expect is that alteration has occurred, for it is possible to fail in the effort to find two witnesses on some [revelation] that was heard from the Prophet (peace be upon him and his progeny). Hence, there can be no certainty that omission did not occur.
The response [to this is as follows]. This erroneous view is based on [accepting] the soundness of the traditions that report the manner of collecting the Quran. So, the first task is to relate these traditions and follow them up with a critical evaluation.

Traditions about the Collection of the Quran

١. This tradition has been narrated by Zayd b. Thabit. He said:

Abu Bakr sent for me when the Muslims were slain in the battle of Yamama. [When I entered, I found] Umar b. al-Khattab with him. Abu Bakr said, "Umar came to me and said, Casualties were heavy among Quran reciters during the battle of Yamama, and I am afraid that heavier casualties might take place among the reciters in other battles, whereby much of the Quran would be lost. I am of the opinion that you should order the collection of the Quran [in book form]." I asked Umar, "How dare I do something the Messenger of God did not do? Umar replied, "This, by God, is a good thing [to do]." Umar kept urging me until God opened my chest for that and I came to view the matter as he did. Zayd said that Abu Bakr said [to him]: "You are a wise young man and we trust you. You used to record the revelation for the Messenger of God. So go and find [all the fragments of] the Quran and put them together."
By God, had they required me [Zayd] to move a mountain, it could not have been
heavier for me than their order to collect the Quran. So I said, "How dare I do some‌ thing that the Messenger of God did not do? Abu Bakr persisted in repeating his de‌ mand until God opened my chest for that, as He had done for Abu Bakr and Umar. Thereupon, I traced the Quran, collecting it from palm branches, flat stones, and the breasts of the people [who had memorized it], until I found the last part of "Surat al‌ Tawba" in the possession of Abu Khuzayma al-An an.
else-"There has come to you a messenger, [one] of yourselves, to whom aught that you are overburdened is grievous, full of concern for you; for the believers, full of pity, merciful. Now, if they tum away [٠ Mul).ammad], say, "God suffices me. There is no God save Him. In Him have I put my trust and He is Lord of the Tremendous Throne" (Q. ٩:١٢٨-١٢٩)-till the end of the sura. The scrolls ( ul,zuf)
Abu Bakr until he died, then with Umar till the end of his life, and then with J:laf a.
Umars daughter}

٢. Ibn Shihab [al-Zuhri] relates that Anas b. Malik told him:

Hudhayfa b. al-Yaman went before Uthman. He had recently led the people of Syria and Iraq in the conquest of Armenia and Azerbaijan. Hudhayfa was alarmed by the dispute between them over the reading [of the Quran]. Thus, Hudhayfa said to Uthman, "٠ Commander of the Faithful, save this community before it falls in dispute over the Book, as the Jews and the Christians [before them] have done." So Uthman sent [a message] to J:laf a:
can be copied into codices (ma a/;lij)
Uthman, who ordered Zayd b. Thabit, AbdAllah b. al-Zubayr, Sa١:d b. al-A.
Abd al-Ral).man b. al-J:Iarith b. Hisham to copy them into codices. [Then] Uthman
told the three Qurayshi men, "Whenever you disagree with Zayd b. Thabit on any point