when he will die; the real issue is in what condition he will die. Will his life end with a good conclusion, or with an evil one?

That is why the Prophet ﷺ said, “What have you prepared for it?”—meaning: do not concern yourself with the timing, for it will surely come. Allah the Exalted says, “They ask you about the Hour—‘When will it arrive?’” (al-Nāziʿāt 42); and He says, “People ask you about the Hour. Say, ‘Its knowledge is with Allah alone; and what will make you know? Perhaps the Hour is near’” (al-Aḥzāb 63); and He says, “What will make you know? Perhaps the Hour is near” (al-Shūrā 17).

What matters, then, is what you have prepared for it: Have you acted? Have you turned back to your Lord? Have you repented of your sin? That is what is truly important.

The same applies to the ḥadīth of Ibn Masʿūd and the passages the author cites afterward about the virtue of loving Allah and His Messenger ﷺ, and that if a person loves a people he will be counted among them. The Prophet ﷺ said, “A person is with those he loves.” Anas reported, “We never rejoiced at anything after embracing Islam as much as we rejoiced at this ḥadīth. I love Allah and His Messenger; I love the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and I love Abū Bakr and ʿUmar. A person is with those he loves.” When someone loves a people, he becomes fond of them, draws close to them, adopts their manners, and imitates their actions—such is human nature.

As for the ḥadīth of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (may Allah be pleased with him) in which he sought to perform ʿumrah and the Prophet ﷺ said to him, “Do not forget us in your supplication—or—include us in your supplication,” it is weak, even though the author declared it authentic. The author’s method—may Allah have mercy on him—is to be lenient in grading reports that pertain to virtuous deeds.