While I was with Aisha, the mother of the Believers, a person from Iraq came and asked, "What type of shroud is the best?" ʿAisha said, "May Allah be merciful to you! What does it matter?" He said, "O mother of the Believers! Show me (the copy of) your Qur'an," She said, "Why?" He said, "In order to compile and arrange the Qur'an according to it, for people recite it with its Suras not in proper order." ʿAisha said, "What does it matter which part of it you read first? (Be informed) that the first thing that was revealed thereof was a Sura from Al-Mufassal, and in it was mentioned Paradise and the Fire. When the people embraced Islam, the Verses regarding legal and illegal things were revealed. If the first thing to be revealed was: 'Do not drink alcoholic drinks.' people would have said, 'We will never leave alcoholic drinks,' and if there had been revealed, 'Do not commit illegal sexual intercourse, 'they would have said, 'We will never give up illegal sexual intercourse.' While I was a young girl of playing age, the following Verse was revealed in Mecca to Muhammad: 'Nay! But the Hour is their appointed time (for their full recompense), and the Hour will be more grievous and more bitter.' (54.46) Sura Al-Baqara (The Cow) and Surat An-Nisa (The Women) were revealed while I was with him." Then ʿAisha took out the copy of the Qur'an for the man and dictated to him the Verses of the Suras (in their proper order) .  

إِنِّي عِنْدَ عَائِشَةَ أُمِّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ؓ إِذْ جَاءَهَا عِرَاقِيٌّ فَقَالَ أَىُّ الْكَفَنِ خَيْرٌ قَالَتْ وَيْحَكَ وَمَا يَضُرُّكَ قَالَ يَا أُمَّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَرِينِي مُصْحَفَكِ قَالَتْ لِمَ قَالَ لَعَلِّي أُوَلِّفُ الْقُرْآنَ عَلَيْهِ فَإِنَّهُ يُقْرَأُ غَيْرَ مُؤَلَّفٍ قَالَتْ وَمَا يَضُرُّكَ أَيَّهُ قَرَأْتَ قَبْلُ إِنَّمَا نَزَلَ أَوَّلَ مَا نَزَلَ مِنْهُ سُورَةٌ مِنَ الْمُفَصَّلِ فِيهَا ذِكْرُ الْجَنَّةِ وَالنَّارِ حَتَّى إِذَا ثَابَ النَّاسُ إِلَى الإِسْلاَمِ نَزَلَ الْحَلاَلُ وَالْحَرَامُ وَلَوْ نَزَلَ أَوَّلَ شَىْءٍ لاَ تَشْرَبُوا الْخَمْرَ لَقَالُوا لاَ نَدَعُ الْخَمْرَ أَبَدًا وَلَوْ نَزَلَ لاَ تَزْنُوا لَقَالُوا لاَ نَدَعُ الزِّنَا أَبَدًا لَقَدْ نَزَلَ بِمَكَّةَ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ ﷺ وَإِنِّي لَجَارِيَةٌ أَلْعَبُ {بَلِ السَّاعَةُ مَوْعِدُهُمْ وَالسَّاعَةُ أَدْهَى وَأَمَرُّ} وَمَا نَزَلَتْ سُورَةُ الْبَقَرَةِ وَالنِّسَاءِ إِلاَّ وَأَنَا عِنْدَهُ قَالَ فَأَخْرَجَتْ لَهُ الْمُصْحَفَ فَأَمْلَتْ عَلَيْهِ آىَ السُّوَرِ  

Surat Bani-lsrael, Al-Kahf (The Cave), Maryam, Taha, Al-Anbiya' (The prophets) are amongst my first earnings and my old property, and (in fact) they are my old property.  

سَمِعْتُ ابْنَ مَسْعُودٍ يَقُولُ فِي بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَالْكَهْفِ وَمَرْيَمَ وَطَهَ وَالأَنْبِيَاءِ إِنَّهُنَّ مِنَ الْعِتَاقِ الأُوَلِ وَهُنَّ مِنْ تِلاَدِي  

I learnt, 'Glorify the Name of your Lord the Most High' (Surat al-A'la) No 87, before the Prophet ﷺ came (to Medina) .  

أَنْ يَقْدَمَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ  

ʿAbdullah said, "I learnt An-Naza'ir which the Prophet ﷺ used to recite in pairs in each rakʿa." Then ʿAbdullah got up and Alqama accompanied him to his house, and when Alqama came out, we asked him (about those Suras). He said, "They are twenty Suras that start from the beginning of Al- Mufassal, according to the arrangement done be Ibn Masʿud, and end with the Suras starting with Ha Mim, e.g. Ha Mim (the Smoke). and "About what they question one another?" (78.1)  

عَبْدُ اللَّهِ قَدْ عَلِمْتُ النَّظَائِرَ الَّتِي كَانَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ يَقْرَؤُهُنَّ اثْنَيْنِ اثْنَيْنِ فِي كُلِّ رَكْعَةٍ فَقَامَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ وَدَخَلَ مَعَهُ عَلْقَمَةُ وَخَرَجَ عَلْقَمَةُ فَسَأَلْنَاهُ فَقَالَ عِشْرُونَ سُورَةً مِنْ أَوَّلِ الْمُفَصَّلِ عَلَى تَأْلِيفِ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ آخِرُهُنَّ الْحَوَامِيمُ حم الدُّخَانُ وَعَمَّ يَتَسَاءَلُونَ