Jesus (a.s.) & the Highway Robber

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

It is related that a robber had been committing highway robbery among the Children of Israel for forty years.  One day, Jesus (a.s.) passed by, followed by a pious man of the Children of Israel, one of the apostles.  The robber said to himself, “This is the prophet of God, with his apostle beside him; if I walked with them, perhaps I could be cleansed of my evil deeds.”  So, he went down and began to approach the apostle, but he held himself back out of respect for the apostle, saying to himself, “The likes of me cannot walk beside this pious man.” 

The apostle noticed him and said to himself, “This man walking beside me looks like a man of the world.”  So, he picked up his pace and walked beside Jesus (a.s.), and the robber remained behind him. 

Then God Revealed to Jesus (a.s.), “Tell them to begin their works afresh, for I have Nullified their past works.  As regards the apostle, I have Nullified his good deeds because of his self-conceit; and as regards the other, I have Nullified his evil deeds because of his self-abasement.” 

Jesus (a.s.) informed them about that, and joined the robber to himself in his wandering, and made him one of his apostles.