Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah

Sayyiduna Mu'adh bin Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that in the year of Tabuk (on the occasion of the Battle of Tabuk), he set out with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) (for jihad), so the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would combine the Zuhr and Asr prayers, and the Maghrib and Isha prayers during the journey. One day, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) delayed the prayer, then he came out (of the tent) and performed Zuhr and Asr prayers together, then he went inside (the tent), then came out again and combined Maghrib and Isha prayers. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Surely, tomorrow you will reach the spring of Tabuk, insha’Allah, and you will reach there at the time of forenoon. So whoever among you reaches the spring should not take any water from it until I arrive." He says that when we reached the spring, two men had already reached there before us, and the spring was flowing very little, like a shoelace. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) asked both of them: "Did you take any water from the spring?" They replied, "Yes." So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) spoke to them harshly. Then the companions scooped a little water from the spring with their hands until a small amount of water was collected. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) washed his face and blessed hands with that water, then poured that water back into the spring, so the spring began to flow and water gushed forth abundantly. Thus, the people drank to their fill. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Mu'adh, if you live long, you will see this area filled with gardens (and habitation)." Imam Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) says that from this hadith it is clear and established that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) combined Zuhr and Asr, and Maghrib and Isha prayers, even though he was encamped at one place during his journey, and at the time of combining the two prayers, the journey was not ongoing. Because the statement of Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) one day delayed the prayer, then came out and performed Zuhr and Asr prayers together, then went inside (the tent), then came out and combined Maghrib and Isha prayers—this makes it clear that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was not traveling during those two times in which he combined Maghrib and Isha, and Zuhr and Asr prayers. And the hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was in a hurry during travel, he would combine two prayers—this is not contrary to the hadith of Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him), because Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) combining two prayers when he was in a hurry during travel, so he narrated what he saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) do. And Sayyiduna Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) combining two prayers while he was encamped at a place and not traveling, so he reported what he saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) do. Therefore, when a traveler is in a hurry, it is permissible to combine two prayers, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did. Likewise, it is also permissible for him to combine two prayers while staying at a place during travel, even without being in a hurry, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did. Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) did not say that when a traveler is not in a hurry, it is not permissible for him to combine two prayers; he neither narrated this from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) nor said it from himself.