A man passed by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and the people spoke well of him and praised him.The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Who will kill him?"Abu Bakr said, "I will."He set out and found the man having drawn a line around himself, standing within it in prayer. When he saw him in that state, he turned back without killing him.The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Who will kill him?"Umar said, "I will."He went and found him praying within his drawn line, standing in prayer, so he returned without killing him.The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "Who will deal with him," or "Who will kill him?"Ali said, "I will."The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "You, but I do not think you will catch up with him."He set out and found that the man had already gone.
مر على رسول الله ﷺ رجل، فقالوا فيه وأثنوا عليه فقال: من يقتله؟ قال أبو بكر: أنا، فانطلق فوجده قد خط على نفسه خطة فهو قائم يصلي فيها، فلما رآه على ذلك الحال، رجع ولم يقتله، فقال رسول الله ﷺ: من يقتله؟ فقال عمر: أنا، فذهب، فرآه يصلي في خطة قائما يصلي، فرجع، ولم يقتله فقال رسول الله ﷺ: من له- أو من يقتله؟ فقال علي: أنا، فقال رسول الله ﷺ: أنت، ولا أراك تدركه، فانطلق فوجده قد ذهب.
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Abu Yaala (2315) narrated it, as did Ibn Abu Shayba and Ibn Munee in their two Musnads, as mentioned in Matalib Aliyah (2993), and Muhammad bin Nasr Marwazi in Tazim Qadr Salah (329), all of them by way of Yazid bin Harun, who said, Awwam bin Hawshab told us, Abu Sufyan Talha bin Nafi told me, from Jabir bin Abdullah, and he related it.Its chain of transmission is hasan because of Talha bin Nafi, for his hadith is hasan. Haythami said in Majmaa (6/227), "Abu Yaala narrated it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih."