Numan bin Bashir gave a sermon and said, "Allah is more delighted by the repentance of His servant than a man who loaded his provisions and water-skins on his camel, then traveled until he reached a barren stretch of land. When the time for the midday rest overtook him, he dismounted and lay down to rest beneath a tree. Sleep overcame him, and his camel slipped away. He woke up and ran to the top of a rise, but saw nothing. Then he ran to a second rise, but saw nothing. Then he ran to a third rise, but saw nothing. So he came back to the spot where he had been resting, and while he sat there, suddenly his camel came walking up until it placed its halter in his hand. Allah is more delighted by the repentance of His servant than this man was when he found his camel just as it had been."Simak said, Shaybi claimed that Numan traced this hadith back to the Prophet ﷺ, but as for me, I did not hear it from him that way.
حدثنا عبيد الله بن معاذ العنبري حدثنا أبي حدثنا أبو يونس
خطب النعمان بن بشير فقال لله أشد فرحا بتوبة عبده من رجل حمل زاده ومزاده على بعير ثم سار حتى كان بفلاة من الأرض فأدركته القائلة فنزل فقال تحت شجرة فغلبته عينه وانسل بعيره فاستيقظ فسعى شرفا فلم ير شيئا ثم سعى شرفا ثانيا فلم ير شيئا ثم سعى شرفا ثالثا فلم ير شيئا فأقبل حتى أتى مكانه الذي قال فيه فبينما هو قاعد إذ جاءه بعيره يمشي حتى وضع خطامه في يده فلله أشد فرحا بتوبة العبد من هذا حين وجد بعيره على حاله قال سماك فزعم الشعبي أن النعمان رفع هذا الحديث إلى النبي ﷺ وأما أنا فلم أسمعه