My example and your example is that of a person who lit a fire, and grasshoppers and moths began to fall in it, while he is attempting to push them away. I am holding you back from the fire, but you are slipping from my hand
Authentic hadithعن جابر بن عبد الله وأبو هريرة رضي الله عنهم مرفوعاً: «مثلي ومثلُكم كمثل رجلٍ أَوْقَدَ نارًا فجعل الجنادِبُ والفَرَاشُ يَقَعْنَ فيها، وهو يَذُبُّهُنَّ عنها، وأنا آخذٌ بحُجَزِكُم عن النار، وأنتم تَفَلَّتُون من يَدَيَّ».
Jābir ibn ‘Abdullāh and Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported that the Messenger (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: “My example and your example is that of a person who lit a fire, and grasshoppers and moths began to fall in it, while he is attempting to push them away. I am holding you back from the fire, but you are slipping from my hand."
Explanation
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) explains that his role in his nation is like that of a man in the wilderness who has lit a fire, and then the grasshoppers and moths begin to fall into it. This is the case with most small insects when they see a fire, as they are attracted to the light of the fire, until they get burned in it. The Messenger (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) states that his role is to push people away from the fire (of hell), just as this man is trying to push the insects away from the fire that he lit up. However, people are persistently trying to fall into the fire by disobeying him and not following his Sunnah.
Source · Narrated by Muslim - Narrated by Bukhari & Muslim
From the Hadith Encyclopedia (hadeethenc.com).