Mutarrif says: We said to Sayyiduna Zubair (may Allah be pleased with him): O Abu Abdullah! What has brought you here? You have neglected the rightly guided Caliph, until he was wrongfully martyred. And now you have sat down to demand retribution for his blood? Sayyiduna Zubair (may Allah be pleased with him) said: During the Prophetic era, and the caliphates of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, Sayyiduna Umar, and Sayyiduna Uthman, we used to recite this verse: {وَاتَّقُوْا فِتْنَۃً لَا تُصِیبَنَّ الَّذِینَ ظَلَمُوْا مِنْکُمْ خَاصَّۃً} … Fear the trial which will not only afflict those among you who have done wrong. We never even imagined that we would be caught in its reach, but it happened, and it happened to us.

(Second chain) Hasan Basri says: Sayyiduna Zubair bin ‘Awwam (may Allah be pleased with him) said: When this verse was revealed, we were present in considerable number with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): {وَاتَّقُوْا فِتْنَۃً لَا تُصِیبَنَّ الَّذِینَ ظَلَمُوْا مِنْکُمْ خَاصَّۃً} … And beware of a trial which will not only afflict those among you who have done wrong. At that time we asked: What is this trial? Then we did not even realize, but this trial did occur.