We were sitting at the courtyard of the mosque where funeral biers are placed, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was sitting among us. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his eyes toward the sky, looked, then lowered his gaze and placed his hand on his forehead. Then he said, "Glory be to Allah, glory be to Allah! What severe ruling has been sent down!"We remained silent through that day and night, expecting nothing but bad news, until morning came.Muhammad said, I asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, "What is the severe ruling that has been sent down?"He replied, "Concerning debt. By the One in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, if a man were killed in the cause of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed in the cause of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed in the cause of Allah, then brought back to life, while he owed a debt, he would not enter Paradise until his debt was paid."
كنا جلوسا بفناء المسجد حيث توضع الجنائز، ورسول الله ﷺ جالس بين ظهرينا فرفع رسول الله ﷺ بصره قبل السماء فنظر ثم طأطأ بصره ووضع يده على جبهته ثم قال: سبحان الله سبحان الله ماذا نزل من التشديد. قال: فسكتنا يومنا وليلتنا فلم نرها خيرا حتى أصبحنا قال محمد: فسألت رسول الله ﷺ ما التشديد الذي نزل؟ قال: في الدين، والذي نفس محمد بيده لو أن رجلا قتل في سبيل الله ثم عاش، ثم قتل في سبيل الله ثم عاش، ثم قتل في سبيل الله ثم عاش، وعليه دين ما دخل الجنة حتى يقضي دينه.
Nasai (4684), Ahmad (22493), and Hakim (2/25) all narrated it through various routes from Ala bin Abdul-Rahman, from Abu Kathir, the freedman of Muhammad bin Jahsh, who related it.Hakim said, "Its isnad is sahih."Its isnad is hasan because of Abu Kathir, the freedman of the family of Jahsh, though he is also said to be the freedman of the Laythis, and also said to be the freedman of the Aslamis, and also said to be the freedman of the Ashjais. A group of narrators related from him, and Ibn Hibban mentioned him among the trustworthy successors (5/570). Daraqutni graded as hasan an isnad in which he appears, as noted in Ithaf Mahra (13/138). Nothing has been established about him that would warrant rejecting his hadith, so his hadith is hasan.As for Ibn Hajar, he said in Taqrib, "Trustworthy," but the correct assessment is that he is truthful.