Is "one who holds to his religion like one who holds to a burning coal" an authentic hadith from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, and what does it mean?

The aforementioned Hadith is an authentic Hadith narrated by Imam Ahmad from Abu Hurayrah, and it states: "Woe to the Arabs from an evil that has drawn nigh. Tribulations like parts of a dark night, a man wakes up as a believer and goes to sleep as a disbeliever. People will sell their religion for a small worldly gain. The one who adheres to his religion on that day will be like one grasping a burning coal," or he said, "like grasping thorns." Al-Arna’ut graded it as authentic. In the narration of Al-Tirmidhi: "There will come a time upon the people when the one who is patient in adhering to his religion will be like one grasping a burning coal," and Al-Albani graded it as authentic. Scholars interpret this as due to the abundance of corruption, tribulations, temptations, and the scarcity of those who assist in obedience.