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Death of Prophet Yaḥyá (John), the son of Prophet Zakariyyah (Zachariah)

hakim:3146 – Abū Zakariyyā al-ʿAnbarī > Muḥammad b. ʿAbd al-Salām > Isḥāq b. Ibrāhīm > Abū Muʿāwiyah > al-Aʿmash > al-Minhāl b. ʿAmr > Saʿīd b. Jubayr

regarding Allah's statement, "They kill the prophets unjustly and they kill those who enjoin justice among people" [Āl ʿImrān 3:21]. He said, ʿĪsá (Jesus), the son of Mary was sent with twelve men from the disciples who taught people. He used to ˹teach them to˺ prohibit them from marrying their nieces. There was a king (Herod Antipas) who had a niece ˹named Herodias˺ who was taken by him so he desired her. He used to fulfill her needs every day.

˹Herodias'˺ mother said to her, "If he asks you about your need, tell him to kill Yaḥyá (John), the son of Zakariyyah (Zachariah)." King ˹Herod˺ asked her, "˹What is˺ your need?" She replied, "My need is for Yaḥyá, the son of Zakariyyah, to be killed." The king said, "Ask for something else." She said, "I ask for nothing else." When ˹Yaḥyá ˺ came, he gave the order, and he was beheaded on a tray.

A drop of his blood continued to boil until Allah sent Bukhtanaṣṣar (Nebuchadnezzar). An old man directed him ˹to the boiling blood˺, and it entered his mind that the killing should not stop until this blood settles down. So he killed seventy thousand people in one day in one stroke, and in one house.  

الحاكم:٣١٤٦ – أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو زَكَرِيَّا الْعَنْبَرِيُّ ثنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ السَّلَامِ ثنا إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ ثنا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ ثنا الْأَعْمَشُ عَنِ الْمِنْهَالِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ جُبَيْرٍ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ

فِي قَوْلِهِ ﷻ {وَيَقْتُلُونَ النَّبِيِّينَ بِغَيْرِ حَقٍّ وَيَقْتُلُونَ الَّذِينَ يَأْمُرُونَ بِالْقِسْطِ مِنَ النَّاسِ} [آل عمران 21] قَالَ بُعِثَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ فِي اثْنَيِ عَشَرَ رَجُلًا مِنَ الْحَوَارِيِّينَ يُعَلِّمُونَ النَّاسَ فَكَانَ يَنْهَاهُمْ عَنْ نِكَاحِ ابْنَةِ الْأَخِ وَكَانَ مَلِكٌ لَهُ ابْنَةُ أَخٍ تُعْجِبُهُ فَأَرَادَهَا وَجَعَلَ يَقْضِي لَهَا كُلَّ يَوْمٍ حَاجَةً۔

فَقَالَتْ لَهَا أُمُّهَا إِذَا سَأَلَكِ عَنْ حَاجَتِكِ فَقُولِي لَهُ أَنْ تُقْتَلَ يَحْيَى بْنَ زَكَرِيَّا فَقَالَ لَهَا الْمَلِكُ حَاجَتُكِ؟ فَقَالَتْ حَاجَتِي أَنْ تُقْتَلَ يَحْيَى بْنَ زَكَرِيَّا فَقَالَ سَلِي غَيْرَ هَذَا فَقَالَتْ لَا أَسْأَلُ غَيْرَ هَذَا فَلَمَّا أَتَى أَمَرَ بِهِ فَذُبِحَ فِي طَسْتٍ۔

فَبَدَرَتْ قَطْرَةٌ مِنْ دَمِهِ فَلَمْ تَزَلْ تَغْلِي حَتَّى بَعَثَ اللَّهُ بُخْتَنَصَّرَ فَدَلَّتْ عَجُوزٌ عَلَيْهِ فَأُلْقِيَ فِي نَفْسِهِ أَنْ لَا يَزَالَ الْقَتْلُ حَتَّى يَسْكُنَ هَذَا الدَّمُ فَقَتَلَ فِي يَوْمٍ وَاحِدٍ مِنْ ضَرْبٍ وَاحِدٍ وَبَيْتٍ وَاحِدٍ سَبْعِينَ أَلْفًا  

«هَذَا حَدِيثٌ صَحِيحٌ عَلَى شَرْطِ الشَّيْخَيْنِ وَلَمْ يُخْرِجَاهُ وَلَهُ شَاهِدٌ غَرِيبٌ الْإِسْنَادِ وَالْمَتْنِ» على شرط البخاري ومسلم

