177 — Alī ibn Hasnawayh al-Qattān narrated to us, saying: Muhammad ibn Ishāq al-Sāghānī narrated to us, saying: I heard Abū Ubayd al-Qāsim ibn Sallām say, “Whoever says, ‘The Quran ⦗510⦘ is created,’ has fabricated a lie against Allah and said concerning Allah what neither the Jews nor the Christians have said.”

Muhammad ibn al-Husayn—may Allah have mercy on him—said: Ahmad ibn Hanbal—may Allah have mercy on him—cited as proof the hadith of Ibn Abbās: “The first thing Allah created was the Pen.” He stated that this was powerful evidence against those who say that the Quran is created, as though he were saying: “Speech already existed before the Pen was created. Since the Pen was the first thing Allah created, this proves that His speech is not created, for it existed before the creation of all things.”