It was narrated to me by Abu al-Tahir Ahmad ibn 'Amr ibn 'Abd Allah ibn 'Amr ibn Sarh; he said: Ibn Wahb narrated to us; Abu Hani' al-Khawlani informed me, from Abu 'Abd al-Rahman al-Hubuli, from 'Abd Allah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) say: "Allah wrote the decrees of all creation fifty thousand years before He created the heavens and the earth." He said: "And His Throne was upon the water."