Incident of 33:23
Some individuals attempt to downplay the history of 9:128-129 and point to a hadith regarding verse 23 of Sura 33, Al-Ahzab, where a similar incident occurred, but these two events are not comparable.
The reason the Hadith regarding 33:23 is not comparable to that of 9:128-129 is that in the Hadith regarding 33:23, it is clear that Zaid bin Thabit already had the verse memorized as it specifies that he recalled remembering the messenger reciting it. This was not the case with 9:128-129, where not even Zaid bin Thabit had this verse memorized or written.
Secondly, this Hadith was during the reign of ‘Uthman during the transcription of the mus’hafs and not during the original compilation commissioned by Abu Bakr like that of the Hadith for 9:128-129. This is significant because, during the incident of 33:23, the compilation of the Quran from the time of Abu Bakr was already complete and available. Therefore, it isn’t that Zaid bin Thabit was looking to confirm the validity of this verse like he was for 9:128-129, but instead, he was looking for the actual folio for this verse for the compilation of the mus’haf. This is confirmed in the following Sahih hadith from Bukhari.
The basic narration is the following:
Narrated Az-Zuhri: from Anas who said: "Hudhaifah bin Al-Yaman came to 'Uthman, at the time when the people of Ash-Sham and the people of Al-'Iraq were waging war to conquer Arminiyah and Adharbijan. Hudhaifah saw their (the people of Ash-Sham and Al-'Iraq) different forms of recitation of the Qur'an. So he said to 'Uthman: 'O Commander of the Believers! Save this nation before they differ about the Book as the Jews and the Christians did before them.' So he ('Uthman) sent a message to Hafsah (saying): 'Send us the manuscripts so that we may copy them in the Musahif (plural of Mushaf: a written copy of the Qur'an) then we shall return it to you.' So Hafsah sent the manuscripts to 'Uthman bin 'Affan. 'Uthman then sent order for Zaid bin Thabit, Sa'eed bin Al-'As, 'Abdur-Rahman bin Al-Harith bin Hisham, and 'Abdullah bin Az-Zubair to copy the manuscripts in the Musahif. 'Uthman said to the three Quraish men: 'In case you disagree with Zaid bin Thabit on any point in the (recitation dialect of the) Qur'an, then write it in the dialect of Quraish for it was in their tongue.' So when they had copied the manuscripts, 'Uthman sent one Mushaf from those Musahif that they had copied to every province." Az-Zuhri said: "Kharijah bin Zaid [bin Thabit] narrated to me that Zaid bin Thabit said: 'I missed an Ayah of Surat Al-Ahzab that I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) reciting: Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah, of them some have fulfilled their obligations, and some of them are still waiting (33: 23) - so I searched for it and found it with Khuzaimah bin Thabit, or Abu Khuzaimah, so I put it in its Surah.'" Az-Zuhri said: "They differed then with At-Tabut and At-Tabuh. The Quraish said: At-Tabut while Zaid said: At-Tabuh. Their disagreement was brought to 'Uthman, so he said: 'Write it as At-Tabut, for it was revealed in the tongue of the Quraish.'" Az-Zuhri said: "'Ubaidullah bin 'Abdullah bin 'Utbah informed me that 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud disliked Zaid bin Thabit copying the Musahif, and he said: 'O you Muslim people! I am removed from recording the transcription of the Mushaf and it is overseen by a man, by Allah, when I accepted Islam he was but in the loins of a disbelieving man' - meaning Zaid bin Thabit - and it was regarding this that 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud said: 'O people of Al-'Iraq! Keep the Musahif that are with you, and conceal them. For indeed Allah said: And whoever conceals something, he shall come with what he concealed on the Day of Judgement (3: 161). So meet Allah with the Musahif.'" Az-Zuhri said: "It was conveyed to me that some men amongst the most virtuous of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) disliked that view of Ibn Mas'ud."
