The Virtue of the People of Badr and the Mention of the Story of Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah

The Shaykh : And Allah singles out certain groups and forgives their sins by virtue of righteous deeds they performed, such as the People of Badr. They were three hundred and a few men, among them Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah (may Allah be pleased with him). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to 'Umar in a well-known story: This is one of the special attributes of the People of Badr: that Allah forgave them whatever sins they commit. Otherwise, Hatib (may Allah be pleased with him) committed a great sin. That is, when the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) intended to campaign against Quraysh after they broke the treaty between them at the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyyah, he sent Hatib. Hatib (may Allah be pleased with him) sent a written message to the people of Makkah informing them that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was coming to them. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was informed of this through revelation. He sent 'Ali ibn Abi Talib and a man with him to pursue the woman. They caught up with her at Rawdat Khakh, a well-known garden on the road to Makkah. When they caught up with her, they stopped her and said to her: "Bring out the book" Bring out the book you have with you for the people of Makkah. She said, I have nothing with me. They said: "You must bring it out. The book is with you. Either you bring it out, or we will search you, even under your clothes" When she realized their determination, she took the book out of her sandal. The sandal means the leather shoe. She took it out, and there was a letter from Hatib (may Allah be pleased with him) to the people of Makkah informing them. They returned with it to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). 'Umar sought permission, for 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was among the strongest of people in the religion of Allah. 'Umar sought permission from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to kill Hatib. He said, "The man has become a hypocrite. He wrote our secrets to our enemies." He said: And he was among them (may Allah be pleased with him). Otherwise, this is a major crime.