It is narrated from Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the chief of the hypocrites, Abdullah bin Ubayy, passed away, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was called to lead his funeral prayer. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) stood up. When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) went to the funeral and stood to lead the prayer, I turned from my place and stood in front of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah! Will you lead the funeral prayer of this enemy of Allah, Abdullah bin Ubayy, who said such and such on such and such a day and such and such on another day?" Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) began to recount his absurdities. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) kept smiling, but when I persisted, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to me: "Umar! Step back. I have been given a choice in this matter, and I have chosen one aspect. It has been said to me that whether you seek forgiveness for them or do not seek forgiveness, it is the same for them. Even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will never forgive them. If I knew that seeking forgiveness more than seventy times would grant him forgiveness, I would seek forgiveness for him more than seventy times." After this, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) led his funeral prayer, went with the funeral, and stood by his grave until the matter was finished. I was amazed at myself and my boldness, although Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) knew best. By Allah! Only a short while had passed when the following two verses were revealed. «وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْهُمْ مَاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلَى قَبْرِهِ إِنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَمَاتُوا وَهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ» [9-التوبة:84] "If any of the hypocrites dies, never pray the funeral prayer for him, nor stand by his grave. Surely, they disobeyed Allah and His Messenger and died in a state of wickedness." After the revelation of this verse, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) never led the funeral prayer of any hypocrite, nor did he ever stand by the graves of the hypocrites.