قَالَ أَبُو دَاوُدَ قُرِئَ عَلَى الْحَارِثِ بْنِ مِسْكِينٍ وَأَنَا أَسْمَعُ، أَخْبَرَكَ يُوسُفُ بْنُ عَمْرٍو، أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ وَهْبٍ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ مَالِكًا، قِيلَ لَهُ إِنَّ أَهْلَ الأَهْوَاءِ يَحْتَجُّونَ عَلَيْنَا بِهَذَا الْحَدِيثِ ‏.‏ قَالَ مَالِكٌ احْتَجَّ عَلَيْهِمْ بِآخِرِهِ ‏.‏ قَالُوا أَرَأَيْتَ مَنْ يَمُوتُ وَهُوَ صَغِيرٌ قَالَ ‏ "‏ اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا كَانُوا عَامِلِينَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏
Mu'allaq (suspended chain): the early portion of the chain is intentionally omitted in the original text.

Malik was asked : The heretics argue from this tradition against us. Malik said : Argue against them from its last part which goes. The people asked : What do you think about the one who died while he was young? He replied : Allah knows best what he was going to do.

Chain Family Tree

4 narrators from originator to compiler

Hadith Grading

Each grade below reflects one scholar's assessment of the chain of transmission. The grade describes the chain, not the Prophet's words. How we grade

Traditional grade: Sahih