The Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ foretold that when Jesus, son of Mary, returns at the end of time,
“he will break the cross, kill the swine, abolish the jizyah, and wealth will pour forth until no one accepts it; and a single prostration will be better than the world and all it contains.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 3448; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 155)
On the surface, these appear as four separate, loosely linked signs. But read through the lens of Jesus’ first mission, they form a coherent triad of actions, each marked by abundance, culminating in a climactic atmosphere of abundance.
1. Breaking the Cross → Abundance of Healing
In the hadith, Jesus “breaks the cross.” Instead of viewing this merely as polemic against Christianity, we may see it as a return to his role as lifter of burdens. In the Gospels, healing is abundant and total, not partial:
- “And Jesus went about all Galilee … healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.” (Matthew 4:23)
- “Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus.” (Mark 10:52)
To “break the cross” — the supreme image of burden — is to declare that suffering and affliction no longer define human destiny, for in his presence health and wholeness overflow.
2. Killing the Swine → Abundance of Liberation from Evil
The hadith says Jesus will “kill the swine.” In the Gospels, swine appear once — when Jesus casts a legion of demons into a herd of pigs, and they perish:
- “He said to him, ‘Come out of this man, you impure spirit!’ … He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd … rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.” (Mark 5:8, 13)
Here, “swine killed” becomes a symbol of exorcism in abundance. No demon, however many, is left to torment. Jesus’ second coming continues his first mission: abundant freedom from evil powers.
3. Abolishing the Jizyah → Abundance of Provision
The hadith next says Jesus will “abolish the jizyah” (the tax levied on non-Muslim subjects). Instead of reading this as mere legal reform, it may be linked to Jesus’ miracles of provision, where material supply was so abundant that taxation itself seemed absurd:
- “Taking the five loaves and the two fish … they all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces.” (Matthew 14:19–20)
- “Go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.” (Matthew 17:27)
In both feeding and coin-from-fish, Jesus mocks the very anxiety of scarcity. If wealth flows like sand, taxation is irrelevant. “Abolishing jizyah” thus echoes the abundance of provision in his first mission.
4. Climactic Statement: Wealth Overflows Until Worthless
Finally, the hadith climaxes: “Wealth will pour forth until no one accepts it.” This is not a new point but the summary of the previous three. The one who healed abundantly, liberated abundantly, and provided abundantly now reigns in an age where material wealth loses all value compared to devotion:
- “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth … But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven … For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19–21)
The hadith concludes with the same principle: “One prostration will be better than the world and everything in it.”
Conclusion
Seen through this lens, the hadith does not present four disconnected signs, but a coherent portrait of Jesus’ abundant ministry renewed:
- Cross broken → abundant healing.
- Swine killed → abundant liberation.
- Jizyah abolished → abundant provision.
- Wealth overflows → the atmosphere of abundance, in which only worship holds true value.