Hadith #499

Arabic Text

English Translation

'Uthman ibn 'Umar narrated to us, al-Mustamirr ibn al-Rayyan narrated to us, Abu Nadrah narrated to us, from Abu Sa'id (رضي الله عنه), that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: 'There was among the Children of Israel a man who killed ninety-nine people. Then he went out asking, and he came to a monk and asked him: Is there repentance for me? The monk said: No. So he killed him, completing a hundred. Then he went out asking, and he was directed to a scholar. He asked: Is there repentance for me? The scholar said: Yes, and who can stand between you and repentance? Go to such-and-such a land, for in it are people who worship Allah. Worship Allah with them and do not return to your land, for it is an evil land. So he set out, and when he was halfway, death came to him. The angels of mercy and the angels of punishment disputed over him. Allah revealed to this one (the land he was heading to): Come closer, and to that one (the land he was leaving): Move further away. And He said: Measure the distance between the two lands. He was found to be closer to the land he was heading to by a hand-span, so he was forgiven.'