Ibn Hibban

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates this statement of the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Allah Almighty smiles at two men, one of whom has killed the other, and both of them will be in Paradise." (Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy on him, says:) This is the type of narration about which we have already stated in our books that the Arabs sometimes attribute certain actions to the one who commands them, just as they attribute actions to the one who performs them. Similarly, at times, they attribute something related to the actions of the creation to Allah Almighty, just as they attribute it to the creation. So, the statement of the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that Allah Almighty smiles at two men means: Allah Almighty tells the angels to laugh and commands them to rejoice regarding that disbeliever who had killed a Muslim, then Allah Almighty guides that disbeliever to the right path, he becomes a Muslim, and then by His grace, Allah grants him the rank of martyrdom, until both of them enter Paradise. So Allah Almighty amazes His angels at this and makes them laugh at this, which happens due to the presence of that which He has decreed and written in destiny. So here, the laughter that comes from the angels is attributed to Allah Almighty, which is in reference to His command and will. There are many more examples of this, which we will mention later in this book in the fifth section of the Sunan, if Allah Almighty so wills and decrees.