This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Hafiz Mubashir Hussain Lahori's book Signs of the Day of Judgment in the Light of Authentic Hadiths.
Sign of the Day of Judgment: People Will Change
عن مرداس الأسلمي رضى الله عنه قال : قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : يذهب الصالحون الأول فالأول وتبقى حفالة كحفالة السعير أو التمر لا يباليهم الله بالة
Hazrat Mardas Aslami (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Righteous people will pass away one after another, and the worthless people will remain, like the chaff of barley or the leftover date refuse. Allah will not care for them."
Reference: Bukhari: Kitab al-Maghazi: Bab Ghazwat al-Hudaybiyah (4156)
وعن أبى سعيد رضى الله عنه قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : لتتبعن سنن من قبلكم شبرا بشبر وذراعا بذراع حتى لو دخلوا جحر ضب لتبعتموهم
It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Saeed (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Surely you will adopt the ways of the previous people just as a piece of wool is equal to another piece of wool and a hand to another hand, until if they enter the burrow of a scorpion, you will follow them."
Reference: Bukhari: Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya: Bab Ma Dhukira 'an Bani Isra'il (3456) Muslim (2669)
It is narrated from Hazrat Hudhaifah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "The Day of Judgment will not come until you kill your Imam (Caliph, leader) and fight among yourselves with your swords, and your worst people will become the inheritors of your world."
Reference: Tirmidhi: Kitab al-Fitan: Bab Ma Ja'a fi al-Amr bil-Ma'ruf (2170)
Zubair bin Adi (may Allah have mercy on him) says that we came to Hazrat Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) complaining about the oppression of Hajjaj bin Yusuf, and he said: "Be patient! The era you are passing through will be followed by an era even worse than this, because I heard this from the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)."
Reference: Bukhari: Kitab al-Fitan: Bab La Yati Zaman Illa al-Ladhi Ba'dahu Shar Minhu (7068)
Benefits:
➊ The change in people's habits, qualities, status, conditions, and character is a sign of the Day of Judgment.
➋ In the present era, the manifestation of this sign is taking place.
➌ The change in people indicates that their good qualities will be replaced by bad qualities, and their morals and character will become disgraceful and stained; they will become submissive to the commands of Jews and Christians and rebellious against Islam.
➍ The responsible and capable will be considered bad people, or due to people's bad deeds, the worst people will be imposed upon them. Every ruler who comes after will prove to be worse than the previous one. Except what Allah wills, and the current conditions and events bear witness to this.
➎ Every coming era will prove to be worse than the previous one; this is not the fault of the times but the result of people's disastrous deeds.
