Explanation of the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Three men from among those who came before you went out seeking provision for their families, and then the sky..."

The Shaykh : As for the third hadith, it is also authentic, and it had previously been mentioned with us at the beginning of this book. That hadith is from the narration of Ibn 'Umar, whereas this one is from the narration of Abu Hurayrah, and its source is different from the source of that one. So you will hear some differences between this and that, so do not be confused by the matter, for the narrators add to one another's accounts; this one remembers something that the other does not, and vice versa. It is narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The first phrase in this narration is a sudden addition: this increase , because the hadith previously mentioned, which had come before us at the beginning of the book, does not contain this phrase to the end of the hadith. It was not mentioned in that hadith of Ibn 'Umar what drove these men on their way in the desert until the rain struck them and they took refuge in the cave. Here, the reason is clarified, and it says: meaning they seek sustenance and livelihood, traveling across the earth as Allah the Exalted and Majestic has commanded. This is what drove them out, so the sky struck them, and they took refuge in a mountain, and a rock fell on them. So some of them said to others: This is also an expression not found there. Ibn Hibban narrated it in his Sahih, and al-Bukhari and Muslim and others narrated it from the hadith of 'Umar. In my copy, it is thus, so whoever has it thus should verify it and attribute it to the hadith of Ibn 'Umar. And al-Bukhari and Muslim and others narrated it from the hadith of Ibn 'Umar in similar terms, and it was mentioned previously, i.e., at the beginning of the book, regarding sincerity in deeds for Allah the Exalted and Majestic.
We return to the hadith and study some of its phrases and explain what may be obscure in them. means from the People of the Book. This is an Arab style where "the sky" is used to refer to the place of rain or the rain itself. So "the sky struck them" means the rain struck them, as the poet said: "When the sky descends upon the land of a people" ... for a moment, and the intended meaning of "the sky" here is the rain. "When the sky descends upon the land of a people *** We would graze there, even if they were angry" meaning the rain. meaning into a cave in a mountain. This is an abbreviation found in this hadith, and its explanation is in the hadith of Ibn 'Umar mentioned and previously cited at the beginning of the book. meaning it blocked the cave from them, as in that hadith. meaning due to the falling of the rains. If their families had lost them, they would not have been able to track their trail, for the trail had been erased by the rains and floods. So it is as if this group, i.e., one of them, is saying: We are cut off from the world, and no one knows where we have become. meaning the rock that blocked the cave from them. And "no one knows your location here except Allah" — I passed by it and did not notice it. And this happens to a reader or verifier who reads from memory. This is as we explained there at that time, regarding the legitimacy of seeking nearness to Allah through righteous deeds. There, Ibn 'Umar says about the Messenger, may the prayers and blessings of Allah be upon him: in accordance with the saying of Allah Blessed and Exalted in the Qur'an: So in this hadith of Abu Hurayrah, there is an addition to the hadith of Ibn 'Umar: it explicitly states the legitimacy of a servant seeking nearness to Allah Blessed and Exalted through a righteous deed of his.
And as you all know, if Allah wills, a deed is not righteous except with two conditions. The first condition is that it be sincere for Allah the Exalted and Majestic. So if a Muslim stands and prays at night while people are sleeping, and fasts, but does not intend the Face of Allah thereby, but rather that it be said of him that he is a worshipper, an ascetic, and a righteous person, his deed would be scattered dust because he did not make it sincere for Allah the Exalted and Majestic. This is the first condition. And the second condition is that the deed in which he was sincere to Allah the Exalted and Majestic be prescribed, and it is not prescribed unless it has come in the Book and the Sunnah. And there are many proofs for this. Among the proofs that encompass both conditions is the saying of Allah the Exalted and Majestic: meaning in accordance with the Book and the Sunnah. meaning he does not intend anything other than the Face of Allah the Exalted and Majestic with this deed, otherwise he may have associated partners with Allah in it, and in that case, it would be rejected from him, and his face would be struck with it.