Bukhari

Hadith Commentary:

This apparently seems to be contrary to the hadith of Abdullah ibn Umar radi Allahu anhu, in which it is mentioned that he hired laborers from morning until noon. In reality, however, these are two separate incidents. Therefore, there is no contradiction between the two hadiths.

In these hadiths, a parable is mentioned regarding the Jews, Christians, and the people of Islam: that the Jews and Christians did not fully discharge their legal responsibilities. Rather, they abandoned their work and fled before the appointed time, whereas the Muslims fulfilled their responsibilities. As a result, the Noble Qur’an remains preserved word for word to this day, and will remain so as long as Allah wills. Not even a single diacritical mark has been altered, and along with the Qur’an, the example of the Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is also perfectly preserved. In such a manner, it is impossible to find a similar example among previous prophets, where their lives and guidance have been preserved in this way.

From the final words of the mentioned hadith, some have deduced that the lifespan of this Ummah will exceed one thousand years, and alhamdulillah, this matter is now being fulfilled, as the fourteenth century of the Ummah of Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is about to be completed, and Muslims are still present in the world in the hundreds of millions.

As for how long the world will last, or how long the Muslim Ummah has been allotted, Islamic law has left these matters dependent upon the knowledge of Allah. It has only been explained that, in terms of duration, all the human eras before the Muslim Ummah are like the time from dawn (fajr) until afternoon (‘asr). And the era of the Muslim Ummah is beginning at a time as if now, from ‘asr, the remaining part of the day is beginning.

For this reason, this Ummah is called the last Ummah, this religion the last religion, the Noble Qur’an the last book, and our master Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), the last Prophet and Seal of the Messengers.

Now, for whatever portion of the world’s lifespan remains in the knowledge of Allah, this will remain the heavenly religion until the end. This will remain the heavenly law, and whoever claims otherwise—even if he claims to be of Islam—will be considered a liar, deceiver, and impostor (dajjal). Indeed, there are many examples of such impostors.

Upon review, this note was written near the Haram of the Prophet in Madinah al-Munawwarah.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
In this hadith, a parable of the Jews, Christians, and the people of Islam is mentioned: the Jews and Christians did not fully fulfill their legal responsibilities in spreading the light of divine revelation. Rather, they abandoned their work and wages before the appointed time and fled. However, the people of Islam fulfilled their responsibility, as a result of which both the Noble Qur’an and the example of the Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) are preserved, and they will remain preserved as long as Allah wills.
(2)
There is some difference between this parable and the example mentioned in the hadith narrated by Ibn Umar (radi Allahu anhu). In reality, these are two separate incidents, because according to the narration of Ibn Umar (radi Allahu anhu), the owner hired the Jews as laborers from morning until noon, and the Christians from noon until ‘Asr, whereas in the aforementioned hadith, it is stated that the owner hired them for the whole day for a fixed wage. Similarly, from this hadith it is understood that the Jews and Christians did not receive any wages, while in the narration of Ibn Umar (radi Allahu anhu), it is mentioned that they worked for one qirat each and left after taking their respective wages.
(3)
In reality, those who abandoned the wages refer to those people who lived during the time of the subsequent Prophet but refused to accept him, and those who took the wages are those who died before the coming of the subsequent Prophet and remained alive until before the abrogation of the previous law.
(4)
Imam Bukhari (rahimahullah) has proven from this hadith that a laborer can be hired for part-time work; it is not necessary to hire someone for a full day’s wage. The purpose of these examples is that the reward for the deeds of this Ummah is greater in comparison to other communities, and the second example is to show that those who did not believe in the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), even the deeds they performed in their previous religion will be of no benefit to them; they will not receive any reward for them.
And Allah knows best.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
Just like the previous ahadith, in this hadith as well, the objective of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is to clarify the last time for the Asr prayer. Thus, it is understood from the hadith that the duration of work is until sunset, and the time from Asr to Maghrib has been considered as one period; furthermore, the task for this period is specifically the Asr prayer.
From this, it is evident that the time for the Asr prayer extends until sunset.
Then, in the example presented in this hadith, the first group refers to the People of the Torah, i.e., the Jews, who were commanded to follow the Mosaic law. Then, when Isa (Jesus) alayhis salam came, they were commanded to follow him, but they turned away from this.
The second group refers to the People of the Gospel, i.e., the Christians, who believed in Isa alayhis salam and acted upon the law of that time, but when the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was sent, they were commanded to believe in him, and they refused this.
The third group refers to us Muslims, who believed in the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and were prepared to act upon the law he brought until the Day of Judgment.
It should be noted that in the ahadith of Ibn Umar and Abu Musa al-Ash'ari radi Allahu anhuma, two separate incidents are mentioned.
They have in common that there are three parties, and the dealings with each party are distinct, but the following differences exist between them:
➊ In the first narration, the duration of the contract is not specified, whereas in the second narration, it is explicitly stated as being until the night.
➋ In the first narration, it is mentioned that the first two groups became weary from working and were each given one qirat, whereas in the second narration, it is stated that they outright refused to accept the wage.
➌ In the first narration, the condition of those Jews and Christians is described who, in their own times, remained steadfast on the religion and acted upon it, but passed away before it was abrogated; while in the second hadith, the condition of those is described who committed distortion in the religion and expressed disavowal from it.
And Allah knows best.