Sufy Asji narrates that when he entered Madinah Munawwarah, he saw that a large number of people had gathered around a certain person. So he asked,“Who is this gentleman?”The people replied,“This is Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him).”So I went near him and sat in front of him while he was narrating hadith to the people. When he became silent and was left alone, I said,“I beseech you by Allah and by His right upon you, please narrate to me that hadith which you heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), memorized, and know well.”Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) said,“I will narrate to you such a hadith which I heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and memorized.”Then Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) began to sob and weep, and he fainted. After a while, when he regained consciousness, he said,“I will certainly narrate to you such a hadith which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) narrated to me when I and you were alone in this house.”Then for the second time, Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) began to sob and weep and fainted again. When he regained consciousness, he wiped his face and said,“I will narrate to you the hadith. I will certainly narrate to you such a hadith which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) narrated to me when I and you were alone in this house and no one else was present.”Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) began to sob intensely, then fainted and fell on his face, and I sat supporting him for a long time. When he regained consciousness, he said,“The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) narrated to me: ‘When the Day of Resurrection comes, Allah Almighty will come to judge between the creation, while every nation will be sitting on its knees. The first to be called will be the reciter of the Qur’an, the one who fought in Allah’s path and was martyred, and the wealthy person. Allah Almighty will say to the reciter,“Did I not teach you that Book which I revealed to My Messenger?”He will say,“Of course, O my Lord.”Allah Almighty will say,“What did you do with the knowledge you acquired?”He will reply,“I used to recite it in prayer day and night.”Allah Almighty will say,“You have lied.”And the angels will also say,“You have lied.”Allah Almighty will say,“Rather, you wanted it to be said, ‘So-and-so is a great reciter.’ And that was said (in the world).”Then the wealthy person will be brought, and Allah Almighty will say,“Did I not give you so much wealth that you were not in need of anyone?”He will reply,“Indeed, that happened.”Allah Almighty will say,“What did you do with the wealth I gave you?”He will say,“I used to maintain family ties and give charity from it.”Allah Almighty and His angels will say,“You have lied.”Allah Almighty will say,“Rather, your intention was that people should say, ‘So-and-so is very generous,’ and that was said.”Then the one who was martyred in Allah’s path will be brought, and he will be asked,“For what purpose did you give your life?”He will say,“O Allah, You commanded me to fight in Your path, so I fought and was killed.”Allah Almighty will say,“You have lied.”And the angels will also say,“You are a liar.”Allah Almighty will say,“Rather, your intention was that it should be said, ‘So-and-so is very brave,’ and that was said in the world.”Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) struck his knee and said,“O Abu Hurairah, these three will be the first of Allah’s creation with whom the fire of Hell will be kindled on the Day of Resurrection.”’”

Uqbah says that Shafi himself narrated this hadith in the presence of Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him). Al-Ala bin Abi Hakim narrates that Shafi was the executioner of Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him). A person came to Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) and narrated this hadith, so he said,“Allah and His Messenger have spoken the truth.”Then he recited this verse: «‏‏‏‏مَن كَانَ يُرِيدُ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا وَزِينَتَهَا نُوَفِّ إِلَيْهِمْ أَعْمَالَهُمْ فِيهَا وَهُمْ فِيهَا لَا يُبْخَسُونَ ‎، أُولَٰئِكَ الَّذِينَ لَيْسَ لَهُمْ فِي الْآخِرَةِ إِلَّا النَّارُ ۖ وَحَبِطَ مَا صَنَعُوا فِيهَا وَبَاطِلٌ مَّا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة هود: 16،15 ] “Whoever desires the life of this world and its adornment, We fully repay them for their deeds therein, and they will not be deprived therein. Those are the ones for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter except the Fire, and lost is what they did therein, and worthless is what they used to do.”