George Sale, The Koran, commonly called the Alcoran of Mohammed, translated into English immediately from the original Arabic; with Explanatory Notes, taken from the most approved Commentators. To which is prefixed A Preliminary Discource (1734)

then believe on him; the Jews crying out with one voice, Shew us your Christ, alas, and we will become Christians. Whereupon, after a terrible storm of thunder and lightning, Jesus Christ appeared in the air, surrounded with rays of glory, walking on a purple cloud, having a sword in his hand, and an inestimable diadem on his head, and spake these words over the heads of the assembly; Behold I appear to you in your sight, I, who was crucified by your fathers. After which the cloud received him from their sight. The Christians cried out Kyrie eleeson, i.e. Lord, have mercy upon us; but the Jews were stricken blind, and recovered not, till they were all baptized ¹.

The Christians at Hira, received a great accession by several tribes, who fled thither for refuge from the persecution of Dhu Nowâs. Al Nooman, surnamed Abu Kabûs, king of Hira, who was slain a few months before Mobammed’s birth, professed himself a Christian on the following occasion. This prince, in a drunken fit, ordered two of his intimate companions, who, overcome with liquor had fallen asleep, to be buried alive. When he came to himself, he was extreamly concerned at what he had done, and to expiate his crime, not only raised a monument to the memory of his friends, but set apart two days, one of which he called the unfortunate, and the other the fortunate day; making it a perpetual rule to himself, that whoever met him on the former day, should be slain, and his blood sprinkled on the monument, but he that met him on the other day, should be dismissed in safety, with magnificent gifts. On one of those unfortunate days, there came before him accidentally an Arab, of the tribe of Tay, who had once entertained this king, when fatigued with hunting, and separated from his attendants. The king, who could neither discharge him, contrary to the order of the day, nor put him to death, against the laws of hospitality, which the Arabians religiously observe, proposed, as an expedient, to give the unhappy man a year’s respite, and to send him home with rich gifts, for the support of his family, on condition, that he found a surety for his returning at the year’s end, to suffer death. One of the prince’s court, out of compassion, offered himself as his surecy, and the Arab was discharged. When the last day of the term came, and no news of the Arab, the king, not at all displeased to save his host’s life, ordered the surety to prepare himself to die. Those who were by represented to the king, that the day was not yet expired, and therefore he ought to have patience till the evening: but