Respected Brother, I read a hadith from Sunan Abu Dawood, Book 36, hadith 25, in which the prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, says, “Any women who wears a gold necklace will have a similar one of fire put on her neck on the day of ressurection, and any women who puts a gold earring in her ear will have a similar one of fire put in her ear on the day of ressurection.” I want to know about its authenticity? If it is true, then why have women been using gold to adorn themselves for all these years?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

This hadeeth was classified as Dha’eef (weak) by Shaykh Al-Albaani in Dha’eef Sunan Abu Daawood, and it was classified as such as well by Shaykh Shu’ayb Al-Arna'oot in Tahqeeq Musnad Ahmad.

Even if we presume that it is authentic, it would then be interpreted to have been abrogated or that the threat is in regard to the woman who does not pay the zakah of gold.

Al-Khattaabi provided the same answer as he said:

“This is interpreted to mean two things: the first interpretation is that the Prophet said this at the beginning, and then it was permitted for women to adorn themselves with gold. Indeed, it is confirmed that the Prophet once stood on the pulpit, and in one of his hands he held gold and in the other he held silk, and then he said, 'These two are unlawful for the males of my Ummah (nation) and lawful for its females.'

The second interpretation is that this threat is for the one who does not pay the zakah of gold and does not apply to the one who pays its zakah.”

Allaah knows best.