“The Jahmiyyah fall outside the seventy-three sects.” This is one of the two views held by Ahmad’s followers, both mentioned by Abū ‘Abd Allāh ibn Hāmid and others.

A second group say that He is everywhere in His very essence, as the Najjāriyyah and many of the Jahmiyyah—their devotees, Sufis, and common people—say. They say that He is the very existence of created things, as do the advocates of the unity of existence, who maintain that existence is one, and those whose doctrine combines indwelling and union. They appeal to the scriptural texts concerning His being with creation and His nearness, while reinterpreting the texts concerning His being on high and His being established over the Throne.

Yet every text they cite is evidence against them. Most references to His being with others concern His prophets and His allies specifically, whereas they maintain that He is everywhere. Moreover, the texts contain statements that demonstrate the opposite of their claim. He says:

“Whatever is in the heavens and the earth glorifies Allah, and He is the Almighty, the All-Wise.”

Thus, everyone in the heavens and the earth glorifies Him, and the one who glorifies is distinct from the One glorified. He then says:

“To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens.”

He thereby makes clear that dominion belongs to Him. Then He says:

“He is the First and the Last, the Most High and the Most Near, and He has knowledge of all things.”

An authentic hadith states:

“You are the First, and nothing is before You. You are the Last, and nothing is after You. You are the Most High, and nothing is above You. You are the Most Near, and nothing is nearer than You.”

Thus, if He is the First, there is something that comes after Him. If He is the Last, there is something after which the Lord remains. If He is the Most High, with nothing above Him, there is something above which the Lord is. And if He is the Most Near, with nothing nearer than Him, there are things of which it is denied that they are nearer than Him.