أَخْبَرَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ عَوْنٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا هُشَيْمٌ، عَنْ عَوْفٍ، عَنْ يَزِيدَ الْفَارِسِيِّ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ ابْنَ عَبَّاسٍ، قَالَ قُلْتُ لِعُثْمَانَ بْنِ عَفَّانَ مَا حَمَلَكُمْ أَنْ عَمَدْتُمْ، إِلَى بَرَاءَةَ وَهِيَ مِنَ الْمِئِينَ وَإِلَى الأَنْفَالِ وَهِيَ مِنَ الْمَثَانِي فَجَعَلْتُمُوهُمَا فِي السَّبْعِ الطُّوَلِ وَلَمْ تَكْتُبُوا بَيْنَهُمَا سَطْرَ ‏{‏ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ ‏}‏ قَالَ عُثْمَانُ كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم مِمَّا يَنْزِلُ عَلَيْهِ الآيَاتُ فَيَدْعُو بَعْضَ مَنْ كَانَ يَكْتُبُ لَهُ وَيَقُولُ لَهُ ‏"‏ضَعْ هَذِهِ الآيَةَ فِي السُّورَةِ الَّتِي يُذْكَرُ فِيهَا كَذَا وَكَذَا ‏"‏ ‏.‏ وَتَنْزِلُ عَلَيْهِ الآيَةُ وَالآيَتَانِ فَيَقُولُ مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ وَكَانَتِ الأَنْفَالُ مِنْ أَوَّلِ مَا أُنْزِلَ عَلَيْهِ بِالْمَدِينَةِ وَكَانَتْ بَرَاءَةُ مِنْ آخِرِ مَا نَزَلَ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ وَكَانَتْ قِصَّتُهَا شَبِيهَةً بِقِصَّتِهَا فَظَنَنْتُ أَنَّهَا مِنْهَا فَمِنْ هُنَاكَ وَضَعْتُهُمَا فِي السَّبْعِ الطُّوَلِ وَلَمْ أَكْتُبْ بَيْنَهُمَا سَطْرَ ‏{‏ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ ‏}‏ ‏.‏

Narrated Uthman ibn Affan

Yazid al-Farisi said: I heard Ibn Abbas say: I asked Uthman ibn Affan: What moved you to put al-Bara'ah — which is one of the mi'in (surahs containing about one hundred verses) — and al-Anfal — which is one of the mathani — and place them among the seven long surahs, and you did not write between them the line { In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful }? Uthman replied: When the verses were revealed to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, he used to call some of those who used to write for him and say to him: "Place this verse in the surah in which such and such is mentioned." And a verse or two would be revealed to him, and he would say: "Put this like that." Al-Anfal was among the first of what was revealed at Medina, and al-Bara'ah was from the last of what was revealed of the Quran, and its theme was similar to its theme (al-Anfal), so I thought it was (part) of it. Thus from there I placed them both among the seven long surahs and did not write between them the line { In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful }.