Had they entered it, they would never have come out of it until the Day of Judgment. Obedience is only in what is right

Explanation

The Prophet (ﷺ) sent out an army and appointed a man from the Ansār as their leader, instructing them to obey him. The leader became angry with them and said: Did not the Prophet (ﷺ) command you to obey me? They said: Yes. He said: Then I command you to gather firewood, light a fire, and enter it. So they gathered the firewood and lit the fire, but when they were about to enter it, they began looking at one another. And they said: We only followed the Prophet (ﷺ) to escape from the Fire—so should we enter it? While they were in this state, the flames of the fire went out, and the leader's anger subsided. When the Prophet (ﷺ) was informed of this, he said: Had they obeyed him and entered the fire they had kindled, they would have been tormented therein and would not have come out of it until the existence of this world. There is no obedience to a created being in disobedience to the Creator; obedience is only required in what is right, not in sin.

Lessons

• This shows that obedience is only in what is right and not in sin, even if the one giving the command is someone whose obedience is obligatory.
• The sinning monotheist is threatened with Hellfire, yet Allah may forgive him.
• The legitimacy of appointing a leader during military expeditions, as well as during travel.