“…in two days. Then He revealed to each heaven its command, and We adorned the lowest heaven with lamps for beauty and protection. Such is the determination of the All-Mighty, the All-Knowing.” (Fussilat 41:11–12)

Thus He informed us that He turned toward the heaven when it was smoke—some have said this smoke was the vapor that rose from the water beneath which the Throne stood, for vapor is a kind of smoke.

He, Exalted is He, also says:

“He is the One who created for you all that is on the earth; then He turned toward the heaven and fashioned them into seven heavens, and He has full knowledge of everything.” (al-Baqarah 2:29)

And He says:

“He is the One who created the heavens and the earth in six days, while His Throne was upon the water, that He might test you as to which of you is best in deed.” (Hūd 11:7)

So He has told us that He created the heavens and the earth in six days, and that His Throne was upon the water.

In Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, the Musnad, and other collections it is related from ʿImrān ibn Ḥuṣayn that some men of Banū Tamīm came to the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Receive the glad tidings, O Banū Tamīm.” They replied, “You have given us the glad tidings, so now give us something.” The face of the Prophet ﷺ then changed. Shortly thereafter the people of Yemen arrived, and he said, “Receive the glad tidings, O people of Yemen, since Banū Tamīm would not accept them.” They responded, “We accept, O Messenger of Allah! We have come to gain understanding of the religion and to ask you about the beginning of this affair.” He said, “Allah was, and there was nothing before Him; His Throne was upon the water; He wrote in the Record everything that would be, and then He created the heavens and the earth.”

In another wording: “There was nothing other than Him.”

And in yet another: “There was nothing with Him.”

The apparent sense, however, is that the Prophet ﷺ uttered only one of these expressions, while the other two were reported by different narrators.