Ibn Isḥāq said: He—that is, Muʿādh ibn ʿAmr—lived on until the caliphate of ʿUthmān. Muʿawwidh ibn ʿAfrāʾ then passed by Abū Jahl as the latter lay wounded on the ground; he struck him until he was completely disabled, leaving him with a faint breath of life, and continued fighting until he himself was killed.

ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd also came upon Abū Jahl after the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had ordered that he be sought among the slain. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ had said to them—as the report has reached me—“If you have difficulty recognising him among the dead, look for the scar on his knee. One day, when we were both boys, we jostled over a dish belonging to ʿAbd Allāh ibn Judʿān. I was slightly taller than he, so I shoved him; he fell on his knees and skinned one of them, and the mark has remained ever since.”

Ibn Masʿūd said: “I found him in the last throes of life and recognised him, so I placed my foot on his neck. He had once grabbed me in Mecca, hurting and poking me, so I said, ‘Has Allah disgraced you, O enemy of Allah?’ He replied, ‘How has He disgraced me? Is there anything more remarkable than a man you have killed? Tell me—whose side has won today?’ I answered, ‘It belongs to Allah and His Messenger.’”

Ibn Isḥāq added that men of Banū Makhzūm claimed Ibn Masʿūd used to say: “He said to me, ‘You have climbed a steep height, little shepherd boy!’ I then cut off his head and brought it to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, saying, ‘O Messenger of Allah, here is the head of the enemy of Allah.’ He said, ‘By Allah, besides whom there is no deity?’—this being his customary oath. I replied, ‘Yes—by Allah, besides whom there is no deity.’ I then cast the head before the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and he praised Allah.” Thus did Ibn Isḥāq relate the matter—may Allah have mercy on him.

It is also authentically recorded in both Ṣaḥīḥs through the chain of Yūsuf ibn Yaʿqūb ibn al-Mājishūn, from Ṣāliḥ ibn Ibrāhīm ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAwf, from his father, that ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAwf said:

“I was standing in the ranks on the Day of Badr when I looked to my right and left and found myself between two lads of the Anṣār, youthful in years. I wished I were flanked by two stronger men. One of them nudged me and whispered—out of earshot of the other—‘Uncle, do you know Abū Jahl?’ I replied, ‘Yes. Why do you ask?’ He said, ‘I have heard that he insults the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. By the One in Whose hand is my soul, if I see him my shadow shall not part from his until the quicker of us dies.’

“I was astonished. The other boy then nudged me and asked the same. Before long I spotted Abū Jahl moving about among the people, so I said, ‘Do you see him? That is the man you are asking about.’ They rushed at him with their swords and struck him until they killed him. They then returned to the Prophet ﷺ and informed him. He asked, ‘Which of you killed him?’ Each replied, ‘I did.’ He said, ‘Have you wiped your swords?’ They answered, ‘No.’ He examined their swords and declared, ‘Both of you killed him,’ and he assigned his spoils to Muʿādh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-Jamūḥ. The other was Muʿādh ibn ʿAfrāʾ.”