´It was narrated that Ibn ‘Abbas said:` “The Prophet (ﷺ) used to perform four Rak’ah before Friday (prayer), and he did not separate any of them.”
Explanation & Benefits
Maulana Ataullah Sajid
Benefits and Issues:
➊ The mentioned narration is, in terms of its chain, fabricated (mawdu‘).
There is no specification of the number of rak‘ahs before Jumu‘ah from any authentic hadith, neither from the Prophet’s (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) statement nor from his action. Rather, when the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) would ascend the pulpit (minbar), the adhan would begin, and after the adhan, he would immediately start the sermon (khutbah) without any interval.
And this was an openly observed matter. ‘Allamah ‘Iraqi states that in no authentic hadith is it transmitted from the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) that he performed a prayer consisting of a specified number of rak‘ahs before Jumu‘ah.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah rahimahullah, Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah, and other verifying scholars of the Ahl al-Hadith have concluded that there is no established sunnah or nafl (supererogatory) prayer in a specified number before Jumu‘ah.
However, whoever arrives at the mosque before the imam begins the sermon may perform as many sunnah and nafl prayers as he wishes, without specification.
And as soon as the imam begins the sermon, he should stop performing nafl prayers.
For details, see: (Fatawa Ibn Taymiyyah: 24/188, 200 and Zad al-Ma‘ad: 1/432, 440)
Source: Commentary on Sunan Ibn Mājah by Mawlānā ‘Atā’ullāh Sājid, Page: 1129