and remained there until emigrating to Medina, and fought alongside him at Badr and Uhud, he mentioned ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd.”

Those who hold this view offer two answers to the hadith of Zayd ibn Arqam:

First: It is possible that he had prohibited speaking during prayer earlier, then permitted it, and then prohibited it when the verse was revealed.

Second: It is possible that Zayd ibn Arqam and the others who spoke during prayer had not heard of the Prophet’s prohibition, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and so stopped when the verse was revealed.

As for the first view, it is weak for several decisive reasons:

One is that the hadith of Ibn Masʿūd is authentic and explicit. Moreover, scholars know through mass transmission that Ibn Masʿūd was present at Badr. He reported that, upon returning from Abyssinia, he greeted the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, but the Prophet did not return his greeting, although he had previously returned their greetings before they left for Abyssinia. He also reported that the Prophet said to them:

“There is enough in prayer to keep one occupied.”

In another version:

“Allah issues whatever new commands He wills, and one of the new commands He has issued is that you must not speak during prayer.”