Caution: Translations of Quran and Ḥadīth may lead to possible misapplications and misinterpretations. This site is intended for students of sacred knowledge that are proficient in comprehending classical Arabic and have a strong foundation in Islamic sciences. Also note that religious injunctions rely on several aspects beyond what one may glean through reading individual aḥādīth.
tirmidhi:2715ʿAlī b. Ḥujr > ʿAbd al-Raḥman b. Abū al-Zinād from his father > Khārijah b. Zayd b. Thābit > Abīh Zayd b. Thābit

"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered me to learn some statements from writings of the Jews for him, and he said: 'For indeed by Allah! I do no trust the Jews with my letters.'" He said: "Half a month did not pass before I learned it, when he ﷺ wanted to write to the Jews I would write it to them, and when they wrote to him I would read their letters to him."  

الترمذي:٢٧١٥حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُجْرٍ أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ خَارِجَةَ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ

أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ لَهُ كَلِمَاتِ كِتَابِ يَهُودَ قَالَ إِنِّي وَاللَّهِ مَا آمَنُ يَهُودَ عَلَى كِتَابٍ قَالَ فَمَا مَرَّ بِي نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ حَتَّى تَعَلَّمْتُهُ لَهُ قَالَ فَلَمَّا تَعَلَّمْتُهُ كَانَ إِذَا كَتَبَ إِلَى يَهُودَ كَتَبْتُ إِلَيْهِمْ وَإِذَا كَتَبُوا إِلَيْهِ قَرَأْتُ لَهُ كِتَابَهُمْ  

قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ وَقَدْ رُوِيَ مِنْ غَيْرِ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ عَنْ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ رَوَاهُ الأَعْمَشُ عَنْ ثَابِتِ بْنِ عُبَيْدٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ عَنْ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ السُّرْيَانِيَّةَ

See similar narrations below:

Collected by Abū Dāwūd, Ḥākim, Ṭabarānī, Bayhaqī
abudawud:3645Aḥmad b. Yūnus > Ibn Abū al-Zinād from his father > Khārijah / Ibn Zayd b. Thābit

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered me (to learn the writing of the Jews), so I learnt for him the writing of the Jews. He said: I swear by Allah, I do not trust Jews in respect of writing for me. So I learnt it, and only a fortnight passed before I mastered it. I would write for him when he wrote (to them), and read to him when something was written to him.  

أبو داود:٣٦٤٥حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ يُونُسَ حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ خَارِجَةَ يَعْنِي ابْنَ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ قَالَ

زَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَتَعَلَّمْتُ لَهُ كِتَابَ يَهُودَ وَقَالَ إِنِّي وَاللَّهِ مَا آمَنُ يَهُودَ عَلَى كِتَابِي فَتَعَلَّمْتُهُ فَلَمْ يَمُرَّ بِي إِلاَّ نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ حَتَّى حَذَقْتُهُ فَكُنْتُ أَكْتُبُ لَهُ إِذَا كَتَبَ وَأَقْرَأُ لَهُ إِذَا كُتِبَ إِلَيْهِ  

hakim:252Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad b. Ṣāliḥ b. Hāniʾ > Muḥammad b. ʿAmr al-Ḥurshī > Aḥmad b. ʿAbdullāh b. Yūnus > ʿAbd al-Raḥman b. Abū al-Zinād from his father > Khārijah b. Zayd b. Thābit

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered me (to learn the writing of the Jews), so I learnt for him the writing of the Jews. He said: I swear by Allah, I do not trust Jews in respect of writing for me. So I learnt it, and only a fortnight passed before I mastered it. I would write for him when he wrote (to them), and read to him when something was written to him. (Using translation from Abū Dāʾūd 3645)   

الحاكم:٢٥٢حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ صَالِحِ بْنِ هَانِئٍ ثنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَمْرٍو الْحُرشِيُّ ثنا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ يُونُسَ ثنا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ خَارِجَةَ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ قَالَ

زَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ فَتَعَلَّمْتُ لَهُ كِتَابَةَ الْيَهُودِ وَقَالَ «إِنِّي وَاللَّهِ مَا آمَنُ يَهُودَ عَلَى كِتَابِي» فَتَعَلَّمْتُهُ فَلَمْ يَمُرَّ بِي نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ حَتَّى حَذَقْتُهُ قَالَ «إِنِّي كُنْتُ أَكْتُبُ لَهُ إِذَا كَتَبَ وَأَقْرَأُ لَهُ إِذَا كُتِبَ إِلَيْهِ» «وَقَدِ اسْتَشْهَدَا جَمِيعًا بِعَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ وَ  

هَذَا حَدِيثٌ صَحِيحٌ وَلَا أَعْرِفُ فِي الرُّخْصَةِ لَتَعَلُّمِ كِتَابَةِ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ غَيْرَ هَذَا الْحَدِيثِ» هذا صحيح
tabarani:4857Muḥammad b. ʿAbdullāh al-Ḥaḍramī > Zakariyyā b. Yaḥyá Zaḥmūwayh > ʿAbd al-Raḥman b. Abū al-Zinād from his father > Khārijah b. Zayd b. Thābit from his father

[Machine] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered me to learn the book of the Jews, and within half a month, I had mastered it. Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "The Jews will never believe in my book." When I learned it, I used to write it for him.  

الطبراني:٤٨٥٧حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللهِ الْحَضْرَمِيُّ ثنا زَكَرِيَّا بْنُ يَحْيَى زَحْمُوَيْهِ ثنا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ خَارِجَةَ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ قَالَ

أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ كِتَابَ يَهُودَ فَلَمْ يَمُرَّ بِي نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ حَتَّى حَذَقْتُهُ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ «مَا آمَنُ يَهُودَ عَلَى كِتَابِي» فَلَمَّا تَعَلَّمْتُ كُنْتُ أَكْتُبُ لَهُ  

bayhaqi:20407[Chain 1] Abū ʿAbdullāh al-Ḥāfiẓ > Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad b. Ṣāliḥ b. Hāniʾ > Muḥammad b. ʿAmr al-Ḥurshī > Aḥmad b. ʿAbdullāh b. Yūnus > ʿAbd al-Raḥman b. Abū al-Zinād [Chain 2] Abū ʿAlī al-Rūdhbārī > Muḥammad b. Bakr Abū Bakr > Abū Dāwud > Aḥmad b. Yūnus > Ibn Abū al-Zinād from his father > Khārijah b. Zayd b. Thābit

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered me (to learn the writing of the Jews), so I learnt for him the writing of the Jews. He said: I swear by Allah, I do not trust Jews in respect of writing for me. So I learnt it, and only a fortnight passed before I mastered it. I would write for him when he wrote (to them), and read to him when something was written to him. (Using translation from Abū Dāʾūd 3645)   

البيهقي:٢٠٤٠٧وَأَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو عَبْدِ اللهِ الْحَافِظُ ثنا أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ صَالِحِ بْنِ هَانِئٍ ثنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَمْرٍو الْحُرشِيُّ ثنا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللهِ بْنِ يُونُسَ ثنا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ ح وَأَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو عَلِيٍّ الرُّوذْبَارِيُّ أنبأ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَكْرٍ أَبُو بَكْرٍ ثنا أَبُو دَاوُدَ ثنا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ يُونُسَ ثنا ابْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ خَارِجَةَ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ

قَالَ زَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ فَتَعَلَّمْتُ لَهُ كِتَابَ يَهُودَ وَقَالَ إِنِّي وَاللهِ مَا آمَنُ يَهُودَ عَلَى كِتَابِي فَتَعَلَّمْتُهُ فَلَمْ يَمُرَّ بِي نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ وَقَالَ أَبُو دَاوُدَ إِلَّا نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ حَتَّى حَذَقْتُهُ قَالَ أَبِي فَكُنْتُ أَكْتُبُ لَهُ إِذَا كَتَبَ وَأَقْرَأُ لَهُ إِذَا كُتِبَ إِلَيْهِ