Majma al-Zawaid — Hadith 18573

Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) says: Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) at a time when he did not usually come. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) rose and went towards him and asked: "O Jibril, what is the matter? I see that your colour has changed (that is, you look distressed)." Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) said: "I did not come to you until Allah Almighty gave the command concerning the keys of Hell." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Jibril, describe the Fire (or Hell) to me and portray Hell to me!" Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) said: "Allah Almighty gave the command concerning Hell, and it was kindled for a thousand years until it turned white. Then the command was given concerning it, and it was kindled for a further thousand years until it turned red. Then He gave the command concerning it, and it was kindled for a further thousand years until it turned black. So now it is black and dark; its sparks give no light and its flames do not die out. By the One who sent you with the truth, if an opening the size of the eye of a needle were made in Hell, everyone on the face of the earth would die from its heat. By the One who sent you with the truth, if one of the angels guarding Hell were to appear before the people of the world and they looked at him, everyone on the face of the earth would die from the hideousness of his face and the stench of his smell. By the One who sent you with the truth, if a single link of the chains of the people of Hell, which Allah Almighty has described in His Book, were placed on the mountains of the world, they would all be shaken from their places and none would stay firm, until they sank down to the lowest earth." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Jibril, that is enough for me, lest my heart burst and I die." The narrator says: Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) looked at Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him), who was weeping. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "O Jibril, why are you weeping, when you hold a special station with Allah Almighty?" Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) said: "Why should I not weep? I am more deserving of weeping, for it may be that in Allah Almighty's knowledge my state is different from what it is now. I do not know; perhaps I will be put to the same kind of trial with which Iblis was tried, for he too was formerly among the angels. I do not know; perhaps I will be put to the same kind of trial with which Harut and Marut were tried." The narrator says: Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) began to weep and Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) began to weep, and both of them kept weeping until a call came: "O Jibril and Muhammad, Allah Almighty has made you both safe from disobeying Him." Then Sayyiduna Jibril (peace be upon him) went up, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came out of the house. He passed by some people of the Ansar who were laughing and playing. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Are you laughing, when Hell lies ahead of you? If you knew what I know, you would laugh little and weep much, you would not eat and drink your fill, and you would go out into the open wastelands seeking Allah's protection." Then a call came: "O Muhammad, do not make My servants despair! I have sent you to make things easy; I have not sent you to make things hard." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said (to those people): "Keep to what is right and adopt moderation."
Al-Tabarani recorded it in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat; its chain contains a narrator, Sallam al-Tawil, and there is agreement on his being da'if (weak).