It was narrated by al-Bukhari (13/50–51, Fath al-Bari), Muslim (8/165), and Ahmad (2/40).

1623 — “Allah, Mighty and Majestic, took the covenant from Adam’s back at Nu‘man—that is, ‘Arafah. He brought forth from his loins every descendant He had created, scattering them before Him like tiny particles. Then He addressed them directly, saying: ‘Am I not your Lord?’ They said, ‘Indeed You are. We bear witness,’ lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection, ‘We were unaware of this’; or lest you should say, ‘It was only our forefathers who associated others with Allah before us, and we were descendants after them. Will You then destroy us for what those who followed falsehood did?’”

It was narrated by Ahmad (1/272), Ibn Jarir in al-Tafsir (15338), Ibn Abi ‘Asim in al-Sunnah (17/1), al-Hakim (2/544), and al-Bayhaqi in al-Asma’ wa-l-Sifat (pp. 326–327), all through the route of al-Husayn ibn Muhammad al-Marwazi, who said: Jarir ibn Hazim narrated to us, from Kulthum ibn Jabr, from Sa‘id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ‘Abbas, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: and he mentioned it.

Al-Hakim said: “Its chain of transmission is authentic.” Al-Dhahabi agreed with him.

I say: Both of them ought to have qualified this by stating that it meets Muslim’s conditions, for Kulthum ibn Jabr is among Muslim’s narrators, while all the remaining narrators are among those of both al-Bukhari and Muslim.

Wahb ibn Jarir corroborated him, saying: My father narrated to us the same report, but without mentioning Nu‘man. He also said: “Its chain of transmission is authentic, and Muslim cited Kulthum ibn Jabr as evidence.” Al-Dhahabi likewise agreed with him.

As for Ibn Kathir, he critiqued this in al-Tafsir (2/262), saying: “This is what he said. Yet ‘Abd al-Warith narrated it from Kulthum ibn Jabr, from Sa‘id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ‘Abbas, attributing it to Ibn ‘Abbas. Likewise, Isma‘il ibn ‘Ulayyah and Waki‘ narrated it from Rabi‘ah ibn Kulthum ibn Jabr, from his father, in the same manner. It was likewise narrated by ‘Ata’ ibn al-Sa’ib, Habib ibn Abi Thabit, and ‘Ali ibn Badhimah, from Sa‘id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ‘Abbas; and likewise by al-‘Awfi and ‘Ali ibn Abi Talhah from Ibn ‘Abbas. This is more numerous and more firmly established. And Allah knows best.”