Abu Bakr ibn Jaʿfar—one of our companions—held that the zakat collector should take from him both the zakat and half of his wealth, based on the hadith of Bahz ibn Ḥakīm: “Whoever withholds it, we shall take it from him, along with half of his wealth.”

If the zakat collector is unjust in collecting the zakat but just in distributing it, it is permissible to conceal it from him, though paying it to him suffices. But if he is just in collecting it and unjust in distributing it, it must be concealed from him, and it is not permissible to pay it to him. If, however, he takes it freely and willingly, it suffices for them, and they are not required to pay it again.

This is the apparent meaning of Aḥmad’s statement in the narration of al-Marwazī, for he said: “It was said to Ibn ʿUmar, ‘They use it to collar dogs and drink wine with it?’ He replied, ‘Give it to them.’” It has also been narrated from Abū Hurayrah and several other Companions of the Prophet ﷺ that they said, “Give it to them,” whereas ʿUbayd ibn ʿUmayr said, “Do not give it to them.” Thus, he related Ibn ʿUmar’s statement without condemning or opposing it.

He explicitly affirmed that he followed this position in the narration of Isḥāq ibn Hāniʾ. He was asked: “If the Khārijites seize control of a region belonging to some people and take the zakat on their wealth, does it suffice on their behalf?” He replied: “I am telling you a ruling concerning this from Ibn ʿUmar, and you ask me whether I follow it?”

In the narration of Ḥanbal, he said—mentioning the hadith of Khiyār ibn Salamah: “I said to Ibn ʿUmar, ‘The zakat collector of Ibn al-Zubayr comes and takes the zakat on my wealth from me, and the zakat collector of Najdah comes and takes it from me.’ He replied, ‘Whichever of the two you give it to, it suffices