Abdullah Ibn Abbas does not believe that the codex is infallible and is guarded by God

Ahmad Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani writes:

حَـدَّثَـنَـا حَـفْـصُ بْـنُ عُـمَـرَ حَـدَّثَـنَـا شُـعْـبَـةُ عَـنْ عَـمْـرٍو عَـنْ إِبْـرَاهِـيـمَ عَـن مَّـسْـرُوقٍ:ذَکَـرَ عَـبْـدُ الـلَّٰـهِ بْـنُ عَـمْـرٍو عَـبْـدَ الـلَّٰـهِ بْـنَ مَـسْـعُـودٍ فَـقَـالَ:لاَ أَزَالُ أُحِـبُّـهُ سَـمِـعْـتُ الـنَّـبِـيَّ صَـلَّـى الـلَّٰـهُ عَـلَـيْـهِ وَسَـلَّـمَ يَـقُـولُ:خُـذُوا الْـقُـرْآنَ مِـنْ أَرْبَـعَـةٍ مِّـنْ عَـبْـدِ الـلَّٰـهِ بْـنِ مَـسْـعُـودٍ وَسَـالِـمٍ وَمُـعَـاذٍ وَأُبَـىِّ بْـنِ کَـعْـبٍ

,,We were told by Hafs Ibn Umar: We were told by Shu’bah, by Amr Ibn Ibrahim, by Masruq: Abdullah Ibn Amr remembered Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud, whereupon he said: ﴾I continue to love him. I heard the Messenger of God (s.) say: ,,Take the Qur’an from four: from Abdullah ibn Mas’ud and Salim and Mu’adh and Ubayy ibn Ka’b.﴿” [Fat’h-ul-Bari, Volume 9, Page 46]

وَحَـکَـى الـطَّـحَـاوِيُّ أَنَّ الْاِسْـتِـئْـنَـاسَ فِـي لُـغَـةِ الْـيَـمَـنِ الْاِسْـتِـئْـذَانُ وَجَـاءَ عَـنِ ابْـنِ عَـبَّـاسٍ إِنْـکَـارُ ذَٰلِـکَ فَـأَخْـرَجَ سَـعِـيـدُ بْـنُ مَـنْـصُـورٍ وَالـطَّـبَـرِيُّ وَالْـبَـيْـهَـقِـيُّ فِـي الـشُّـعَـبِ بِـسَـنَـدٍ صَـحِـيـحٍ أَنَّ ابْـنَ عَـبَّـاسٍ کَـانَ يَـقْـرَأُ: حَـتَّـى تَـسْـتَـأْذِنُـوا وَيَـقُـولُ: أَخْـطَـأَ الْـکَـاتِـبُ وَکَـانَ يَـقْـرَأُ عَـلَـى قِـرَاءَةِ أُبَـيِّ بْـنِ کَـعْـبٍ وَمِـنْ طَـرِيـقِ مُـغِـيـرَةَ بْـنِ مِـقْـسَـمٍ عَـنْ إِبْـرَاهِـيـمَ الـنَّـخَـعِـيِّ قَـالَ: فِـي مُـصْـحَـفِ ابْـنِ مَـسْـعُـودٍ حَـتَّـى تَـسْـتَـأْذِنُـوا وَأَخْـرَجَ سَـعِـيـدُ بْـنُ مَـنْـصُـورٍ مِـنْ طَـرِيـقِ مُـغِـيـرَةَ عَـنْ إِبْـرَاهِـيـمَ: فِـي مُـصْـحَـفِ عَـبْـدِ الـلَّٰـهِ حَـتَّـى تُـسَـلِّـمُـوا عَـلَـى أَهْـلِـهَـا وَتَـسْـتَـأْذِنُـوا وَأَخْـرَجَـهُ إِسْـمَـاعِـيـلُ بْـنُ إِسْـحَـاقَ فِـي أَحْـکَـامِ الْـقُـرْآنِ عَـنِ ابْـنِ عَـبَّـاسٍ وَاسْـتَـشْـکَـلَـهُ وَکَـذَا طَـعَـنَ فِـي صِـحَّـتِـهِ جَـمَـاعَـةٌ مِّـمَّـنْ بَـعْـدَهُ وَأُجِـيـبَ بِـأَنَّ ابْـنَ عَـبَّـاسٍ بَـنَّـاهَـا عَـلَـى قِـرَاءَتِـهِ الَّـتِـي تَـلَـقَّـاهَـا عَـنْ أُبَـيِّ بْـنِ کَـعْـبٍ وَأَمَّـا اتِّـفَـاقُ الـنَّـاسِ عَـلَـى قِـرَاءَتِـهَـا بِـالـسِّـيـنِ فَـلِـمُـوَافَـقَـةِ خَـطِّ الْـمُـصْـحَـفِ الَّـذِي وَقَـعَ الْاِتِّـفَـاقُ عَـلَـى عَـدَمِ الْـخُـرُوجِ عَـمَّـا يُـوَافِـقُـهُ وَکَـانَ قِـرَاءَةُ أُبَـيٍّ مِّـنَ الْأَحْـرُفِ الَّـتِـي تُـرِکَـتِ الْـقِـرَاءَةُ بِـهَـا کَـمَـا تَـقَـدَّمَ تَـقْـرِيـرُهُ فِـي فَـضَـائِـلِ الْـقُـرْآنِ وَقَـالَ الْـبَـيْـهَـقِـيُّ: يُـحْـتَـمَـلُ أَنْ يَـکُـونَ ذَٰلِـکَ کَـانَ فِـي الْـقِـرَاءَةِ الْأُولَـى ثُـمَّ نُـسِـخَـتْ تِـلَاوَتُـهُ يَـعْـنِـي وَلَـمْ يَـطَّـلِـعِ ابْـنُ عَـبَّـاسٍ عَـلَـى ذَٰلِـکَ

