Arabic (Original)
أَخْبَرَنَاهُ أَبُو الْحُسَيْنِ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْحُسَيْنِ بْنِ الْفَضْلِ الْقَطَّانُ بِبَغْدَادَ أنبأ عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ دَرَسْتَوَيْهِ ثنا يَعْقُوبُ بْنُ سُفْيَانُ ثنا عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ يُوسُفَ ثنا يَحْيَى بْنُ حَمْزَةَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبُو عَلْقَمَةَ يَرُدُّ الْحَدِيثَ إِلَى جُبَيْرِ بْنِ نُفَيْرٍ قَالَ قَالَ عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ حَوَالَةَ ؓ كُنَّا عِنْدَ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ فَشَكَوْنَا إِلَيْهِ الْعُرْيَ وَالْفَقْرَ وَقِلَّةَ الشَّيْءِ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ أَبْشِرُوا فَوَاللهِ لَأَنَا بِكَثْرَةِ الشَّيْءِ أَخْوَفُنِي عَلَيْكُمْ مِنْ قِلَّتِهِ وَاللهِ لَا يَزَالُ هَذَا الْأَمْرُ فِيكُمْ حَتَّى يَفْتَحَ اللهُ أَرْضَ فَارِسَ وَأَرْضَ الرُّومِ وَأَرْضَ حِمْيَرَ وَحَتَّى تَكُونُوا أَجْنَادًا ثَلَاثَةً جُنْدًا بِالشَّامِ وَجُنْدًا بِالْعِرَاقِ وَجُنْدًا بِالْيَمَنِ وَحَتَّى يُعْطَى الرَّجُلُ الْمِائَةَ فَيَسْخَطَهَا قَالَ ابْنُ حَوَالَةَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ وَمَنْ يَسْتَطِيعُ الشَّامَ وَبِهِ الرُّومُ ذَوَاتُ الْقُرُونِ؟ قَالَ وَاللهِ لَيَفْتَحَنَّهَا اللهُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَلَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّكُمْ فِيهَا حَتَّى يَظَلَّ الْعِصَابَةُ الْبِيضُ مِنْهُمْ قُمُصُهُمُ الْمُلْحَمَةُ أَقْفَاؤُهُمْ قِيَامًا عَلَى الرُّوَيْجِلِ الْأَسْوَدِ مِنْكُمُ الْمَحْلُوقِ مَا أَمَرَهُمْ مِنْ شَيْءٍ فَعَلُوهُ وَإِنَّ بِهَا رِجَالًا لَأَنْتُمْ أَحْقَرُ فِي أَعْيُنِهِمْ مِنَ الْقِرْدَانِ فِي أَعْجَازِ الْإِبِلِ قَالَ ابْنُ حَوَالَةَ فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ اخْتَرْ لِي إِنْ أَدْرَكَنِي ذَلِكَ قَالَ إِنِّي أَخْتَارُ لَكَ الشَّامَ فَإِنَّهُ صَفْوَةُ اللهِ مِنْ بِلَادِهِ وَإِلَيْهِ تُجْتَبَى صَفْوَتُهُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ يَا أَهْلَ الْيَمَنِ عَلَيْكُمْ بِالشَّامِ فَإِنَّ مِنْ صَفْوَةِ اللهِ مِنْ أَرْضِهِ الشَّامَ أَلَا فَمَنْ أَبَى فَلْيَسْتَبْقِ فِي غُدُرِ الْيَمَنِ فَإِنَّ اللهَ قَدْ تَكَفَّلَ لِي بِالشَّامِ وَأَهْلِهِ قَالَ أَبُو عَلْقَمَةَ فَسَمِعْتُ عَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنَ جُبَيْرٍ يَقُولُ فَعَرَفَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ نَعْتَ هَذَا الْحَدِيثِ فِي حُرِّ بْنِ سُهَيْلٍ السُّلَمِيِّ وَكَانَ عَلَى الْأَعَاجِمِ فِي ذَلِكَ الزَّمَانِ فَكَانَ إِذَا رَاحُوا إِلَى مَسْجِدٍ نَظَرُوا إِلَيْهِ وَإِلَيْهِمْ قِيَامًا حَوْلَهُ فَعَجِبُوا لِنَعْتِ رَسُولِ اللهِ ﷺ فِيهِ وَفِيهِمْ قَالَ أَبُو عَلْقَمَةَ أَقْسَمَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فِي هَذَا الْحَدِيثِ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ لَا نَعْلَمُ أَنَّهُ أَقْسَمَ فِي حَدِيثٍ مِثْلَهُ وَقَدْ مَضَى فِي هَذَا الْكِتَابِ عَنِ ابْنِ زُغْبٍ الْإِيَادِيِّ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللهِ بْنِ حَوَالَةَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ لَيُفْتَحَنَّ لَكُمُ الشَّامُ ثُمَّ لَتَقْسِمُنَّ كُنُوزَ فَارِسَ وَالرُّومِ
English Translation
Abu al-Husayn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn ibn al-Fadl al-Qattan in Baghdad informed us > Abdullah ibn Ja'far ibn Darastawayh > Ya'qub ibn Sufyan > Abdullah ibn Yusuf > Yahya ibn Hamzah > Abu Alqamah, tracing the hadith to Jubayr ibn Nufayr, who said: Abdullah ibn Hawalah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We were with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and we complained to him of being unclothed, of poverty, and of having little. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Rejoice! By Allah, I fear the abundance of things for you more than their scarcity. By Allah, this matter will continue among you until Allah opens the land of Persia, the land of the Romans, and the land of Himyar, and until you become three armies — an army in Syria, an army in Iraq, and an army in Yemen, and until a man is given a hundred and scorns it." Ibn Hawalah said: I said, O Messenger of Allah, who can manage Syria when the horned Romans are in it? He said: "By Allah, Allah will open it for you and make you successors in it until a band of them, white in their shirts with shaved napes, will stand over the dark-skinned little man from among you, and whatever he commands them, they will do. And indeed there are men there — you are more insignificant in their eyes than ticks on the humps of camels." Ibn Hawalah said: I said, O Messenger of Allah, choose for me if that happens. He said: "I choose Syria for you, for it is Allah's chosen land, and to it He draws His chosen servants. O people of Yemen, you must go to Syria, for the best of Allah's lands is Syria. Indeed, whoever refuses, let him draw from the pools of Yemen, for Allah has guaranteed Syria and its people for me." Abu Alqamah said: I heard Abd al-Rahman ibn Jubayr say: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) recognized the description of this hadith in Hurr ibn Suhayl al-Sulami, who was over the non-Arabs at that time. When they went to the mosque, they would look at him and at them standing around him and marvel at the description the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) gave of him and them. Abu Alqamah said: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) swore three times in this hadith — we do not know of him swearing in any hadith like it. This has already been mentioned in this book from Ibn Zughb al-Iyadi from Abdullah ibn Hawalah from the Prophet (peace be upon him): "Syria will surely be opened to you, and then you will surely divide the treasures of Persia and the Romans."