37/2. Chapter:
Sunan an-Nasai 4000 — Intentional Killing and an Unabrogated Warning
The Gravity of the Sin of Shedding Blood
Intentional Killing in Islam: A Qur'anic Warning That Remained
Sunan an-Nasai : 4000
Sunan an-NasaiHadith Number 4000
قَالَ وَأَخْبَرَنِي أَزْهَرُ بْنُ جَمِيلٍ الْبَصْرِيُّ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا خَالِدُ بْنُ الْحَارِثِ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ، عَنِ الْمُغِيرَةِ بْنِ النُّعْمَانِ، عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ جُبَيْرٍ، قَالَ اخْتَلَفَ أَهْلُ الْكُوفَةِ فِي هَذِهِ الآيَةِ { وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُتَعَمِّدًا } فَرَحَلْتُ إِلَى ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ فَسَأَلْتُهُ فَقَالَ لَقَدْ أُنْزِلَتْ فِي آخِرِ مَا أُنْزِلَ ثُمَّ مَا نَسَخَهَا شَىْءٌ .
Sa'eed bin Jubair Narrated from:
The people of Al-Kufah differed concerning this Verse: And whoever kills a believer intentionally." So I went to Ibn 'Abbas and asked him, and he said: 'It was revealed among the last of what was revealed, and nothing of it was abrogated after that.'"
[1] An-Nisâ’ 4:93.Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 4000In-book reference : Book 37, Hadith 35English translation : Vol. 5, Book 37, Hadith 4005
Summary of Sunan an-Nasai Hadith 4000
This hadith focuses on the Qur'anic warning about intentional killing in Islam. Sa'eed bin Jubair says that the people of Al-Kufah disagreed about the verse concerning whoever kills a believer deliberately. Instead of relying on the dispute around him, he traveled to Ibn 'Abbas and asked directly. Ibn 'Abbas answered that the verse was among the last passages revealed and that nothing later cancelled it. The report therefore stresses the continuing seriousness of deliberately taking a believer's life. It also shows a careful way of handling disagreement: seek knowledge from someone known for understanding the revelation. The hadith does not discuss every legal or theological question linked to murder. Its clear point is that Ibn 'Abbas regarded this Qur'anic warning as still effective and not abrogated.
What we learn from this hadith
- Intentional killing is treated as a grave matter in the Qur'anic warning mentioned here.
- When people differ over revelation, asking a knowledgeable person is a sound response.
- Ibn 'Abbas stated that nothing later abrogated this verse.
