said: ‘I asked Abū ‘Abd Allāh—meaning Ahmad ibn Hanbal—“What do you say about someone who says that Allah is [not] above the Throne?” He replied: “Everything they say indicates disbelief.”’”

He also said: “Yūsuf ibn Mūsā informed us that Abū ‘Abd Allāh, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, was asked: ‘… And Allah, blessed and exalted, is above the seventh heaven, upon His Throne, distinct from His creation, while His power and knowledge are everywhere?’ He replied: ‘Yes, He is upon His Throne; nothing escapes His knowledge.’”