The Messenger of Allah ﷺ went out one day on his mount with his companions before him. Muaz bin Jabal said, "Prophet of Allah, will you permit me to come up close to you with a willing heart?"He said, "Yes."So Muaz drew near to him and they rode along together. Muaz said, "May my father be your ransom, Messenger of Allah. I ask Allah to make our day come before yours. Tell me, if something should happen, though we hope nothing will, Allah willing, what deeds should we perform after you are gone?"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ remained silent, then said, "Striving in the path of Allah."Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "What an excellent thing striving is. Yet what people are capable of beyond that is fasting and charity."Muaz said, "What an excellent thing fasting and charity are."Then Muaz mentioned every good deed a son of Adam might do, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "And there is something better than all of that for people."Muaz asked, "What is it, may my father and mother be your ransom, that is better than all of that for people?"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ pointed to his mouth and said, "Silence, except from what is good."Muaz asked, "Are we held accountable for what our tongues utter?"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ struck Muaz's thigh and said, "Muaz, may your mother be bereft of you," or whatever else Allah willed him to say of that sort. "Does anything throw people on their faces into Hell except what their tongues have uttered? Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent from evil. Speak good and you will profit, keep silent from evil and you will be safe."
أن رسول الله ﷺ خرج ذات يوم على راحلته، و أصحابه معه بين يديه فقال معاذ بن جبل: يا نبي الله أتأذن لي في أن أتقدم إليك على طيبة نفس؟ قال: نعم فاقترب معاذ إليه فسارا جميعا فقال معاذ: بأبي أنت يا رسول الله، اسأل الله أن يجعل يومنا قبل يومك، أرأيت إن كان شيء و لا نرى شيئا إن شاء الله تعالى، فأي الأعمال نعملها بعدك؟ فصمت رسول الله ﷺ فقال: الجهاد في سبيل الله ثم قال رسول الله ﷺ: نعم الشيء الجهاد، والذي بالناس من ذلك فالصيام و الصدقة، قال: نعم الشيء الصيام والصدقة فذكر معاذ كل خير يعمله ابن آدم، فقال رسول الله ﷺ: وعاد بالناس خير من ذلك قال: فماذا بأبي أنت و أمي عاد بالناس خير من ذلك؟ قال: فأشار رسول الله ﷺ إلى فيه، قال: الصمت إلا من خير قال: و هل نؤاخذ بما تكلمت به ألسنتنا؟ قال: فضرب رسول الله ﷺ فخذ معاذ ثم قال: يا معاذ، ثكلتك أمك، أو ما شاء الله أن يقول له من ذلك، وهل يكب الناس على مناخرهم في جهنم إلا ما نطقت به ألسنتهم، فمن كان يؤمن بالله و اليوم الآخر فليقل خيرا أو ليسكت عن شر، قولوا خيرا تغنموا، واسكتوا عن شر تسلموا.
Reported by Hakim (4/286–287), and the wording is his, and Tabarani in Al-Kabir as found in Jami al-Masanid by Ibn Kathir (4914), both of them through routes from Abdullah bin Wahb, [who said], Abu Hani Humayd bin Hani informed me, from Amr bin Malik (that is, Janabi), from Fadala bin Ubayd, from Ubada bin Samit, who said, then he mentioned it.Hakim said, "This is a sahih hadith meeting the standard of the two Shaykhs, but they did not include it." Haythami said, "Tabarani reported it, and its narrators are the narrators of the sahih [collections], apart from Amr bin Malik Janabi, who is trustworthy."I say, its chain is hasan because of Abu Hani, Humayd bin Hani. Abu Hatim said, "Salih." Nasai and Daraqutni said, "There is no harm in him." Ibn Hibban listed him among the trustworthy narrators. As for Amr bin Malik Janabi, he is trustworthy, Ibn Main affirmed his trustworthiness, as found in Al-Jarh wal-Tadil (6/259).