Jabir’s hadith also corroborates it. He said: “On the day of the Trench, I looked at the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and found that he had placed a stone between his body and his waist-wrapper to support his back against hunger.”

Abu Ya‘la recorded it. Its narrators have been declared trustworthy, despite the weakness of Isma‘il ibn ‘Abd al-Malik, as stated in Majma‘ al-Zawa’id (10/314). Thus, the hadith is good in view of its three chains taken together. And Allah knows best.

Al-gharth means hunger.

1616 — “If the slave is faithful to his master and worships Allah well, he shall have his reward twice over.”

Malik recorded it (3/146), and through his chain al-Bukhari recorded it (5/132), as well as in al-Adab al-Mufrad (31), from Nafi‘, from Ibn ‘Umar, in a narration attributed to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Muslim also narrated it through this chain (5/94), as did Abu Dawud (2/338), with the wording: “Indeed, the slave …,” while the remainder is exactly the same.

1617 — “The noble man, son of the noble man, son of the noble man, son of the noble man, was Joseph son of Jacob son of Isaac son of Abraham, the intimate friend of the Most Merciful—peace be upon them. Had I remained in prison for as long as Joseph remained, and then the caller came to me, I would have responded. When the messenger came to him, he said:

“Return to your master and ask him what was the matter with the women who cut their hands.”

May Allah have mercy on Lot: he indeed sought refuge in a mighty support, when he said to his people:

“If only I had strength against you, or could take refuge in a mighty support!”

No prophet after him was sent except among a numerous and powerful people of his own.”

It was recorded by al-Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad (605) and by al-Tirmidhi (4/128–129),