See similar narrations below:

Collected by Ḥākim

Death of Prophet Yaḥyá (John), the son of Prophet Zakariyyah (Zachariah)

hakim:4151 – Muḥammad b. Yaʿqūb al-Ḥāfiẓ

Jesus, the son of Mary, and John, the son of Zachariah, were sent with twelve thousand disciples to teach people. It is said that they prohibited the marriage of the niece of their king, ˹Herodias˺, who was fond of her and intended to marry her. She had a daily request which he fulfilled for her. When her mother learned of this, she advised her daughter ˹Herodias˺ to ask King ˹Herod˺ for a favor when she visited him. She said, "Ask him to have John, the son of Zachariah, beheaded for me." When she went in to see King ˹Herod˺, he asked her what she wanted, and she said that she wanted John, the son of Zachariah to be beheaded. However, King ˹Herod˺ asked her to request something else, but she that she did not want anything other than this.

When she persisted, the king called for John, the son of Zachariah, and ordered him to be beheaded. A drop of his blood fell on the ground, and it continued to boil until Allah sent a Nebuchadnezzar upon them. An old man from the Children of Israel guided him to that blood, and God placed in his heart the idea that they should be killed in revenge for that blood. As a result, seventy thousand of them were killed in a single day, and then the violence ceased.  

الحاكم:٤١٥١ – أَخْبَرَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَعْقُوبَ الْحَافِظُ ثنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ إِسْحَاقَ الثَّقَفِيُّ ثنا مُسْلِمُ بْنُ جُنَادَةَ ثنا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ عَنِ الْأَعْمَشِ عَنِ الْمِنْهَالِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ جُبَيْرٍ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ

بُعِثَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ وَيَحْيَى بْنُ زَكَرِيَّا فِي اثْنَيْ عَشَرَ أَلْفًا مِنَ الْحَوَارِيِّينَ يُعَلِّمُونَ النَّاسَ قَالَ وَكَانَ فِيمَا يَنْهَوْنَهُمْ عَنْهُ نِكَاحُ ابْنَةِ الْأَخِ قَالَ وَكَانَتْ لِمَلِكِهِمُ ابْنَةُ أَخٍ تُعْجِبُهُ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَتَزَوَّجُهَا فَكَانَتْ لَهَا كُلَّ يَوْمٍ حَاجَةٌ يَقْضِيهَا فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ ذَلِكَ أُمَّهَا قَالَتْ لَهَا إِذَا دَخَلْتِ عَلَى الْمَلِكِ فَسَأَلَكِ حَاجَتَكِ فَقُولِي حَاجَتِي أَنْ تَذْبَحَ لِي يَحْيَى بْنَ زَكَرِيَّا۔ فَلَمَّا دَخَلَتْ عَلَيْهِ سَأَلَهَا حَاجَتَهَا فَقَالَتْ حَاجَتِي أَنْ تَذْبَحَ يَحْيَى بْنَ زَكَرِيَّا فَقَالَ سَلِينِي غَيْرَ هَذَا فَقَالَتْ مَا أَسْأَلُكَ إِلَّا هَذَا۔

فَقَالَ فَلَمَّا أَبَتْ عَلَيْهِ دَعَا يَحْيَى بْنَ زَكَرِيَّا وَدَعِي بِطَشْتٍ فَذَبَحَهُ فَدَرَّتْ قَطْرَةً مِنْ دَمِهِ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ فَلَمْ تَزَلْ تَغْلِي حَتَّى بَعَثَ اللَّهُ بُخْتَنَصَّرَ عَلَيْهِمْ فَجَاءَتْهُ عَجُوزٌ مِنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ فَدَلَّتْهُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ الدَّمِ فَأَلْقَى اللَّهُ فِي قَلْبِهِ أَنْ يَقْتُلَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ الدَّمِ مِنْهُمْ حَتَّى يَسْكُنَ فَقَتَلَ سَبْعِينَ أَلْفًا مِنْهُمْ مِنْ سِنٍّ وَاحِدَةٍ حَتَّى سَكَنَ  

«هَذَا حَدِيثٌ صَحِيحٌ إِسْنَادُهُ عَلَى شَرْطِ الشَّيْخَيْنِ وَلَمْ يُخَرِّجَاهُ» قد مر وأنه على شرط البخاري ومسلم