This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Hafiz Mubashir Hussain Lahori's book Signs of the Day of Judgment in the Light of Authentic Hadith.
Sign of the Day of Judgment: Men will be few and women will be many
عن أنس رضى الله عنه أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قال : إن من أشراط الساعة أن يرفع العلم ويكثر الجهل ويكثر الزنا ويكثر شرب الحمر ويقل الرجال ويكثر النساء حتى يكون لخمسين امرأة القيم الواحد
It is narrated from Hazrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: Among the signs of the Day of Judgment is that knowledge will be taken away, ignorance will increase, adultery will become widespread, alcohol will be drunk abundantly, men will become few and women will become many, to the extent that one man will be the guardian of fifty women.
Reference: Bukhari (231) Ahmad (222/3 - 255 - 366) Muslim (2671) Abdul Razzaq (381/11) Dala'il al-Nubuwwah (543/6) Sharh al-Sunnah (4126) Ibn Abi Shaybah (664/8)
وعن أبى موسى رضى الله عنه عن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم قال : لياتين على الناس زمان يطوف الرجل فيه بالصدقة من الذهب ثم لا يجد أحدا يأخذها منه وبرى الرجل الواحد يتبعه أربعون امرأة يلذن به من قلة الرجال وكثرة النساء
It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) said: Surely a time will come upon the people when a man will go out to give charity with gold, but no one will be found to accept it. And it will also happen that a man will have forty women under his protection because men will be few and women will be many.
Reference: Bukhari (1414)
Benefits:
➊ The extreme scarcity of men and the abundance of women is a sign of the Day of Judgment.
➋ The mentioned sign has not yet appeared.
➌ Two prominent scenarios are understood regarding the appearance of this sign: one is that before the Day of Judgment, a series of bloody wars will begin, as a result of which a large number of men will be killed due to participation in wars, and the number of women will be more compared to the surviving men. The second scenario could be that the birth rate of women increases and that of men decreases, fulfilling the mentioned prophecy.
➍ The abundance of women means forty women per one guardian, as some narrations mention a number greater than forty as well.
