Story of `Uzayr
Allah revealed `Uzayr’s story in Sooratul Baqarah, 259, and stated it in brief:
أَوْ كَالَّذِي مَرَّ عَلَى قَرْيَةٍ وَهِيَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَى عُرُوشِهَا قَالَ أَنَّىَ يُحْيِي هَـَذِهِ اللهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا فَأَمَاتَهُ اللهُ مِئَةَ عَامٍ ثُمَّ بَعَثَهُ قَالَ كَمْ لَبِثْتَ قَالَ لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ قَالَ بَل لَّبِثْتَ مِئَةَ عَامٍ فَانظُرْ إِلَى طَعَامِكَ وَشَرَابِكَ لَمْ يَتَسَنَّهْ وَانظُرْ إِلَى حِمَارِكَ وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ ءايَةً لِّلنَّاسِ وَانظُرْ إِلَى العِظَامِ كَيْفَ نُنشِزُهَا ثُمَّ نَكْسُوهَا لَحْمًا فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ قَالَ أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
`Uzayr is a pious Muslim from the Descendants of Israel and his story shows the greatness of Allah’s Power.
The Descendants of Israel were divided into several groups. Some of them were Muslim believers who followed Islam properly and some of them committed blasphemy and started tampering with the religion claiming that what they introduced is the truth.
This induced great tribulations which caused some Prophet to die by the damned people.
When their corruption, tyranny and aggression grew extensively after they killed two noble Prophets: our master Zakariyyah and his son our master Yahyaa Allah AlMuntaqim subjected them to a blasphemous ruler who was called Bakhtanassar or Nebuchadnezzar II (605 BC – 562 BC).
This ruler came from Iraq with a big army to Jerusalem and invaded the Descendants of Israel in their homeland. He killed a large number of them, captured the rest and only a small number of them managed to escape. He ordered his army to bring huge amounts of soil and burry the city until it became like a huge mountain to make them taste of humiliation and sorrow.
Bakhtanassar took the prisoners with him to Babylon and among them were some of the scholars of Baniy Israel who were following Islam. Before leaving Jerusalem they buried the original Torah in a place that they only can identify.
‘Uzayr
Among them was `Uzayr bin Sharkheeyaa who was able to return to Jerusalem after a period of time, but he found it on its fading state. The remaining houses and buildings were destroyed and around them were the torn corps, separated limbs and broken bones. He passed through them pulling his donkey behind him, while surprised of their state.
When he reached to the city’s fields he found them full with fresh soft fruits and became more surprised, since he found the trees fruitful while the people were dead. He said:
Subhaanallaah the One Who has the Power to revive this city and its people after they died.
He took from the grape vines and fig trees and filled his basket. He prepared grape juice in a container and drank from it a little amount. He sat to take a rest under the shade of a tree.
Within a few minutes Allah made him die and invisible to people, beasts and birds.
After 70 years from `Uzayr’s death Allah sent an angel to one of the kings of Persia named Loosik (or Cyrus II or Cyrus the Great (600 – 530 BC) who said to him:
Allah orders you to take your people and go to Jerusalem to rebuild it and the areas around it so that it becomes better than it was.
Loosik ordered tens of thousands of his subjects to go to construct the city and the remaining Descendants of Israel came back to Jerusalem. They built the city in 30 years, became populous and enjoyed the best case of prosperity.