Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari said:

when I was beating a servant of mine, I heard a voice behind me saying: know, Abu Mas’ud-Ibn al-Muthanna said: “twice”-that Allah has more power over you than you have over him. I turned round and saw that it was that it was the prophet ﷺ. I said : Messenger of Allah! He is free for Allah’s sake. He said : If you had not done it, fire would have burned you or the fire would have touched you.

حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْعَلاَءِ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ، ح وَحَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ الْمُثَنَّى، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ، عَنِ الأَعْمَشِ، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ التَّيْمِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ أَبِي مَسْعُودٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ، قَالَ كُنْتُ أَضْرِبُ غُلاَمًا لِي فَسَمِعْتُ مِنْ خَلْفِي صَوْتًا " اعْلَمْ أَبَا مَسْعُودٍ " . قَالَ ابْنُ الْمُثَنَّى مَرَّتَيْنِ " لَلَّهُ أَقْدَرُ عَلَيْكَ مِنْكَ عَلَيْهِ " . فَالْتَفَتُّ فَإِذَا هُوَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ هُوَ حُرٌّ لِوَجْهِ اللَّهِ . قَالَ " أَمَا إِنَّكَ لَوْ لَمْ تَفْعَلْ لَلَفَعَتْكَ النَّارُ أَوْ " لَمَسَّتْكَ النَّارُ " .