1953 — “O Aishah, your people will be the quickest of my ummah to join me.” She said: When he sat down, I said, “O Messenger of Allah, may Allah make me your ransom! You came in saying something that alarmed me.” He asked, “What was it?” She said, “You said that my people would be the quickest of your ummah to join you.” He said, “Yes.” She asked, “What will cause that?” He said, “Deaths will ravage them, and their ummah will begrudge them.” She said: I asked, “What will become of the people after that, or at that time?” He said, “Like locust nymphs: their strong will consume their weak, until the Hour comes upon them.”

Ahmad narrated it (6/81 and 90): Hashim narrated to us, saying: Ishaq ibn Saʿid—that is, ibn ʿAmr ibn Saʿid ibn al-ʿAs—from his father, from her. This is an authentic chain according to the criteria of the two Shaykhs. Al-Majmaʿ (10/28) states: “Ahmad and al-Bazzar narrated part of it, and al-Tabarani likewise narrated part of it in al-Awsat. The narrators of this report in Ahmad are narrators of the Sahih, whereas the first report is subject to criticism.” This refers to the other route which follows.

The hadith also has a corroborating report from Abu Hurayrah with the wording, “The quickest of the Arab tribes,” which has already appeared under no. 738. It also has another route from Aishah, with the wording: “O Aishah, the first of the people to perish will be your people.” She said: I asked, “May Allah make me your ransom! The sons of Taym?” He replied, “No, but this clan of Quraysh. Deaths will lay claim to them freely and then ease off from them; they will be the first of the people to perish.” I asked, “What will remain of the people after them?” He said, “They are the backbone of the people; when they perish, the people will perish.”

Ahmad narrated it (6/74): Musa ibn Dawud narrated to us, saying: Abdullah ibn al-Muʾammal narrated to us from Ibn Abi Mulaykah, from Aishah. This Abdullah is weak, but the rest of its narrators are trustworthy and are among Muslim’s narrators.