid of Me as you fear predators and death that you meet. I have created all of them, so of Me alone, be afraid.

O Jesus! Verily, Mine is the kingdom and it is in My hand, and I am the King. If you obey Me, I will make you enter My Garden in the vicinity of the righteous.

O Jesus! If I am angry with you, the pleasure of those who are pleased with you will not benefit you, and if I am pleased with you, the anger of those who are angry with you will not harm you.

O Jesus! Remember Me to yourself, and I will remember you to Myself. Remember Me among your people, and I will remember you among a people better than the children of Adam.

O Jesus! Call upon Me with the call of one who is drowning, afflicted, for whom there is none to aid.

O Jesus! Do not swear by Me falsely, so that My Throne shakes with anger. The world is short lived, but is long on hope, and with Me is a realm better than what you gather.

O Jesus! What will you do when I take out for you a book that speaks in truth, while you witness it, of the secrets you have hidden, and the deeds you have done?

O Jesus! Say to the unjust of the Children of Israel: You wash your faces and soil your hearts. Are you deceived about me, or would you be audacious toward me? For the worldly you use perfumes, but to me your stomachs are like putrid corpse, as though you were a dead people.

O Jesus! Say to them, “Draw back your hands[^1] from illicit gain, stop your ears from listening to curses, and come near to me by your hearts, for your appearance does not appeal to me.”

O Jesus! Rejoice in the good deed, for it pleases Me, and weep over the evil deed, for it is a disgrace. That which you do not like to be done unto you, do not do unto others; if one slaps your right cheek, offer him the left one, draw near to Me by your efforts through love, and ignore the ignorant.

O Jesus! Be humble toward the doers of good deeds and take part with them in such deeds, and be witnesses to them, and say to the unjust of the Children of Israel, “O friends of evil, and those who keep company with it! If you do not comply with the prohibitions, I will transform you into apes and swine.”

O Jesus! Say to the unjust of the Children of Israel that wisdom [those who are wise] weeps in fear of Me, while you [Children of Israel] leave laughing. Has there come to you a reprieve, or is there with you a guarantee against My chastisement, or that you will not be subject to My punishment? I swear by Myself, that I will abandon you as an example for those who remain.

Thus I charge you, O son of Mary, that you bring news to the Children of Israel about the Master of the messengers and My beloved, who is named Ahmad. He has a red camel and a face like the moon, is a shining light, a pure heart, courageous, and venerably modest. Verily, he is a mercy to the worlds, master of the children of Adam on the day of his meeting Me, the most honored of the foremost[^2], the last of the messengers from Me, an Arab, a trustworthy person, one committed to My religion, one patient for My sake, and one who struggles by his hand against the idolaters for the defense of My religion. Order them to affirm him, believe in him, follow him and help him.

Jesus said, “Who is it that I should please? Then, pleasure is for You. God said, “He is Muhammad the Messenger of God to the people, all of them. In station, he is nearer to Me than they; in intercession, he is more ready than they; blessed be he as a prophet, and blessed be his community if they meet Me on his path. The inhabitants of the earth praise him, and the inhabitants of the heavens ask for his forgiveness. He is the trustworthy, the blessed, the wholesome and salutary and better than others with Me. He will be at the end of time.”

When he arrives, the spouts of the heavens are loosed, and the earth puts forth its blossoms, so that they see the benediction. I will bless them by that upon which he puts his hand. He has many wives and few children. He is an inhabitant of Bakkah [Mecca], the place of the foundations of Abraham.

O Jesus! His religion is upright (Hanifiyyah), and his Qiblah is Yemenite[^3] and he is of My party, and I am with him, so blessed be he, then blessed be him. The Kawthar[^4] is for him, and the greatest position in the gardens of Eden. He lives most honored of all who have ever lived, is taken as a martyr, for whom is a fountain greater than the distance from Bakkah to the place of the rising of the sun, full of wine untouched, in which there are dishes like the constellations of the sky, and stars like the clods of the earth, in which is every sort of wine and the flavors of every fruit in the Garden. Whoever drinks a drink from it will never thirst.

It is apportioned for him, and I have preferred him by a period of time between you and him. His secrets agree with what is apparent from him, and his words with his actions. He does not command the people, unless he first begins to practice it. His religion is a struggle in hardship and in comfort. The cities will obey him, and the ruler of Rome will humble himself before him following the religion of Abraham. He will mention the Name of God at meals, and bid peace, and he will pray while the people sleep. For him each day there will be five prayers in succession. His call to prayer will be like the call to muster troops. He will open his prayer with ‘Allahu Akbar (God is the greatest)’ and end it with salutations of peace. He will put his feet in line in prayer as the Angels place their feet in line, and his heart and head will be humbled for Me.

Light is in his breast and truth is on his tongue. And he is in the right, wherever he is. First an orphan, wandering for a time regarding what He wills for him, his eyes sleep but his heart does not, interceding is only for him, and his community will reach the [Final] Hour[^5] and My hand will be above their hands. Whoever breaks [his pledge with the Prophet], breaks [it] against himself, and whoever is loyal to his pledge, I will be loyal to him [awarding to him the Garden]. So command the oppressors of the Children of Israel not to obliterate his books and not to distort his tradition and to offer peace to him. Surely, there is a noble station for him.

O Jesus! Whatever brings you near to Me, I have guided you to it, and all that takes you far from Me, I have prohibited it for you. So, seek what is for your own sake.

O Jesus! Surely this world is sweet, and surely I have employed you in it, so keep aside from you all from which I have warned you, and take from it all that I have given to you in forgiveness.

O Jesus! Look into your deeds with the look of a mistaken sinful servant, and do not look into the works of others from the position of Lord. Be without attachment to [this world], and do not long for it, so that it causes you hardship.

O Jesus! Reason about and contemplate and look into the regions of the earth as to what has been the outcome of the oppressors.

O Jesus! All of My attributes are counsel for you, and all of My speech to you is the Truth, and I am the plain Truth. So, in truth I say, “If you disobey me after I informed you, there is no protector nor helper for you but Me.”

O Jesus! Humble your heart in meekness and look at those who are lower than you and do not look at those who are above you. And know that at the head of every mistake and sin is the love of this world. So, do not love it, for I do not love it either.

O Jesus! Make wholesome your heart for Me and remember Me much in solitude, and know that My pleasure is in your fawning; love Me in an animated and not in a lifeless manner.

O Jesus! Do not make anything My partner, and be wary on account of Me, and do not be deceived by health, so delight in yourself. Surely, this world is like a passing shadow, and what comes from it is like what goes from it. So compete in your struggle for righteousness, and be with truth wherever it is, even if you will be cut or burned by fire. So, do not deny me after knowledge. So, do not be of the ignorant. A thing is surely with things [of its own sort].

O Jesus! Pour forth tears from your eyes for Me, and humble your heart for Me.

O Jesus! Call on Me for help in hard conditions. I am He who helps those who are upset, and He who answers the destitute. And I am the most Merciful of the merciful.”

[^1]: Literally, “Clip your fingernails from illicit gain.”

[^2]: The foremost are the first to have believed in God.

[^3]: The portion of the Arabian penninsula including Mecca and Yemen was referred to as Yemenite.

[^4]: The term kawthar has several meanings. Literally it means ‘abundant [good]’, and in many hadiths it is used in reference to the daughter of the Prophet, Fatimah (peace be with her). It is also considered the name of a fountain in heaven.

[^5]: This indicates that he will be the final prophet.