It was narrated on the authority of Abu Sa‘eed Al-Khudri that he said: In the year of Tabook Campaign, the Messenger of Allah addressed the people, while supporting his back against a date-palm, saying:
Should I not tell you about the best of people and the worst of people? The best of people is a man who strives in the cause of Allah on the back of his horse, on the back of his camel, or on his feet till death comes to him. Among the worst of people is a wicked man who reads the Book of Allah (the Quran) and is inattentive to it. [Ahmad, An-Nasa’i and Al-Hakim]
The best of people are those who fight in the cause of Allah and who continue to do so till death approaches them; whereas the worst of people is the wicked man who reads the Quran and acts upon nothing thereof. The wicked person is he who commits sins, be he a Muslim or a non-Muslim. It includes, in our time, the orientalists and their disciples who follow their method from among the Muslims and evil scholars, as will be shown later in the three hadeeth (Prophet's saying) to come. According to a scholar, one may recite the Quran and curse himself unknowingly.
He may read (what means): {Unquestionably, the curse of Allah is upon the wrongdoers.} [Quran 11:18] and he is one of the wrongdoers. He also may recite (what means): {Let us … supplicate earnestly [together] and invoke the curse of Allah upon the liars [among us].} [Quran 3:61] and he is one of those liars.
According to Abu Sulayman Ad-Darani the angels of Hell come to the holders of the Quran who disobey Allah Almighty before they come to the idolaters.
One of the predecessors said: “One may start reciting a Quranic soorah (chapter), thereupon the angels keep invoking Allah’s blessing upon him till he ends it; and one may start reciting a Quranic soorah, thereupon the angels keep invoking Allah’s curse upon him till he ends it.” When asked how this takes place he said: “If he makes lawful what is lawful in it and makes unlawful what is unlawful in it, they will invoke Allah’s blessing upon him, otherwise they will invoke Allah’s curse upon him.”
It is narrated on the authority of Jundub that he said: “We, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah were given faith before the Quran; and after us, there will be a people who will be given the Quran before faith: they will establish it in letter and neglect its limits and rights, saying: ‘We recite the Quran: who could recite better than us? We know (the Quran): Who has knowledge better than us?’” That will be their share. According to another narration, “Those will be the worst of people.” [Ibn Majah]
According to Qatadah no one sits with this Quran (i.e. recites it) but that he will leave it either with increase or decrease (in success or loss). In confirmation, Allah the Almighty Says (what means): {And We send down of the Quran that which is healing and mercy for the believers, but it does not increase the wrongdoers except in loss.} [Quran 17:82]
It is narrated on the authority of Abu Sa‘eed Al-Khudri that he said:
The Messenger of Allah said: There will appear among you a people (who will be engaged in religious service, so much that) you will look down upon your prayer, fasting and deeds, compared with theirs. They will recite the Quran, though it will not go beyond their collar-bones (because they will have practically no belief). They will deviate from the religion as an arrow goes out through the game, whereupon the archer would examine the arrowhead but see nothing, look at the bow but see nothing, and look at the feathers but see nothing. Finally he would look at the arrow shaft and doubt whether he could find anything. [At-Tirmithi, Abu Dawood, Ibn Majah and An-Nasa’i]
To deviate from the religion is to take only what agrees with one’s inclination and abandon everything else. That is, they will abandon the religion as fast as the arrow goes out of the game.
According to the narration of Muslim, Abu Dawood and An-Nasa’i:
Towards the end of time there will appear some young, foolish people who will use (in their claim) the best speech of all people (the Quran). They will recite the Quran, though it will not go beyond their collar-bones. They will abandon Islam as an arrow goes out through the game. So, wherever you meet them, kill them, for he who kills them shall receive a reward on the Day of Resurrection.
This applies to him who is endowed with extensive knowledge of Shaee'ah (Islamic Law) sciences but has no faith, like the Orientalists and their disciples: they speak pleasant words characterized by scientific accuracy, objectivity and the desire to reach the fact. But they hide in its folds feelings of resentment towards Islam and the inexorable attempt to slander and ruin it with malicious ways.
It also applies to the religious innovators who follow their inclinations. They have corrupt ideas they like to prove by taking from the religion what agrees with their opinions and leaving the rest of it. In order to do so, they gather the information which supports their inclinations and religious innovations ; thereby, they appear, in the eyes of the simple and naive people, as investigating, accurate scholars, whose speech is convincing and conclusions valid.
Mu‘ath ibn Jabal said: "There will be, after you, fitnah (turmoil), in which wealth will become abundant, and the Quran will be opened (i.e. become in circulation among people), so much so, that it will be recited by the faithful believer and the hypocrite, the man and woman, the old and the young, and the slave and the free one; and one will be about to say: 'What is the matter with the people that they do not follow me, even though I recite the Quran: they seem not to follow me until I innovate for them something other than it.
So, beware of innovations, for they are falsehood; and I warn you of the deviation of the wise, for the devil may say the word of falsehood on the tongue of the wise; and a hypocrite may say a word of truth.'" They asked: "What makes us know, may Allah have mercy upon you, that the wise person is saying the word of falsehood and the hypocrite is saying the word of truth?" He said: "Nay! Avoid the wise man’s words which you disapprove of and which are questioned by people, but let not this dissuade you from him, for perchance he may retract and follow the truth once he hears it, for there is light on the truth." [Abu Dawood]