We have explained that the correct position on this matter is the one established by the Book, the Sunnah, and the consensus of the earliest forerunners and those who followed them in righteousness. This was the position of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the imams of Islam who preceded him, and those who agreed with them. The position of Imam Ahmad and the imams before him is the teaching brought by the Messenger and established by the Book and the Sunnah. However, when people were subjected to the Jahmiyyah’s inquisition and were required to deny the divine attributes and declare that the Quran is created, that Allah will not be seen in the Hereafter, and other such things, Allah kept Imam Ahmad steadfast throughout that ordeal.

He refuted the arguments of the opponents who denied the divine attributes, demonstrated what the Book and the Sunnah establish, and showed that the early generations affirmed those attributes. Allah granted him such patience and certainty that he became a leader for the God-fearing, as the Most High said:

“We made from among them leaders, guiding by Our command, when they were patient and had certainty in Our signs.”

Thus it was said of him, may Allah have mercy on him: “How steadfast he was in resisting worldly allurements, and how closely he resembled those who came before! Innovations came to him, and he rejected them; the world offered itself to him, and he refused it.”

Because of the extent to which the Sunnah was made manifest through him, his statements explaining and defending it were more numerous and substantial than those of others. Thus, adherents of the Sunnah across the various groups came to revere him and identify themselves with him.

Elsewhere, I have cited his statements and those of other imams, together with the texts of the Book and the Sunnah concerning these matters. We have explained that everything established by the Book and the Sunnah accords with sound reason, and that sound reason does not contradict