Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik al-Ashja'i (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We were with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) on one of his military expeditions. One night I woke up and did not find the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in his place. His (peace and blessings be upon him) Companions were (fast asleep) as if there were rocks on their heads, and the camels had laid their necks (on the ground). Suddenly I saw a figure coming towards me and I went towards it, and it was Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him). I asked: Where is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)? He said: Behind me. Then I saw another figure coming towards me and I went towards it, and it was Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (may Allah be pleased with him). (The narrator said:) Then Humayd bin Hilal narrated to me through Abu Burdah bin Abi Musa from Sayyiduna Awf bin Malik al-Ashja'i (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: I heard behind Abu Musa a sound like the rumbling of a millstone. I asked: Where is the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)? He said: Behind me; he is coming. And there was the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). I said: O Messenger of Allah, when a prophet is in enemy land, he has guards with him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "One came to me from my Lord, the Mighty and Majestic, and gave me the choice between half of my Ummah entering Paradise, or being granted intercession, and I chose intercession." Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) said: May my father and mother be ransomed for you, you know my kinship and my standing, so make me one of them too. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "You are one of them." Then Awf and Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: O Messenger of Allah, you know that we left our families, preferring Allah and His Messenger, so make us one of them too. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "It is for every Muslim; you two are also among them." Then we reached the people while they were calling out, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Sit down." They sat down as if no one had been standing at all. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "One came to me from my Lord and gave me the choice between half of my Ummah entering Paradise, or being granted intercession, and I chose intercession." The people said: O Messenger of Allah, make us one of them too. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Be silent." They fell silent as if no one had said anything at all. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "My intercession is for the one who dies without associating anything with Allah."
Hadith Referenceالمعجم الكبير للطبراني / باب العين / 15224