Muslim likewise recorded it (1) from Muḥammad ibn Rāfiʿ, from Abū al-Naḍr Hāshim ibn al-Qāsim, through the same chain.

Another chain from Anas: Imām Aḥmad (2) said, “Yazīd ibn Hārūn related to us; Ḥumayd related to us, from Anas, that a man used to write for the Prophet ﷺ. He had memorised Sūrat al-Baqarah and Āl ʿImrān, and in our estimation whoever memorised al-Baqarah and Āl ʿImrān held a lofty rank among us (3)—that is, he was greatly esteemed.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ would dictate to him, ‘…Forgiving, Merciful,’ and he would write, ‘All-Knowing, All-Wise.’ The Prophet ﷺ would say to him, “Write such-and-such,” and he would reply, “I write as I wish.” The Prophet ﷺ would dictate, “All-Knowing, All-Wise,” and he would write, “All-Hearing, All-Seeing,” and still say, “I write as I wish.”

That man then apostatised from Islam and joined the idolaters, proclaiming, “I know more about Muḥammad than any of you; I used to write only what I wanted.” The man subsequently died, and the Prophet ﷺ said, “The earth (4) will not accept him.”

Anas related: Abū Ṭalḥah told me that he went to the spot where that man had died and found him thrown out upon the ground. Abū Ṭalḥah asked, “What is the matter with this man?” They replied, “We have buried him several times, but the earth refuses to accept him.”

This chain meets the criteria of the two Shaykhs, yet they did not include it.

[Another route from Anas]

Al-Bukhārī (5) said, “Abū Maʿmar related to us; ʿAbd al-Razzaq related to us; ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz related to us, from Anas ibn Mālik, who said:

A Christian man embraced Islam, memorised al-Baqarah and Āl ʿImrān, and used to write for the Prophet ﷺ. He then returned to Christianity and would say, ‘Muḥammad knows nothing except what I wrote for him.’ Allah caused him to die, and they buried him; but by morning the earth had flung him out. They said, ‘This is Muhammad and his companions—after he fled from them they dug up their companion and cast him out.’ So they dug for him as deep a grave as they could, yet the next morning the earth had expelled him again. Realising that this was not the work of men, they left him lying exposed.

Chapter: The questions that were put to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, to which he responded with answers that conformed to the truth and corresponded to what is found in the scriptures inherited from the prophets.

We have already mentioned, at the very outset of the mission, the obstinacy of Quraysh, and how they dispatched envoys to the Jews of Madinah to ask them about various matters with which they might challenge him