حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ بْنُ سَعِيدٍ حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ زَكَرِيَّا عَنْ دَاوُدَ عَنْ عِكْرِمَةَ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ قَالَتْ قُرَيْشٌ لِلْيَهُودِ أَعْطُونَا شَيْئًا نَسْأَلُ عَنْهُ هَذَا الرَّجُلَ فَقَالُوا سَلُوهُ عَنْ الرُّوحِ فَسَأَلُوهُ فَنَزَلَتْ وَيَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنْ الرُّوحِ قُلْ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي وَمَا أُوتِيتُمْ مِنْ الْعِلْمِ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا قَالُوا أُوتِينَا عِلْمًا كَثِيرًا أُوتِينَا التَّوْرَاةَ وَمَنْ أُوتِيَ التَّوْرَاةَ فَقَدْ أُوتِيَ خَيْرًا كَثِيرًا قَالَ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ قُلْ لَوْ كَانَ الْبَحْرُ مِدَادًا لِكَلِمَاتِ رَبِّي لَنَفِدَ الْبَحْرُ
مسند امام احمد بن حنبل · Hadith 2309
It was narrated that Ibn 'Abbas (RA) said: Quraish said to the Jews: Give us something that we can ask this man about. They said: Ask him about ar-rooh. Then the verse "And they ask you (O Muhammad (PBUH)) concerning the Rook (the spirit). Say: 'The Rook (the spirit) is one of the things, the knowledge of which is only with my Lord. And of knowledge, you (mankind) have been given only a little'" [al-Isra' 17:85] was revealed. They [the Jews] said: We have been given a great deal of knowledge. We were given the Torah, and whoever is given the Torah has been given a great deal of good. Then Allah revealed the words: "Say (O muhammad (PBUH)to mankind): "If the sea were ink for (writing) the Words of my Lord, surely, the sea would be exhausted" [al-Kahf 18:109].
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020