If the slave draws closer to Me by a hand-span, I shall draw closer to him by a cubit; and if he draws closer to Me by a cubit, I shall draw closer to him by the span of two outstretched arms. If he comes to Me walking, I shall come to him running
Authentic hadithعن أنس بن مالك وأبي هريرة رضي الله عنهما عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فيما يرويه عن ربه عز وجل قال: «إذا تَقَرَّبَ العبدُ إليَّ شِبْرًا تَقَرَّبْتُ إليه ذِرَاعًا، وإذا تَقَرَّبَ إليَّ ذِرَاعًا تَقَرَّبْتُ مِنْهُ بَاعًا، وإذا أتاني يمشي أَتَيْتُهُ هَرْوَلَةً».
Anas ibn Mālik and Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with both of them) reported that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said that Allah, the Almighty, said: "If the slave draws closer to Me by a hand-span, I shall draw closer to him by a cubit; and if he draws closer to Me by a cubit, I shall draw closer to him by the span of two outstretched arms. If he comes to Me walking, I shall come to him running."
Explanation
Whoever draws near to Allah with acts of obedience, even if small, Allah will multiply them and reward him greatly. The more he obeys Allah, the more Allah increases his reward and hastens to him with His mercy and favor. This interpretation is based on the premise that this Hadīth is not one about the Attributes of Allah, as is the approach of a group of the scholars of Ahl As-Sunnah Wa al-Jamā‘ah who affirm the divine attributes, including Ibn Taymiyyah. Another group affirmed the attribute of running for Allah, the Almighty, without asking 'how'.
Source · Narrated by Bukhari - Narrated by Bukhari & Muslim
From the Hadith Encyclopedia (hadeethenc.com).