Authentic. It is narrated from Abd Allāh ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, through three chains, which I have documented in Silsilat al-Ahādīth al-Sahīha (11).
161—(He, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Allah never sent a prophet who did not tend sheep.” They asked, “Even you, O Messenger of Allah?” He replied, “Yes. I used to tend them for the people of Mecca in return for qirats.” al-Bukhārī.) p. 129
Authentic. Al-Bukhārī (2/48), Ibn Mājah (2149), and Ibn Sad in al-Tabaqāt al-Kubrā (1/125) transmitted it from Abū Hurayrah, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who then quoted the hadith.
162—(It is also related from Ibn Abbās that David “was an armourer; Adam was a farmer; Noah was a carpenter; Enoch was a tailor; and Moses was a shepherd.” Narrated by al-Hākim.) p. 129.
163—(It is reported in the Sahīh: “No one has ever eaten food better than that earned by the work of his own hands. Indeed, Allah’s Prophet David used to eat from what his own hands had earned.” al-Bukhārī and others.) p. 129
Authentic. Al-Bukhārī (2/10) transmitted it through Thawr, from Khālid ibn Madān, from al-Miqdām, from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. Ibn Mājah (2138) and Ahmad (4/131, 132) also transmitted it through Ismāīl ibn Ayyāsh, from Buhayr ibn Sad, from Khālid ibn Madān, traced back to the Prophet with the wording: “None of you has eaten any food in this world that is better for him than what he earns by the work of his own hands.” Both chains of transmission are authentic.
163/1—(See its documentation in the Supplement, p. 288.)
164—(Ibn Abbās related that Abd Allāh ibn Ubayy—the leader of the hypocrites—came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, accompanied by a slave woman, one of the finest among women, named Muādhah. He said, “O Messenger of Allah, this woman belongs to the orphans of so-and-so. Shall we not instruct her to prostitute herself so that they may receive some of her earnings?” He, peace and blessings be upon him, replied, “No.” Tafsīr al-Fakhr al-Rāzī.) p. 130