The Abrogation of the Verse without the ruling (Naskh at- Tilaawah doona al- Hukm)
In this case, Allaah removed the verse from the Qur'an but left the relevant ruling. For example, a verse in the Qur'an used to order those who had committed adultery to be stoned to death. In reference to this verse, Umar bn al-Khattab (RA) said, while giving a sermon in the Prophet's mosque, "verily, Allaah sent Muhammad with the truth, and He sent the Book down upon him. The verse of stoning was revealed with it, we recited it, memorised it, and understood it. The Prophet (salallahualayhi wa sallam) awarded the punishment of stoning to death (to the married adulterers), and after him we also did the same. I am afraid that with the lapse of time, people (may forget it and) say, 'we do not find the punishment of stoning in the Book of Allaah,' and go astray by abandoning this duty prescribed by Allaah. Stoning is a duty laid down in Allaah's Book for married men and women who commit adultery when proof is established.' (Tabarani)
Infact even the wording of the verse of stoning has been preserved in other authentic narrations,
“Wa ash- Shaykhu wa ash-shaykhatu idha zanayaa farjumoohum al-batha nakaala min Allah ...” meaning: "And the married man or woman, if they commit adultery, then stone them as retribution from Allaah."
Another narration clearly shows the fact that the recitation of this verse was abrogated. Umar bn al-Khattab (RA) narrated, "I once came to the Prophet, and the verse pertaining to stoning was mentioned. I asked the Prophet, 'O Messenger of Allaah!
Dictate to me the verse, so I may write it!"The Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) responded:
"No, I cannot do this anymore," (Bayhaqi)
meaning that he was not allowed to do so anymore. This narration is explicit in the abrogation of the verse.
There are also references to a number of verses not related to commands and prohibitions whose recitations were abrogated. An example of these are those verses revealed with regards to the martyrs of the 'Well of Ma'oonah'.
Another report of this nature is by Ubayy bn Ka'b (RA). He stated, ''We used to consider the verse:
"If the son of Adam had two valleys of gold, he would wish for a third, for nothing will ever fill the belly of Adam's son except dust, and Allaah forgives him who repents,' as a part of the Qur'an. However, (the recitation of this verse was abrogated) by the revelation of Soorah at -Takaathur. (Tahaawi)
Even though the above verse was abrogated as being part of the Qur'an, it still remained a statement of the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam), and is found in many collections of hadeeth. Ubayy bn Ka'b (RA) also reported, "Soorah al-Ahzab used to be equal (in length) to Soorah al-Baqarah, or even longer." (Ibn Hibban) This implies that there existed many verses whose recitation had been abrogated, as the Soorah al-Ahzaab that is present in today's mushafis less than a fourth of Soorah al-Baqarah.
Lastly, there are also reports which explicitly show the occurrence of naskh, and the total obliteration of the abrogated verse. Abu Umaamah ibn Sahl (RA) reported that a person had memorized a certain soorah, so he tried to recite it in prayer one night, but was unable to. In the morning, he went to the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) and found two people also waiting for him. When the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) came, he asked, "O Messenger of Allaah! I tried to recite such and such a soorah last night, but could not do so!" At this, the second man said, "Ialso came because of the same reason!" and the third, "And I too!" The Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sal/am) explained,
"It was abrogated last night," meaning that they have been caused to forget the relevant verses.
In this report, it is clear that divine intervention caused these Companions who had memorized the verses to forget them, thus abrogating even the memory of the verse! This narration also shows that the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) was informed by Allaah whenever a verse was abrogated, since he knew that these particular verses had been abrogated the night before.
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited