Sunan Abi Dawud 4767
سنن أبي داود#4767Sahihحَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ كَثِيرٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا سُفْيَانُ، حَدَّثَنَا الأَعْمَشُ، عَنْ خَيْثَمَةَ، عَنْ سُوَيْدِ بْنِ غَفَلَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ عَلِيٌّ : إِذَا حَدَّثْتُكُمْ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم حَدِيثًا فَلأَنْ أَخِرَّ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ أَحَبُّ إِلَىَّ مِنْ أَنْ أَكْذِبَ عَلَيْهِ وَإِذَا حَدَّثْتُكُمْ فِيمَا بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَكُمْ فَإِنَّمَا الْحَرْبُ خُدْعَةٌ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ : " يَأْتِي فِي آخِرِ الزَّمَانِ قَوْمٌ حُدَثَاءُ الأَسْنَانِ سُفَهَاءُ الأَحْلاَمِ، يَقُولُونَ مِنْ قَوْلِ خَيْرِ الْبَرِيَّةِ يَمْرُقُونَ مِنَ الإِسْلاَمِ كَمَا يَمْرُقُ السَّهْمُ مِنَ الرَّمِيَّةِ، لاَ يُجَاوِزُ إِيمَانُهُمْ حَنَاجِرَهُمْ، فَأَيْنَمَا لَقِيتُمُوهُمْ فَاقْتُلُوهُمْ، فَإِنَّ قَتْلَهُمْ أَجْرٌ لِمَنْ قَتَلَهُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ " .
‘Ali said:When I mention a tradition to you from the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him), it is dearer to me that I fall from the heaven than I lie on him. But when I talk to you about matters between me and you, then war is a deception. I heard the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) say: Towards the end of the time there will be people who are young in age and from Islam as an arrow goes through the animal aimed at, and their faith will not pass their throats. Wherever you meet them kill them, for their killing will bring a reward for him who kills them on the day of Resurrection
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: 42:172