Tarikh (al-Tabari) 391
the accounts of past peoples from the Israelites and others
تَائِبٌ مِنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ : عَنْ كَعْبِ الْأَحْبَارِ: أَنَّ رَجُلًا مِنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَتَى فَاحِشَةً، فَدَخَلَ نَهْرًا يَغْتَسِلُ [ فِيهِ ] فَنَادَاهُ الْمَاءُ يَا فُلَانُ أَلَمْ تَسْتَحْيِ أَلَمْ تَتُبْ مِنْ هَذَا الذَّنْبِ، وَقُلْتَ: إِنَّكَ لَا تَعُودُ فِيهِ فَخَرَجَ مِنَ الْمَاءِ فَزِعًا وَهُوَ يَقُولُ: لَا أَعْصِي اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ. فَأَتَى جَبَلًا فِيهِ اثْنَا عَشَرَ رَجُلًا يعَبْدُونَ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى فَلَمْ يَزَلْ مَعَهُمْ حَتَّى قَحَطَ مَوْضِعُهُمْ، فَنَزَلُوا يَطْلُبُونَ الْكَلَأَ، فَمَرُّوا عَلَى ذَلِكَ النَّهْرِ، فَقَالَ لَهُمُ الرَّجُلُ: أَمَّا أَنَا فَلَسْتُ بِذَاهِبٍ مَعَكُمْ، قَالُوا: لِمَ ؟ قَالَ: لِأَنَّ ثَمَّ مَنْ قَدِ اطَّلَعَ مِنِّي عَلَى خَطِيئَةٍ فَأَنَا أَسْتَحِي مِنْهُ أَنْ يَرَانِي، فَتَرَكُوهُ، وَمَضَوْا فَنَادَاهُمُ النَّهْرُ، يَا أَيُّهَا الْعُبَّادُ، مَا فَعَلَ صَاحِبُكُمْ، قَالُوا: زَعَمَ [ لَنَا ] أَنَّ هَاهُنَا مِنْ [ قَدِ ] اطَّلَعَ مِنْهُ عَلَى خَطِيئَةٍ فَهُوَ يَسْتَحِي مِنْهُ أَنْ يَرَاهُ، قَالَ: يَا سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ، إِنَّ بَعْضَكُمْ يَغْضَبُ عَلَى وَلَدِهِ أَوْ عَلَى بَعْضِ قَرَابَاتِهِ، فَإِذَا تَابَ وَرَجَعَ إِلَى مَا يُحِبُّ أَحَبَّهُ، وَإِنَّ صَاحِبَكُمْ قَدْ تَابَ وَرَجَعَ إِلَى مَا أُحِبُّ، فَأَنَا أُحِبُّهُ. فَأتَوْهُ فَأَخْبَرُوهُ وَعَبَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَى شَاطِئِ [ النَّهْرِ ] فَأَخْبَرُوهُ، فَجَاءَ مَعَهُمْ، فَأَقَامُوا يعَبْدُونَ اللَّهَ زَمَانًا، ثُمَّ إِنَّ صَاحِبَ الْفَاحِشَةِ تُوُفِّيَ، فَنَادَاهُمُ النَّهْرُ: يَا أَيُّهَا الْعُبَّادُ، غَسِّلُوهُ مِنْ مَائِي، وَادْفِنُوهُ عَلَى شَاطِئِي حَتَّى يُبْعَثَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ مِنْ قُرْبِي، فَفَعَلُوا ذَلِكَ بِهِ، وَقَالُوا: نَبِيتُ لَيْلَتَنَا هَذِهِ عَلَى قَبْرِهِ لِنَبْكِيَ فَإِذَا أَصْبَحْنَا سِرْنَا، فَبَاتُوا عَلَى قَبْرِهِ يَبْكُونَ. فَلَمَّا جَاءَ وَجْهُ السَّحَرِ غَشِيَهُمُ النُّعَاسُ، فَأَصْبَحُوا وَقَدْ أَثْبَتَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَلَى قَبْرِهِ اثْنَتَيْ عَشْرَةَ سَرْوَةً، وَكَانَ أَوَّلُ سَرْوٍ أَنْبَتَهُ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَلَى وَجْهِ الْأَرْضِ، فَقَالُوا: فَمَا أَنْبُتَ اللَّهُ هَذَا الشَّجَرَ فِي هَذَا الْمَكَانِ، إِلَّا وَقَدْ أَحَبَّ عِبَادَتَنَا فِيهِ، فَأَقَامُوا يعَبْدونَ اللَّهَ عَلَى قَبْرِهِ، كُلَّمَا مَاتَ فِيهِمْ رَجُلٌ دَفَنُوهُ إِلَى جَانِبِهِ، حَتَّى مَاتُوا بِأَجْمَعِهِمْ. قَالَ كَعْبٌ: فَكَانَتْ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ يَحُجُّونَ إِلَى قُبُورِهِمْ رَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِمْ.
Translation
✧ A repentant man among the Children of Israel: From Kaʿb al-Aḥbār: A man among the Children of Israel committed an indecency. He entered a river to bathe [in it], and the water called out to him: “O so-and-so, are you not ashamed? Will you not repent of this sin? You had said you would not return to it.” He came out of the water in terror, saying: “I will not disobey Allah, the Mighty and Majestic.” He came to a mountain where there were twelve men worshipping Allah, the Exalted, and he remained with them until their place suffered drought, so they went down seeking pasture. They passed by that river, and the man said to them: “As for me, I am not going with you.” They asked: “Why?” He said: “Because there is someone there who has become aware of my sin, and I am ashamed for him to see me.” So they left him and went on. The river called out to them: “O worshippers, what has become of your companion?” They said: “He claimed to us that there is someone here who has become aware of his sin, and he is ashamed for him to see him.” It said: “Glory be to Allah! One of you may become angry with his son or with some of his relatives, but if the son repents and returns to what he loves, he loves him. Your companion has repented and returned to what I love, so I love him.” They came to him and told him, and they worshipped Allah on the bank of [the river]. Then the man of the indecency died, and the river called out to them: “O worshippers, wash him with my water and bury him on my bank, so that he may be raised on the Day of Resurrection from near me.” They did that for him, and they said: “We will spend this night at his grave, weeping, and when morning comes we will depart.” So they spent the night at his grave weeping. When the last part of the night came, slumber overcame them, and when they awoke, Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, had caused twelve cypress trees to stand fixed upon his grave. It was the first cypress that Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, caused to grow on the face of the earth. They said: “Allah has caused this tree to grow in this place only because He loves our worship here.” So they remained worshipping Allah at his grave, and whenever one of them died, they buried him beside it, until they all died. Kaʿb said: The Children of Israel used to make pilgrimage to their graves—may Allah's mercy be upon them.
Grades by grader
No grade is recorded for this wording.