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَشَّارٍ، حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ مَهْدِيٍّ، حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ سَعْدٍ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، عَنْ أَنَسٍ، أَنَّ حُذَيْفَةَ، قَدِمَ عَلَى عُثْمَانَ بْنِ عَفَّانَ وَكَانَ يُغَازِي أَهْلَ الشَّامِ فِي فَتْحِ أَرْمِينِيَّةَ وَأَذْرَبِيجَانَ مَعَ أَهْلِ الْعِرَاقِ فَرَأَى حُذَيْفَةُ اخْتِلاَفَهُمْ فِي الْقُرْآنِ فَقَالَ لِعُثْمَانَ بْنِ عَفَّانَ يَا أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَدْرِكْ هَذِهِ الأُمَّةَ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْتَلِفُوا فِي الْكِتَابِ كَمَا اخْتَلَفَتِ الْيَهُودُ وَالنَّصَارَى فَأَرْسَلَ إِلَى حَفْصَةَ أَنْ أَرْسِلِي إِلَيْنَا بِالصُّحُفِ نَنْسَخُهَا فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ ثُمَّ نَرُدُّهَا إِلَيْكِ فَأَرْسَلَتْ حَفْصَةُ إِلَى عُثْمَانَ بِالصُّحُفِ فَأَرْسَلَ عُثْمَانُ إِلَى زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ وَسَعِيدِ بْنِ الْعَاصِي وَعَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ الْحَارِثِ بْنِ هِشَامٍ وَعَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الزُّبَيْرِ أَنِ انْسَخُوا الصُّحُفَ فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ وَقَالَ لِلرَّهْطِ الْقُرَشِيِّينَ الثَّلاَثَةِ مَا اخْتَلَفْتُمْ فِيهِ أَنْتُمْ وَزَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ فَاكْتُبُوهُ بِلِسَانِ قُرَيْشٍ فَإِنَّمَا نَزَلَ بِلِسَانِهِمْ . حَتَّى نَسَخُوا الصُّحُفَ فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ بَعَثَ عُثْمَانُ إِلَى كُلِّ أُفُقٍ بِمُصْحَفٍ مِنْ تِلْكَ الْمَصَاحِفِ الَّتِي نَسَخُوا . قَالَ الزُّهْرِيُّ وَحَدَّثَنِي خَارِجَةُ بْنُ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ أَنَّ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ فَقَدْتُ آيَةً مِنْ سُورَةِ الأَحْزَابِ كُنْتُ أَسْمَعُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقْرَؤُهَا : ( مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُوا مَا عَاهَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ قَضَى نَحْبَهُ ) فَالْتَمَسْتُهَا فَوَجَدْتُهَا مَعَ خُزَيْمَةَ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ أَوْ أَبِي خُزَيْمَةَ فَأَلْحَقْتُهَا فِي سُورَتِهَا . قَالَ الزُّهْرِيُّ فَاخْتَلَفُوا يَوْمَئِذٍ فِي التَّابُوتِ وَالتَّابُوهِ فَقَالَ الْقُرَشِيُّونَ التَّابُوتُ . وَقَالَ زَيْدٌ التَّابُوهُ . فَرُفِعَ اخْتِلاَفُهُمْ إِلَى عُثْمَانَ فَقَالَ اكْتُبُوهُ التَّابُوتُ فَإِنَّهُ نَزَلَ بِلِسَانِ قُرَيْشٍ . قَالَ الزُّهْرِيُّ فَأَخْبَرَنِي عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُتْبَةَ أَنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ مَسْعُودٍ كَرِهَ لِزَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ نَسْخَ الْمَصَاحِفِ وَقَالَ يَا مَعْشَرَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ أُعْزَلُ عَنْ نَسْخِ كِتَابَةِ الْمُصْحَفِ وَيَتَوَلاَّهَا رَجُلٌ وَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ أَسْلَمْتُ وَإِنَّهُ لَفِي صُلْبِ رَجُلٍ كَافِرٍ يُرِيدُ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ وَلِذَلِكَ قَالَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مَسْعُودٍ يَا أَهْلَ الْعِرَاقِ اكْتُمُوا الْمَصَاحِفَ الَّتِي عِنْدَكُمْ وَغُلُّوهَا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ يَقُولُ : ( وَمَنْ يَغْلُلْ يَأْتِ بِمَا غَلَّ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ ) فَالْقُوا اللَّهَ بِالْمَصَاحِفِ . قَالَ الزُّهْرِيُّ فَبَلَغَنِي أَنَّ ذَلِكَ كَرِهَهُ مِنْ مَقَالَةِ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ رِجَالٌ مِنْ أَفَاضِلِ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم . قَالَ هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ . وَهُوَ حَدِيثُ الزُّهْرِيِّ لاَ نَعْرِفُهُ إِلاَّ مِنْ حَدِيثِهِ .
