535 — Abū ʿAbd Allāh Jaʿfar ibn Idrīs al-Qazwīnī narrated to me, saying: Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb ibn Ishāq al-Qazwīnī al-Sawwāf narrated to us, saying: Sahl ibn Uthmān al-ʿAskarī narrated to us, saying: Saʿīd ibn al-Nuʿmān narrated to me, from Nahshal, from al-Dahhāk ibn Uthmān, who said:

“I attended the pilgrimage season and met a group at al-Khayf Mosque, whose members he named. I also saw Tāwūs al-Yamānī and heard him say to a man, ‘The Divine Decree is Allah’s secret, so do not delve into it. I heard Abū al-Dardāʾ relate from your Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—that when Moses, peace be upon him, left Pharaoh with his countenance changed, an angel from among the keepers of the Fire met him ⦗941⦘. The angel was turning his palms over in astonishment at these words of the Trustworthy Spirit: “Your Lord—Glorious is His Majesty—has sent you to Pharaoh even though his heart has already been sealed and he will never believe.” Moses asked, “O Gabriel, what purpose, then, does my call serve?” He replied, “Proceed with what you have been commanded.” Moses said, “You have spoken the truth.” The angel then said, “O Moses, the twelve of us are angels from among the keepers of the Fire. We have done our utmost to inquire into this matter, but it was revealed to us that the Divine Decree is Allah’s secret, so do not delve into it.”’”