حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ أَبِي عَدِيٍّ عَنْ حُمَيْدٍ عَنْ أَنَسٍ قَالَ قَالَ عُمَرُ وَافَقْتُ رَبِّي عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي ثَلَاثٍ أَوْ وَافَقَنِي رَبِّي فِي ثَلَاثٍ قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ لَوْ اتَّخَذْتَ الْمَقَامَ مُصَلًّى قَالَ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَاتَّخِذُوا مِنْ مَقَامِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ مُصَلًّى وَقُلْتُ لَوْ حَجَبْتَ عَنْ أُمَّهَاتِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ فَإِنَّهُ يَدْخُلُ عَلَيْكَ الْبَرُّ وَالْفَاجِرُ فَأُنْزِلَتْ آيَةُ الْحِجَابِ قَالَ وَبَلَغَنِي عَنْ أُمَّهَاتِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ شَيْءٌ فَاسْتَقْرَيْتُهُنَّ أَقُولُ لَهُنَّ لَتَكُفُّنَّ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَوْ لَيُبْدِلَنَّهُ اللَّهُ بِكُنَّ أَزْوَاجًا خَيْرًا مِنْكُنَّ مُسْلِمَاتٍ حَتَّى أَتَيْتُ عَلَى إِحْدَى أُمَّهَاتِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ فَقَالَتْ يَا عُمَرُ أَمَا فِي رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَا يَعِظُ نِسَاءَهُ حَتَّى تَعِظَهُنَّ فَكَفَفْتُ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَسَى رَبُّهُ إِنْ طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَنْ يُبْدِلَهُ أَزْوَاجًا خَيْرًا مِنْكُنَّ مُسْلِمَاتٍ مُؤْمِنَاتٍ قَانِتَاتٍ الْآيَةَ
مسند امام احمد بن حنبل · Hadith 160
It was narrated that Anas said: 'Umar said: I agreed with my Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, in three matters - or my Lord agreed with me in three matters. I said: O Messenger of Allah, why don't you take the Maqam of Ibraheem as a place of prayer? Then Allah revealed the verse: "And take you (people) the Maqam (place) of Ibraheem (Abraham) [or the stone on which Ibraheem (Abraham) stood while he was building the Ka'bah] as a place of prayer" [al-Baqarah 2:125]. And I said: Why don't you tell the Mothers of the Believers to observe hijab, for both righteous people and evildoers enter upon you? Then the verse of hijab was revealed. And I heard something about the Mothers of the Believers, so I talked to them and told them: You should stop bothering the Messenger of Allah or Allah will replace you with wives who are better than you and are Muslims. Then I came to one of the Mothers of the Believers and she said: O 'Umar, is it the case that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) cannot admonish his wives so that you come and admonish them? So I stopped, then Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, revealed the verse: "It may be if he divorced you (all) that his Lord will give him instead of you, wives better than you Muslims (who submit to Allah), believers, obedient (to Allah)..." [at-Tahreem 66:5].
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020