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3104 https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:3104
Narrated Kharija bin Zaid: Zaid bin Thabit said, "When the Qur'an was compiled from pages (suhuf) into the manuscripts (mushafs), one of the Verses of Surat Al-Ahzab was missing which I used to hear Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) reciting. I could not find it except with Khuza`ima bin Thabjt Al-Ansari, whose witness Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) regarded as equal to the witness of two men. And the Verse was: -- "Among the believers are men who have been true to what they covenanted with Allah." (33.23)
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْيَمَانِ، أَخْبَرَنَا شُعَيْبٌ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، حَدَّثَنِي إِسْمَاعِيلُ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَخِي، عَنْ سُلَيْمَانَ، أُرَاهُ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ أَبِي عَتِيقٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ خَارِجَةَ بْنِ زَيْدٍ، أَنَّ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ نَسَخْتُ الصُّحُفَ فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ، فَفَقَدْتُ آيَةً مِنْ سُورَةِ الأَحْزَابِ، كُنْتُ أَسْمَعُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقْرَأُ بِهَا، فَلَمْ أَجِدْهَا إِلاَّ مَعَ خُزَيْمَةَ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ الَّذِي جَعَلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم شَهَادَتَهُ شَهَادَةَ رَجُلَيْنِ، وَهْوَ قَوْلُهُ {مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُوا مَا عَاهَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ}
Sahih al-Bukhari 2807 https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2807
Ibrahim bin Sa'd narrated from Anas bin Malik from Hudhayfa bin al-Yaman that he came to Uthman and was with the traders of the people of Sham in a [farj]. Abu Bakr said: It means the mats of dates and the scattering with the people of Yemen. He (Hudhayfa) observed their differences in the Qur'an. So he said to Uthman bin Affan, "O Commander of the Believers, save this nation before they differ in the Book as the Jews and the Christians differed." So he sent to Hafsa to send the scrolls so that we may copy them into the mushafs, and then we will return them to you. So Hafsa sent them to Uthman, and Uthman sent to Zaid bin Thabit, Sa'id bin al-As, Abdur Rahman bin al-Harith bin Hisham, and Abdullah bin al-Zubair to copy the scrolls into the mushafs. And Uthman said to the three Qurashis, "If you and Zaid bin Thabit differ in anything, write it in the dialect of the Quraysh, for it was revealed in their dialect." So they did that until they copied the scrolls into the mushafs. Uthman then sent a mushaf to each region from those that were copied, and he ordered that the rest of the scrolls or mushafs be burned. Al-Zuhri said: And Kharija bin Zaid narrated to me that Zaid bin Thabit said: "I missed an ayah from Surah al-Ahzab that I used to hear the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) recite: {Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah; some of them have fulfilled their vow, and some of them are still waiting} (Sura 33:23), so we sought it and found it with Khuzaymah bin Thabit (or Abu Khuzaymah), so I added it to its surah." Al-Zuhri said: They also differed that day on the words "al-Tabut" and "al-Tabuh," and the Qurashis said "al-Tabuh" and Zaid said "al-Tabut." Their difference was referred to Uthman, and he said: "Write it 'al-Tabut,' for it is in the dialect of the Quraysh."
حدثنا إبراهيم بن سعد عن أنس بن مالك عن حديثة بن اليمان قدم على عثمان وكان بُزازي أهل الشام في فرج.(1) وأُمينة قال أبو بكر: يعني: الفرش الثمر والذُريجان مع أهل اليمن فقرأ حذيفة اختلافهم في القرآن، فقال لعثمان بن عفان يا أمير المؤمنين أدرك هذه الأمة قبل أن يختلفوا في الكتاب كما اختلفت اليهود والنصارى. فأرسل إلى حفصة أن أرسل إلي الصحف ننسخها في المصاحف ثم نردها إليك فأرسلت حفصة إلى عثمان فأرسل عثمان إلى زيد بن ثابت، وسعيد بن العاص، وعبد الرحمن بن الحارث بن هشام، وعبد الله بن الزبير أن انسخوا الصحف في المصاحف. وقال عثمان للقرشيين الثلاثة، ما اختلفتم أنتم وزيد بن ثابت فاكتبوه بلسان قريش، فإنما نزل بلسانهم. ففعلوا حتى إذا نسخوا الصحف في المصاحف بعث عثمان إلى كل أفق بمصحف من تلك المصاحف التي نسخوا، وأمر سائر الصحف أو صحف، أن يُحرق (غيره بخزاف). قال الزهري، وحدثني خارجة بن زيد أن زيد بن ثابت قال فقدت آية من سورة الأحزاب كنت أسمع رسول الله ﷺ يقرأها {س33:أ23 من المؤمنين رجال صدقوا ما عاهدوا الله عليه فمنهم من قضى نحبه ومنهم من ينتظر} فالتمسناها فوجدناها مع خزيمة بن ثابت (أو أبي خزيمة)، فألحقتها في سورتها. قال الزهري واختُلِفوا يومئذ في التابوت والتابوه فقال الفرشيون التابوه وقال زيد التابوت فرفع اختلافهم إلى عثمان فقال: اكتبوه التابوت فإنه بلسان قريش.
