Is it true that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, commanded the digging of a well and then its filling to address unemployment and to prevent Muslims from becoming accustomed to idleness, and is there any basis for this in the Prophetic Sunnah?

What we found in Sharawi's Tafsir is his statement: "If wealth becomes abundant and there is no need for new projects, do not leave people idle. Rather, you should command them, even if it is to dig a well, and then command them to fill it in." Sharawi did not attribute this statement to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), but to an unknown source. We do not know of anything in the Sunnah specifically concerning this matter. However, it is authentically reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he encouraged earning a living and being self-sufficient, as in the hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari: "For one of you to gather a bundle of firewood on his back is better for him than to ask someone who may or may not give him."