Musnad Ahmad Hadith 9344

It is narrated from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Noble Prophet (ﷺ) received the following verse of Surah Al-Baqarah: "To Allah belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth. Whether you disclose what is in your hearts or conceal it, Allah will call you to account for it. Then He will forgive whom He wills and punish whom He wills, and Allah is over all things competent." This matter was very burdensome for the noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), so they presented themselves before the Noble Prophet (ﷺ), sat down on their knees, and said, "O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), we were not able to bear the obligations of deeds such as prayer, fasting, jihad, and charity that have been imposed upon us, but now the verse that has been revealed to you, we do not have the strength for it." The Noble Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Do you want to say what the Jews and Christians before you said: 'We have heard but we will not obey'? Rather, you should say: 'We have heard and we will obey. Our Lord! We seek Your forgiveness, and to You is the return.'" So the noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) began to say, "We have heard and we will obey. Our Lord! We seek Your forgiveness, and to You is the return." When they acknowledged this and their tongues expressed their humility, then Allah revealed this verse: "The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and [so have] the believers. All of them have believed in Allah and His angels and His books and His messengers, [saying], 'We make no distinction between any of His messengers.' And they say, 'We have heard and we obey. [Grant us] Your forgiveness, our Lord. To You is the [final] destination.'" When they did this, Allah abrogated the previous command and revealed this verse: "Allah does not burden a soul beyond that it can bear. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned." The scholars explain its interpretation as: whatever good a person does, its benefit is for him, and whatever evil he does, its harm is also for him. "Our Lord! Do not impose blame upon us if we forget or make a mistake." Allah replied, "Yes." "Our Lord! Do not lay upon us a burden like that which You laid upon those before us." Allah replied, "Yes." "Our Lord! Do not burden us with that which we have no ability to bear." Allah replied, "Yes." "Pardon us, forgive us, have mercy on us. You are our Protector, so help us against the disbelieving people."