“Say: He is Allah, the One” (1). How will they deal (2) with the declaration, “Indeed, I am Allah; there is no deity but Me” (3)?
And (4) Sulayman ibn Dawud al-Hashimi (5) said: “Whoever claims that the Quran is created is a disbeliever. If the Quran were in fact created—as they allege—then why is Pharaoh more deserving of being eternally consigned to the Fire when he said, ‘I am your lord, the Most High’ (6)? [They maintain that this utterance is created, while the One who proclaimed,] (7) ‘Indeed, I am Allah; there is no deity but Me, so worship Me’ (8)—this One (9) likewise (10) asserted what Pharaoh asserted. So why should Pharaoh be more entitled to everlasting punishment in the Fire than this One? Both of them (11), according to their view, are created.” When this was related to Abu ʿUbayd (12), he approved of it (13).
(1) Surah al-Ikhlâs, verse 1.
(2) In Khalq Afal al-Ibad: “tasna’un” (“you make”).
(3) Surah Tâhâ, verse 14.
(4) Narrated by al-Bukhârî in Khalq Afal al-Ibad, p. 36, from Sulaymân ibn Dâwûd.
(5) He is Abû Ayyûb Sulaymân ibn Dâwûd ibn ‘Alî ibn ‘Abd Allâh ibn ‘Abbâs al-Hâshimî al-Baghdâdî, the jurist. He narrated from Ibn ‘Uyayna, al-Shâfi‘î, and others. He is regarded as trustworthy and sincere. He died in 219 AH. See Tahdhîb al-Tahdhîb by Ibn Hajar, vol. 4, pp. 187–188; and Khulâṣat Tahdhîb al-Kamâl by Ṣafî al-Dîn al-Anṣârî, p. 151.
(6) Surah an-Nâzi‘ât, verse 24.
(7) In all manuscripts: “wa-qâla ghayruhu” (“and another said”). The reading supplied in brackets is taken from Khalq Afal al-Ibad.
(8) Surah Tâhâ, verse 14. The original reads “inni” (“Indeed I”), and the supplied reading is correct.
(9) In the Ṭ edition: “fa-hadha” (“so this”).
(10) In the original, manuscript S reads “faqad” (“certainly”), and the supplied reading is drawn from Ṭ and from Khalq Afal al-Ibad.
(11) In Khalq Afal al-Ibad: “wa-kulla minhuma” (“and each of them”).
(12) He is likely Abû Ubayd al-Qâsim ibn Sallâm; see his biography above on p. 260.
(13) In Khalq Afal al-Ibad: “fa-istahsanhuhu wa-ajjabahu” (“he approved it and found it pleasing”).