Rafi was struck by an arrow in his chest while fighting alongside the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on the day of Uhud, or the day of Khaybar. He came to the Prophet ﷺ and said, "Messenger of Allah, pull out the arrow."The Prophet ﷺ replied, "Rafi, if you wish, I will pull out both the arrow and its head together, or if you wish, I will pull out the shaft and leave the arrowhead in place, and I will bear witness for you on the Day of Resurrection that you are a martyr."Rafi said, "Messenger of Allah, pull out the shaft, leave the arrowhead, and bear witness for me on the Day of Resurrection that I am a martyr."So the Messenger of Allah ﷺ pulled out the shaft and left the arrowhead in place.Wazad added in another narration that he lived on with it until the caliphate of Muawiya, when the wound burst open and he died after the afternoon prayer.
أن رافعا رمي مع رسول الله ﷺ يوم أحد أو يوم خيبر بسهم في ثندوته، فأتى النبي ﷺ فقال: يا رسول الله، انزع السهم، قال: يا رافع إن شئت نزعت السهم والقطبة جميعا، وإن شئت نزعت السهم، وتركت القطبة، وشهدت لك يوم القيامة أنك شهيد. قال: يا رسول الله بل انزع السهم، ودع القطبة واشهد لي يوم القيامة أني شهيد. قال: فنزع رسول الله ﷺ السهم، وترك القطبة. وزاد في رواية: فعاش بها حتى كان في خلافة معاوية، فانتفض به الجرح فمات بعد العصر.
Ahmad (27128) and Tabarani in al-Kabir (4/282) both narrated it through Amr bin Marzuq al-Washihi, who said, Yahya bin Abdul-Hameed bin Rafi bin Khadij told me, my grandmother, meaning the wife of Rafi bin Khadij, told me, and then he related it.Haythami said in al-Majma (9/346), "Tabarani narrated it, and the wife of Rafi, if she was a companion, then well and good, otherwise I do not know her, and the rest of its narrators are trustworthy." Its chain is hasan on account of Amr bin Marzuq al-Washihi, for his hadith is hasan. The wife of Rafi bin Khadij is Umm Abdul-Hameed, whom Ibn Hajar mentioned in al-Isabah in the first section of the companions.His statement, "so he lived with it until it was during the caliphate of Muawiya," means he died around 73 or 74 AH.