,,At-Tahawi narrated that remarking in the language of Yemen is asking for permission and denial of it was reported from Ibn Abbas. So Sa’id Ibn Mansur and At-Tabari and Al-Baihaqi reported in Ash-Shu’ab with a chain that is authentic (Sahih) that Ibn Abbas used to read it ﴾until you ask permission (tasta’dhinu)﴿ (24:27) and used to say: ﴾The scribe made a mistake. ﴿And he used to read it according to the reading of Ubayy Ibn Ka’b and through the way of Mughirah Ibn Miqsam, from Ibrahim An-Nakha’i who said: ﴾In the code (Mus’haf) of Ibn Mas’ud it says: ,,Until you ask permission.”﴿ (24:27) And Sa’id Ibn Mansur reported through another way from Mughirah, from Ibrahim: ﴾In the code of Abdullah it says: ,,Until you greet their inhabitants with peace and ask permission. “﴿ (24:27) And Isma’il Ibn Is’haq reported it in Ahkam-ul-Qur’an from Ibn Abbas and considered it problematic and so its authenticity was challenged by a group after him and to this the answer is that Ibn Abbas built on it through his reading which he took from Ubayy Ibn Ka’b and as for people agreeing on their reading with Sin (tasta’nisu) (24: 27), it results from the agreement with the writing of the code (Mus’haf) on which it came to agreement as to not to deviate from what is in accordance with it and the reading of Ubayy is among the wording (Ahruf) whose reading was abandoned, as already his statement was mentioned in the merits of the Qur’an and Al-Baihaqi said: ﴾It is possible that that was among the first reading. Hereupon its reading was abrogated, so to speak, and Ibn Abbas did not get to know that.﴿” [Fat’h-ul-Bari, Volume 11, page 8 – 9]

Comment:

According to this narrative, Abdullah ibn Abbas believed in an error in the codex, while those who came after him believed in a divine abrogation. It is hardly surprising that one group denied this narrative, for according to it, Abdullah ibn Abbas did not believe that the reminder (15:9) meant the codex that is guarded by God. A disaster for the mainstream myth.