The son of Ka'b bin Malik narrates from his father, Sayyiduna Ka'b bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), that he said that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When you conquer Egypt, accept the counsel to treat the Copts well, for they have a covenant of protection and ties of kinship." Al-Zuhri (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The kinship is that the mother of Isma'il (peace be upon him), (Hajar, peace be upon her), was from among them. This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs, but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Ka'b al-Ahbar (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: The Prophet of Allah, Isma'il bin Ibrahim (peace be upon them both), is the one whom Allah named Sadiq al-Wa'd (true to his promise). He was a man with intensity and sharpness of temper; he would wage jihad against the enemies of Allah, and Allah would grant him help and victory over them. He was very fierce in war against the disbelievers, and did not fear the blame of any blamer in the matter of Allah. His head was small, his neck thick, and his hands and feet long; when he stood, his hands reached his knees. His eyes were small, his nose long, his shoulders broad and his fingers long. His body was prominent (and well-built); he was powerful, strong and very harsh towards the disbelievers. He used to command his family with prayer and zakah, and he was pleasing to his Lord. His zakah was offering sacrifices to Allah from their wealth for His pleasure. Whenever he promised anyone anything, he would certainly fulfil it; that is why Allah Almighty named him Sadiq al-Wa'd, and he was a Messenger and a Prophet.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said: "The Dhabih (the one who was to be sacrificed) is Isma'il (peace be upon him)." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs, but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) concerning the saying of Allah Almighty, "And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice" [Surah al-Saffat: 107] , that he said: "He is Isma'il (peace be upon him), on whose behalf Ibrahim (peace be upon him) slaughtered the ram."

It is narrated from al-Sunabihi (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: We were present in the gathering of Sayyiduna Mu'awiyah bin Abi Sufyan (may Allah be pleased with them both) when the people began discussing Isma'il and Ishaq, the sons of Ibrahim (peace be upon them both). Some of them said: "The Dhabih is Isma'il," and some said: "Rather, the Dhabih is Ishaq." Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "You have come to one who is well informed. We were with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) when a Bedouin came and said: 'O Messenger of Allah, I have left my land in a state where the earth is dry and the water has dried up; livestock have perished and families are being ruined. So favour me with some of what Allah has granted you as spoils, O son of the two Dhabihs (the two who were to be sacrificed).' The narrator says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled and did not object to him. So we said: 'O Commander of the Believers, who are the two Dhabihs?' He said: 'When Abd al-Muttalib was commanded to dig Zamzam, he vowed to Allah that if this task of his was made easy he would slaughter (sacrifice) one of his sons. So he brought out his sons and cast lots between them, and the lot fell upon Abdullah. Abd al-Muttalib intended to slaughter him, but his maternal uncles from Banu Makhzum stopped him and said: Please your Lord and ransom your son.' Mu'awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: 'So he ransomed him with a hundred she-camels. So he is the (first) Dhabih, and the second is Isma'il (peace be upon him).'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said: "The one who was ransomed (that is, the Dhabih) is Isma'il (peace be upon him). The Jews have claimed that he is Ishaq (peace be upon him), but the Jews have lied."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said, concerning the one whom Allah Almighty ransomed with a great sacrifice: "He is Isma'il (peace be upon him)." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of the two Shaykhs, but they did not record it.

It is narrated from Muhammad bin Ka'b al-Qurazi (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: "The one of his two sons whom Allah Almighty commanded Ibrahim (peace be upon him) to slaughter was Isma'il (peace be upon him), and we find this in the Book of Allah, in the account of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and the command given to him to slaughter his son, that it was Isma'il (peace be upon him). The proof of this is that when Allah Almighty completed the account of the one of Ibrahim's two sons who was to be slaughtered, He said: 'And We gave him glad tidings of Ishaq, a Prophet from among the righteous' [Surah al-Saffat: 112] . Then in another place He says: 'So We gave her glad tidings of Ishaq, and after Ishaq, of Ya'qub' [Surah Hud: 71] , that is, glad tidings of a son and then of a grandson. So Allah Almighty could not command the slaughter of Ishaq when He had a promise concerning him which He had made to him (that Ya'qub would be born from him). So the one whom he was commanded to slaughter could be none other than Isma'il."