The judge Abu al-Fadl al-Armuwi narrated to us, while I was listening, he said: Abu Ja'far Muhammad bin Ahmad bin al-Muslima al-Muaddil told us, he said: Abu Umar Uthman bin Muhammad, known as Ibn al-Admi, told us, he said: Abu Bakr Abdullah bin Sulayman al-Aghmadi al-Sijistani al-A'raj told us, he said: Salama bin Shayb and Muhammad bin Yahya told us, he said: Abdul Razzaq told us, he said: Ma'mar told us, from al-Zuhri who said that Kharija bin Zaid bin Thabit told him, from his father who said: When we were compiling the Mushafs, I missed a verse which I used to hear from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. I found it with Khuzayma bin Thabit al-Ansari, {Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah} (Quran 33:23), up to {fanaqthum}. Khuzayma bin Thabit was called the one with the two testimonies; the Messenger of Allah ﷺ made his testimony equivalent to the testimony of two men. Al-Zuhri said: He was killed alongside Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) on the day of Siffin.
أخبرنا القاضي أبو الفضل الأرموي قراءة عليه وأنا أسمع، حدثنا أبو جعفر محمد بن أحمد بن المسلمة المعدل قال أخبرنا أبو عمر عثمان بن محمد المعروف بابن الأذمى قال، حدثنا أبو بكر عبد الله بن سليمان الأغماتي السجستاني الأعرج قال، حدثنا سلمة بن شييب ومحمد بن يحيى قال، حدثنا عبد الرزاق قال، أخبرنا معمر عن الزهري قال أخبرني خارجة بن زيد بن ثابت، عن أبيه قال لما كتبنا المصاحف فقدت آية كنت أسمعها من رسول الله ﷺ، وجدتها عند خزيمة بن ثابت الأنصاري {من المؤمنين رجال صدقوا ما عاهدوا الله عليه} (س 33 آية 23)، إلى {فنبيلوا}، وكان خزيمة بن ثابت يقال له ذو الشهادتين، جعل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم شهادته بشهادة رجلين، وقال الزهري وقتل مع علي رضي الله عنه يوم صفين.
Abdullah narrated to us, Muhammad bin Khalaf al-Asqalani and Muhammad bin Awf al-Homsi told us, they said: Abu al-Yaman told us, he said: Shu'ayb told us, from al-Zuhri who said: Kharija bin Zaid bin Thabit told me, from his father who said: When we were copying the Mushaf, I missed a verse from Surah al-Ahzab which I used to hear from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, {Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah}, so we searched for it and did not find it except with Khuzayma bin Thabit al-Ansari, the one whose testimony the Messenger of Allah ﷺ made equivalent to the testimony of two men, so we wrote it down.
حدثنا عبد الله حدثنا محمد بن خلف العسقلاني ومحمد بن عوف الحمصي قالا، حدثنا أبو اليمان قال، أخبرنا شعيب، عن الزهري قال أخبرني خارجة بن زيد بن ثابت عن أبيه قال، لما نسخنا المصحف فقدت آية من سورة الأحزاب كنت أسمعها من رسول الله ﷺ {من المؤمنين رجال صدقوا ما عاهدوا الله عليه}، فالتمسناها فلم نجدها إلا عند خزيمة بن ثابت الأنصاري الذي جعل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم شهادته بشهادة رجلين، فكتبناها.
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