Stories of Prophets, - Prophet Ayub (PBUH)

The Prophet Ayub(peace be upon him) was one of the descendants of
theProphet Ibrahim(peace be upon him) and a nephew ofProphet
Ya'qub(peace be upon him). He was sent to reform the people who lived
in the desert situated in the north eastern corner ofPalestine. When
Ayub (Job) was chosen to be the Prophet, he started to teach the
people about God and His religion. He advised the people to do good
and shun evil. As usual with all the Prophets very few people believed
in him in the beginning but gradually the number of his followers
began to increase.
The Prophet Ayub was Well Off
The Prophet Ayub (peace be upon him) was a prosperous man with firm
faith in Allah. He possessed vast farms, enormous wealth, many cattle
and valuable property but these things did not make him arrogant. His
wealth provided him with a medium by means of which he sought Allah's
grace.
The Prophet Ayub Displays Patience
The Prophet Ayub (peace be upon him) was a pattern of humility and
faith in Allah. He was verypatient. He suffered from a number of
calamities but did not utter a single word of complaint. One day his
big farm was attacked by the thieves. They killed many of his servants
and carried away forcibly all his cattle. The Prophet Ayub (peace be
upon him) did not feel sorry at this loss and thanked Allah.
After some time the roof of the housefell down and many members of his
family were crushed. The Prophet Ayyub (peace be upon him) was much
shocked but he held fast to his faith in Allah. He neither shed a tear
nor heaved a sigh. He prostrated before the Almighty. He remarked that
possessions and children were the gifts from Allah. If He had taken
His things, it was useless to lament over their loss.
After a few years Prophet Ayub (peace be upon him) suffered fromskin
disease. His parts of body were covered with loathsome sores. He had
many ugly looking ulcers on his face and hands. The sores were full of
worms. It is narrated that he picked up those worms which fell from
his abscess and praised Allah for creating them.
Above all, hisfalse friendsattributed his calamities to his sins. They
ridiculed and looked down upon him. All the persons deserted him with
the exception of his faithful wife,Rahima. She also grew tired of him
in the long run and prayed for his death. She cursed her husband for
retaining integrity in Allah. When Prophet Ayub (peace be upon him)
was in an extremely pathetic condition he prayed:
"Truly adversity has afflicted me and You are Most Merciful of all who
show mercy." ( Surah 21: Verse 83)
Allah accepted his prayer. The Holy Quran affirms:
"Then We heard his prayer and removed that adversity from which he
suffered, and We gave him his household and the like thereof along
with them, a mercy from Our store and remembrance for the
worshippers." ( Surah 21: Verse 84)
The Prophet Ayub Recovers and Prospers
Allah turned to him with mercy. He was commanded to strike the earth
with his foot. He complied with the order andwater from the
springgushed forth. He took a bath with the water andgot curedfrom his
evil disease. After this he was restored to prosperity. The Prophet
Ayub (peace be upon him) knelt and prayed expressing a deep sense of
gratitude to Allah. He never forgot His favours, mercy and love.
The Prophet Ayub (peace be upon him) was one of the celebrated
Prophets. His example illustrates: that those whoremain patient under
the stressof all circumstances, are never deprived of high rewards.
The Holy Quran affirms:
"And surely we try you with something of fear and hunger, and loss of
wealth and crops, but give glad-tidings to the steadfast, who when a
misfortune befalls them, say lo! we are Allah's (possession of Allah)
and to Him shall we surely return. · Such are they on whom are
blessings from their Lord, and mercy. Such are the rightly-guided." (
Surah 2 : Verse 155-157)