Imam al-Waqidi (may Allah have mercy on him) says: There was disagreement among us as to which of Sayyiduna Isma'il and Sayyiduna Ishaq (peace be upon them both) Sayyiduna Ibrahim (peace be upon him) intended to slaughter, and where he intended to slaughter him, at Mina or at Bayt al-Maqdis. So I wrote down all the reports of hadith I heard on this matter. It is narrated from Ata' bin Yasar (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: I asked Sayyiduna Khawwat bin Jubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) about the Dhabih of Allah, which of the two he was. He said: "He was Isma'il (peace be upon him). When Isma'il (peace be upon him) was seven years old, Ibrahim (peace be upon him) saw in a dream, at his residence in Sham, that he was slaughtering Isma'il. So he rode to him on al-Buraq and found him with his mother. He took him by the hand and set off to carry out what he had been commanded. Satan came to him in the form of a man whom he knew and said: 'O Ibrahim, where are you heading?' Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said: 'I am going about some business of mine.' He said: 'Do you intend to slaughter Isma'il?' Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said: 'Have you ever seen a father who slaughters his son?' He said: 'Yes, you (are about to do so).' Ibrahim (peace be upon him) asked: 'Why is that?' He said: 'You claim that Allah has commanded you to do it.' Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said: 'If Allah has truly commanded me to do it, then I have obeyed Allah and hoped for His reward.' So he (Satan) left him, and Iblis came to Hajar (peace be upon her) and asked: 'Where has Ibrahim taken your son?' She replied: 'He has gone about some business of his.' He said: 'He intends to slaughter him.' She said: 'Have you ever seen a father slaughter his son?' He said: 'He claims that Allah has commanded him to do it.' So Hajar (peace be upon her) said: 'If he has obeyed Allah, then he has done very well.' Then that Satan reached Isma'il (peace be upon him) and said: 'O Isma'il, where is your father taking you?' He said: 'For some business of his.' He said: 'He is taking you so that he may slaughter you.' Isma'il (peace be upon him) said: 'Have you ever seen a father slaughter his son?' He said: 'Yes, he (your father) is about to do so.' He asked: 'Why is that?' He said: 'He claims that Allah has commanded him to do it.' Isma'il (peace be upon him) said: 'Then if he has obeyed his Lord, he has done very well.'" Khawwat bin Jubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) says: "Then Ibrahim (peace be upon him) went out with him until he reached the place in Mina where he had been commanded, then he reached the place where the sacrificial camels are slaughtered today, and said: 'O my son, Allah has commanded me to slaughter you.' Isma'il (peace be upon him) said: 'Then obey your Lord, for in obedience to your Lord lies all good.' Then Isma'il (peace be upon him) asked: 'Have you informed my mother of this?' He said: 'No.' Isma'il (peace be upon him) said: 'You did right; I feared she would grieve. But when you bring the knife near my throat, turn your face away from me, for that way it will be more possible for you to be patient, and you will not see me (writhing).' So Ibrahim (peace be upon him) did so, and began drawing the knife across his throat. But when he drew it, it was as if he were drawing it across copper, which the knife could not cut. He sharpened it on a stone two or three times, but despite all that it could not cut. Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said: 'Surely this matter is from Allah.' Then he raised his head and found a mountain goat (ram) standing before him. Ibrahim (peace be upon him) said: 'Get up, my son, your ransom has come down.' So he slaughtered it right there."

Imam al-Waqidi (may Allah have mercy on him) relates that it is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Salam (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: "The Dhabih is indeed Isma'il (peace be upon him)." Mention of Sayyiduna Ishaq bin Ibrahim, the Intimate Friend of Allah (peace be upon them both):