When Abu Bakr and I were with him, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by ʿAbdullah bin Masʿood, when he was reciting [in prayer]. He stood and listened to his recitation, then ‘Abdullah bowed and prostrated, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: ʿAsk, you will be given; ask, you will be given.ʿ Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ went away and said: “Whoever would like to recite the Qurʿan fresh as it was revealed, let him learn it from Ibn Umm ʿAbd,ʿ Then I went at night to ‘Abdullah bin Masʿood to tell him the good news of what the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had said, and when I knocked on the door - or he said: when he heard my voice - he said: What brings you here at this time? I said: I have come to tell you the glad tidings of what the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said. He said: Abu Bakr beat you to it. I said: If he did that, he is always ahead in doing righteous deeds. We never competed in doing good deeds but Abu Bakr beat us to it.
مَرَّ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ وَأَنَا مَعَهُ وَأَبُو بَكْرٍ عَلَى عَبْدِ اللهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ وَهُوَ يَقْرَأُ فَقَامَ فَتَسَمَّعَ قِرَاءَتَهُ ثُمَّ رَكَعَ عَبْدُ اللهِ وَسَجَدَ قَالَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ سَلْ تُعْطَهْ سَلْ تُعْطَهْ قَالَ ثُمَّ مَضَى رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ وَقَالَ مَنْ سَرَّهُ أَنْ يَقْرَأَ الْقُرْآنَ غَضًّا كَمَا أُنْزِلَ فَلْيَقْرَأْهُ مِنَ ابْنِ أُمِّ عَبْدٍ قَالَ فَأَدْلَجْتُ إِلَى عَبْدِ اللهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ لِأُبَشِّرَهُ بِمَا قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ قَالَ فَلَمَّا ضَرَبْتُ الْبَابَ أَوْ قَالَ لَمَّا سَمِعَ صَوْتِي قَالَ مَا جَاءَ بِكَ هَذِهِ السَّاعَةَ؟ قُلْتُ جِئْتُ لِأُبَشِّرَكَ بِمَا قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ قَالَ قَدْ سَبَقَكَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ قُلْتُ إِنْ يَفْعَلْ فَإِنَّهُ سَبَّاقٌ بِالْخَيْرَاتِ مَا اسْتَبَقْنَا خَيْرًا قَطُّ إِلَّا سَبَقَنَا إِلَيْهَا أَبُو بَكْرٍ