and the five verses which Imam Aḥmad mentioned when they asked him about the statement of Ibn al-Mubārak: God rose over the Throne with a limit?
He said: This has witnesses from the Qurʾān in five places;
His Almighty's statement: {Do they wait for anything except that God should come to them in shadows of clouds}
and His Almighty's statement: {To Him ascends good speech} [Fāṭir: 10]
and His Almighty's statement: {Do you feel secure that He who is in the heaven} [al-Mulk: 16]
and His statement: {The angels and the Spirit ascend to Him} [al-Maʿārij: 4]
and His Almighty's statement: {And your Lord comes, and the angels, rank upon rank} [al-Fajr: 22]
So these proofs from the statement of God Almighty indicate that God is over His Throne with a limit.
As for what has come regarding affirming the limit from the Sunna, [it] is abundant; if we were to narrate them with their chains of transmission, it would amount to more [14/a] than a volume, but I will only mention a little.
Among them:
What we narrated previously that the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him, said in his supplication: "You are the Apparent, so there is nothing above You, and You are the Hidden, so there is nothing below You" (1).
And among them:
The hadith of Abū Razīn al-ʿUqaylī [may God be pleased with him], which is what:
والآياتُ الخمسُ التي قال الإمامُ أحمدُ حين سألوه عن قولِ ابنِ المباركِ: إنَّ اللهَ على العرشِ استوى بحدٍّ؟
قال: لهذا شواهدُ من القرآنِ في خمسةِ مواضعَ؛
قوله تعالى: ﴿ هَلْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَّا أَن يَأْتِيَهُمُ اللَّهُ فِي ظُلَلٍ مِّنَ الْغَمَامِ ﴾
وقوله تعالى: ﴿ إِلَيْهِ يَصْعَدُ الْكَلِمُ الطَّيِّبُ ﴾ [فاطر: ١٠]
وقوله تعالى: ﴿ءَأَمِنتُم مَّن فِي السَّمَاءِ﴾ [الملك: ١٦]
وقوله: ﴿ تَعْرُجُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ إِلَيْهِ ﴾ [المعارج: ٤]
وقوله تعالى: ﴿ وَجَاءَ رَبُّكَ وَالْمَلَكُ صَفًّا صَفًّا ﴾ [الفجر: ٢٢]
فهذه البراهينُ من قولِ اللهِ تعالى تدلُّ على أنَّ اللهَ على عرشهِ بحدٍّ.
وأما ما جاء في إثباتِ الحدِّ من السُّنَّةِ [فهو] كثيرٌ، لو رويناها بطُرُقِها لجاء أكثرَ [١٤/أ] من مُجَلَّدٍ، إنما أذكرُ شيئًا يسيرًا.
منها :
ما رَوَيْنا فيما تَقَدَّمَ أنَّ النبيَّ ﷺ قال في دعائِه: «أنت الظاهرُ فليس فوقَكَ شيءٌ، وأنت الباطنُ فليس دونَكَ شيءٌ»(١).
ومنها :
حديثُ أبي رَزِين العُقَيْلي [رضي الله عنه]، وهو ما:
(١) رواه مسلم، وقد تقدم تخريجه برقم (٢٣).
