- ʿUbayd Allah ibn Muhammad reported to us; ʿUthman ibn Ahmad told us; Hanbal told us; Hajjaj ibn al-Minhal and Dawud ibn Shabib narrated to us—and the wording is that of Hajjaj—from Hammad ibn Salamah, from al-Jurayri, from ʿAbd Allah ibn Shaqiq, from al-Aqraʿ, the muʾadhdhin of ʿUmar. He said:
“ʿUmar sent me to the bishop, so I summoned him and kept the two of them in the shade, shielding them from the sun. ʿUmar asked, ‘Bishop, do you find us mentioned in the scriptures?’ He replied, ‘Yes.’
ʿUmar said, ‘How do you find me described?’ He answered ⦗1471⦘, ‘I find you to be a qarn.’ ʿUmar raised his whip over him and said, ‘Woe to you, what is a qarn?’ He replied, ‘A horn of iron—trustworthy and strong.’
ʿUmar then asked, ‘How do you find the one who comes after me?’ He said, ‘I find him a righteous caliph, though he will favor his kin.’ ʿUmar exclaimed, ‘May Allah have mercy on ʿUthman,’ and repeated it three times.
Then ʿUmar asked, ‘How do you find the one after him?’ He replied, ‘I find him a hard, sharp blade.’ At this ʿUmar placed his hand on his head and cried, ‘Woe to my head! Woe to my head!’
Those present said, ‘Commander of the Believers, he indeed will be a righteous caliph, but he will be appointed while the sword is still unsheathed and blood is being shed.’