Charity is one of the best deeds which a person can offer himself, and he obtains its great reward from Allah, The Almighty. In this hadeeth, The Prophet ﷺ tells us about a man - it was said that he was from Banee ‘Israa’eel - who went out to offer alms [to those in need]. So, his alms went into the hands of a thief once. And then in the hand of an adulteress once more. And in the hand of a rich man a third time. In every instance, the people would rise in the morning, talking about what he did in amazement; because charity, according to them, was dedicated to the needy people from amongst the charitable; and that is why they marvelled at the charity that was offered to these people. The man praised Allah, The Mighty and Majestic; for he had intended for his charity to fall into the hands of an upright poor person that no one knows about his poverty, or an honourable, honest man, or a chaste woman. But Allah’s Decree is a predetermined, divine preordainment, so the man was brought into a dream, and was told that his charity was accepted, as what is narrated in a report in Musnad Ahmad because he was sincere and had intended to do good, however, it was not facilitated for him. It was said to him: ‘As for your charity for the thief, perhaps the thief will abstain from stealing. Maybe the burglar will say: ‘This money will suffice me’ or that he is embarrassed that he had been provided for without stealing, and he knows that, among the servants of Allah, there are those who offer alms in secret at night to those who do not know him. As for the prostitute who commits fornication as an occupation, perhaps she may abstain from it because she may have committed adultery – we seek refuge in Allah from such sin - with the purpose of [earning] money, and something happened to her which stopped her from doing so again. As to the rich man, maybe he will reflect and learn a lesson, causing him to spend from what Allah has given him. This is how a good intention will yield wholesome fruits. From the other benefits that we can conclude from this hadeeth is that it indicates that when a person intends goodness, and strives towards it, and makes a mistake; it is because it was written for him, and it will not harm him. It shows that the legal ruling [for a matter] is given based on what appears, until it becomes clear otherwise. It encourages us to submit and be content with the Divine Decree, and praise Allah, and entrust all of your concerns and affairs to Allah, The Mighty and Majestic. And lastly, it teaches us that we should give charity and alms again if it did not fall in its proper place [i.e., be received by its rightful recipients]..