—seven in all: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, Abu Bakr, ʿAmmār, his mother Sumayyah, Suhayb, Bilāl, and al-Miqdād.

As for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, Allah safeguarded him through his uncle.

As for Abu Bakr, Allah protected him by means of his clan.

As for the rest, the polytheists dressed them in iron coats of mail, chained them beneath the scorching sun, and there was not one of them who did not eventually comply with what their tormentors demanded—except Bilāl. He deemed his own life insignificant for Allah’s sake, and his people deemed him insignificant as well, so they handed him over to the youths, who paraded him through the mountain passes of Mecca while he kept repeating, “One, One.” (1)

Mansūr narrated from Mujāhid: “The first to make their Islam public were seven …,” and he listed them.

He added: “Then Abū Jahl came, hurling insults at Sumayyah and thrusting his spear into her private parts until he killed her; she thus became the first martyr in Islam.” (2)

ʿUmar ibn al-Ḥakam said: “ʿAmmār was tortured until he no longer knew what he was saying, and the same was done to Suhayb; regarding them the verse was revealed: ‘And those who emigrated for Allah’s sake after they had been wronged …’ [al-Naḥl (3): 41].”

Mansūr ibn Abī al-Aswad—through al-Aʿmash, from ʿAmr ibn Murrah, from Sālim ibn Abī al-Jaʿd, from ʿUthmān—reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Patience, O family of Yāsir, for your rendezvous …”