Sunan Abi Dawud 2673
سنن أبي داود#2673Sahihحَدَّثَنَا سَعِيدُ بْنُ مَنْصُورٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مُغِيرَةُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ الْحِزَامِيُّ، عَنْ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ، حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ حَمْزَةَ الأَسْلَمِيُّ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَمَّرَهُ عَلَى سَرِيَّةٍ قَالَ فَخَرَجْتُ فِيهَا وَقَالَ " إِنْ وَجَدْتُمْ فُلاَنًا فَاحْرِقُوهُ بِالنَّارِ " . فَوَلَّيْتُ فَنَادَانِي فَرَجَعْتُ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ " إِنْ وَجَدْتُمْ فُلاَنًا فَاقْتُلُوهُ وَلاَ تُحْرِقُوهُ فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يُعَذِّبُ بِالنَّارِ إِلاَّ رَبُّ النَّارِ " .
Narrated Hamzah al-Aslami: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) appointed him commander over a detachment. He said: I went out along with it. He (the Prophet) said: If you find so-and-so, burn him with the fire. I then turned away, and he called me. So I returned to him, and he said: If you find so-and-so, kill him, and do not burn him, for no one punishes with fire except the Lord of the fire
Scholarly Authentication
The label above is the grade most of these scholars gave — one dissenting opinion no longer speaks for all of them. If any scholar calls a narration fabricated, that verdict is shown instead, whatever the others say. Each scholar's own wording:
In-book reference: 15:197